Christianity and the Arts.
Introduction
The Arts have always played an important role in the life of the Church, and
have a biblical, historical and theological precedence for doing so. From the
earliest days artists have sought to inspire people in their faith and devotion,
and the Bible is rich in stories of those who engaged in the arts.
In approximately 950 BCE (before the common era), King Solomon
commissioned a great army of artists to create a magnificent temple, and in
the Psalms we find references to music, dance, drama and poetry being used
in religious worship1.
Christians and Jews share many of the Hebrew Scriptures, and this Judaic
understanding of the arts is a vital ingredient of the Christian artistic
inheritance. Historically, with the emergence of Christianity as the state
religion of the Roman Empire, the ensuing development of the arts, especially
in the West were inextricably linked to Christianity.
It was almost exclusively the Church who gave patronage to artists and
commissioned works of art, wealthy merchant families would commission
artwork for their private chapels and to celebrate the rites of passage such as
weddings. These works were almost invariably faith-related in their themes
and portrayals. It was only with the emergent humanism of the Renaissance,
and later the birth of the Enlightenment that art began to find its autonomy and
self-consciousness, and ties with the Church began to slacken.
Theologically there continue to be strong reasons why the arts can play a
central role in life of the Church. The story of creation speaks of what God
made as being good, with humankind being made in the image of God. The
defining narrative of the Church is that of Jesus Christ. Christians believe that
through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus God participated uniquely in
this world, in Jesus; the fullness of God’s presence was to be found. Viewed
through Christian eyes the physical world can be a celebration of the nature of
God and artistic endeavour becomes a special and particular way of sharing
in the creative work of God. Just as the physical nature of the world can speak
of God’s nature, so an artistic work can lead the viewer or participant into an
encounter with the presence or qualities of God
1
Psalm 150
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The Arts and the Church.
The Christian Church is made up of a diverse spectrum of denominations
encompassing a range of beliefs and practices. There are denominations
whose theology is considered liberal, whilst others adopt a more conservative
approach.
Some denominations embrace deeply liturgical and formal worship, whilst
others engage in worship that is more spontaneous and flexible. Many
denominations will embrace a diversity of beliefs and practices amongst
member Churches, which varies from one congregation to the next.2
Due to the diversity of Christian beliefs across the world it is almost
impossible to state a single Christian position on any particular issue including
the arts. Research indicates that each denomination will embrace the arts in a
slightly different way, with one or more art forms being more prevalent than
others in the life of the Church.
With the exception of the Roman Catholic Church, no denomination has
issued specific guidance, instruction or prohibition over any particular art form
or arts practice in general.3. Although it is possible to identify certain moments
in the history of the Church when various art forms have been banned or
censored, the arts have always survived and flourished. The current
relationship between the church and arts is no exception, and the climate is a
vibrant one. The relationship between Christianity and the Arts can be
categorised in three ways:
•
artists whose Christian faith profoundly influences their work
Historically this has always been a strong creative legacy of the church, and
some of the greatest works of art have come from those who espoused
Christianity.
•
participation in the arts by Christians who enjoy the arts within the
wider context on an amateur and professional basis, participating in
music, drama, painting, crafts etc
Many of these activities have taken place and continue to do so on church
premises. The nurturing of arts activity within the faith setting provides a
strong stimulus for followers of the faith to attend art events such as theatre,
exhibitions, concerts etc. There are no restrictions as to what kind of events a
Christian might attend, though a person’s conscience and taste will inform
what they choose to see.
2
The Church of England for example, represents almost all points on the spectrum.
See Pope John Paul 11’s Encyclical ‘Letter to Artists.’ Also the Roman Catholic Catechism, and the
Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy. (1978) These are official documents that encourage the highest
standard in the arts, rather than to lay down restrictions and prohibitions.
3
2
•
the arts as a tool to engage with contemporary worshippers
The Church has been rediscovering the role of the arts for its own
development and growth. Many churches extensively use drama, music,
puppetry and mime as a method of worship and to promote the teachings of
the faith. Churches continue to commission a diverse range of art works to be
placed in church buildings. There are a growing number of Christian led arts
organisations that specifically engage with churches to put on art events to
communicate the Christian faith in a creative, meaningful way with the wider
community and, to raise the standard of arts performance within the church
itself.
