We often write about beauty and the arts on this blog. One of our burdens at the DNA is to call Christians gifted in the arts to become balladeers, i.e. to use their gifts to speak prophetically to culture.
As Christians we worship the God who is glorious. He is beautiful. As we have argued elsewhere, the church should be the wellspring for art. But sadly, few churches are. Seldom does a church create a platform to encourage artists. Furthermore, our places of worship are often designed for efficiency and utility rather than beauty and inspiration. Too often our musical and visual offerings are mediocre, drawing our eyes and ears down rather than up. When this happens, we neglect the apologetics of beauty which has the ability to draw people to Christ.
Recently our friend Roberta Ahmanson was featured at Q with a video presentation, The Christian’s Responsibility For Art. Roberta calls the church to be the church. She challenges Christians to take the lead in bringing beauty to a world which is visually and aurally impoverished.
As the introduction to the video states,
The Church today often struggles to engage in and support the arts, but such has not always been the case. Historically, the Christian church appreciated the arts and took seriously the role they could play in displaying truth and beauty in culture. As a philanthropist and patron of fine art, Ahmanson helps cast a vision for how the church can reclaim its civic duty of arts patronage.
Take a few moments to listen to Roberta. If you are a Christian who is an artist, or one who loves the arts, be encouraged. If you are a pastor, Roberta may challenge you in your calling.
– Darrow Miller
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