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January 7, 2008
Oculus dei
Oculus Dei means “Eye of God.” If I am able, I hope to use my photography to help me, and others, see the world the way God sees it. I hope to be an advocate of the poor, the orphaned, the abused and neglected, those displaced by war and famine and other tragedies. Our Western eyes are often quite capable of scanning over scenes like the ones described above, but if we were to see the world through God’s eyes, then perhaps we would not overlook those in the nooks and crannies.
But, the oculus dei is also a technical term from architecture. In ancient cathedrals and other structures, the walls needed to be solid enough to support the weight of the roof or dome. This didn’t leave much room for windows, so to provide light, an opening was left in the ceiling. This Eye of God provided illumination for the worshipers below. It is my hope that my photography will serve in such a way: illuminating, shining light on those we might be able to over look, or who are invisible to us, because they are living in the shadows of our world.
I wrote about Matthew five years ago. Matthew is one of my many, many cousins. He also has Down Syndrome. I have heard people describe how some cultures view individuals with Down Syndrome as being a divine miracle, having vast spiritual insight, being revered by the entire community.
This weekend one of my other many cousins got married. I spent a good portion of the evening sitting back and watching their friends on the dance floor. But then there was Matthew, dancing with the rest of them, joyfully happy to be part of the crowd.
This evening I received a phone call from my father. Matthew is in the hospital with sepsis and pneumonia. The doctors say it does not look good; prayer might be the only option at this point. I found it hard to believe that the same person I Saturday night had taken such a drastic change in less than forty-eight hours.
I am left with possibly saying goodbye to the only person who may have been able to see God so perfectly.
Comments
:: Posted by caro (January 8, 2008 6:59 AM)
Thanks for your prayers. I later found out they had needed to resuscitate him at one point. The last I heard he was doing much better though ... a good appetite and interacting with family and staff.
:: Posted by Jenn ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.mennogirl.com/jenjie/nav-commenters.gif)
(January 15, 2008 9:26 PM)
Wow, that's sad to hear. I will remember to pray.