Collide Magazine

Theosthetics

Matt Capps - Originally posted Monday, August 4, 2008

When talking about the visual arts, culture, and faith, one cannot avoid a topic that has pervaded discussion throughout the history of philosophy: beauty. When it comes to beauty, theorists generally agree on one rudimentary point: Beauty is apprehended within the realm of the aesthetic. Beyond this, dispute prevails. Why does this matter for us? As we employ visual resources within worship venues this topic becomes much more than an issue of philosophy. Our culture, as a whole, is thoroughly concerned about aesthetic appeal and image. Images carry meaning and connotations, just as words do. In the church this conversation has become increasingly important in the last few years.

First, it is important to mention that the battles of church history have specifically, and rightly, involved spoken and written words. As Neil Postman once wrote, words are a truer reflection of reality in that words are, and have been the main vehicle of communication through out the history of man (Amusing Ourselves to Death, 19). This remains true for most of the Christian world, but one cannot deny that in recent history there has been a revolution in visual communication. Outside the church’s doors we are faced with thousands of images, brands, and products everyday; things that are shaped and colored to appeal to our sense of aesthetic value. But how have we trained our people to see beyond the media to the message? What message are we sending our people by our use of visual media?

We all know from experience that human beings are drawn to things that are visually beautiful. The elusive thing about beauty is that, in some sense, it has always been difficult to define in concise terms. As one of my professors, Bruce Little, once argued, “It is a funny thing, we are not quite sure how to define beauty, but we seem to recognize it intuitively when we see it”. How true it is, three philosophers can sit on the patio of a café overlooking the white capped mountains of Whistler and argue about the definition of beauty for hours. But at once, when the sunset casts a radiant display of colors over the pallet of snow, they can point and say, “That is beauty.” In that moment, the abstract idea of beauty has become intelligible. Often those in the academy will disagree on the particulars of aesthetics. But, when it comes down to the fundamentals, it is generally agreed that apprehension of beauty is a universal human phenomenon. This truth holds regardless of difference in opinion or taste. For example, it has been observed that small children are attracted to certain things because of complexity and color. But for most people mere apprehension never advances beyond speculation.

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For the Christian it is quite rational to believe that our belief system provides the correct lens by which we are to view all aspects of our world, even when it comes to aesthetics and the arts. But for much of the Christian world, the very idea of aesthetics was, until recently, an almost forgotten category of thought. Catholic theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar poignantly said beauty is one of God’s most neglected attributes (Word and Revelation, 191). It seems the Church has largely failed to speak to this issue until recently. Sure, we have been in regular conversation about things of truth and goodness; these are often the topics of sermons and lectures.

The diminished importance of aesthetics has been a recent phenomenon, but for the ancient philosopher Plato, the concepts of truth and goodness were inseparable from beauty. (The centrality of beauty in Plato’s writings can be found in Symposium and the Dialogues of Phaedrus. Aristotle’s work Poetics has also been influential in the field of aesthetics.) In fact, if something was deemed as beautiful it must have been true and good. While the ancient philosopher sought to unify these transcendental realities he often ignored their very foundation—for him truth, goodness, and beauty had no relational source. For the Christian it is quite different—beauty finds its origin in the personal God of the universe. Augustine made this connection when he observed that the things we find aesthetically pleasing on this earth are beautiful because God is beautiful (Confessions, 231-232). In this sense, everything beautiful has a derivative beauty, and its beauty is found as it reflects the Creator’s intentions.

We are all aware of beauty, but perception becomes understanding as one looks beyond that which is beautiful to see why it is beautiful. The words of artist Agnes Martin serve to illustrate this point, “When a beautiful rose dies, beauty does not die because it is not really in the rose” (Beauty is the Mystery of Life, 399). The beauty found in that rose points us beyond the rose itself and serves as a vehicle to display the glory of God. This is key to understanding the importance of humanity’s ability to apprehend beauty.

Being created in the image of God specifically gives us as human beings the capacity to acknowledge and appreciate beauty. I doubt that we will hear an account of a golden retriever climbing to the highest point in the land in order to take in the beauty of God’s vast creation. Humans are the only beings to whom God gave this capacity. But along with this capacity comes a great responsibility. Just as believers have defended the Christian notions of truth and goodness, we should also labor to show the one true God as the source of all that is beautiful. This universal concept of Beauty must be grounded in that which is absolutely beautiful, God himself. In moving beyond mere apprehension, we must acknowledge that being created in God’s image also entails another important mandate involving creative ability.

The very foundation of visual arts necessitates the idea of both imagination and purposeful creation. This begs the question: To what purpose are visual arts used within the Church? Just as God created us and the world to display His glory, as proponents of the arts we should also seek to render all visual resources to promote worship of the one true God.

The correct use of aesthetics in worship is imperative. In fact I would argue that all aesthetical endeavors within the context of a worship service should function to supplement God’s word in focusing people toward the one true God. Therefore, striving for excellence in our employment of visual artistry is not only an aesthetic endeavor but a theological endeavor. As media enthusiast Mike Apple once told me, “Excellence is when media becomes a transparent aspect of the service and not the focal point.” Just as the teacher should seek to get out of the way so that God can speak through him, media should be a vehicle through which God can be seen as beautiful. This is always accomplished when the central message of the service is the gospel. How this plays out for each of us is an issue of discernment, and often depends on where each church finds itself culturally, demographically, and technologically.

When media becomes a distraction in itself, it can become tragedy. The greatest failure of media artisans occurs when many people “look on and admire without understanding” (Schaeffer, The God Who is There, 33). Therefore, give thoughtful consideration to the aesthetic nature of your services. The Christian should be the one who leans over to the table of philosophers and explains to them what exactly the beauty of the sunset tells us (Ps. 19:1). Through the lens of the Bible we learn that there is a God who has made himself known in creation (Rom. 1:19-20). The Bible is also necessary in understanding why beauty exists within the natural world. In the same way that beauty in creation points to the glory of God, so should our visual resources focus our people towards the one true God. Humanity’s apprehension of aesthetics, and even its ability to create, are distinct ways God has chosen to reveal himself. Therefore, it is no light undertaking to exercise these gifts. Ultimately, our motivation for excellence in artistic expression supersedes philosophy, is grounded in theology, and is expressed as worship.

Matt currently lives in Winston-Salem, NC with his beautiful wife, Laura, and dog, Jake. After finishing undergraduate work in fine arts, Matt began graduate school at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary where he has almost completed his Master of Divinity degree.