Fr Ben Garren

Dear Siblings in Christ,

There are various attempts out there to create a Graphic Novel of the Bible. Some of them do not take themselves very seriously, The Lego Bible, while others, The Action Bible, seek to be quite serious. As a general rule these attempts are not taken seriously by many of us in the church. They are dismissed as gimmicks made for a population of people who do not take reading seriously. This claim is made despite the fact that comic books and graphic novels are consistently written at a higher reading level than most adult fiction. We tend to have an issue with picture books.

As we celebrate the Feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist today it is good to remember that the stories the early church crafted about this saint… had him writing a picture book version of the Gospel. The extent of these illustration varies, from the first set of icons depicting key characters of the bible to the first illuminated manuscript, but both iconographers and illuminators considered him a patron. These legends tie into the idea of Luke as a physician who realized that just as there was a need for diagrams in a medical textbook there is a need for us to have illuminations and icons in our life of prayer, study, and contemplation of holy scripture.

As we celebrate Saint Luke’s feast today, as we live out our life of prayer together in the octave of his feast over the next week, make a special point to dwell with the Graphic Novel versions of Scripture that are around us. Icons and images that you may have collected, the steeples and windows of churches in your neighborhood, the art fostered throughout the campus of Saint Philip’s for this very reason. We should be incorporating such into our prayer life at all times, but the next week is a wonderful time to invest into this work of Christian discipline.

Our lives of prayer, our work with scripture, should be illuminated. All of our senses should be included in our life of faith. Let us ask Saint Luke to assist our prayers not just with the written word but in the reflection and creation of art. 

Pax,

—Ben