Who's there? Jesus, that's who! Looks like he couldn't have come at a worse time. According to the text, we are supposed to happily throw the door open when Jesus comes a-knockin'. So why does everyone in the picture look so glum? You'd think they'd be glad to have Jesus as a house guest, even if he wasn't invited. Little Tommy, in his abnormally-creased, brown polyester slacks, seems to be saying, "Sorry, Jesus, Mom says I can't come out and play until after dinner." Dad's pissed because he just got home from work and just wants to relax and read the damned paper in peace for a few minutes, Mom is wondering if she made enough mashed potatoes and meatloaf to feed six, and the two girls are probably worried that it's that creepy Mr. Carson from down the street, who has a reputation for, um, touching little children.
Another chilling scenario is that Jesus has come specifically for Tommy. The boy is his new chosen disciple, and as Tommy walks out the door to greet his master, unable to resist the siren call of Jesus' mind-control, his family knows that they will never see him again. Oh, well, one less mouth to feed, and now Sarah can have her own bedroom.
This was scanned from a children's book that attempted to illustrate the concept of "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." Unfortunately, they took it WAY too literally, and any little kids reading it are going to imagine a long-haired, bearded Jew in a white robe coming to their house at dinnertime one day. I also have to note that Jesus' shepherd's crook is too small, probably because the artist didn't know its function--it is designed to pull sheep out of briers, ditches, or wherever it is that a sheep can get stuck, or to grab an errant animal and pull it back into the flock. Jesus could use his to maybe yank a fig off a tree branch--or as a fighting staff when he's practicing his martial arts. (He is an expert at Christ-fu.)
0 comments:
Post a Comment