For many, Christ is imprisoned in the material forms that have been made of him. Diverse forms of anthropomorphic images; crude forms, like all matter, in spite of the artistic elevation they sometimes reach. Ricardo Rojas, the great South American mystic, strives to unearth the authentic portrait of the Master from among the stupendous variety of Christian iconography. But his fine intuition declares it to be impossible. Therefore, certain that the human likeness of Jesus cannot be restored in any of his images, he frees Christ from form and exalts him in spirit. But for the credulous masses, Jesus remains trapped in the immobile and solitary prison of the form, as long as the material of which the image is made endures.
Others hold Jesus captive within the rigorous prison of time. For them, Jesus is only a historical figure. A man named Jesus, they say, a native of Palestine, lived, preached, and died two thousand years ago, and remains locked inside a prison known as the years 4 BC to AD 30. He can only be present today as a mere memory or pious tradition.
Read Full Article »