Psalm 11:2
the serpent's business attire
Save me, O Lord, for there is now no saint: truths are decayed from among the children of men. (Psalm 11:2 DR)
The soul that seeks after virtue will increasingly find itself alone and isolated in this world. The Psalmist surveys his life and the state of things around him and finds no natural hope. It is important to note that when he says there is now no saint, he is necessarily included in that list. Is not not simply that he is righteous and finds himself alone, but rather that there isn’t even anything for him to look to, no example of the good and the true.
Virtue is not something comes to us all at once; it is a gradual and often grueling process of rooting out faults and mortifying one’s desires and purifying one’s intentions. The natural virtues can be to some extent cultivated by means of societal pressure; a society that values nobility and justice and other such natural virtues—even if it often fails to live up to them—can at least inspire its citizens towards them. But once it ceases to value them even in words it lets go of the rope, so to speak, and things fall apart fast.
But unlike natural virtue, supernatural virtue cannot be cultivated except by first being infused by the Holy Spirit. It is then a cooperation with grace that allows those virtues to be practiced and mastered.
The state of the world which surrounds us can indirectly prod us towards these things, and sometimes in unexpected ways. A society that rejects the good and the true and the beautiful may not directly inspire a soul towards those good things, but like the Psalmist it may prompt the soul to wonder at the lack and come to realize that these things can only be found in God. If there is now no saint, it is because the soul is not yet cooperating with grace.
But as our Lord says, the truth will set you free. When truth decays within a society and when virtue is shunned, when there are no saints to be found—this is when grace can more fully abound and shines out the clearer, when saints are made and find out what they are made of.
In the movie A Man for All Seasons, St. Thomas More is being visited by his family in prison and his daughter is trying to convince him to take the Oath that would set him free. Her argument is that if the State were even half good he would be exalted for his virtue; but since he cannot help that the State is 3/4 bad, if he continues to stand up against it he elects himself a hero. He responds:
If we lived in a state where virtue was profitable, common sense would make us saintly. But since we see that avarice, anger, pride, and stupidity commonly profit far beyond charity, modesty, justice, and thought, perhaps we must stand fast a little - even at the risk of being heroes. (A Man for All Seasons.)
The Psalmist thus begins this Psalm with the only recourse he has— a plea for God to save him from a wicked and perverse generation. He recognizes that in his own strength he will fall prey to the lies and deceits of this world, and thus must fling himself upon the mercy of God who can protect and sustain him.
I’m not exactly sure why I decided to go this direction for this animation, but I thought it turned out to be kind of interesting. I believe I was thinking about the difference between truth and lies, the latter of course being symbolized by a serpent. But I thought it might be fun to put a bit of a twist on it and place the snake’s head into a suit, which could naturally be a metaphor for the present conditions of the world.
I cut out both the snake head and body in Photoshop and brought them into After Effects, compositing them into a precomp. I then rigged that precomp with the Puppet Tool and added some sway to both the body and head.
It’s kind of hard to see, but there is a also a little forked tongue flicking; I probably should have made it a bit more prominent. Oh well.
Enjoy.
Save me, O Lord, for there is now no saint:
truths are decayed from among the children of men.
(Psalm 11:2 DR)
View a higher quality version of this gif here: