"The only writer you should compare yourself to is the writer you were yesterday," -David Schlosser
After every conference, most notably the Christian Arts Conference, Karitos, I always feel a bit conflicted.
Part of me is inspired, ready to take on my artistic projects with valor.
But the other part of me is exhausted and resists coming back into reality.
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| check out Karitos here: www.karitos.org |
And I think that's kind of a beautiful thing.
Since I'm hard at work on my novel, and since it's a Christian novel with some prickly content, I've realized something, and it directly pertains to Karitos.
*Context: to understand where I'm coming from, check out my blog post where I define Christian art.
One of those is that because I live in such an art-saturated world and mindset, when I come back into reality from Karitos, whether it be work or school or even my own church, things seem . . . wrong. Off.
And this is because the arts are stifled. Everywhere. And since they're not stifled at Karitos, I have this notion that everything else should be like Karitos. But unfortunately, it's not.
I can only imagine the healing and restorative power that would go through my church if we had live painters during worship and the sermon. If only we had more space and resources so that everyone who wanted to dance could have a garment and more than enough elbow room.
Yet, you might argue, that the average church - even a charismatic church - doesn't have the artistic manpower to have professional painters and dramatic sketches and such.
But I vehemently disagree. There are creative people everywhere - you just have to look a little harder.
This begs the question: why, in even the most spirit-filled churches, are the arts being stuffed down? Why are the arts, and to a larger degree, the Holy Spirit, never allowed to blossom to their full potential?
The simple answer is that we're afraid. Or, rather, they're afraid.
But I believe the answer can be more complex, and it can't all be pinned down on the "them" in this equation.
There's all too often this disconnect between artists and . . . normal people, even in the secular world.
And this is because the artists, too, are afraid. Everyone's afraid of the arts.
The key is for the artists who understand their place, and their work, to take the first step in introducing the "normal people" to the Christian arts, so they aren't afraid of them anymore.
And sometimes that involves putting ourselves out there, even to the people who we think will judge us, think we're weird, not take us seriously.
Because none of that will matter if even one person is touched by the love and message of Jesus Christ in our especially avant-garde art.
Which brings me to something Randall Flinn, one of the main stage speakers at Karitos, said, loosely:
"As a Christian artist, if you lose your relevance in the culture, your art loses it's redemptive power."
Christian art is not something to be afraid of. As long as it stays in check with the Holy Spirit, Christian art should be accepted and celebrated in the many forms it takes.
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I could go on about this for years, but I digress. The arts in the church is an infinitely complex discussion, and I can't cover it all in a simple blog post.
But a jumping point is this: the artist must first understand themselves and their place in the church before trying to explain or share it with others.
Leave your thoughts down below! I'd love to continue this conversation!
~The WordShaker