There is an ongoing debate as to whether or not there is a branch of arts that
can be defined specifically as Christian art. Many Christians engage in an
increasingly diverse and productive dialogue with other communities over
works of art that are not specifically focused on Christianity, but in which
resonant themes of spirituality are observed.4
4
The exhibition ‘Sanctuary; contemporary art and human rights.’ (Glasgow, 2003)
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Christianity and the Art Forms.
Christianity has a very open platform for discussion on participating in and
attending arts activity. The religion encourages decisions on a personal level
influenced by personal conscience and taste.
On a personal and public level a Christian might find Edwina Sandy’s’ Christa
moving, whilst another may find it offensive, the faith encourages a platform of
dialogue and openness where people can disagree and acknowledge two
different viewpoints or interpretations of the same body of work where the
level of offence caused may differ considerably5.
Whilst the church and different Christian denominations may advocate and
promote the arts there remains subject matters and artistic content that may
cause offence to many, for example explicit expressions of sexual behaviour,
nakedness, blasphemy and swearing.
Christianity allows representation of key religious figures in all art forms.
Depictions of God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit, and Mary are acceptable, provided
they are not demeaned or diminished in any way. It is recognised that
controversy has its place, and some Christians will want to engage with what
are considered controversial works of art because it is believed new insights,
challenge etc will be provoked.
For arts organisers dialogue is the best way forward if a balance is to be
found between pushing the boundaries of new insight and maintaining art
forms that are well known and comfortable. A partnership with the Christian
community is more likely to succeed if an arts event reflects some of the
values that Christians aspire to, for example justice, peace, love, and
explorations of spirituality.
An important dimension of the Church is that it shares the multicultural nature
of the UK. Arts organisers will want to explore the ethnic and cultural
dimension of any Church it seeks to work with. Over recent years the Church
has, for example, been enriched by dance, music, and visual art forms from
Asia and Africa. Cultural identity is a profoundly important part of Christian
identity.
5
Edwina Sandys. 1975.
4
Dance
Dance has a long history in the Church. In the Old Testament we find
examples of dance as an expression of worship.6 Today, some churches use
dance as an act of prayer or commentary upon Scripture readings.
Many Christians would be willing to participate in dance activities, either as
participants or observers. The diversity of the Church through its Black and
Asian members also widens the range of dance form that might be explored.
Offence might be caused by extreme sensuality, physical exposure.
Theatre
Drama has an ancient tradition in the history of the Church, and for centuries
the Medieval Mystery plays that retell Biblical stories ranging from Creation to
the Resurrection of Jesus have been performed. Churches in cities such as
York and Chester participate in such productions that are often a joint venture
with the local theatre company, Church and wider community.
More generally, through drama, Christians will welcome insightful explorations
of themes and key figures in the faith. Some will welcome some level of
controversy. Similarly, Christians will welcome humour and laughter.
Music
Music is the most universal art form in the worship life of the Church, and
almost every genre is represented. The Salvation Army, for example has a
strong tradition of Brass Ensemble, whilst 18th and 19th Century hymns will be
sung in a vast number of Methodist and Anglican Churches.
During the last 20 years or so many churches increasingly use songs that
stand in the rock and pop genre. Although some churches may not use music
in their services, for example the Quakers, there will be an openness to
participate in music activities outside the Church.
Many Christians will be both performers (amateur and professional), and there
is strong tradition in many denominations of concerts, especially Classical,
being held in Church buildings.
Literature
Some Religious Communities such as the Benedictines have an ancient
tradition of reading called lectio divina, or holy reading. This is a method of
engaging contemplatively with religious texts. Currently this approach has
been extended to the wider Church and other genres, so it would not be
uncommon for poetry and prose to be used within the setting of worship or
encouraged outside of the Church.
6
1Chronicals 15:27 - 29
5
Many Christians are also avid readers and belong to reading groups, where
amongst other emergent themes, they explore issues to do with faith and
spirituality. Churches would be willing to be involved in literary festivals,
perhaps as a venue for readings and workshops.
Carnival/Festival
Carnival in the UK brings many strands together, ranging from the Trinidadian
form of Carnival whose origins were a celebration of the freedom from
slavery, through to the Medieval Mystery plays discussed above.
