Below is the weekly chaplain's newsletter called 'Table Talk' that I write for the Lower School division of Holy Innocents' Episcopal School.
Art and faith
have always gone hand in hand. This week in chapel, artist and Holy Innocents’
parishioner Mrs. Alice Ball joined us to share how she used the art of origami
as a way to pray.
In the aftermath
of 9/11, when the United States began its war in Iraq, Mrs. Ball found herself
overcome with anger, grief, and an irrepressible desire for peace in a
conflicted world. She felt led to pray, but, instead of words paving her path to
God, her prayers slowly took flight in the form of origami paper cranes.
(Origami cranes
are an international sign of peace made popular by Sadako Sasaki, the young
Japanese girl from Hiroshima who was dying of cancer caused by the fallout of
the atomic bomb. As a sign of hope, Sadako undertook a major project
of folding 1000 peace cranes.)
Mrs. Ball began her prayer for peace without any idea how long it would last. She only knew that she'd continue praying as long as there were US troops on the ground in Iraq. Her
origami prayer went on for 3192 days and took her just short of nine years to
complete.
In its final
form, the prayer is nothing short of breathtaking. All of the students had the chance to view Mrs. Ball’s cranes
while they were on display in the small glass chapel at Holy Innocents’. During class, I taught how the artwork's beauty and goodness can be used to help us pray with our eyes.
Mrs. Ball’s art
highlights the powerful relationship between prayer and perseverance. "When you begin to pray, you don’t have to know how your
prayer is going to end,” said Mrs. Ball. “I began these origami prayers out of
anger and frustration, but eventually they took the form of something quite
beautiful.”
“What does your prayer look like?” asked Mrs. Ball.
This week, I also invite you to consider what your
prayers look like. Think of a time when a work of art has drawn you closer to God. When has a song,
movie, meal, poem, piece of architecture, or any other work of art struck you
at the level of your soul—the spiritual level that opens you up to unexpected,
divine depths of beauty, joy, peace, honesty, compassion, community,
understanding, or forgiveness in the world? Talk about your
answers with a spiritual friend, share a piece of art with that person, and, if you're willing, try creating an artful prayer yourself.
With Love and
Prayers,
Chaplain Timothy
('Origami Crane' by Aidan Ziolo, 1st Grade)
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