Worship Service Sunday at 11 AM
January 23, 2023
"There Is Hope for Nineveh"
To the Church Family
"The Family of Man"
January 22, 2023
By John Wiederholt
I got a very special book for Christmas. It is titled “The Family of Man.” It is published version of an exhibition of photographs collected and edited by the famous photographer Edward Steichen for the Museum of Modern Art in 1955. I have written about it before but being given a fresh copy (my first copy was destroyed in a basement flood) seems like an occasion to write about it again. It is the book that made me a photographer. And more.
All the great photojournalists of the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s are represented. Dorthea Lange’s unforgettable photos of the Depression and the Dust Bowl are there. Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson. The are all there and all among my photographer heroes. The photos are all in black and white. Color was still something a novelty in most publications of those years.
Every sort of human condition was displayed. Romance, birth, death, wealth, poverty and the extraordinary moments that happen in ordinary life. Captions were drawn from the Bible and other world religions, from great philosophers and politicians and scientists.
As I said, it inspired my love of photography and photojournalism in particular. I seized the family “slide camera,” an Argus C-3. It had completely manual exposure with no light meter or automation. Neither of my parents had a clue how to set it or use it. But I learned. I got a light meter. I bought film, some Kodachrome but mostly black and white films like Kodak Tri-X.
Ultimately, I took a summer job at a camera store and made enough to buy a new-fangled Single Lense Reflex (SLR). I have just acquired a program which makes my iPhone mimic a Sixties film camera shooting Tri-X and I am taking some black and white photos to celebrate.
Those things, however, are just background. “The Family of Man” with its diverse images of joy and sorrow, triumph, and tragedy, coming as they did from all over the world, made me realize that every person, every place has moments when it is tinged with beauty and moments when it is stained by pain and, yes, by sin.
Over Christmas someone spilled coffee on my new book. I cleaned the stain as best I could, but later thought I should have left it. Beauty in this world shines, but everything in this world is also stained. We need to cultivate an appreciation for the beauty which is everywhere in life. But we need also to realize that everything in life is stained by pain and suffering, ignorance and wickedness. Everything in life is stained and needs to be redeemed, but everything is also touched with beauty as a reminder that our Redeeming God stands read to wipe away our stains and gift us with forgiveness and redemption. For this we look to our Lord Jesus.
Blessings,
John
Resources for Helping those Suffering Food Insecurity
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City of Martinsville-Healthy Food Hub
Food Insecurity in Henry County
Many Hands Giving Food in Henry County
PCUSA – Hunger action Congregations
A letter from our partners at Grace Network, Martinsville/Henry County
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