Divine Irony: The Greatest of Actions in the Smallest of Forms
The Virgin Adoring the Host by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, 1852.
In The Virgin Adoring the Host, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres places Saint Helena to the left of Mary and King Louis IX to the right. Tradition holds that Saint Helena, the mother of the emperor Constantine, discovered the True Cross and the nails of the Crucifixion, and later prompted her son to build basilicas throughout the Holy Land. King Louis IX was similarly known for his piety and devotion. He commissioned the Sainte-Chapelle to house the Crown of Thorns and hosted Saint Bonaventure and Saint Thomas Aquinas. Both Saint Helena and Saint Louis of France embody a profound love that unites their earthly reign with the Blessed Virgin and her Son, Jesus Christ Crucified.
Many are often scandalized by the “folly” of the Eucharist–the belief that the Creator of the universe is truly present in the forms of bread and wine. To kneel or stand before a piece of bread is to reduce God. Yet, Catholics are not the ones who reduce God; it is God who humbles Himself to remain with us always, as He promised in Matthew 28:20. For those who do not believe in the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, kneeling before a piece of bread is idolatry. If idolatry is the worship of something or someone other than God, is it really idolatry when Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist? This portrait draws out the paradox and divine irony of Jesus' true presence in the Eucharist. What is most striking about this portrait is how all three figures are portrayed in relation to Jesus in the Eucharist. If the scandal of the Eucharist is not enough for our Protestant brothers and sisters to grapple with, the scale of the three figures in relation to the Eucharist is enough to leave them even more bewildered.
Yet, this is the very paradox this painting aims to address. Despite the significant accomplishments of Saint Helena and Saint Louis, the Blessed Virgin Mary–who stands between the great actions of both historical figures–reminds us that the most noble work belongs to God alone. In the Eucharist, divine irony unfolds before us as God hides the greatest of His actions in the smallest of forms. By becoming man and remaining with us under the appearance of bread and wine, Jesus reminds us that no human achievement can parallel the humility of God. Despite the size of Jesus in the Eucharist, the greatest and most noble work is that of God in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ Incarnate. The sharp contrast between Jesus' size in the Eucharist and the magnificence of the monarchs draws our attention to that very reality and paradox of God’s greatness. Mary and this visual Magnificat draw our attention away from human grandeur toward the quiet and gentle whisper of God as we listen to what God Himself has to say in the contemplative adoration of His Eucharistic Son.
