Cysterska wizja Chrystusa w XII wieku – obraz i słowo .......... 211

THE CISTERCIAN VISION OF CHRIST IN THE 12TH CENTURY: PICTURE AND WORD

There are some examples of Christ’s representations in Cistercian manuscripts. These are Christ in half-figure, Christ rising and exiting from a sarcophagus, Christ in the context of Tree of Jesse, Christ enthroned on the rainbow. On the one hand these picture are hieratic and static. On the other hand we realize the attempt to depict a human body with volume, gestures and emotions. But the image of Christ in his corporality is rather in the departing point of his development. However, in the Cistercian manuscripts there are the miniatures with the representations of the fighting man (symbolic) and with the working monks (realistic). The slender figures of these people have nothing to do with the voluminous representation of Christ. The image of Christ in the Cistercian writing we consider separately in the mystery of Incarnation and in the mystery of Redemption. The condition of newborn Christ is called misery. So Little Jesus had an experience of human nature in simple and poor conditions. These were humiliation and kenosis. The work of redemption has been accomplished in the Suffering and Death of Christ. The highest motivation of this descending in the Passion was the love of mankind. The central image of Christ is the Crucifixion. Only in the Passion was the human nature of Christ revealed. The wound of Christ played an important role, because in the wound we realize the love and mercy of Christ. Bernard of Clairvaux and Guillaume of Saint Thierry both concentrated on the wounds of Christ. Without entering his wound it is impossible to discover both natures – the human and divine nature of Christ. The human nature of Christ is a testimony of his love for mankind. We have two images of Christ – both depicted and written. There are many differences between these images. In the depicted image we discover the attempt to represent Christ as a concrete human being. In the written image the authors are convinced that Christ is a man, but they assert that without contact with his human nature a relationship with Christ is impossible.