Art Matters for God's Sake

“Art Matters for God’s Sake,” is Adrienne Chaplin’s title for the next Gospel and Culture lecture and the impetus for this reflection. The assertion that art matters to God is interesting when our society tends to vilify the arts as something elitist, frivolous and impractical. Now, I have known for quite some time, art matters for my sake. Personally, art making has provided a much needed emotional space equivalent to the junk drawer most people possess. I take great comfort in knowing I can take time from my busy schedule and dump a whole bunch of emotionally charged things in one safe place. So, how, exactly, does art matter for God’s sake?

Yes, yes, there is all that beauty and poetry and stuff that draws me closer to God. Again, this is art for my sake; how exactly does art matter for God’s sake? Is it the liturgical art we offer to God in worship that matters? Or does art that matters for God’s sake take form as cultural goods? Why not both? I can think of one example where both are true, Camille Paglia in her lecture “Religion and the Arts In American” writes, “One of the most brilliant products of American creative imagination, hymnody has had a massive global impact through popular music.” Paglia goes further to remind us, “Where ever rock ‘n’ roll is played, a shadow of its gospel roots remain.” Paglia traces a root of urban black rhythm and blues back to the “ecstatic, prophesying, body-shaking style of congregational singing” that was characteristic of American revivals.

Okay, so a whole bunch of people who fell in love with God at the same time needed to somehow express that love together. These days it’s crazy to think how our country’s musical history was shaped by worship. But it’s not really crazy when we begin to enumerate all the great art and architecture that was made precisely to draw people together to worship God. No wonder Paglia goes as far to say the “route to a renaissance of the American fine arts lies through religion.”

I guess I could continue and come up with a hefty list of why art matters to God, I’m sure you have a few things to add, too (feel free to do so). For now consider this entry as a teaser for Adrienne Chaplin’s lecture. Please join us on February 27, 1:00pm at Hunter College, to take into our own beings—to reflect on, why art matters to God. Who knows, maybe this event will lead to that renaissance Paglia was speaking of?

Our Future Is Now

Sometimes believers work hard at being spiritual, forfeiting the reality of their humanity. Jeremy Begbie, on the other hand, believes it is by the Spirit we grow more authentically human (Begbie, Voicing Creation’s Praise, p. 118). The resurrected life of Christ brings meaning and hope to our bodies—to being human. This hope, according to Gordon Fee, is empowered by Jesus’ resurrection and the gift of the Holy Spirit, which stamps believers with eternity (Fee, Listening to the Spirit in the Text, p.140). As Christians we basically live life geared towards the eschatological—a life imbued with our final outcome—an age when we’ll continuously glorify God in our full Spiritual bodies. According to Fee the early Hebrew believers understood this new age as the life of the Spirit—a fulfillment of a long awaited promise. Artists, we are privileged to live a life filled with the Spirit, looking ahead towards eternity.

What does this mean for artists working in the 21^St century? We must commit to human flourishing. Spiritual renewal is tied to cultural renewal. Having a relationship with Jesus, through the Spirit, enables us to see the world the way God sees it. But it is not enough to keep these visions in our heads. Nicholas Wolterstorff insists “that there is in man a deep dissatisfaction with merely holding in mind his religion.” There is a human longing to make our convictions concrete through song, sculpture, or drama (Wolterstorff, Art in Action, p.145).

It is our job to project through our creations a world that includes the reality of Christ’s glorified wounds. Spirituality can bear the marks of pain and suffering only because they already live with Jesus in the eternal realm. This is true beauty.

Love Jesus, be spiritual, make art.

Maria

Exploding Destiny

When Christ, Who is Your life, appears, then you will also appear with Him in glory -Colossians 3:4

I love what some of the great theologians have said about Paul’s radical claims of hope for our lives and destiny in view of the gospel. Reflecting on Colossians 3:4 John Calvin writes, Here we have a choice consolation -- that the coming of Christ will be the manifestation of our life. John Wesley, the great Methodist theologian, sounds almost astonished as he writes,The abruptness of the sentence surrounds us with sudden light. Our life - The fountain of holiness and glory. Shall appear - In the clouds of heaven. Wesley seems to echo Christ’s own words in John 7:38 when He winsomely remarks, Whoever believes in me, streams of living water will flow out of him. What could Jesus possibly mean when he says that if we believe in Him we will become some kind of spring or fountain of life?

In George C. Wolfe’s play The Colored Museum, Junie Robinson, known as The Soldier with a Secret, attempts to describe the look on a dying man’s face. He says, All the hurtin’ that was gonna get done to em and that they was gonna do to other people was right there clear as day…but when He died, all that hurtin to come just left his face…He finishes the eerie soliloquy by speaking directly to the audience with a whisper: I know the secret to your pain.

