Grace
Nearly 20 years ago, I began work on my dissertation for my doctorate in the Arts & Spirituality. In case you’re a John Wesley fan, the official title was something like How the Three Marys Can Help United Methodists Better Understand John Wesley’s Way of Salvation (Prevenient, Justifying, and Sanctifying Grace). In my dissertation, I compared John Wesley’s theology of Prevenient Grace to Mary of Nazareth (Jesus’ mother), his Justifying Grace to Mary of Magdala (Mary Magdalene), and his Sanctifying Grace to Mary of Bethany (Martha’s sister). Later, I created this little summation found below which a much shorter title, Grace. Again, for John Wesley fans, I renamed Prevenient Grace as Illuminating Grace, Justifying Grace as Releasing Grace, and Sanctifying Grace as Enticing Grace.
A short word about the artwork. Some of the artwork is quite basic (the Mary of Nazareth depiction in particular), but at the time of this writing I was very new to creating art. I hope you’ll look beyond the skill to the intention. Also, Substack has made a change, and I can’t seem to resize the images as I have done in previous posts.
Grace was in all her steps,
Heaven in her Eye,
In every gesture dignity and love.
John Milton (1608-74)
THE GIFT OF GRACE
When I was three years old, I wanted a tricycle, so I asked my grandparents to get me a tricycle. I had reason to expect that they would give me a tricycle - I was spoiled rotten - but it never occurred to me that when they drove up to my house, opened the trunk of their car, and brought out my new tricycle, that it would be the biggest and most beautiful tricycle I had ever seen. I wanted a tricycle so badly but what I received was so much more than the average tricycle. It was a tricycle beyond my wildest dreams. It was such a significant gift that to this day, I still remember exactly how I felt when I saw it.
Grace is like that tricycle. We hope for a tricycle, but somehow we end up with a tricycle to end all tricycles. It is a gift that the Holy One freely gives us with great delight. We don’t have to do something or be some particular something to earn grace. We don’t have to be qualified, pass a test, or be “good” in order to receive grace. We don’t even have to deserve it.
We live busy, complex, information-laden lives, and many of us have lost the ability to see grace, to dream of it and nurture it, to rest in it. We are so caught up in maintaining our day-to-day busyness that we don’t stop to recognize that sometimes, for no apparent reason, we receive grace. We ask for a tricycle only to receive the best tricycle in the entire neighborhood.
THE THREE TYPES OF GRACE
There are three types of grace which help us look for and find grace in our daily lives: Illuminating, Releasing, and Enticing Grace.
Illuminating Grace is grace that is with us at all times. It is grace that goes before all we experience in life to prepare the way for us. This is the type of grace we often see when we look back. We revisit the past and see that somehow, even in our darkest moments, grace came to us, lighting our path and showing us the next step to take. Illuminating Grace, like all grace, is a gift from the Holy One, but Illuminating Grace is a gift in the purest sene of the word. It is there whether we ask for it or not, whether we know we need it or not. Illuminating Grace simply “is.”
Releasing Grace is grace that forgives us and releases us from our past mistakes so we are free to live in wholeness and well-being. This is the type of grace we are most familiar with, and it is a gift that we consciously seek. When we realize we’ve done something wrong, and we ask the Holy One to forgive us, we feel released from the mistake we’ve made and are better able to pick up and go on with our lives. We are no longer defined by the past, and that freedom releases us to go into the future, assured that who we are is exactly what we need to be.
Enticing Grace is grace that encourages us to live better lives and to love others more fully. Once we are released from our past and go forward as the persons we are meant to be, Enticing Grace calls us to make a difference in the lives around us and in our world. Enticing Grace lends urgency to our passions and calls us to action. Suddenly, the relationships in our lives that were zapping our energy don’t seem to warrant our attention as much any more. Likewise, relationships we’ve overlooked - those that appear on our path each day - sometimes take on a meaning and vibrancy of their own. As we begin to connect with others who are drawn to us based on who we really are, we begin to see connections that can shape our lives together, our communities, and our world. Enticing Grace is a gift, but this gift is one we are not only aware of but that we choose to practice. It takes commitment to practice grace, and we are not always successful. But if we stay true to our commitment, ultimately we will live lives full of grace that brings grace to others.
THE THREE MARYS
There are three women who emplify the three types of grace. These three women are found in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, and they are: Mary of Nazareth, the woman who was Jesus’ mother; Mary of Magdala, the woman who was Jesus’ companion; and Mary of Bethany, the woman who was Jesus’ friend.
