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Reconciling Christianity and Art
By Hilary Sutton

Christianity and art are two of the most difficult concepts to intertwine. Questions often arise out of the ambiguous fog of Christian art regarding appropriate concepts to express, display, and portray. The idea that “Christian art” can also be considered “good art” is foreign to many people who equate the concept of “Christian art” with bad movies and trite bumper sticker slogans. Seemingly conflicting ideas are often embraced by Christian communities: art should be done with “excellence” yet should not “offend”; art should depict “truth” yet not paint Christianity or the Church in a “bad light.” These contradictions can leave the Christian artist in a state of confusion, wondering how to go about producing credible art. Christian artists must first recognize that according to the scriptures anything they produce must be done with excellence.

Excellent art begins with the artist consistently using his or her God-given talents. Just as the farmer is displeased with his servant who hides the talent entrusted to him in Luke 19, God is displeased when He has entrusted His people with abilities to glorify Him in creative ways, and we choose to let them lie dormant. Rather than ignore our gifts, artists should cultivate their creative yearnings to point more people to the beauty of a life in Christ.

The scriptures admonish in Colossians chapter three, verse seventeen that we (Christians) are to do everything we put our hand to as unto the Lord and not to men. Not only does this mean that Christians should live a life that is honoring to God, but everything we do, namely the art we produce, should also be completed as if it is a gift to the Lord. Regarding why mediocre art is so prevalent today, Francis Schaeffer Jr. answers, “Simply because man, Christian or non-Christian, is created in the image of God, and a vacuum, formed in his soul by denying the God-given arts their proper place, has to be filled with something. But without the proper base, man fills the void with only twisted, pale shadows of what art could be.” Though producing truly excellent work takes discipline and effort, bringing glory to God through obediently giving talents back to Him is not only deeply satisfying, it is of eternal value and well worth the labor.
A foundational aspect of creating excellent art is familiarizing one’s self with contemporary standards of excellence. Interestingly, the importance of being relevant to the current age is not a concept that originated with recent postmodern discussion. In 1966, Hans Rookmaaker, professor of art history at the Free University of Amsterdam, Holland expounded on artistic relevance: “He [the artist] has to make art that is relevant to our day[…]And, in order to gain from all that is good and fine today and yet avoid being caught by the spirit of our age and its false principles, he must study modern art in all its different aspects deeply and widely.” For art to make any sort of impact on society, it must be respectfully done with excellence.

Christians who are involved in the arts must remember that the only way for art to be produced in a God-honoring way is to continually give Him the credit for what is produced. Mixing Christianity and art has long been an arduous task. Because of the frailty of humans, both the Christian name and art have been corrupted. Thankfully the Scriptures offer insight and guidelines into living a life that brings people to Christ. Excellence, humility, purpose, and authenticity, are vital in approaching art. Madeleine L’Engle comments, “to be a witness does not consist in engaging in propaganda, nor even in stirring people up, but in being a living mystery. It means to live in such a way that one’s life would not make sense if God did not exist.” Our lives and our art proclaim the glory of God when things are done with such humility and authenticity that there is no explanation other than a life transformed by an encounter with Christ. Christian art is about much more than attempting to pacify people and giving certain artists empty recognition. It is about using the creative gifts and talents God has blessed us with to live a life of worship.