Gayle L. Goudy

Category: Reflections

  • No Kings! No Tyranny!

    Originally sent to Rebecca Motte NSDAR membership on the National Day of Prayer, (Charleston, South Carolina), October 11, 2026.

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  • Why no Christian Art? Goldsworthy, Ritual, and the Meaning of Monuments

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral, (Charleston, South Carolina), October 2026.

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  • Who is Matthew? Caravaggio and the Question of the Call

    Reflection • The Calling of St. Matthew in Rome is examined here through its ambiguous central figure and two competing readings of who Matthew is. Both interpretations leave conversion’s outcome unresolved, prompting a turn to the parable of the two sons: true conversion is proven through action, not words.

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral, (Charleston, South Carolina), September 2026.

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  • The First Cover-up: Amrita Sher-Gil’s “Adam and Eve”

    Reflection • Drawing on the literary structure of Genesis and Amrita Sher-Gil’s Adam and Eve, this reflection argues that the true turning point of the Fall is humanity’s decision to hide from God. Contrasting Adam and Eve with David and Peter, it explores how confession, rather than concealment, opens the way to forgiveness, restoration, and renewed communion with God.

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral, (Charleston, South Carolina), July-August 2026.

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  • When Expectation Blinds Us to Grace

    Reflection • This essay uses Emmanuel Garibay’s Emmaus (2012) as a starting point to consider how expectation can blind us to grace, answered prayer, and God’s unexpected work. Through Scripture, it asks how disappointment becomes offense when God’s promises arrive differently than imagined.

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral, (Charleston, South Carolina), May 2026.

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  • The Cross from Christ’s Perspective: Psalm 22 and James Tissot

    Reflection • James Tissot’s watercolor imagines the crucifixion from Christ’s perspective, illuminating Psalm 22 as Jesus’ prayer from the cross. What begins in anguish moves toward trust, resurrection, and triumph. The article invites readers to hear “My God, my God” not as despair alone, but as a cry filled with hope.

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral, (Charleston, South Carolina), April 2026.

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  • Flight to Egypt | Evacuating Israel

    What happens when a pilgrimage to Israel is suddenly interrupted by war? In this video, I share my experience of traveling in Israel during a time of conflict and making the difficult journey home by land through Egypt after air travel was disrupted. What began as a Holy Land pilgrimage became a deeper lesson in faith, vulnerability, and the meaning of shalom.

  • The Other Brother: The Prodigal Son’s Hardest Lesson (Luke 15)

    James B. Janknegt’s The Two Sons retells Luke 15 in contemporary imagery and brings the older brother to the foreground. This video shows how the painting reframes the Prodigal Son as a test of grace, resentment, and reconciliation for those still in the father’s house.

  • Forgiveness as a Gift of Love: Pascal Fessler’s “Return of Judas”

    Reflection • Pascal Fessler’s Return of Judas imagines Judas returning after betraying Jesus and asks whether forgiveness is possible. Placing viewers among the disciples, the painting challenges us to confront Christ’s command to love and forgive—even when it feels impossible.

    Originally published in Words of Grace, Grace Church Cathedral (Charleston, South Carolina), March 2026.

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  • The Theology of Damar Hamlin’s Jacket

    After his on-field cardiac arrest, Damar Hamlin wore the “Eternal” Jesus jacket at the Super Bowl—and backlash followed. This video reads the images through hip-hop remix culture and Scripture to ask how faith can be seen, misread, and recognized.