Contemplative Vision – A Guide to Christian Art and Prayer

While working as a docent in an art gallery, Juliet Benner began showing people how to meditate on Christian art treasures that are rooted in a passage of Scripture. She taught a way of encountering the Word behind both the words of Scripture and the artist's meditation on Scripture. This became a way of seeing art as an aid to contemplative prayer. This process resulted in her much-beloved "O Taste and See" columns that appeared in the spiritual formation journal Conversations, now expanded into this book. In each chapter you'll encounter a passage of Scripture and a corresponding piece of art. You'll be guided into deeper levels of meaning and reflection through the text and the questions at the end of each chapter. In the process you'll find yourself entering into a new experience of prayer and meditation in God's presence.

Table of Contents:

Acknowledgements
Introduction: Christian Art and Transformation

Part One: Transformed Awareness
1 Awakening
Bruegel the Elder, Census at Bethlehem
2 Coming Aside
Moretto da Brescia, Christ in the Wilderness
3 Gazing in Stillness
Johannes Vermeer, Jesus in the House of Mary and Martha
4 Attuned to God?s Presence
Jean-François Millet, The Angelus

Part Two: Transformed Vision
5 Called to See
Nicolas Poussin, The Adoration of the Shepherds
6 Immanuel, God with Us
Rembrandt, Christ in the Storm on the Lake of Galilee
7 Seeing and Believing
Caravaggio, The Incredulity of St. Thomas
8 Recognizing Christ
Caravaggio, The Supper at Emmaus

Part Three: Transformed Living
9 The Way of the Cross
Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, Procession to Calvary
10 Called to Follow
Caravaggio, The Call of St. Matthew
11 Seeing Christ in Others
He Qi, The Visitation
12 Bearing Christ
Rubens, Descent from the Cross
13 Seeing and Serving
Luca Giordano, The Good Samaritan

Epilogue: Transforming Vision
Appendix 1: Suggestions for Group Discussion Leaders
Appendix 2: Suggestions for Use in Spiritual Direction
Notes
Image credits

Juliet Benner is an international retreat and workshop leader who speaks frequently in Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. She is a trained spiritual director and has served as a consultant in art and spirituality at the Carey Centre on the campus of the University of British Columbia (Vancouver). She lives in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, with her husband, David, who shares her passion for hiking, nature, art and music.