Is seeing enough?

This week the National Gallery in London opens a major new exhibition of work by Leonardo da Vinci. It includes nine of his surviving fifteen paintings – a coup for them – and is bound to be a sell-out. Leonardo is famous for much more than painting of course – as a scientist, engineer, inventor, philosopher and writer. He filled umpteen booklets with his notes on anything and everything – all written in his fascinating mirror-image handwriting.

But Leonardo thought words a poor substitute for seeing. He even went so far as to say: “My advice is not to trouble yourself with words unless you are speaking to the blind”. And that got me thinking about another famous figure from history – St Francis of Assisi – when he said: “Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words”.

So, are words really a poor substitute, and only to be used when necessary? It’s certainly true that what we do points people to what we believe. The dad who takes his son to watch Chesterfield every week shows he believes they’re the only team worth supporting. The woman who’s in the gym at 6.00am each morning shows that fitness (and image?) matter more than sleep. And we find this in the Bible too. In Deuteronomy 6 parents are to live in a way that honours God and keep his commands. And when their children see them doing this, they will ask why (verse 20) – wanting to know what the belief is behind their actions.

So is St Francis right? Are actions enough to point people to the gospel?

No. That same chapter in Deuteronomy says this:

“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” (Deuteronomy 6 v 6-7) So it’s not “either/or” – it’s “both/and”. We take every opportunity to speak the truth about the good news, and try to live in a way that points people to the truth of what we say.

I find Leonardo da Vinci fascinating, and will be joining the queues at the National Gallery. He was a brilliant man. But I won’t be following his advice. I’ll keep on “troubling myself with words” as I try to point people to the living Word, Jesus Christ.