- Joined
- Mar 30, 2019
You're looking at it from a Sola Scriptura point of view. There are also ancient traditions, both artistic and theological, that arise among the piety and goodwill of the faithful that stem from scripture. The traditional Christian view is one of Prima Scriptura, scripture first, which is then interpreted by the apostles/Church Fathers and handed down through the ages, with heretical interpretations formally condemned through ecumenical councils. All good theology and exegesis stems from Scripture first and then tradition (which is inspired by scripture). It's both-and. If you insist on a scriptural basis for the symbolic or artistic depiction of God's watchful eye/eyes over all, the just and unjust, I can certainly provide it.Is there instructions in the Bible on constructing elaborate gold and marble Churches with one eye symbology?
Proverbs 15:3: "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good."
Psalm 32:8: "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you."
Psalm 33:18: “But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love.”
Hebrews 4:12-13: "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account."
Proverbs 5:21: "For a man's ways are before the eyes of the Lord, and he ponders all his paths."
Deuteronomy 11:12: "A land that the Lord your God cares for. The eyes of the Lord your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year."
Revelation 1:14: "The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire,"
You also need to remember that great Christian art was also a way to help evangelize and teach populations that were largely illiterate. Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches were/are traditionally beautifully decorated to inspire a sense of awe before Our Lord, as a method of evangelisation, and as a way to give proper glory to Our Redeemer and Creator. Evangelisation through beauty is a real thing. People have been inspired to convert to Christianity while visiting the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, or the Cathedral of Christ the Savior on Spilled Blood in Saint Petersburg.