What to do with those peculiar artists?

By Kurt Armstrong and ChristianWeek | April 27, 2010

I've seen Christian artists take many different stances on church, most of which I think are unhelpful: hostility, indifference, subservience and provocation. A lot of talk among Christian artists seems like self-indulgent whining dressed up as critique. Why doesn't church do a better job of supporting the arts? (Read: why won't somebody pay me to be an artist?)

At the same time, a lot of evangelical churches really can't figure out what to do with the strange habits and ideas of their most creative congregants. Artists can be unorthodox, untidy and unshaven. They keep weird hours, ask hard questions and make impractical, confusing, threatening works of art.

I respect anyone who brings together seemingly disparate groups like pastors and artists to dialogue with one another without asking either to sacrifice their integrity, and I admire critique, engagement and constructive, thoughtful discussion. David Taylor's book, For the Beauty of the Church is full to the brim with all of that.

The book grew out of a conference in 2008, called "Transforming Culture: A Vision for Church and the Arts" where pastors and artists gathered to explore the Church's relationship to art. It featured writers, dancers, print-makers, folk singers and filmmakers as well as pastors—all gathered together to talk, learn and create. The book features nine contributors—pastors, artists and pastors who are artists. Each one provides loving, thoughtful wisdom about art and the Church. They discuss art and worship, art and Christian propaganda, art as a service to the Church, the extravagance of art and adornment, paying for art, the pastor's role as nurturer, the vocation of the artist and how to steer ambitious, creative types towards or away from certain kinds of artistic expression.

I find it interesting that of the nine contributors, including Luci Shaw who wrote the foreword, six have either studied or taught at Regent College in Vancouver, BC, a graduate school known for nurturing artists and supporting them in their calling.

This isn't a book that will revolutionize the role of the arts in the Church, but maybe it does something even better. It moves the conversation beyond moralistic judgment on one side and tiresome whining on the other. It will help pastors who want to nurture the gifts of their artists, even if they don't always understand them, and it will help artists find their place in the Church without having to sell out to pro-church propaganda.