The key to Carnival is the bringing together of community groups, including
the church, and the Church may play a key part, for example at the Notting hill
Carnival there is always a ‘Carnival Mass’ at a church, which reflects
something of the life and diversity that will be processed through the streets.
Some Churches will participate in Carnival as a way of sharing their faith and
raising their profile in the community.
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Painting
There has always been strong tradition of painting in the Church, with the
Church often acting as Patron. The popularity of the ‘Seeing Salvation’
exhibition in 2000 is evidence of the long history of the visual arts in the
Church, and the interest in them.
There is no difficulty with figurative representation, and it is acceptable to
portray key figures in a diverse way. One example is the recent exhibition
called ‘Jesus laughing and loving’ where portrayals of Jesus range from South
American peasant to an ice skater. Many Christians enjoyed this and found it
insightful to their faith. However, there will always be a continuum of what is
acceptable and what is controversial.
Many Christians will welcome contemporary portrayals of Jesus and other key
figures, though many will find, for example, the work of Chris Ofili and Andres
Serrano deeply offensive7.
Photography
The rulings and positioning of the church on the traditional visual arts e.g.
painting also apply to the field of photography. Photography as an art form is
encouraged and has been used by main churches as part of traditional
worship but also as part of exhibitions and celebrations of the church and
faith.
Crafts
The Crafts in the Church usually have a two fold purpose; decorative and
functional, and the Church has always sought to create an environment that is
aesthetically pleasing, with Ecclesiastical objects, such as vestments, font,
alter being made to the highest standard; not only to create objects of beauty,
but to reflect and aspire to the creativity of God.8
7
Ofili : ‘Madonna’. A mixed media painting which included elephant dung. Serrano: ‘Piss Christ’ A
photograph of a crucifix suspended in urine.
8
See Pope John Paul ll’s Encyclical ‘A letter to Artists’
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Marketing
The most commonly used symbols of Christianity are the cross and the
crucifix (a cross with the figure of the crucified Jesus on it), both of which refer
to Jesus’ death, and implicitly point to his resurrection.
Traditionally Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches have favoured the use
of the crucifix, and Protestant churches the cross, though both are recognised
by all Christians as the central symbol of their faith.
While the simplest form of the cross has one vertical and one horizontal bar,
other versions exist, for example those that have two horizontal bars. These
forms arise out of particular historical, geographical and theological contexts
and may not be universally recognised.
Christians would usually infer from the use of a cross or crucifix in a
publication that the originator of the document was a Christian. (Interestingly,
as the symbol displayed as jewellery has become so ubiquitous, the same
inference could not necessarily be made of someone wearing a cross or
crucifix).
Whilst there is no ruling on this, the cross or crucifix should be displayed with
care, and as usually seen in Christian iconography, i.e. as a plain cross, or
with a male figure on a cross (traditionally, though not exclusively, wearing a
loincloth).
Some serious artistic interpretations of the symbol have caused offence to
some Christians (See footnote 6). Deliberate parodies or inversions of the
symbol (a non-human form on a cross; a cross or crucifix displayed upside
down) may indicate reference to pagan or satanic beliefs and will cause
offence to Christians.
Less common (and not necessarily universally recognised) symbols include
the fish, first used by persecuted Christians in the early church as a secret
sign of their allegiance, and chosen because the first letter of each of the
Greek words for ‘Jesus Christ God’s Son, Saviour’ spelled fish in Greek. Also
used are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, alpha and omega,
following God’s words ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the
end’ and within the Roman Catholic Church, the sacred heart of Jesus.9
There are no forms of text that per se would cause offence to Christians. If
‘God’ is spelled with the uppercase ‘G’, Christians will assume a reference is
being made to God as understood and defined by the Christian faith. If ‘god’
is spelled with a lower case ‘g’ Christians will assume that the god referred to
is a pagan god. References to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit (the latter
being the three persons of the Trinity) should use an uppercase initial letter.
The pattern for Jesus, his mother Mary and others in the New Testament
follow common usage in giving an uppercase letter to a real name.
9
Revelation 21:6
8
Following the injunction ‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in
vain’, swear words or phrases incorporating the words God, Jesus, Christ and
other aspects of the Christian faith will cause offence to many Christians.10
Venues and Access
No venues are expressly prohibited to Christians, provided attendance does
not imply worship or veneration of a god other than the Christian God.11 This
means that most Christians would feel comfortable with visiting other places
of worship, for example for events or exhibitions, and as a member of the
public.
