102
WOLFRAM MORATH-VOGEL - "I have always created something which is difficult to see and comprehend ...
Belvedere 1/2003
Nacht bis zur Mitte gelangt war, da stieg dein allmächtiges
Wort, o Herr, vom Himmel herab vom königlichen Thron." 22
(King James' Version: Wisd. 18:14-15 “For while all things
were in quiet silence, and that night was in the midst of her
swift course / Thine Almighty word leaped down from hea-
ven out of thy royal throne"). From this viewpoint, it is dif-
ficult to recognize a genuine connection with the thought of
Meister Eckhart, it is simply a Bible verse. If we scrutinize the
text from the Old Testament, we discover a different mea-
ning. This does not directly affectthe Christian interpretation
- it is clear that an interpretation in terms of Christmas was
only possible on the basis of the New Testament - but the
precise text itself. By way of seven comparisons, chapters 11 -
19 of the Wisdom of Solomon deal with the punishing and
saving Intervention of Cod. Chapter 18 has the death of the
first-born in Egypt and the punishment of the enemies of the
House of Israel as its theme. The complete text of Wisd. 18:
14-15 is “For while all things were in quiet silence, and that
night was in the midst of her swift course / Thine Almighty
word leaped down from heaven out of thy royal throne, as a
fierce man of war into the midst of a land of destruction." 23
God's word leaps down as the sword of God to punish Egypt
(cf. Hebr. 4:2 and Rev. 19:15). The “word": it appears as a
fierce warrior in the middle of the night. In the liturgy, this
passage was traditionally interpreted as dealing with the
night when God's word became man. Christ was born in the
night - that means, unseen, there are no witnesses - His re-
surrection also took place during the night (cf., the exsultat
of the Easter hymn: "This is the night..."), the exodus from
Egypt and Salvation in the sea of rushes also took place at
night. 24
As can be seen, the actual text and Meister Eckhart’s trans-
lation are not completely contradictory, but are quite diffe
rent versions. If we look closely, we see that Meister Eckhart
combined the vulgate text Sap. 18:14:5, "Dum medium Si
lentium tenerent omnia, et nox in suo cursu medium iter ha-
beret, omnipotens Sermo tuus, Domine, de caelis a regalibus
sedibus venit" with Job 4:12, “Porro ad me dictum est ver-
bum absconditum". 25 (AV: “Now a thing was secretly bro-
ught to me"). The exact wording of Meister Eckhart's trans-
lation is found in the introduction to his sermon "Dum me
dium silentium . "Ein wort sprichet der wfse man: ‘Do
alliu dinc wären enmitten in einem swfgenne, dö kam von
oben her nider von dem künidichen stuole' 'in mich ein
verborgen wort'. Hie uz sol disiu predige gän. (A word spo-
ke the wise man: ‘When everything there was in the middle
of a silence, there came down from above from the heaven-
ly throne' ‘unto me a secret word'. This should be prea-
ched.)" 26 Meister Eckhart's change, stressing the inwardness
of the experience and making it more personal "....there ca
me ... unto me a secret word", can be neither directly based
on the wording nor on liturgical tradition; it is entirely his
own creation.
There is proof that Max Weiler considered the textual va-
riations before reaching his own conclusions. In the notes for
his diary “Tag- und Nachthefte'' ("Day and Night Journals")
which he kept from 1960, and from which, so far, only ex-
cerpts have been published, we find sketches giving Informa
tion on this. 27 In the upper section of a page, dated 20.X.
1960, we find Weiler's message - in mirror writing, intended
only for himself and nobody eise - "I am after something /
and I will get it / over all hurdles / in spite of the barking,
vicious dog". Following this, here in normal handwriting (da
ted 26.X.1960), the, consecutively numbered, words are
written in two columns: ALS ALLE DINGE 28 IN TIEFEM
SCHWEIGEN LAGEN UND DIE NACHT IN DER MITTE IH
RES LAUFES / WAR DA KAM VOM HIMMEL VOM KÖ
NIGLICHEN THRON IN MICH O HERR DEIN ALLMÄCHTI
GES WORT.
Each individual word is crossed through with a single line.
The only exceptions are the words "in mich" (in me). They
are crossed out with many lines and do not appear in the
cycle "Als alle Dinge
This makes it apparent that Weiler intentionally avoided one
specific aspect of Eckhart's translation, which could be seen
as the mystic's strivingfor personification, a "privileged con
nection to God" (Wackernagel) in order to stress the uni-
versality of the liturgical language. Of course, it is possible,
and even legitimate, to see Weiler’s "Als alle Dinge ..." as a
major declaration of belief. However, intimate feelings are of
no importance to the cycle, nor is it dedicated to single per-
sonality, not even Meister Eckhart. Max Weiler had absolute-
ly no intention of “depicting" himself, and, in no way, was
he interested in "thought painting”. It is concerned with so
mething nameless. But there, where this takes evocative sha-
pe, unexpectedly and unpredictably, as something comple
tely super-personal and, therefore, "withoutthe intermediary
of a painting System" 29 , where it shows itself as the light, the
darkness and colored movement, something hidden, which
cannot be discovered, he and the viewers of his work, are
united with the mystic.
Which character could have provided Max Weiler with a
goal of such a paradox nature - the goal of producing so
mething, through the mediums of color, form and surface,
which no human eye is capable of perceiving?
Twenty-nine paintings, in varying formats, are strictly allo-
cated to the twenty-eight words of the sentence; the lar-
gest measure 205 x 195 cm and 230,5 x 115cm, the smallest
is 91 x 76 cm (and, in contrast to all the other paintings, not
painted on canvas but on wood). “Dinge" is treated twice
(once as an elongated, and once as an almost square verti-
cal, format), spread over two paintings and, in this way, so-
