Exodus 14.19-31: God and Nations

Moses stands with the people on the edge of the water. The angel and the pillar of cloud have moved from in front of the people to behind them - between the people and the army of Pharaoh. What happens next shows the power of God, even in the face of a powerful nation. It's the reading from Hebrew scripture for Proper 19(24)/Pentecost 15A (Exodus 14:19-31, with the alternate reading being Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21). The alternate reading follows the actions of the Hebrew reading and are the focus of this essay.

The texts are at a moment in Israel's history when they are a nation without land. While they lived in Egypt they were loyal to the pharaoh, but as times changed and leaders changed and their status in the land changed, they realized that the nation of Egypt would not provide for them. When God leads them to freedom, they are meant to understand that God provides in ways that an earthly kingdom cannot.

So it's a little ironic that this story of God's people untangling from an earthly nation gets retangled centuries later. The manuscript illustrations shown here are from an eleventh-century Byzantine manuscript. In the illustration, Miriam and the women dance in a circle around eight musicians.

You may have to look twice to see the outer circle as people. The circle looks like an abstract pattern on first glance. Each of the knob-like shapes on the outside of the circle is actually the hat of one of the women. Further abstract shapes (in gold) are created as the ground between each figure and the sleeves of their garments.

The long sleeves are one of the signs that God's people have become entangled again with an earthly government. Byzantine people believed that the emperor was given his power by God and represented God on earth. The emperor's court, then, was the earthly image of God's heavenly court. The women in the circle here are shown in the style of court dress in the late eleventh century. Here the elite dance in a circle.
In other eleventh-century Byzantine manuscripts, this same exaggerated court sleeve is worn by David as he dances before the ark.

The stories of Miriam's dance and David's dance are often intermingled. Here there are musicians who are not mentioned in the Exodus text but are identified in the story of the ark coming to Jerusalem (I Chronicles 13-15). The artist has provided more details for Miriam and her company of dancers than the writer of scripture did.

How do we consider this illustration? One way is to understand that women throughout history have metaphorically and actually danced their joy when God's plan saves. They have worn the clothes of their day, circled up and danced with each other to celebrate and acknowledge what God has done. This happens to be an illustration from Constantinople in the eleventh century.

A second way to look at this is that once again, humanity has tangled itself up in conflating their government as God's government. The Israelites were not to put their trust in Egypt (no matter how much they missed the food). They were to understand that as God's people they followed God, relied on God, trusted God, looked to God. They were not to put their trust in earthly powers, even (especially?) their own. But they have, no doubt encouraged to do so by the Emperor.

The Byzantine Empire, like the kingdom of Egypt, like all earthly governments, will one day come to an end. But the dance of God goes on.

(Top) Miriam Dancing. 1059. Written in Constantinople. Vatican Graeci 752; folio 449v. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticani.  http://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Vat.gr.752.pt.2
(Bottom) The Most Eminent Ladies of the Court, Tenth and Eleventh Century. Plate 17 from By the Emperor's Hand: Military Dress and Court Regalia in the Later Romano-Byzantine Empire by Timothy Dawson and Graham Sumner. 2016.
For thoughts on the Gospel reading for this Sunday (Matthew 18:21-35), click here.

This week on Art&Faith Matters on Facebook: the parable of the unmerciful servant. Click on the link below.

2 Samuel 6.1-19: Except Everyone is Watching

David sounds graceful in the lectionary reading for Proper 10B/Ordinary 15B/Pentecost 7 (2 Samuel 6:1-19). He dances before the Lord with all his might. But a quick image search of "David dance ark" reveals that there might have been a whole lotta awkward going on.

 These Davids are no Misty Copeland.

But I suspect that both David and Misty Copeland understand what dance legend Martha Graham is credited with saying, "Great dancers aren't great because of their technique. They are great because of their passion." That certainly does not downplay the tremendous dedication to study and technique required of Copeland and all professional dancers. Instead it understands that technique is not enough. There must be passion, determination, drive, desire. It is in the additional ingredients that lies the difference between stellar technique and the ability to soar.

Motivational posters tell us to "Dance like no one is watching". But everyone was watching David, and someone is watching us. That someone is God. Who understands that Misty Copeland helps us experience things that we cannot do for ourselves. God does not expect each of us to dance like Misty Copeland (thank goodness!), but God does want us to dance in whatever awkward way we might dance. We might be better helped this week by abstract images and images implying movement that might cover up those awkward stop-action moments for many of us.

Photographer Shinichi Maruyama created time-lapse photographs of dancers that captures the movement, and perhaps a bit of how it feels to dance, remembering that it only matters that God is watching. So dance with all your might before the Lord.

For additional images in this series, see: http://www.shinichimaruyama.com/

A thought-provoking change of setting for the story of David's dance. Click on the Art&Faith Matters Facebook link here to see what this is. 

For thoughts on Mark 6:14-29, click here.