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F U N D A M E N T A L B E L I E F SIlove mosaics. 1Since kindergarten, where I was given coloredpaper and scissors and told to make a picture, mosaicshave represented for me the challenge of creatingbeauty out of diverse and dissimilar parts. Unlike my papercreations, which often began falling apart on the way homefrom school, many mosaics are made of precious stones andhave endured for centuries. Some months ago I was with agroup visiting Masada, the mountaintop retreat of KingHerod the Great. Overlooking the Dead Sea and surroundingdesert, the ruins of Masada are a haunting reminder ofNUMBER 14God’sMosaıcThe wonder of unity in diversityBy Cheryl Dossthe suffering and the determination of the Jewish people. Aswe wandered through the excavated palaces and bathhouses,storage buildings and plazas, we saw numerousmosaics. Still beautiful, made of thousands of bits of stoneof many shapes, sizes, and colors, they have survived theravages of war, vandalism, and time. They are astonishingfor their diversity, creativity, and sheer endurance.God’s MasterpieceThe church—indeed, all of creation—reminds me of amosaic: abundantly diverse, remarkably creative, and blessedlyenduring. Think of the food we enjoy every day—sovaried in flavor and color and texture. Consider the marvelouscreativity and amazing variety in the animal kingdom—lionsand anteaters, elephants and orangutans, warthogsand giraffes, and on and on. God’s remarkable creativityis also revealed in the way He made people sodiverse—tall and short, all shapes and sizes, brown eyes,black eyes, blue eyes, straight hair, curly hair, wavy hair, andno hair at all. Some of God’s amazing creative ability Hehas shared with His human children, enabling them to cre-ate an astonishing variety of cultures. There are so manydifferent ways of eating and dressing, of living, thinking,and working. The Bible tells us that this creation diversitywill endure to the heavenly kingdom. The lion and thelamb will be there, and all the nations of the earth, recognizablydistinct as they gather around the throne (Isa. 11:6;Rev. 7:9).The Hagia Sophia was the greatest church of Christendomfor nearly 1,000 years. When the Muslim conquerorsof Constantinople turned it into a mosque, the manymosaics that adorned it were plastered over. With thebirth of the modern nation of Turkey, the Hagia Sophiabecame a museum, and the plaster was painstakinglyremoved from the mosaics. A partially restored mosaichead of Christ in one of the upper galleries is stunninglybeautiful. With gold and silver, lapis lazuli, and otherdiverse and precious materials the artist created a work ofenduring beauty that was hidden for centuries behindplaster. How often we too want to plaster over differences,to deny people creativity, to forget the enduring nature ofhuman diversity.14 Adventist World | October 2011