Mary of Nazareth: The Spirit of Illuminating Grace (Luke 1:26-38)
Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a model of Illuminating Grace. Illuminating Grace is grace that goes before - before we know we need it, before we ask for it. It’s a powerful gift from the Holy One that prepares our way for us in the world. It is grace that invites us to enter into relationship with the spiritual and participate fully in the Holy One’s plan for our lives. Even if we turn away from our desire to deepen our spiritual lives, Illuminating Grace is always there.
Mary of Nazareth, Jesus’s mother, represents Illuminating Grace because she “went before.” The Holy One asked her to be the vessel to bring Jesus into the world, and she agreed (Mary’s Song, Luke 1:46-55). Through this intervention in her life, she was able to create a powerful change in the history of the world.
I imagine Mary of Nazareth as a woman who is completely at ease with herself. She is a powerful woman, and the planets and stars swirl around her, ready to do her bidding. Each of the three Marys is connected to the water, and Mary of Nazareth stands in the sea which represents the waters of birth. She holds a scallop shell in her left hand, the shell that is sometimes used to pour on the waters of baptism. This shows her role in bringing new life to humanity through her son Jesus. She holds a butterfly in her right hand, one of the symbols of Jesus’ resurrection. This shows her role as a conqueror of death. Mary of Nazareth brings life to everyone and everything. Without her, we would be lost in darkness.
Mary of Magdala: The Spirit of Releasing Grace (Luke 8:1-3)
Mary of Magdala, or Mary Magdalene, represents Releasing Grace, the grace that forgives. It is a powerful gift from the Holy One that allows us to repent of our mistakes and shortcomings and then move on from the past into the future. We do not have to continue to feel in guilty or worry about how we’ve fallen short. Once we ask forgiveness of the Holy One, we know that we are released. We are forgiven, and we can start anew.
From the story we have of Mary of Magdala, we know that she was a woman on her own, away from home, and with some means of financial stability. She met Jesus, and he immediately connected with her, casting our seven demons which had been tormenting her soul. In ancient times, mental illness and epilepsy were described as demonic possession. Perhaps Mary of Magdala’s demons were not unlike our moder-day demons of depression, anxiety, issues with body image, panic attacks, migraines, chronic fatigue, or other persistent diseases. Whatever Mary was haunted by and afflicted with, Jesus released her from it, and she became his closest follower and friend. In fact, the resurrected Jesus appeared first to Mary of Magdala (John 20:10-18).
Through this intervention in her life, Mary of Magdala was able to change her life and find purpose. She became one of the first evangelists, an active apostle and disciple in Jesus’ ministry. I envision Mary of Magdala sitting by the sea, grieving after Jesus’ crucifixion. Though in despair, she holds in her hand a bunch of Easter Lilies which foretell the resurrection to come. A sand dollar is pinned to her blouse because legend has it that Jesus left the sand dollar to help the evangelists teach the faith. According to the legend, the five holes in the sand dollar symbolize Jesus’s wounds at crucifixion. At the center on one side is the Easter Lily, and at the lily’s heart we find the Star of Bethlehem. On the other side is the Christmas poinsettia, a reminder of Jesus’ birth. The legend goes on to suggest that if you break the center of the sand dollar, five white doves will be released to spread grace and peace.
Mary of Bethany: The Spirit of Enticing Grace (Luke 10:38-42)
Mary of Bethany, Martha’s sister, represents Enticing Grace. Enticing Grace is grace that moves us and urges us to lead holy lives. It is a powerful gift from the Holy One that constantly calls us to do better in the way we live our lives and in our relationships with one another. Enticing Grace reminds us that we are always on our spiritual journeys, seeking ways to offer our best selves to the world.
In the story of Mary of Bethany, we learn a powerful lesson about the importance of sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to what he has to say to us. In our busy lives, we seldom take time to be quiet, but Mary of Bethany reminds us that the simple things are the most important.
As I see her, Mary of Bethany is an adolescent girl with Down Syndrome (DS). Those who have DS are known to have a great capacity for unconditional love. It is the purity of Mary’s heart that causes her to look at Jesus and see what is important. There is a starfish in Mary of Bethany’s hair. This recalls the story of the man who was throwing starfish back into the sea. He was told he couldn’t save all of the starfish and that his efforts wouldn’t make any difference. As he threw the next starfish back into the sea, he said, “It made a difference to that one.” The starfish is the symbol of Mary of Bethany as someone who might have been forgotten by society but who was remembered and favored by Jesus and made a deep connection with him.
ILLUMINATING, RELEASING, and ENTICING GRACE
The Holy one who illuminates our path, releases us to be who we truly are, and entices us to make a difference in the world, is the one who gives us the gift of grace. Being aware of this grace in our lives makes us stronger and more loving in the good times and comforts us in the difficult times. The Holy One’s gift of grace is always with us. We are never alone. My hope for you and for all of us is that we come to recognize and respond to the activity of grace in our lives.