Salvation.AS WELL AS SEEMING PROFOUNDLY RIGHT, a revelation of the meaning of life, joy also comes as absolute gift. It cannot be won or deserved. Da Fabriano's Saint Nicholas swoops down on the desperate sailors, most of whom have not even seen him yet. The sails have split and the sailors are furiously jettisoning their cargo, unaware that salvation is miraculously at hand. We are shown the moment before joy, the precise instant when despair and horror will be transformed into the wonder of their rescue. It is unforeseen, a gift. Out of the blue--literally--joy comes exultantly ex·ul·tant adj. Marked by great joy or jubilation; triumphant. ex·ul  tant·ly adv.Adv. 1. upon them. Joy establishes us so securely in itself, and in the remembrance of its presence, that we can cope with whatever life has to throw at us. By SISTER WENDY BECKETT Sister Wendy Beckett (born February 25 1930) is a South African-born British art expert, consecrated virgin and contemplative hermit who became an unlikely celebrity during the 1990s, presenting a series of acclaimed art history documentaries for the BBC. of Norfolk, England, well-known for her BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. and PBS PBS in full Public Broadcasting Service Private, nonprofit U.S. corporation of public television stations. PBS provides its member stations, which are supported by public funds and private contributions rather than by commercials, with educational, cultural, television art series and her popular art books. Reprinted with permission from: Sister Wendy's Book of Meditations (DK Publishing, 1998; 877-342-5357). Painting: Saint Nicholas Saves a Ship From the Storm, by Gentile da Fabriano Gentile da Fabriano (dä fäbrēä`nō jāntē`lā), c.1370–1427, Italian painter, one of the outstanding exponents of the elegant international Gothic style. (e. 1425, Vatican Museums). |
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