Seeing God in a Tree
June 9, 2007
Usually, when people see faces in clouds, mildew, and grilled cheese sandwiches, they see the face of Jesus or Mary. Recently in Chicago, however, some people have found the visage of a former mayor set in tree bark.
Except, of course, for one stalwart woman:
“I see Jesus,” said Cathy Sansone, the membership director at the health club who says any resemblance to the late mayor is simply the “power of suggestion.”
Now personally, I’ve always been pretty contemptuous of these sorts of claims. Why would God make the effort to create an icon of the crucifixion in a bag of cheetohs and yet not make the effort to stop the violence in Darfur?
Recently, however, I’ve started questioning my cynicism. Even if God did not create these images, that doesn’t mean that people can’t see and experience God through these images. If my worldview allows for someone to experience God through a eucharistic worship service, through the first letter of Timothy, through a piece of art, or through a particularly magnificent sunrise, then why can’t I accept someone experiencing God through a vaguely face-shaped bit of water damage?
The church spends so much of its time trying to distance itself from the supernatural, sometimes we forget about awe and wonder. We’re so concerned about making Christian theology compatible with modernity that we forget that contemporary culture has already moved passed modernity. When so many of my fellow New Yorkers are seeking God in mystical pursuits like Sahaja meditation, yoga, alternative medicine, and therapy, perhaps we should spend less time demythologizing the church and more time affirming that God can be revealed in anything God choses, even a grilled cheese sandwich.