New book, and new meditation on the importance of the imagination in our spirituality!

“In the Name of the Son: Jesus in art…
How artists from Giotto to Caravaggio have written a visual biography of Christ through the finest masterpieces in the history of art. In the Name of the Son approaches figurative art through the lens of the greatest mystery of mankind: the life of Jesus Christ.”

This art book focuses on images of Jesus through history–a daring theme, how people imaged someone who claimed to be God, over the past 2000 years or so. Nice.

The author, an italian art critic and historian, points out early on that the imagination can only paint what it believes is possible. So you see in the history of Jesus in art, only those who really believed in the resurrection, could paint it well. (Caravaggio, for instance, as an atheist, had trouble depicting the resurrection!) This is because they had faith that it happened, and so they were able to enter that exploration with the humility required to encounter its inner meaning, which is at the core of Christianity. You see Rembrandt’s work as having more light and humility on this core subject.

My mom, who also has integrated her art and spirituality, and lacks that dualism between creativity and christianity, so often present in the church, sent me this great book written by this Italian art critic, about Jesus in art: how He has been depicted historically, how each culture has attempted to image Him, often projecting their own needs or self image onto Him. It starts by noting that there are few images of the Father; the only few, have The Father peeking into the universe. But there are many of Jesus, because He is said to be the face of God on earth. Or as St Paul put it :”The exact representation of the likeness of God.” One of my favorite naming of who Jesus was, as it deals in image metaphors. And as an artist who also loves Jesus, i’ve never seen creativity and Him in separate rooms! It’s the same studio of formation in my own walk! Perhaps, my mom gave me that integrative permission!

Anyway, great meditation for a book, and well written. My mom knows what interest me! I love thinking about how people image God. For as AW Tozer pointed out, if we start with a poor image of God, the rest of our theology splinters.
I would add, if our imaginations about God are poor, so will be the rest of our spirituality. We need a true image of God, in order to even like Him.
Poverty of imagination produces a form of idolatry, in that anything less than God that we worship, any broken image of Him. becomes an idol. So we need a clear picture of who God is, even to begin!

This is another reason the imagination needs to be part of what is getting sanctified in Christian spirituality! Why creativity matters in formation or discipleship! “The fuller baptism of the imagination is basic to christian spirituality,” as CS Lewis put it. Or as I put it in another article, we are not meant to have a poverty of imagination in His church! So we can have a more accurate picture of who God is, and so who we are! Good art is accurate interpretation!

Even seeing ourselves accurately rest in seeing God well. Peter saw Jesus, so Jesus told him his name. Our creativity is part of how we know and interpret. It’s not an afterthought, but rather at the core of our epistemology, or way of knowing things. How we see determines how we interpret. How we image Christ is one way of looking at the health of our imaginations over time! Nice meditation. Enjoying pondering it! Thanks mom.

I love Jesus and I love art, so any book which brings them into the same room, makes me happy! I love books that bring Jesus and art into the same room. Always feels like the right party to be in, and pondering!!! Where art and spirituality dance together!