Imag(ine)
Jesus lovingly holds those who sting him.
One of my favorite moments from our time in Hong Kong last year was when Martyn Percy showed us The Scorpion from Stanely Spencer’s “Christ in the Wilderness” series. Viewing this image was such a powerful experience for me. I appreciated everything Dr. Percy said as I took notes vigorously. However, what penetrated my soul was not the words that entered through my ears, but the unspoken wisdom that touched me deeply via my eyes. Studying the image ignited my imagination for ministry, filled with all the joys and the pains and stings and love in a way a lecture could not have accessed. I am not speaking hyperbolically when I say, that image pointed me toward new life. Images can do that; images have tremendous power!
It is toward the harnessing of this power of images that William Dyrness calls the protestant church to return. Dryness says our faith is a faith of visuals. Dryness fears that if we do not win the battle of images, the protestant church could lose a generation of disciples. Humans are imaginative and recovering images in our churches is a way to instigate personal and even collective imaginations of praise, honor, and service to Jesus. Sarah Pink taught us last year in Doing Visual Ethnography that images are playing an increasing role in academics. Dryness questions why not in the church worship service too.
Dyrness explains how the protestant reformers seemed to overreact against the Catholic church’s system of iconclasts. He says that the loss of art in so many churches has really had a negative effect on worship. Consequently, Dyrness calls the protestant church to return to a visual faith. After all, the 21st century is a visual era.
Dyrness calls the church to return to a “visual faith” because of his view of humanity. For Dyrness, humans are created by God to watch over the created order and care for it. He also views humans with a purpose of serving Jesus. In fact, quoting Paul, Dyrness views humanity as slaves for Jesus’ sake. This view of who we are allows Dyrness to call the protestant church back to the use images in worship. This view is in stark contrast to Jim Collins’ view of humanity where people are simply passengers on a bus and some of us are bus drivers who need to choose who should be on the bus and who should not. I think it is important to point out that Collins has written a good (okay great) book on leading businesses and non-profits forward. I for one really love the book. However, it is important to remember that no matter how Level 5 a leader is, there is an invisible aspect to leading, and in the case of Dyrness, of worshiping.
For Dyrness, artists understand first, before non-artists what life, full of its pains and joys and deaths, is like. Many leadership books like to quote the famous Sun Tzu fromThe Art of War. After reading Visual Fatih, I dream of a future where leading leadership book authors quote from a yet to be created book titled, The Art of Art. Visual Faith has a section on the role that art plays on discipleship, why not write a book on the potential art has in creating great leaders?
Kai’s Love vs. Money spray paint. Photo by Aaron 9/10/16
Last Saturday after I finished Sunday’s message I needed to get out of the house and see some art. I couldn’t spend any money to see an exhibit at a local gallery (A trip to London is expensive!) so I grabbed my son and his friends and we headed to West Hollywood to see some street art. Once we parked and walked east on Melrose Ave we spotted a piece called Love vs. Money (http://kaiart.com). It is a ceramic piece glued onto a wall by an artist named Kai. Wow. I have been trying to explain to my 13 year old son and his friends that it is simply impossible to serve two masters. I haven’t been too successful showing them how sometimes the pursuit of money and fame can hold us back from loving God and neighbor. And there it was, Love vs. Money. A person being drawn by a heart shaped hot-air balloon to new heights and possibilities with one arm, while the other limb is being held down by a bag of money. Like a parable of Jesus, there is no resolution to this piece. There is just the art; just the provoking of the imagination. Countless lectures from a well-meaning dad summed up in one piece of art: Love vs. Money.
Just like the scorpions stinging Jesus helped me discover a new way to view some hurtful experiences as a pastor last year while in Hong Kong, people meeting Jesus for the first time require a new way to imagine life in God’s kingdom. I have found as a church planter that people require a new way of living (being) that they can touch and see. Pink again states that images can produce a knowledge and way of knowing that is different, and I would say an improvement from simply collecting data. Living a christian life requires a different way of knowing. Art provides this.
My son’s friend Katie with Love vs. Money by Kai. Photo by Aaron 9/10/16
About the Author
Aaron Peterson
I am a working priest which means that I am a husband(to Lisa), dad(to four wonderful children), senior pastor and church planter(The Hub Vineyard Church), and high school social studies teacher(Verdugo Hills High School LAUSD). I am currently working towards a DMIN in Leadership & Global Perspectives @George Fox Seminary.13 responses to “Imag(ine)”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Aaron,
You make a compelling case for the power of the visual. If you could talk to John Calvin today, what would you add to what you have written here?
Hi Marc. I would give him a tulip and ask him to explain Calvinism to me.
Aaron,
Great blog with so many insights on the power of images to ignite one deep down in the soul.
Can you speak more to your thinking in your sentence, “Humans are imaginative and recovering images in our churches is a way to instigate personal and even collective imaginations of praise, honor, and service to Jesus?” Do you have any particular images in mind that are powerful enough to spark that kind of response?
Hi Claire. Thanks. Yes, I love almost any religious painting by Rembrandt. Marc’s blog has my favorite, The Return of the Prodigal. Another image that I find helpful is Andrei Rublev’s painting of the Trinity. I use it a couple of times a year on Sunday mornings.
Aaron:
I wrote in my blog about the challenge of “natural theology” and the arts. The arts are an expression that can direct and encourage, but in the end they are not salvific.
Do you see a challenge here? I have been encouraged, uplifted, and strengthened through the arts. The challenge, as Dyerness, is how we as humans can take something and abuse its intended usage. Would you agree?
Phil
Hi Phil. Yes, I agree there is challenge here. I think as Christians we are good at turning almost anything beautiful into some type of object of abuse if we are not careful.
Aaron,
Great minds think alike, I thought of Pearcy’s talk and use of visual arts (portrait of Jesus) while reading Dryness’ book. That painting really spoke to me, I have used it and looked at it often since last year. Do you think it’s the humanity and pain of ministry that draws us to this particular visual?
Hey AC. Yes, I do think it’s the pain that is the draw. See you soon.
So how do you translate that “street art” into the Hub? Is that something that you can translate to your congregation with as much impact as the introduction by Pearcy’s conversation? You do a great job of capturing things in your “neighbourhood.” Thanks for sharing this with us!!
Kevin
Hi Kevin. I don’t think I do a good job translating street art for use in the Hub. I do want to get better though.
AP
Love the pics and kudos for tying in the scorpion and Jesus photo. Can’t wait to hang with you in London
J
Hey Jason. Looking forward to being together this week!
Aaron,
Great cross reference of our previous books. Quoting that “the loss of art in so many churches has really had a negative effect on worship” is a fair statement. We often talk about reaching the next generation but fail to appreciate the creativity that’s attached to it. I always felt like if we are going to have them sacrifice somethings to serve God, it should never be their creativity. There is room appreciate arts in worship, through culture.
Garfield