Our concern will be about our practice as it relates to the arts. We will explore how our understanding of scripture and of theology profoundly influences how we engage in the practice of our faith. What we seek here is not simply a set of ideas, but a living word with the power to change and transform. In setting out biblical and theological foundations, we are concerned to do so in a way that provides not only fresh thinking, but also new practice. The biblical narrative serves as the context for the shaping of our theological understanding, and the resulting theology will have implications for all aspects of human life, including the arts. There is a need for a paradigm shift in how we view the arts-a fresh vision to help us understand how the recovery of the imagination and the affirmation of the gift of artistic creativity can be both celebrative and significant for the church. As we explore the arts, looking particularly at the need for education, we will consider biblical foundations and strategies for developing our understanding of these gifts. The arts are one of the key areas where the imagination does its work, and as we will point out later, faith is another area where imagination plays a significant role. The time has come for Christians to recover the imagination and to discern its value for faith and life. As a result, we have impoverished Christian thinking and understanding. Imagination has been neglected as a resource for helping us to think more clearly about the world. The task undertaken in Act I is to provide perspective on the biblical and theological foundations for understanding the creative gift as manifest in human artistry. The integrity of both art and the artist require something more. But we will want to suggest that art is not simply a tool or a piece of technology to be used for a predetermined purpose. The way in which art communicates is of course unique to the medium, but the power of the arts to move us, engage us, and help us to see with fresh eyes is indisputable. It is evident that art, too, is about communication. The task of global evangelism is a task of communication. Though non-western cultures integrate the arts more effectively, many of their faith communities have been westernized, and so follow similar patterns regarding the arts. To be sure, it has not been a total transformation, but the signs are clear that a renaissance in the arts is taking place among churches in the west. However, in recent years a growing number of these same communities have begun to manifest a new interest in the arts and have made significant moves forward in engaging the arts in the life of the church. There are of course many reasons for this tendency it will be suggested that those reasons include common theological understandings and ways of thinking about spiritual life. There is an evident need to find ways to speak of the intrinsic value of the arts, what they are able to contribute to our faith communities and the cultures in which we live, and the unique ways in which they are able to move our spirit and shape our thinking.Įvangelical communities have been inclined to neglect the arts. Apart from a small number of important voices, the church as a whole has been virtually silent on the topic for generations. The Arts, Social Issues and Societal Transformationīibliographic and Organizational Resourcesįor an established and respected mission organization to recognize the arts as strategic to the life and mission of the church, and to commission a paper about the arts in the context of faith and redemption, is both visionary and long overdue. The Arts, Evangelism and Contextualization in Mission Implications and Alternatives for the ArtsĬharacter, Artistic and Relational Development of the Artist The Arts and a Renewed Theological Vision In Pattaya, Thailand, September 29 to October 5, 2004 Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization Produced by the Issue Group on this topic at theĢ004 Forum for World Evangelization hosted by the
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