Sunday, March 17, 2013

Our Lord Jesus Christ is King, He is robed in Majesty

In the litany to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, we pray this magnificent invocation: Heart of Jesus of infinite majesty, have mercy on us.

Saint Augustine said: “Where humility is, so also is majesty” (ubi humilitas, ibi maiestas – Sermon 14).

In other words, the two virtues of humility and majesty are inseparable.

File:Amiens Portail Christ.jpg

(Statue of Our Lord Jesus Christ outside the Cathedral of Amiens, France.)

From this phrase of Saint Augustine it that follows that because the Heart of Jesus is an abyss of humility it is also a firmament of  majesty.

How wonderful it would be if an artist would make a statue of Our Lord that expressed more than just His humility alone or His majesty alone, but both of these virtues at the same time.

In other words, to make a statue of Our Lord in which we could see, in an instant, by a single glance, the aspect that majesty shares with humility and vice versa.  

If a statue could be made in this manner, it would express that superior sphere of virtue where the two virtues of humility and majesty meet and merge themselves into one and the same virtue

The statue of Our Lord from Amiens

My favorite statue of Our Lord is the “Beau Dieu d'Amiens,”  from the portal of the Cathedral of Amiens, France. 

It expresses the humility and majesty of Our Lord.  It is not a statue of the Sacred Heart.

It shows a most dignified king, a most noble teacher, serene, meek, and completely in control of Himself.  If someone were to insult Him in the worst way, He would be able to receive it and maintain the most perfect calm and serenity, as long as this was the proper virtue to practice at that moment.  He would not react out of injured self love.

I think this statue, the “Beau Dieu d'Amiens”, is the finest expression of the merging of the virtues of high majesty and total humility.

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