In her chapter, "Names and Labels", L'Engle talks about the power of naming things and how labels can create misconceptions and pigeonholes.
Here's an extended passage from that chapter, the question is simply, "What do you think?"
"Not long ago a college senior asked if she could talk to me about being a Christian writer. If she wanted to write Christian fiction, how was she to go about it?
I told her that if she is truly and deeply Christian, what she writes is going to be Christian, whether she mentions Jesus or not. And if she is not, in the most profound sense, Christian, then what she writes is not going to be Christian, no matter how many times she invokes the name of the Lord
...If I understand the gospel, it tells us that we are to spread the Good News to all four corners of the world, not limiting the giving of light to people who already have seen the light. If my stories are incomprehensible to Jews or Muslims or Taoists, then I have failed as a Christian writer. We draw people to Christ not by loudly discrediting what they believe, by telling them how wrong they are and how right we are, but by showing them a light that is so lovely that they want with all their hearts to know the source of it...
...What we are is going to be visible in our art, no matter how secular (on the surface) the subject may be. Some of those angry etchings of Hogarth, depicting the sordidness and squalor and immorality caused by social inequities of his day are profoundly incarnational, for they are filled with anguished pity for the thief and the prostitute and the scum of the earth, and this compassion is Christ's."
---What do you think?
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5 comments:
The point she is making is that our christianity is evident be our lives opened up for others to see and view. There is no "christian" approach to this other than who you are in Christ. This will show as we tell our story or write our words for others to read. If we have something creative to say we should say it or write it. The being "christian" will show through.
Pastor Jim
I think Pastor has isolated the L'Engle's main point which she is trying to convey throughout the book.
-Louie
Art or every day life, authenticity will show through no matter what. You can tell if a person is faking being nice in an instant, as you can also instantaneously spot genuine interest. With art it may be more complicated, because there's technique involved, and color schemes/musical lines/sensory stimuli that may or may not appeal to your aesthetic sense.
I remember standing in front of some of the most famous paintings in the world and thinking..."I don't get it". Does that make it bad art or am I just not seeing what the artist was trying to convey from his emotions? In my personal opinion, every piece of art needs to come with an explanation from the artist, what was he thinking/feeling/expressing when he wrote/painted/sculpted/...this.
We've had this topic come up a few times recently,haven't we? What is "Christian"? How is a Christian supposed to behave, what's acceptable in the "christianese lingo"? And how should a christian express himself artistically? I think it should be by showing your TRUE self in your work, not the cleaned up version. Yes, as Pastor Jim said, your christianity will show through, if it's authentic. I love what Madeleine L'Engle said that you can evoke the name of the Lord as many times as you want, it's not going to make the art more christian than you are.
In closing, I had a humbling tonight that deserves credit to my God. While at a networking event, I was told by a lady that she had been approached by at least 10 people doing the same business as mine, but that she has decided to purchase through me. This was surprising, because I hadn't even prospected her, we just talked socially for a few minutes. I can only hope that it was a genuineness coming out of me that attracted her. Can't take credit for it myself, because I wasn't even trying.
Art is an expression of or a part of "the fruit we produce" as followers of Christ. The deeper and closer the walk the more profound the expression. A more fundamental question would be "What kind of christian are you?
Are you a carnal chrisitian, a fly by the seat of your pants christian, a situational ethics type of christian? I agree with L'Engle that in all those christian things we do including invoking the name of the Lord Jesus 100x's, going to church, reading the bible, knowing it inside and out, being brought up in a christian home - does not automatically make you a christian.
When we have the light within us which is the Holy Spirit - the true working of the Holy Spirit will guide us in what we should say and do that would ultimately glorify God. As we evolve and are being sanctified daily our expressions of art no matter what the medium - words, pictures, music will have a message that will draw others to the light. It is not of ourselves but the work of the Holy Spirit that inspires us to create. If we allow ourselves to be used as a vehicle or conduit for His power to work through us and to be used for His purpose, great things will happen!
I believe this is what L'Engle is saying when she states "if she is truly and deeply christian......in the most profound sense.
Diane D.
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