An eminent feature of Medieval Christian Art is its brightness, often highlighted by the use of gold leaves in paintings and statues, or of stained glasses in the churches which transform the environment with as the sunlight comes through them. What’s the reason for this aesthetic, which we could refer to as an aesthetic of light? The reason is that God is light, and only what has light can be beautiful, because it’s more similar to Him; and, the more light it has, the more beautiful it is. The light of the artwork allows it to transcend its intrinsic material nature and acquire a supernatural content.
The aesthetic of light is rooted in the theology of light. The Bible grants great importance to light and the references about it appear all over the place already in the Old Testament, and even more in the New Testament. Here we’re going to bring up just some examples, which allow us to understand the general meaning of all the statements regarding this subject.
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Even when we’re going through a dark night, we must know we aren’t walking in the dark, but God is illuminating us in a mysterious way, so in the end the brightness will be greater and shinier than ever.
Light also means exposure, and that can even be scary. Eating disorders are illnesses of darkness, we don’t want our deeds to come to light, but move through filthy cesspits.
Therefore, our light ceases to shine, because if others were to see our deeds, they wouldn’t enlighten them, they wouldn’t point them to the way of Light, but open their eyes to an abyss of darkness.
Let the Lord penetrate into your life with a ray of light, which will illuminate all the darkness, even if that makes you feel ashamed, and finally destroy it with its brightness and ignite our hearts in the fire of His love.
