The Sacrifice of Isaac
The biblical narrative, Abraham Tested, illustrates God’s test of Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, as a burnt offering at the apex of the mountain Moriah. Isaac is given the sacrificial wood to carry and, after the pyre is built, is laid bound upon it with Abraham’s knife angled towards his throat to obey God’s command and complete the sacrifice. However, before Abraham’s knife can slaughter Isaac, an angel of God calls down from heaven in order to halt Abraham’s hand and instead sacrifice a ram which is provided by God. Within this essay the analysis of the socio-historical context, the theological liberationist interpretation of the text and the artist’s juxtaposing interpretations were explored in order to determine
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The most common exegesis which is accepted by many Christian scholars, such as Page (2002), John Wesley (2005) and Graul (2003), is one which suggests that the biblical story is a foreshadowing of God’s sacrifice of Jesus to save mankind. Another interpretation, as described by Kathryn Schifferdecker (2014), is an elaborate etiological narrative explaining the shift from human sacrifice to animal sacrifice. This provides a theological liberationist perspective upon the scripture, effectively showing the time of the axial age where religion turned from its primal ancestry of fear of external gods and towards discovering internal transcendence. This change is evident within the scripture, as just prior to Abraham performing the sacrifice he is stilled by the voice of “the angel of the LORD” (Genesis 22:11) commanding him to free Isaac. By taking a liberationist interpretation, the voice of the angel symbolises Abraham’s conscience and his transitioning of being liberated from the fear of external gods to obeying what is morally correct. And so, the text conveys an interpretation which has been affected by the socio-historical context of child sacrifice and also the theological liberationist interpretations at the time the scripture was being …show more content…
Caravaggio, 1571-1610, was a self-made artist whose pieces were categorised within the Baroque school of artwork due to their dramatic nature (Caravaggio Foundation, 2016). Caravaggio himself, however, was notorious for his aggressive behaviour which resulted in his arrest on multiple occasions while in Rome (The National Gallery, 2016). In 1606, these bouts of aggression allowed an argument between Caravaggio and another man to quickly evolve into a swordfight which ultimately ended with Caravaggio stabbing the man, therefore making a murderer of himself. This led to Caravaggio fleeing from Rome to Malta in order to escape judgement for his crimes, only to be later infected with a disease which resulted in his untimely death while within Malta (The National Gallery, 2016). However, Caravaggio’s The Sacrifice of Isaac falls directly into the Baroque style of artwork which, during the years surrounding 1603, was the dominant style of religious artwork within Rome. This was a result of the Council of Trent’s recommendation that the Catholic Church use art as a medium in which to counteract the effects of the Protestant Reformation occurring throughout Eastern Europe (Khan Academy, 2016). Michelangelo’s piece is intentionally created to be dramatic in order to appeal to both the senses and to emotions
At first glance, Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “The Turkey”, appears to be no more than a fictional account of a young boy’s struggles as he attempts to catch a lame turkey and the events that follow his capture of it. However, upon closer and more thoughtful inspection of the story, especially Ruller’s constant soliloquy, it is easy to see how O’Connor could have written “The Turkey” to be a biblical allegory. The actions and reactions of Ruller, an eleven year old boy who serves as the main character, resemble those of the Israelites throughout the Bible, especially those in the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, and Judges. Through Ruller, we see the reoccurring reactions of the Bible’s people as God blesses and curses them.
The Torment of Saint Anthony (c. 1487-¬88), an oil and tempera on a panel, is believed to be the first painting by Michelangelo inspired by an engraving by Martin Schongauer (c. 1470-75) when Michelangelo was 12 or 13 years old (Vogel. 2009). It is one of the four surviving panel paintings by Michelangelo, who, according to one biographer, had spoken with disdain of oil painting in later life.
A common topic of artwork throughout history has been the crucifixion of Christ. Since it is such a common topic, it makes it very easy to see how artwork changed and developed from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. The painting on the left, The Crucifixion by Pietro Lorenzetti, shows the usual characteristics of a painting from the Middle Ages. The facial expressions are not varied or very in depth, Jesus and the other saints have the typical halo that is used very often, and the colors are mostly all bright, making nothing in particular stand out. The second painting, on the right, is by Caravaggio and is titled The Flagellation of Christ. There is an obvious shift from one painting to the next. Caravaggio’s piece is much more realistic.
1985. “The Logic of Sacrifice” in Anthropological Approaches to the Old Testament. Ed., Bernhard Lane.
