Deconstruction and Reconstruction

My Journal - Agatha Nolen

Much of art depicts the struggle of man against man in the spiritual quest for meaning. Picasso was renowned in Cubism in being able to take a familiar object, dismantle it and then re-assemble it. It is still recognizable, but in a distinctly new form.

I had the privilege of revisiting a favorite artwork: Man on Fire, the mural by José Clemente Orozco in the cupola of the Hospicio Cabañas, Guadalajara. It has become known as the Sistine Chapel of the Americas and my hosts were Michael and Cecilia Shibya Nolen.

Just like the future is unknown, so too is the face of The Man of Fire, hidden and indistinct as the flames lick across his head and neck and surround his entire body. He is the idealized future where people will cast off the notions of culture, race and nationality. Chains that have enslaved humankind throughout its history.

Orozco dreamed of a world where a new race would be forged out of the fires of the chaotic world. A united humanity freed from prejudices that are associated with race. In the past, when the Spaniards came to the New World and encountered the Indigenous Peoples, there was conflict and violence. But out of this “fire,” a new race was formed with its own distinct culture and identity.

In the corner are four men representing Earth’s four races. Their arms are stretched above their heads, holding up the great weight of the circle that represents the Earth. Their muscles are bulging with strain, symbolizing how society has repressed mankind through its political and religious institutions despite their promises for a better world.

Gazing at this masterpiece after a long year of the pandemic, I am reminded of the people that we have lost both in their suffering and the suffering they have left behind as we balanced policies against life.

Orozco believed that the human spirit is unquenchable, regardless of the horrors or cruelties that men inflect on men. After this deconstruction period, it is time for us to relaunch our spiritual quest to determine meaning for our life and our faith as we emerge from this time of fire.

Will we be reconstructed in a different way to alleviate the suffering of our fellow man instead of casting him into the flames in our endless pursuit of power?

Are there spiritual disciplines that you will resume, or adopt as we emerge from the ashes?

Blessings, my friend,
Agatha