What George C. Wolfe is hinting at in this vignette is that the only way to be free of all of the brokenness of this world is through death. And he’s right. But Paul in Colossians 3 says that if you believe in Jesus and the hope of the gospel then you are already dead to this world and you have a life that is being kept safe for you with God. Colossians 3 shows us that Christ is the source of all the good that will ever come from your life or that you will ever taste in this life, though for now it is only a taste. Haggai 2:7 calls Him the desire of nations. In the Psalms King David sings, As the dear pants for water so my soul pants for you… and …My body longs for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water. David realized that all of his greatest desires in life were actually longings for Christ Himself.

As artists, we are fortunate to taste Christ’s beauty and glory in relatively small portions here and there through making and enjoying good art. But the hope of the gospel is that if you believe in Christ, then one day not only will pain and death have no power over you, not only will you be in the presence of the source of all goodness, but you yourself will become a source of the ultimate light and glory. At once, in His presence, all our longing for Him will be so overwhelmingly satisfied that we ourselves will burst forth in an explosion of New Life, a detonation of generative potential.

How can we as artists live and work in view of this great hope? Can we, through the power of the gospel, create flares and bursts of the coming explosion when we will be made new? God hasn’t given up you or your art, He intends to make you more prolific than you can imagine…In the gospel, you have an exploding destiny.

Kenyon

Bridegroom, Master, King

Matthew 25 tells three stories related to waiting. We have the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, the parable of the talents, and then we get a glimpse of the future when the Son of Man, on his throne, separates his people according to what was done while waiting for the king. These three stories relate how we are to live in the present, shaped and marked by a future.Yet there is a peculiar and mysterious thing about our faith—our end goal is not an inaccessible, unattainable prospect. Our future, an eternity spent with God, through the invitation of Jesus Christ, breaks into the present. What we do now, while we wait for the bridegroom, master, and king, shapes and transform us into the people of God.

Matthew 25, first off, shows us the importance of knowing Jesus as the bridegroom. The impending intimacy of a deep relationship with God causes the wise person to carry enough oil for the realistic long wait. Artist, likewise, must presently live as the beloved, but that is not all. In the second story of Matthew 25, we learn there is something for each of us to do in while we wait the Master’s return. As Christians we are called to grow and expand the talantons—the portions of accumulated wealth—he has entrusted to each of us. Our natural abilities, our vocations, our material possessions, our social positions and networks, all that has been given to us, needs to be cultivated. For it is the entrepreneurial servant the master deems good. The servant whose only action was to preserve, finds darkness and sorrow. Beloved artists must work and shape this world as servants of the returning master.

And finally, we must live life waiting for our king. In the final tale of Matthew 25 we find social responsibility is a component of spirituality. Those who alleviate hunger, thirst, exposure, and maladies are fit to sit at the right of the throne. If Jesus is the good king, his priority is proper care for his kingdom. A thriving kingdom provides the basic needs for its inhabitants by seeking human flourishing through all sectors: economics, law, art, education, health care and more. With the love of the bridegroom and privileges given by the master we are called to work together with Jesus to build his kingdom whose reign will extend into eternity. Culture renewal comes from the spiritual renewal of waiting for Jesus as bridegroom, master, and king.

The Creative Spark

The LORD said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. Exodus 31:1-5

A heightened sense of creativity is usually the first telltale sign of an artist. A toddler who uses the shape of an angle for a nose, instead of a dot or a circle; a child who climbs up to the piano keys and strikes out a melody he heard; a young girl who, despite not having taken a single dance class, spins with grace and poise. This is usually how we notice that someone has that special quality, that prodigious creative spark, which we hope over time will develop into a brilliant flame. It's a joy to some, and disappointment to others, that exceptional creative talent is so often, as they say, “something you’re just born with.” It’s true, some are called to be artists, and some are not. But is there more to this explanation than we’re realizing? How can we as artists better understand our unique—or perhaps eccentric--role as creative people?

In the Genesis account of creation, we find a God who has created all things out of nothing, and sees it as good. God, as Creator, is thus the origin of creativity itself. We are not only residents of his creation; we are also his creation, made exclusively in His image. We should understand that our creativity is given by God with the same purpose as our other distinctly human attributes: they reflect God and bring Him glory. We seek justice because God is just. We want to do good because God is good. And we love to create because God is creative.

This truth can bring a great deal of consolation. As artists, it's not uncommon to feel a sense of neglect from the church in terms of our vocation. At times we have felt like pariahs for pursuing a “secular lifestyle" in the arts. It sometimes feels like there is little or no place in our doctrines and theologies for the freewheeling ecstasy of artistic expression. Compared to doctrine, that at times seems rigidly black and white; the sensuality of creative exploration might appear hedonistic, chaotic, and ungodly. There is some truth to this notion; artists over the centuries have been known to use art as a vehicle for such hedonism, chaos, and ungodliness. But if we are to grow in our understanding of the Father, then we cannot ignore any one of His attributes. And if we examine Scripture and still deny that God loves art and creativity, we have created a false God.

