Ep. 175 — Non-Finito + ”The Slaves In the Marble”
The Slaves In the Marble.
Probably the most moving thing on this trip has been four incomplete statues by Michelangelo, “The Prisoners” or “The Slaves.”
These pieces are still in process. The four are on display in the Galleria d'Academia in Ferenz. They are on display in the hallway on the way to see the famous David statue.
Michelangelo worked in a practice called “non-finito” or “incomplete,” and these pieces are still unfinished upon his death. Each figure, the Awakening Slave, the Young Slave, the Bearded Slave, the Atlas, and another St. Matthew, show clearly the grooves cut with pointed chisel under the blow of the artist's mallet. To see the work of such a skilled artist in process is indescribably encouraging.
On the other end of the great hall stood David, 17 feet tall, in all his sculpted perfection. Each feature in precise detail. He was complete, he was finished, an end product of a grueling process.
Each of us is non-finito, incomplete, yet under the chisel and mallet of the Master Artist. Christ is yet being formed in us: “That you might be conformed to the image of his son…” (Romans 8:29)
As Elizabeth Elliot has said, “What does it take for a statue to be formed? It takes a chisel and a file and a hammer.”
When Michelangelo was asked how he carved the statue of David, he is quoted as saying,
“It's simple. I just remove anything that is not David.”
God is slowly chipping away at the material of our lives, forming and perfecting his image in each one. We must not despise the process.
And so today, just a reminder that God has a final plan for the raw material of your life. He's at work. You are non-finito.
I am non-finito, and He's not going to leave us in the process.”
Thank you for joining me for this journey!
Go grab your Bible and your journal!
I look forward to the power of this habit in your life. This is Unedited.