The above engraving, entitled "Disenfectation" (L. Isore, 1885), shows a priest fleeing from the Pantheon in Paris, being replaced by Victor Hugo holding a banner "Liberte". The caption is "Ignorance gives way to genius." In 1885, with the funeral of Victor Hugo, the Pantheon was finally converted from a church to a secular "temple" and burial place for leading French citizens. The cartoon title is a play on the words "disenfection" and "desaffectation" (abandonment). I scanned it from a tourist booklet The Pantheon: Temple of the Nation.
I am planning on using the cartoon in a talk I am giving next week to a student group Groupes Bibliques Universitaires (GBU) in Strasbourg. One issue I will explore, using Jesus teaching "The truth will set you free" in John 8, is how God's grace is needed to set us free from religion and the associated self-righteousness. The torment associated with not receiving grace is nicely illustrated by the policeman Javert in the musical version of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.
No comments:
Post a Comment