Picturing Worship of Jesus

Now, Religion in the News, a report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media.This week’s item is from the Santa Barbara News Press, April 16, 2006, with a headline:Protestants Find New Images of Jesus.The following are excerpts:For Harriet Gormley art in her hometown Protestant church consisted of empty crosses and a few stained glass windows.There were no statues of Mary cradling Jesus, no paintings of the Last Supper.She and other art students at the EvangelicalWestmontCollege admit that it was a bit of a challenge to think of God in terms of pictures, icons and sculptures.We do not use devotional images well in the Protestant tradition, said Lisa DeBor, an art history teacher at Westmont.After receiving a $10,000 grant from the Calvin Institute of ChristianWorship in Grand Rapids, Michigan, art students began a project to stretch the limits of traditional Protestant worship.Taking their cue from Catholics and Orthodox Christians, who view icons as central to their faith, the students created pictures based on various stories of Christ’s last days on earth.The project is similar in concept to the Catholic and Anglican tradition of walking the stations of the cross during the Lenten season that leads up to Easter.During Easter, Catholics and some Protestants follow a set of 14 pictures or sculptures that depict Jesus during His most horrifying moments, being condemned to death, then forced to carry a heavy cross, falling down, meeting disciples, and finally, death by crucifixion.

Tom:

Dave, let me continue where Gary left off.This is from the article, we just had some excerpts.It says, Catholics have tended throughout the years on the death and suffering of Christ during Lent, while Protestants place emphasis on what has happened since.It says, “Through art and practice, Catholics emphasize that we are redeemed by virtue of our participation in Christ’s suffering.Perhaps because of the popularity of The Passion of the Christ, Mel Gibson’s brutal film that followed Jesus through the stations, Evangelicals and Protestants are beginning to experience more of His suffering” Mr. Morgan said.Now, this is unbelievable!Well, it’s not unbelievable.Dave, after The Passion of the Christ came out, a couple of years ago now, it’s hard to believe, because each year it keeps coming back.It’s supposedly a classic, and there were 13 million DVD’s that were sold right after the movie left the theaters, and these are being used by evangelical churches, you know, Sunday school and all those programs.But I want to go back in Showtime for the Sheep?in which I addressed the issue, not just of The Passion of the Christ, but the use of visual media to present biblical teachings and biblical events.This is from Inside the Vatican.

Dave:

Inside the Vatican, of course, being a major publication for the Vatican as really classy.

Tom:

Right.Quote---For evangelicals---the film, talking about The Passion of the Christ---has given them a glimpse inside the Catholic soul, even the traditional Catholic soul.Many evangelicals reflecting on what they saw in the movie, say they are beginning to get the whole Catholic thing---Lent, the ashes on the forehead, no meat on Friday, the sorrowful mysteries, the stations of the cross, the emphasis on the Eucharist, the devotion to Mary, the enormous crucifix hanging above every Catholic altar.They may not be rushing out to buy rosaries necessarily, but some of the things no longer seem so strange, so alien.This is prophetic because this is evangelical WestmontCollege, but we could go across the country, this is happening all over.

Dave:

Well. Tom,I’m sorry---Well, I don’t only get angry about this, I’m very sad, because these people have forgotten the Bible, they have forgotten the truth, they’ve forgotten the gospel.It says “she and other art students at the evangelical WestmontCollege admit that it was a bit of a challenge to think of God in terms of pictures, icons and sculptures.”What?A bit of a challenge?God said you are not to make an image of Me.Now why would it be a challenge?O, well, but we’re going to challenge what God said and we’re going to make some images of God.Jesus Christ is God manifest in the flesh, okay.And then it says, Well, we don’t use devotional images well in Protestant tradition, but we’re going to take our cue from Catholic and Orthodox Christians who view icons essential to their faith, so we’re going to create some stories, and so forth.Tom, the Bible is not a picture book, and it doesn’t try to give you any pictures about this.You know, you and I both try to do a little writing, you’ve been writing scripts and I’ve written some novels, and you try to give a rich description of what’s happening so that they can visualize the scene.The Bible does none of that, it’s the truth that it teaches.So now we have turned astray, turned aside, the part that you have read, we’ve turned aside from truth to feelings and images.You said that Evangelicals have begun to experience the suffering of Christ---Come on, guys!You’re experiencing the suffering of Christ?You weren’t beaten, what would you want to do, flagellate yourself, then you begin to experience some of that?But that isn’t even the point!The point is that God laid on Him our sins, it’s not the physical sufferings.But we’ve been turned to the physical sufferings now and we’ve forgotten that He was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.The Passion of the Christ does not depict that at all.

Tom:

Dave, again quoting, as you just did, “taking their cue from Catholics and Orthodox Christians” let me tell you where this goes.The young lady, Harriet Gormley, she’s a senior, the article said, “She painted an Eastern Orthodox icon inside a phone booth to depict two disciples unknowingly inviting Jesus, who they thought was a stranger, to dinner.”She wanted to juxtapose the ideas of breaking bread with strangers in communication” she said.After completing the project she began attending St. Athonatious Orthodox church in Goleta.”She says, “It isn’t just symbolic, it’s walking the faith through the images.”

Dave:

Yeah, there are no images in the Bible, walking the faith through images, why aren’t there images in the Bible, why isn’t it a picture book?You don’t even know what these disciples look like, you can’t even depict the scene, you’re making it up out of your imagination.The whole thing is from your imagination, and it is an abomination to God.I’m sorry!This is not the way to go!We need the truth, we don’t need some images.

Tom:

This is experientialism, Dave.She goes on to say, “I get a sense that they are trying to mimic a sense of being closer to heaven.”She’s now embraced the Orthodox faith, this is where all of it is going.