THE CULTURE OF LOVE

It's been a busy summer and if you haven't noticed (by the date of my last blog), I haven't actually forced my energy toward this creative outlet. Anyway, what's on my mind today - my faith and this present age.

This summer I found myself in a conversation discussing - today's church, Christianity of the day, is something missing, is this generation really confused by religion, and the list goes on. It was a great dialogue and I believe we were both challenged by how truth collides with our world. At one intersection in our debate relevancy of today's system of belief was questioned. I remember responding that I thought the question was too comfortable - I can claim anything irrelevant if it doesn't tickle my fancy - my question back was - when did LOVE become irrelevant? It seems to me that regardless of the packaging if love is the substance it will have an impact.

As a professional creative, I'm challenged often by the question of relevancy - should this project have this artistic approach or another? How will the end user or consumer respond? Is it cool enough?

I stumbled across an artist website the other day - he's a believer in Christ - an he claimed that his art was going to bridge a gap left by poor religious images used for too long in art, in the main stream, in the market place. His claim was that we have become numb to these old symbols and we need new expressions of faith. Art should communicate. Art should reveal truth, open up discussions about God and his creation. He was going to help reshape our way of using the gift of art.

As I reviewed his work I noticed something. Those same symbols that he spoke of kept sneaking back into his work. Although it wasn't praying hands and the face of Christ, I still saw angels, doves, crosses - what's up? Then I watched a brief video that demonstrated art as worship - the only problem was that each canvas was the same formula piece of art. Where was the creative reaction to truth?

Now, I don't mean to be critical of a fellow creative for the sake of being critical - but it hit me that cool is today's relevant. If I think it's cool, if it makes me look, experience, or reflect cool it has too be relevant. I think the reason way those symbols kept creeping back into his art was because of a simple principle - those images are connected to love. Christ didn't die on a cross for one generation, a tree for another, pedestal for another, and a fence post for another - he died on a CROSS. You can't change that image.

Maybe my internal dialogue about faith and today is really an evaluation of do we look cool enough for the world? What if we communicated our faith in love rather than in style? Isn't the core of a hymn and a contemporary rock worship song the same - God loves you. Doesn't a hug feel the same against wrinkled flesh as it does against tattooed flesh? Isn't spiritual help available to all and not just the cool or traditional?

As my thoughts ramble on I 'm struck with my own reality - I'm a husband, a father, an artist, a son, a child of God - do I work at developing a culture of love? God's love is cool and I'm confident that it's enough. That's more than relevant.

The journey continues...