In Exodus 31, we see that God not only makes room for art, He commands it. He wants it. We see that art is to be made in a way that brings joy, in a way that communicates His presence. Art is God’s gift to us, a gift to be given back to Him. Like Bezalel, artists have been specially equipped to be creators. Our creations bring glory to God, the Creator of all things, the inspiration for our work, and the source of our light.

Julian Leong
Julian is our guest blogger this week. He is one of our Actors Vocation Group leader

Fashionable Beauty

I recently posed the question to a group of artists, why does art matter to God? To my surprise, only one respondent employed the word beauty. Beauty is, forgive the term, out of fashion. Indeed, Crispin Sartwell surmises that the declined value of beauty has much to do with its association concerning pleasure. Sartwell asserts that beauty arouses longing. Thus, Christians’ anxiety with inordinate desires discourages any trek into the territory of beauty. But it’s interesting how the contemporary secular world is just as fearful of beauty as its Christian counterpart. Perhaps this worldly wariness stems from frustration. Beauty produces a longing for perfection, which eventually, leads to dissatisfaction, then topples into cynicism.

How can Christians invest in the beautiful without despairing over desires and disappointments? Let’s follow the lead of the artist who waxes, “One thing I ask of the LORD…that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” In Psalm 27 desire and beauty are bound up together in the life-long pursuit of knowing God. Therefore, by knowing true Beauty, Christians should be at the forefront of reviving beauty for the rest of the world.

What about combating the world’s dissatisfaction with beauty? Again, we need to follow the artist who proclaimed in the same psalm: “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?” To gaze upon the beauty of the LORD will melt away the dissatisfaction and pessimism produced by our longing for perfection. Christians must live and create in the humbling light of true Beauty. True Beauty is our salvation for he accepts our pauper state—that fact that we are not fully clothed in glory—yet.

Seek Beauty. Live and work knowing one day we’ll be wholly wrapped in His splendor.

--Maria

Terroir

One of the things I love about wine is its ability to express the essence of a particular place. Within the tiny orb of a grape is the potential to offer complex flavors and aromas which, when given time and great care, seem to re-imagine the world in which it was grown. The relationship between human beings and the soil beneath our feet can be delicately examined and enjoyed in a glass of wine. Yet, as with so many treasures of the earth, the grape must be carefully cultivated in order to unlock its artful articulation of place. In Genesis 2, God planted a Garden in Eden for Adam and Eve to care for, and God placed gold and other precious metals beneath the soil near the garden as a surprise, it seems, for them to discover, cultivate and enjoy.

And the gold of that land was pure, aromatic resin and onyx stone are also found there (Genesis 2 NLT)

French winemakers are particularly concerned with the authentic expression a wine offers the world in regards to the place it was cultivated. The word they use to describe it is terroir (pronounced ter-wah). Technically, terroir refers to the dirt or the terrain on which one might grow wine. But a winemaker understands terroir as the comprehensive description of a vineyard’s growing conditions, including elements in the soil and exposure to frost or sunlight. All of these elements and more are summed up in terroir. It is the essence, even flavor, of a piece of land. Hidden in the grape is the power to reveal terroir.

Inspired by the French tradition of preserving terroir, winemakers around the world are working to discover the essence of their particular terrains, and proudly invite the world to experience the beauty and potential of their region. Wine is being cultivated under some of the harshest growing conditions imaginable, agriculturally and otherwise. South Africa, Israel and Turkey are all producing distinctive wines. Wine regions are springing up all over the U.S. in some unlikely places including Texas, and the Arizona desert. God in His perfect love and wisdom so endowed His creation with treasure that each region has the potential to produce distinctly beautiful sense experiences, celebrating the glory of the Creator.

I am the True Vine and my Father is the vinedresser…I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in me—and I in him-bears much fruit.

(John 15:1, 5)

In John 15, Jesus refers us again to a garden, as in Genesis, with His Father planting again. But now, through the gospel, God places us not in a garden but in Himself through Christ, the True Vine. And not only are we in Christ, but He is even in us! This is the radical truth that so amazed Paul when he wrote, Christ in you, the hope of glory. Talk about terroir! In Jesus we discover the true essence of our selves and our world, not merely what is on the surface but all of the conditions in which His subtle complexity and majestic glory are being revealed. No matter how difficult the conditions may be, God has sent His very presence into the soil of our lives in order to reveal His glory. Jesus Christ is our terroir. He Himself is that elusive, complex and ever-present beauty worthiest of seeking, most treasured in finding, and most longed-for in lacking.

My friends, what is the Great Gardener working to preserve in our hearts, in our city, in our world? Let us prayerfully seek to join Him this year.

Kenyon