Dragging the Stars Down to Earth
“We have seen his star in the East and have come to worship him . . . .” – Matthew 2:2
Melissa McGill’s Constellation drags the stars to earth in an art installation 50 miles north of New York City on a small patch of land just off shore in the Hudson River.
If you install LED lights on an island in the Hudson the stars in the sky can mimic the stars in the installation and vice versa. When the artist asked the contractor to install the lights, the contractor said it would be almost impossible. “Have to haul everything over there by boat.” “Wind and snow.” “Need sturdy poles.” And then he said, “But you are going to do this, right?”
And she did. And he did. And God did the impossible with Jesus as well.
The Shepherds noticed. Maybe you’ll never see Constellation, this hundredth wonder of the built world. You can always just gaze and notice the Cosmos where you are.
Prayer
As you lead us from Ashes to Ashes, through Stardust to Stardust, let this Christmas be the one we remembered our job as shepherds and stargazers, installers of one impossible wonder after another. Let us notice the stars.
About the AuthorDonna Schaper is Senior Minister at Judson Memorial Church in New York City. Check out her book: Prayers for People Who Say They Can’t Pray.