I see you, thief
it’s okay to steal a glance
You never know what you will find when you do an internet search for Mary Magdalene! I was doing such an investigation when I came upon an article by Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber titled, “A Painter, a Thief, Mary Magdalen, and the Divine Mirror.”
Those first two items in the list are references to the Norwegian documentary, The Painter and the Thief (2020). Bolz-Weber comments, “There is a scene about 30 minutes into the movie in which The Painter shows The Thief the portrait she has painted of him and he — a tough guy, a criminal, a drug addict, breaks down crying. Why? Because she saw him.”
I agree with her that Karl (the thief) is emotionally moved by the knowledge that Barbora (the artist) has “seen” him. As I watched the movie, I also felt she had shown him his beauty, what he had so rarely, if ever, experienced. With her art, she had given a glimpse of how God views him. And best(?) of all, she was probably completely clueless at how she was used in this holy exercise.
Don’t worry, this isn’t a spoiler alert! The trailer shows this scene, and there’s plenty of movie left to go. It has as much drama to rival most of what Hollywood produces.
Bolz-Weber continues by noting Mary Magdalene as “seen” by Jesus. The divine mirror is a reference to Richard Rohr’s observation regarding people who have “mirrored [our] God-loved self.”
Being seen can be agonizing. Consider the story of Peter’s denial of Jesus, which appears in all four gospels. Just before being arrested, Jesus is at the table, dining with his disciples. He warns them of the danger ahead. Peter boasts that he will never abandon Jesus; he will stick with him. After Jesus is taken into custody, Peter has second thoughts. If it becomes known he is associated with Jesus, he might suffer similar treatment.
Onlookers suspect Peter is part of Jesus’ circle. He strenuously denies being part of his group. We’re told he does this three times. As Jesus predicted, after his final disavowal, the rooster crows. Luke 22 tells us, “The Lord turned and looked at Peter” (v. 61). Peter flees and sheds bitter tears.
Peter is seen in his ugliness and becomes filled with shame. (Of course, he is later told by the Lord he is both forgiven and loved.)
So often, when we wrong someone, we don’t want to be seen; we want to run and hide. If we can’t get away, we might avert our gaze. We don’t want eye contact, thieves that we are — taking what does not belong to us. However, what a gift it is when the other looks at us, not with accusation, but with understanding and welcome.
Accordingly, what a gift it is when we ourselves are able to “see” the other with eyes blessed by the Spirit.
