Art is the most divine of all human abilities and desires. God is in art. He lives in the expressions of people. Isn’t that the very first thing we read about him in the Bible—that he created? Only those who are truly alive love art; and only that life can make art. We are God’s art. We would have to be to be human—made in God’s image.
Of everything on earth, I am touched by art most. I have seen paintings that took me to places I would never be able to go in reality. I have watched movies that made me cry with both joy and sadness. I have read poems in which I would swear the author included me. I have seen sculptures that stopped me as I walked. I have read books that motivated me to be better. I have heard music that changed my life. I have completely lost myself in art. And, I wonder what all this means theologically. What I want to know is, Why is it that I have so consistently been impacted by art, but have often not been touched by spiritual things? Or maybe better yet, not by a biblical text. Is it okay to be more touched by a song or a painting than a biblical text?
The more I think about it, I think that it is okay. But that is not to say that the Bible shouldn’t impact—or that it never does. That isn’t true at all. The Bible is nothing but words that give life. But wouldn’t it be helpful to see Scripture itself as art, too? And isn’t it true that we are touched by different types of art at different times in our lives? Sometimes I think that we all are deeply and profoundly moved by a text—and sometimes we are deeply and profoundly moved by art. What is the difference?
I mean, after all, much of the Bible is poetry and song. It is art. I think that all art is God’s divinity coming out in his people—whether they were Bible writers or not. Art is the Holy Spirit working. I am amazed when people who profess to be Christians neglect to see the working of the triune God in their lives. So in that sense, art is not another thing separate and apart from Scripture. It is just as divine. It is just another way.
Many of us, in Churches of Christ, have done such a disservice to the Christian world by claiming that the Holy Spirit doesn’t work apart from the Bible. I couldn’t disagree more. Even a quick read of Romans 8 will impress upon a believer how powerful the Holy Spirit is in the world. I see art as one of the ways in which he works.
In light of this, I am increasingly impressed with how I am impacted by the world around me—or better yet, the Holy Spirit working through the world. After all, it isn’t that I am only impacted by art. I am impacted by the tragedies and suffering of others; I am impacted by the joys and hopes of others. They really do make me feel. But even still, I find myself calmly and collectively approaching situations that should forever be remembered. I forget, though. I have seen and done so much. I have seen poverty that is thought to be dead by many of the people who raised me. I have seen the ugliness of racism and oppression. I have seen some of the most beautiful landscapes on earth. I have seen Christ in ways I’ll never forget. I have seen happiness so great that it almost makes your heart stop for just a moment. Almost like I was…in a movie.
Now do you see where I am going? I identify certain times in my life as worthy of being represented in art. Don’t you do that, too? What does that mean about the nature of art?
But I want more. Don’t you? There is so much here on this earth that I really do want to experience—even though I know I have experienced so much. I don’t care if everyone else in the entire world is apathetic. I want more. I want to see more. To feel more. To live more. I want to travel more. I want to have deeper relationships. I want to lead people to Christ. To see him working all around them. And I think that it is because of all of this that I want to watch more movies. Read more books. Live in more poems. It is because of what I have lived that I love art. It is because of my hopes that I love art. Those that do not hope do not love art.
I think that is why I am so consistently touched by art. Art is only as touching as the hope it represents. Hope includes joy, pain, hope, and all things human.
And, to be fair, I am not always impacted by art. I mean, sometimes a book is just not good. A poem poorly written. A song not coherent. A painting out of inspiration. A song badly thought out. And I am rarely impacted by things like these. In fact, I almost never am. But it is not that I am talking about in this rather unusual post. I am talking about that art that makes you different after you experience it.
It is no wonder there is so much art in church history!
This has all been on my mind lately and I am throwing it out there. I hope it is helpful. I’d like to know what you think. My prayer is that we see God working in more than just the Bible. That we see him in art—and that we will experience him as a result.
Appendix 1:
The more I think about this post, the more I think needs to be said…
First off, what is it that I am talking about when I use the term “impact” or “touch” (I am obviously using them as synonyms)? Is it simply the evocation of emotion? Yes and no. Yes, in that emotion is often times evoked–and feeling becomes reality. No, in that what I am talking about doesn’t stop with emotion. Or does it?
I believe that God gave us emotions that he intended to be influences in our lives. He uses emotion; I am sure of that. If he didn’t, we wouldn’t be totally his.
But will emotion alone change the way we live? Maybe. I mean, people have changed the very foundations of their lives based on love and/or hatred for another person. Emotion should be seen as extremely important in the discussion as to how we live.
That is why I am convinced it is so dangerous to separate emotion from religion–which is exactly what the common sense realism represented within many Churches of Christ tries to do. If we have no emotion in our religion, we will quickly grow bored with it and gravitate to something that moves us. Doesn’t that seem right? That is just human nature.
What I am wanting to show is that art–by being part of the way God works–can put emotion into a religion that encompasses the entirety of our beings. Does this make sense?
But will art and/or emotion alone lead us to God? I doubt it. In fact, I know it won’t. Jesus, and Jesus alone, will. He is the true life. His word is our guide. Everything else is supplemental.
Thoughts on this?
Appendix 2:
I have been thinking about this more and more. And I still think more needs to be said. Another thing that I hadn’t considered is how art reflects past experience. For example, there are certain paintings, songs, books, and movies that make me think about past times. Past people. Past pain. Past joy. Past changes.
So I guess what I am saying is that art doesn’t always have to reflect/represent hope. Sometimes it reflects/represents past experience–and in that way it becomes real. It impacts. It evokes emotion. It causes change.
So this is just another way by which I have found myself trying to understand this whole phenomenon of the relationship between art and spirituality.
Making sense?
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