Abraham obeyed God by preparing wood and loading his donkey and took away Isaac and two servants with him. On reaching the place ordered by God, Abraham built an Alter and arranged the wood on it. He tied up his son and placed him on altar, on top of the wood and picked up the knife to kill him. Abraham was stopped by the Lord’s voice from heaven telling him, he was an obedient man who honored God. The angel of God confirmed to him how God would richly bless him and give him many descendants as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand along the seashore.
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio better known as simply Caravaggio was an Italian Baroque master painter born in Italy around 1571. After he apprenticed with a painter in Milan, he moved to Rome, where he lived for most of his life. His work influenced painters around Europe. He’s most known for his gruesome subjects and use of Tenebrism, which was a technique that used heavy shadow to emphasize light areas. His life was filled with great controversy. He was known for being violent, with “drastic mood swings and a love for drinking and gambling”. (N.A., "Caravaggio”) In 1606, Caravaggio killed a Roman pimp named Ranuccio Tomassoni. Historians don’t know why Caravaggio killed him only that Caravaggio fled Rome after the incident. His violence didn’t stop until his death in 1610. The cause of his death was unknown until 2010, when a team of scientists discovered high levels of lead that would have driven him mad.
Art, by definition, is “something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings”. Throughout history, one way that art has been used is to reflect a multitude of ideas and beliefs. Christian beliefs and ideas have been portrayed in artwork since the beginning of Christianity, although, it was not always acceptable to do so. The idea of the final judgement is a Christian idea that has been displayed in art repeatedly in a variety of ways. Michelangelo’s fresco the Last Judgment (1536-1541) is a piece that visualizes this idea. Since the time it was finished, this significant piece found in the Sistine Chapel has been continuously critiqued and analyzed. Many Christians struggle to interpret the event of a final judgment after reading it through Scripture. In analyzing Michelangelo’s piece, it is similar difficult to determine what he exactly meant to portray and what the various part of his masterpiece represent exactly. Many have examined this piece and made different regarding what exactly the various figures and objects are supposed to represent. The diverse interpretations of this work further shows the idea that when Christian ideas are reflected through artwork, it is hard to ascertain exactly what an artist intended to demonstrate. In addition, the controversies surrounding this piece represent the idea that when Christian ideas are revealed through art, there is potential for disagreement regarding what should and should not be included in Christian art. Michelangelo’s Last Judgment is just an example of what results when Christianity is brought into art.
In this research paper I will be looking at two different artworks by the same artist. The two I will be looking at are the Sistine Chapel Ceiling (1508-1512) and The Last Judgment (1534). Both of these painting are painted in the Sistine chapel which is located in the Vatican. I am going to attempt to evaluate these two pieces of art painted by Michelangelo and explain the cultural and religious aspects of them. I will also look to other scholars to get their perspective and their reactions to the paintings. The last step of my research will be to formulate a theory about the relationship between culture and religion and use my topic to help defend my theory.
...pse." In Current Issues in New Testament Interpretation, edited by W. Klaasen and G.F. Snyder, 23-37. New York, NY: Harper and Row, 1962.
Much of the art created during the Renaissance was geared toward religion, and with Michelangelo this was no exception. By th...
...brese’s St John was executed half a century after The Entombment, it is evident that Caravaggio heavily influenced its creation.
As the seventeenth century began the Catholic Church was having a hard time bringing back the people who were swept away by the protestant reformation. The conflict between the protestant had a big influence on art. (Baroque Art) The church decided to appeal to the human emotion and feeling. They did so by introducing a style called Baroque. Baroque was first developed in Rome and it was dedicated to furthering the aims of Counter Reformation. Baroque was first used in Italy than later spread to the north. In this paper I will argue that the Italian Baroque pieces were more detailed and captured the personality of the figure, in contrast and comparison to Northern Baroque pieces that aimed to produce a sense of excitement and to move viewers in an emotional sense leaving them in awe. I will prove this by talking about the different artwork and pieces of Italian Baroque art versus Northern Baroque Art.
Caravaggio committed a murder in 1606 and fled from Rome, this painting is interpreted by many as
1. "Abraham's Sacrifice of His Son Isaac Bible Story." JesusAnswers.com Christian Web Site. 2006. Web. 01 Mar. 2011 .
Capitalism was still prevalent which allowed for patrons to build even larger art collections. This allowed for Caravaggio to be even more selective with his subject matter and style. In the Caravaggio, Calling of St. Matthew, Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome, Oil on Canvas, c. 1599-1600 the painting was not lit uniformly but in patches. The paintings details were struck by bright and intense light alternating with areas of dark shadows. The figures were disheveled and plain. There were figures counting money that ignored the presence of Jesus in the room. A far cry from the idolization of Christ in most High Renaissance paintings. Caravaggio proved to be master of oil paints similar to Jan van Eyck minute