Matthew 11:25-30 | Joseph Wright of Derby | You have hidden these things from the wise

Matthew 11:25-30   You have hidden these things from the wise

A Philosopher Lecturing on the Orrery, Painted by Joseph Wright of Derby (1734–1797), Painted in 1766, Oil on canvas © Derby Museum of Art, Derby, England Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.’   READ MORE     Reflection on the Illuminated Manuscript The reading today is one that has often somewhat puzzled me. Jesus prays to His father and says: ‘I bless you, Father, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children’. At first glance we may think that Jesus is thanking His Father because he hid the Gospel from the wise and intelligent, but revealed it instead to uneducated fishermen like Peter. Does this therefore mean that it is wrong to be intellectual? Does this mean that God does not care for the educated? Of course not. But the problem lays within the attitude we can sometimes display towards the Gospels. Having an overly intellectual or scientific approach to the Christian faith would lead to the danger of for example wanting to prove the existence of God using scientific methods. Or such an approach could trivialise God’s greatest miracles and fail to see the divine nature in them. But science can be used only to explore creation. It cannot explore the Creator. So Jesus presents us with the need for us to have a childlike faith. This isn’t a childish faith, but a childlike faith. A child is completely dependent on adults for safety, love, nurturing, education and knowledge. Similarly, a faithful person depends on God in a way that is absolutely dependent. The painting by Joseph Wright of Derby was painted in 1766, in the midst of the Age of Enlightenment, when science took centre stage and was widely celebrated. It is then that in a way our 21st Century phenomenon of Scientism (excessive belief in the power of scientific knowledge to provide the only genuine knowledge of reality) started. The painting shows a philosopher giving a lecture on the Orrery in which a lamp is put symbolising the Sun, and explaining how the Planets revolve around the sun. Wright's depiction of the wonder produced by scientific research, marked a break with previous painting traditions in which the artistic depiction of such wonder was reserved mainly for religious events. It is a very striking painting though. The single light-source is masterfully lighting the faces. To Wright, the marvels of the scientific age were as awe-inspiring as the subjects of the great religious paintings… But Scripture cannot be approached just with the mind. The word of God also speaks to the heart and only then fully comes to life! by Patrick van der Vorst