Book Review- Art and the Bible

I recently read Francis Schaeffer's collection of essays "Art and the Bible". (Do two essays constitute a "collection"?) If I'm being totally honest, and I am, I must confess to not having read much Schaeffer. I know he has a great many fans in Christendom, but I am not familiar enough with his work (yet) to be counted as one of them. Having established this, let me say that I enjoyed this little volume.

As I stated above, there are two essays in the book. The first essay is the one titled "Art and the Bible". In this section Schaeffer disputes the belief that art has no place in the life of the Christian. Rather, he argues, that art should be in the life of the follower of Jesus. In fact, the Scriptures are replete with examples of not only God-pleasing art, by art mandates by God himself simply for beauty. Examples that Schaeffer uses to support this thesis are the tabernacle and the Temple descriptions and directives found in the Old Testament.

Quite helpful in the section is his discussion of "graven images"; those things which are expressly forbidden by God in the 10 Commandments (depending on which numbering system you employ). This particular commandment, Schaeffer notes, is the first one to which those who argue against art in the life of believers point in support of their position. Schaeffer argues, convincingly I think, that God does not specify "Thou shalt not make representational art". Rather, the prohibition is on worshipping the art that is made.

The second essay, "Some perspectives on Art" is helpful as well. Here Schaeffer lays out what constitutes art, good art, and Christian art. To be sure this is not a detailed excursus on art theory. But, it does provide some introductory material for those looking to see how the arts can fit into their Christian faith and life. Further, it helps in clarifying the distinction between Christian art and "religious art". In other words, Schaeffer argues, again, convincingly I think, that a work of art may be considered Christian, even if it does not deal with or depict Jesus or any other traditional Christian icon. Schaeffer argues, that it is not so much content which makes a work or art Christian, but rather the worldview of the artist.

Schaeffer cautions against trying to determine an artist's worldview, or at least the totality of it in one painting. This, he says, is futile. He places the work of art in the context of the artist's entire body of work.

I would recommend this book for anyone who is looking to explore all dimensions of their walk with Christ. By this, I mean, art and aesthetics are often judged in Christian circles by their content and/or message and then deemed "bad" or "good", which are often synonyms for "appropriate" and "inappropriate". Both sets of terms have their place, but the distinction should be made.

There are any number of art theory and textbooks on aesthetics which expand on the principles Schaeffer puts forth in his essays.But, this read, as I said, is good for beginners and explorers.

One minor flaw in this book is that Schaeffer omits any discussion of film as an art form. This is easily remedied by applying his principles to film study and viewing.

Review- "American VI: Ain't No Grave" by Johnny Cash

So, I was pleasantly surprised to find the sixth and (I'm told) final album in the American recordings series by Johnny Cash available for purchase. Like my friend Nik, everything I had heard and read said the album was dropping on Friday (2-26-10). He suggested that maybe someone broke the street date, and as we all know, when one does it, everybody does it. Regardless, I purchased it on the spot, then gave it a listen on my way home.

In the interest of fairness, let me make one thing clear. As my regular readers know, I am the first to admit my biases. And this post is no exception. I am big fan of Johnny cash. I was a fan since my days of first getting into country music in high school. Despite that being the era when the American Recordings were first released, I did not come across them until a few years later.

That said, I had sky-high expectations for this release. And really, how could I not? When you are a fan, especially of a legend like Johnny Cash and the American Recordings, you pretty much demand and expect excellence. The drawback, of course, is that with such lofty expectations, you can really set yourself up for colossal letdown.

The previous sentence probably gives you an idea where this is going. And, you would be right. I don't if this is the case, but this is my impression. The album sounds like they had some tracks leftover from the American V sessions and decided not to let them go to waste. rather than put out a boxed set with these tracks included, they whittled down what they had into a new album. Again, I don't know if that was the intent. But that's what it sounds like to me.

Taken individually, each track is great. Taken together, the whole album just seems forced, superfluous, and unnecessary. I CANNOT believe I just used those words to describe a Johnny Cash album. But, that's my impression. And, that's not to take away anything from Johnny himself, or his musical legacy.

