The Six Days of Creation Banners
Early in 2007, a dedicated and creative group of volunteers came together to design and fabricate a new series of banners to bring color and beauty to our worship space and help us all grow in understanding and appreciation of God's creative spirit at work in our world. The Six Days of Creation banners were born from their efforts. The first was debuted in May and the remainder will follow throughout the year. The banners are joyfully dedicated to the memory of Etta Dash.
Day One - Let There Be Light -- Genesis 1:1-5A whirling galaxy introduces our series of six banners celebrating the six days of creation. The image of the Milky Way, our home in the universe, shows us a God-like view of our galaxy. A whirling spiral of stars and planets composed of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen spins in the vastness of our universe. The identification of God with light reflects an ancient understanding that the energy that drives the universe is made visible in light. One could say that light is God's signature. Here we illustrate the First Day, when God declared, "Let there be light". "In the beginning when God created the
heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness
covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the
face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light";
and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God
separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day,
and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there
was morning, the first day." (Genesis 1:1-5). |
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Day Two - Let There Be a Dome in the Midst of the Waters -- Genesis 1:6-8
The emphasis switches from the first day of creation “Let there be light,” to the second day of creation, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters”—the sky. Water falls from the clouds in a rainstorm, and water exists in the form of lakes, rivers, and seas on earth. The writer of this text believed that the waters “above” were separated from the waters “below” by means of a dome, the sky. This belief is an affirmation of God’s creation of an orderly world, one made by reliable, divine Law. The image of the playful waves below the sky is borrowed from a stone wall in the Forbidden City in the heart of Beijing, China.
Day Three - The Creation of Plants - Genesis 1:9-13
The creation of plants yielding seed of every kind. Before creating the plants and trees, God is said to have separated the waters under the sky in such a way that dry land appeared. Again, God uses the divine power to separate parts and create order in the creation.
Our image of this event also emphasizes order and repetition. This image of stalks and seeds is meant to remind us of the importance of vegetation and its reproduction in the sequence of creation. Vegetation is so important to humans that the Priestly writer of this text believed it must have occurred on the third day, even before the creation of the sun. This idea is a tribute to the indispensability of vegetation not only in the life of humans, but also to the life of the earth.
Day Four - The Creation of Sun and Moon - Genesis 1:14-19
To modern readers it seems that the Biblical account is scientifically out of order with our understanding of the creation of the world: we know that there could not be vegetation (Day 3) without the sun. But for the writer of Genesis, the important thing is that God created the sun and the moon, and that they were not deities themselves. This affirmation was a reminder that God stands above all creation.
Without scientific instruments, the Genesis writer knew that all the ordering of worldly time depends on our relationship to the sun and moon. "... let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years." And so for Day 4, our image concentrates on the sun and moon, "The two great lights." This image is childlike and playful to reflect the awe that the sun and moon cointinue to inspire in us.
Day Five - The Creation of Living Creatures - Genesis 1:20-23
The Genesis writer says that God created the great sea monsters, and all the water creatures, and all the birds that fly. And then, "God blessed them."
Our image of an egret and a striped bass are reminders of the unique beauty of the creatures of the sky and water. The animals that move through sky and water are blessed with shining, shimmering beauty that reflects the love of the Creator. Their worlds are alien to us, but we yearn to share them.
Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
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