Recently, I was reading a magazine article about the restoration of the frescoes of Biblical scenes on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Twenty years ago, while visiting Rome, I saw Michelangelo's masterprice, and it was obvious even to my untrained eye that artist's original work had become obscured. Now, the renowned Renaissance paintings greet visitors with bold, brilliant colors as envisioned by the master painter—the result of considerable loving effort by those engaged in the restoration process.
God's "masterpiece" is never touched by imperfection.
As I read, I was struck once again by the symbolic lessons that an art restoration project can offer someone seeking to understand healing as taught and practiced by Christ Jesus. Those who restore a painting do not create something new; they make it possible for us to view once more the original masterpiece. They patiently wash away accumulated grime and perhaps dissolve layers of lacquer applied by others.