Three of the first four tracks are really the strength of the album. The first one, the title track, spotlights a dying Christian's certain belief in the Resurrection of the dead ( great illustration for a sermon on those texts which mention it or the Third Article of the Creed). The second, a cover of Sheryl Crow's "Redemption Day", is a masterwork. It has the same effect as his cover of Trent Reznor's "Hurt". Though not as epic as "Hurt", this one has the feeling that he means it. By that,I mean, comparing the Crow version with this version would produce two entirely different impressions and interpretations, based on both the age and belief system of the two artists. The fourth track, titled 1 Corinthians 15:55, reiterates Cash's belief in where he will go after his biological death. Beyond these tracks, the rest of the album just feels thrown together. Or, as much as an album of great individual tracks can feel that way.

I am curious as to why the tracks were picked. The album ends with Cash's cover of "Aloha Oe". Trust me, you'll recognize it when you hear it.

In all honesty, I wish that those responsible for producing this album had done this instead: Take tracks 7 and 8 off of American 5, and replaced them with tracks 1,2, and 4 from this one. That would have been pretty much the perfect Johnny Cash album. But I don't make those decisions.

Pastors, you can feel comfortable recommending this album to your congregations, adding certain tracks to your library, and even preaching from those tracks.

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 6

"Ideas are the greatest resource a successful person could ever have. And when you surround yourself with creative people, you're never at a loss for inspiring ideas."

--John C. Maxwell (in "Mentoring 101")

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 5

"Not since John the Baptist has there been a voice like that crying in the wilderness. The most male voice in Christendom. Every man knows he is a sissy compared to Johnny Cash."

--Bono
(liner notes: "The Essential Johnny Cash")

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 4

"There can be no music without ideology."

--Dmitri Shostakovich

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 3

"There can be no question. God is interested in beauty. God made people to be beautiful. And beauty has a place in the worship of God."

--Francis Schaeffer (in "Art and the Bible)

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 2

"When we find ourselves perplexed by a scene in a movie or the lyrics of a song, we say to our friends, 'What do you make of that?' We aren't usually our friends to write a new scene or sing new lyrics- we aren't asking for more creation. We mean, what sense do you make of it? We are asking for interpretation."

--Andy Crouch (in "Culture Making" p.24)

Movie Review- Valentine's Day

Let me get my bias right out on the table. I am not really a fan of the so-called "romantic comedy". Actually, if I'm being totally honest, it's probably me least favorite drama. Nevertheless, as a service to you, my partners in ministry, I will review the film for you.

The film tells several stories at once. Essentially, each person in the story is trying to celebrate the perfect valentine's day. No one actually says this phrase, but you can tell it's on the characters' minds. You pretty much don't need to know much more than that.

Theological discussions can take place as a result of this film. However, as you might expect, much of it deals with Sixth Commandment and sexuality issues. Sex outside the boundaries of marriage abounds in this film, both as premarital and extramarital. But, we have to remember, Hollywood is not in the business of teaching Christian values or propagating a Biblical worldview. That said, I believe this is a pretty accurate reflection of our present culture.

Another discussion which may stem this film is the topic of "purpose". In this context, as in many romantic comedies, "purpose" is equivalent to "meant to be", at least relationally speaking. In any such discussion, the distinction among purpose, vocation and choosing a mate should be made clear.

One final point should be obvious, though I will state it. This film could serve as a springboard to the story of the actual St. Valentine.

GOSPEL HANDLES

Naturally, any film called "Valentine's Day" traffics in "love". Many different kinds of love exist, and they are reflections of God's love for us. There is a line spoken by one of the characters that actually is a pretty good Gospel handle. he says something to the effect of love means loving the other person entirely, not the just parts you like. What a good description of how God, who hates sin, showed us His love by sending Jesus. He redeemed us, even though we did not deserve it, or do anything to make God "like us".

CLERGY HANDLES

Some nuns are depicted. In one scene they hold a baby for a busy and slightly disorganized mother. Outside of that, they don't do anything particularly nun-like.

if you like romantic comedies, there is a good chance you will enjoy this film. I however, prefer other genres.

Pastoral Aesthetic Quotes- 1

"Except for theology, there is no art that can be placed in comparison with music." --Martin Luther

New Feature- Quotes

In an effort to post more regularly on this site, as well as to keep it from being simply a site for reviewing books and (mostly) films, I have decided to post quotes regarding spirituality and culture/the arts. They can and will come from a variety of sources, both ancient and modern. Feel free to comment on them. By the way, it should be noted that these, like most quotes are random and probably out of context. If you can add a bit of context, feel free to comment on that as well. Enjoy!