The Salt of the Earth
“We impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.”
Steve Prince’s lithograph The Salt of the Earth (2018) is eponymous for this week’s Gospel lesson. It depicts the “Greensboro Four” Ezell Blair Jr, David Richmond, Franklin McCain, and Joseph McNeil as peaceful warriors, wearing gladitorial helmets and a badge identifying them as “AOG”—Agent of God. They are reviled and persecuted — assailed by the the angry figure in the front of the frame, almost indistinguishable from the four besides his expression, and the cross on his hat, rotated into an ‘X’ — but they remain steadfast and do not retaliate, like Christ, whom they image and imitate.
The incident depicted — a catalyzing incident of peaceful resistance in the Civil Rights movement — took place at a Woolworth’s lunch counter. But all that is visible of the name of the store is the word “WORTH”: and salt and pepper form the line of scrimmage. The Holy Spirit, symbolized by a dove, is resting on the counter. Several mini-tombstones surround him, bearing inscriptions like “Love,” “Free,” “Truth” — characteristics associated with the Spirit, and also ones for which African Americans activist fought and died. You’ll notice that the cross-topped “tombstone” bears a chi (X) for Christ. They are arranged — almost as pieces on a chess board: the density of symbolism itself symbolizing the complexity of politics surrounding the incident … even as the imaging of Christ is clear.
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid?
— Psalm 27:1
Fifth Sunday of Epiphany
Texts for this Week
Prayer
O Lord, our heavenly Father, keep your household the Church continually in your true religion, that we who trust in the hope of your heavenly grace may always be defended by your mighty power; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever.
Let the Lower Lights be Burning
Husband and wife duo Scott & Ryceejo produce a wide variety of “family-friendly” music for YouTube and other contemporary media, much of it a capella mash ups; a lot of Disney music. Here, they perform a simple arrangement of this 19th C hymn by the “singing evangelist,” Phillip Bliss. As popular as he was during the Second Great Awakening, I don’t know that we sing a lot of Bliss today: skimming through the list of his attributions on hymnary.org, most of the texts look unfamiliar, although it seems that he is performed in an impressive number of translations.
This song in particular — “Brightly Beams” or “Let the Lower Lights be Burning” — seems to have survived mostly among the Mormon community — if I am to judge by what covers are available on YouTube, and the context in which I was originally introduced by the song — although there is no particular reason that this ought to be the case.