Some Christians, on moral or ethical grounds, might choose not to enter a
venue such as a public house, casino, bingo or other gaming hall, believing
that alcohol can demean and diminish the person created in the image of
God, and that betting, or otherwise participating in a game of chance does not
give due honour to God as the sole being able to determine any outcome.
No food or drink is expressly prohibited to Christians however, for centuries
Christians did follow the practice of restricting their diet on particular Holy
days – predominantly Good Friday (the day on which Jesus was crucified),
but also Fridays in Lent (the main penitential season in the Christian calendar,
being the forty days before Easter), Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday
(the day before the start of Lent and the day of the start of Lent) and in the
Roman Catholic Church, all Fridays. On these days no meat would be eaten
or alcohol consumed.
Today some Christians, in particular Roman Catholics and Orthodox
Christians, and those in religious communities practising ascetic discipline
may voluntarily restrict their diet in this way.
No offence would be caused to Christians by a range of foods, including meat,
being offered at any event on any day, though if food were being offered on
any of the above Holy Days it would be prudent to also offer an alternative to
meat.
Alcohol is not expressly prohibited to Christians. Wine (fermented juice of the
grape) was used by Jesus at a significant meal (the last supper) as a symbol
of his blood, and the sacrifice he was to make through his death12.
The liturgical celebration of this event is known as the Mass, Eucharist or Holy
Communion and forms a crucial part of most Christian worship. In some nonconformist churches (for example the Methodist, United Reform and Baptist
Churches) non-alcoholic wine will be consumed. For historical reasons (for
example the influence of the Temperance movement in the 19th century) and
10
Deuteronomy 5:11
Deuteronomy 5:7
12
Matthew 26:26 - 29
11
9
for the ethical reasons referred to above, members of these (and other)
churches may choose not to drink any alcohol.
Many Christians, believing in the inherent worth of all people as the children of
God, made in God’s image, actively support the Fair Trade movement, and
will welcome the use of fairly traded products at any event13. For the same
reason, most Christians will not tolerate discrimination against any individual
or group, in terms of access to an event.14
Christians are required to keep Sunday as a special day, as this was the day
of Jesus’ Resurrection.15 For most Christians this will be the day that they
attend they attend their main service(s) of worship. One or two generations
ago many Christians would restrict their other activities on a Sunday, not
participating in any work, or attending any venues outside the home. This
practice has diminished significantly, though there are still those who observe
it, and campaign for others to do so.
It is possible therefore that Christians might not attend an event on a Sunday
for practical reasons (that the timing clashed with their time of worship), rather
less likely that they would object to an event being staged on a Sunday.
The major Christian festivals are Christmas (Christmas Eve and Christmas
Day both being significant), which commemorates when Jesus was born, and
Easter (Good Friday and Easter Day – the Sunday – being of particular
significance, though all of holy week, the week preceding Easter is important),
when he died and rose again. Many Christians would choose not to attend
other events at these times.
Funding
Attending an event that has been made possible by acceptance of funding
from various sources is likely to be a matter of personal conscience for
Christians as little specific guidance can be gained from scriptures.
Some churches, for example the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of
England find no problem in accepting Lottery funding (and indeed applying for
it for projects of their own.
Other churches, like the Methodist Church debated the issue for some time,
but now leave the matter to individual churches, their ministers and councils.
The Salvation Army will not knowingly benefit from Lottery funding.
Where churches and individual Christians have objections to Lottery funding,
this is likely to be based on an objection to gambling and games of chance
and some of the general Christian principles already referred to.
13
Genesis 1:26
Galatians 3:28
15
This is a development of the Judaic injunction to ‘keep the Sabbath’ (Saturday). Deuternomy 5:12
14
10
Because of their reverence for human life and care for the environment, some
Christians are likely to be unhappy with funding that comes from organisations
involved in the alcohol, tobacco and gambling industries.
Many Christians would not wish to be associated with an event where funding
had been obtained from organisations involved in armaments, or with
products that pollute the earth, or where workers or local people are unfairly
treated.
Most Christians would prefer therefore that funding should be obtained from
organisations that operate and invest ethically. For any event, it would be
extremely helpful for sources of funding to be identified at an early stage.
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