(55) Canterbury Pantocrator

Talking about a window at Canterbury Cathedral,
"For it is there in the centre and from it the window
still continues upward. First, the ascension, then
Pentecost, until the final panel shows Christ in
majesty, the pantocrator, seated on an orb, his right
hand upheld in blessing. *Solus ab eterno creo, cuneta
creata guberno.* Alone from eternity I create all things
and govern creation. Christ dominates the window as
he dominates the Rule.

"For the first offices of the day the light of the rising sun
would come streaming through that window. While this
for us today may be an aesthetic experience, for the
medieval onlooker it was much more. Of all the created
things which to them presented the image of the creator
in varying degrees, light was the most direct manifestation
of God. So not only did they stand daily in the presence
of a dramatic portrayal of the paschal mystery; they also
lived with the vision of the divine light transfiguring the
darkness of matter."
[Esther de Waal, SEEKING GOD: THE WAY OF BENEDICT,
Liturgical Press, 1984, p.80.]

Comment: At the time of this publication, Esther de Waal
lived at Canterbury. She was the wife of the Dean of the
Cathedral.

I was struck by her noting that the "first offices of the
day" were enveloped by the light of this window and the
great Pantocrator--the Lord of the Universe, the Cosmic
Christ.

Not privy to our modern day technology and our current
understanding of Cosmology, I have to wonder how the
Benedictine monks at medieval Canterbury must have
pondered over the universe, their universe?

The world-view back then was far different, set pretty
much in concrete by the Church. It was a layered universe,
with the Earth at its center. It was a fairly complicated
world-view that strangely supported the Church. Alas,
when this world-view tumbled--after scientists were
condemned--some executed--we now have our solar
system, Earth along with its other planets whirling around
our little sun, one of billions in our galaxy, which is one
of millions in our universe.

So, where's the Pantocrator in all this? Big question, with
only a few modern takers trying to work through unto an
answer. But if we wish to continue the Benedictine quest
"seeking God," I imagine we might as well get started.
However, it might mean exercising our creativity in ways
unimagined.