By: Michael Badriaki on September 14, 2014
Morgan‘s book titled The Sacred gaze:Religious Visual Culture in Theory and Practice is an intriguing read. I was tempted to judge the book by its cover and in fact, at first glance, I wondered what Gandhi, an Avatar of possibly one of the Hindu faith goddesses and an image of Jesus, have in common? My…
By: Carol McLaughlin on September 13, 2014
This week my gaze has been at times distracted and slow to focus due to illness and catch up. Therefore my engagement with David Morgan’s book, The Sacred Gaze: Religious Visual Culture in Theory and Practice seemed to be chapter by chapter rather than an overall gleaning. Morgan sets forth that “sacred gaze is…
By: Miriam Mendez on September 13, 2014
Growing up I could remember having this painting hanging on the wall across from my bed. And every night, my mother reminded me that Jesus will always protect me. I can remember gazing at this picture until I fell asleep. I was comforted knowing that if at any time during the night I was afraid,…
By: Bill Dobrenen on September 13, 2014
We live in a 21st century world inundated with images. Billboards, magazines, television, the Internet, and the large screens in large churches blast out image-laden messages that call us to change, to think, to buy their products. We are used to these images, so much so that we take them for granted. And who hasn’t…
By: rhbaker275 on September 12, 2014
I have enjoyed a new experience in our reading the last two weeks. In Visual Faith: Art, Theology and Worship in Dialogue, William Dyrness awakened a sense of the richness of the visual in worship. Dyrness presented a two-fold stimulus for engaging the visual arts: on the one hand, art enhances the worship experience providing…
By: Stefania Tarasut on September 12, 2014
There are many things in life that I don’t understand. I don’t understand the purpose of the church (I know! I’m a pastor, but I struggle with church). I don’t understand why Jesus is almost always portrayed as a beautiful white man… even by non- whites. Finally, I don’t understand why Christians are driven and…
By: Clint Baldwin on September 12, 2014
(“Home – Morning Coffee While Reading Ionesco’s Rhinoceros: A Study in Brown & ‘Texturality.'”) The above is an image and its title that I posted earlier this week on my Instagram and Facebook accounts. I really liked all of the varied shades of brown, textures, and lines involved. But, what I really want you to…
By: Telile Fikru Badecha on September 12, 2014
Growing up in a church context where religious visuals are not part of the tradition, both our last week’s reading on visual faith by William Dyrness and this week’s reading by David Morgan, The Sacred Gaze: Religious Visual Culture in Theory and Practice have stretched my perception about visuals in the Christians worship. After…
By: Julie Dodge on September 12, 2014
Art is a reflection of culture. Art is demonstrated in many mediums: narrative (story), music, poetry, visual, and performance. And what is culture? “Culture refers to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by…
By: Richard Volzke on September 12, 2014
Stevens said, “Humans do not live in a place but in the description of one.”[1] This quote has caused me to stop and reflect on my own worldview. At one time it seemed that my surroundings were defined by some preset order of things, but this is not the case. The environment does not define…
By: Mitch Arbelaez on September 11, 2014
“Visual images are powerful creations indeed. For into the depths of one soul does the image fall, impacting the very essence of the man.” From those images that offer “the poignant evocation”[1] of an experience to those that train us in transcendences-ness, all images are powerful causing emotions that lead us to passion, love, and…
By: Ashley Goad on September 11, 2014
As I told you last week, I grew up as a part of the Quaker faith at Springfield Friends Meeting in High Point, North Carolina. My mom was a member there. So was her mother and father. So were their mothers and fathers. So were their mothers and fathers. And so were their mothers and…
By: Liz Linssen on September 11, 2014
The Sacred Gaze: Religious Visual Culture in Theory and Practice This past year, my father asked me to give him “a picture of God.” As someone who hasn’t shadowed the door of a church for around three decades, I was pleasantly surprised to hear his request. However, I was more surprised that he assumed I…
By: Deve Persad on September 11, 2014
I ordered new glasses. It’s not really news worthy, as the lens prescription hasn’t changed and the new frames will likely have little difference from the old ones. By my calculations, this is the fifteenth time that I’ve ordered a new pair of glasses. I’ve averaged a new pair every two years for the last…
By: John Woodward on September 11, 2014
Last spring, I traveled to Porcupine, South Dakota on the Pine Ridge Reservation to work with my Lakota friends. On this trip, I had the opportunity to visit a Catholic school where I wandered the halls till I came across a display case that held several icons of Jesus and Mary. Enjoying sacred art, I…
By: Miriam Mendez on September 7, 2014
I can remember as a child being told to “pay attention.” I don’t know about the rest of you but for most children it was not the easiest thing to do. And now, as an adult, I still believe that it is not the easiest thing to do. I would offer that paying attention or…
By: Carol McLaughlin on September 5, 2014
As I write I can lift my head slightly, glance over the top of my laptop to see before me images of significance, invitation, and embrace. Over time they have contributed and added to my faith. As I began to read Visual Faith: Art, Theology and Worship in Dialogue by William A. Dyrness I stopped…
By: dminlgp on September 5, 2014
It seemed more enticing to think through Dryness’ book Visual Faith: Art, Theology, and Worship in Dialogue Engaging Culture with the help of a heading from a proverb in Nigeria’ Chinua Achebe’s famous novel “Things Fall Apart”. When visual art is expressed in all its human forms, people are presented with an opportunity for…
By: Telile Fikru Badecha on September 5, 2014
Visual Faith: Art, Theology, and Worship in Dialogue Engaging Visual Faith: Art, Theology, and Worship in Dialogue Engaging Recently I attended a leadership training conference where I watched someone do a side artwork during the preaching of the word ( see the picture above). This was my first cross-cultural experience of this type, and I…
By: rhbaker275 on September 5, 2014
Several years ago I read The Rise of the Image, The Fall of the Word by Mitchell Stephens. I was at the time becoming aware of the toxic reality around me; the erosion of my value system and the unexplainable disconnect that seemed to be taking place between the church/faith I loved and…
