eschatology and art

Posted by Paul | Filed under uncategorised

I discovered a paper by Richard Middleton recently: A New Heaven and A New Earth: The Case for a Holistic Reading of the Biblical Story of Redemption which reminded me of something I had intended to write a while ago. A question that I have been pondering is how our eschatology affects what we do now and what we hold to be important. Here is one place which I suggest may show such a connection.

I think it is relatively uncontroversial that music is the art form that is regarded most highly by evangelicals. There is a whole industry for contemporary Christian music, which it seems dwarfs all other cultural products (e.g. Christian novels, etc.) If you want to be a Christian musician that it is highly likely that you will get support from you church (depending on musical genre). On the other hand, if you are considering moving into conceptual art, the probability of active support is probably lower.

Possible reasons for this emphasis are the high place of music in the wider culture, the focus on word rather than image in the church, the example of the Psalms, etc. But I want to try out an eschatological possibility.

It seems to me that the most common way we picture life-after-death is as a giant worship service. That is, as a principally music-based eternity. If that is really what we think, is it surprising that music is given promenance? Whether or not we think our current songs will make it into eternity, they certainly have a close connection. On the other hand, if that is what we are picturing, is it any wonder that painting, etc. don’t really seem quite so important?

Which brings us to Richard Middleton’s article. He takes a clear look at what a lot of people have been emphasising recently — that God’s long term plan is redeeming the whole of creation, not just getting people into heaven. If that guided our imagination, I wonder where it would take us? (Of course, we’re now connecting back to The Heavenly Good of Earthly Work.)

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Permalink | November 10th, 2007

2 Responses to “eschatology and art”

  1. Pig wot flies Says:
    Pig wot flies November 15th, 2007 at 2:09 pm

    It also depends on the music, doesn’t it? And there are definite holiness points for ‘Christian’ as opposed to ‘secular’ music, as in most areas of work, we’re still in thrall to the false sacred/secular divide.
    Perhaps if the general person in the pew/folding plastic chair had an idea of ‘Christian’ conceptual art, they’d be more supportive? Or perhaps the false divide is the thing that needs to be tackled.

  2. Paul Says:
    Paul November 15th, 2007 at 10:35 pm

    Hi!

    I guess I’m thinking that some of the sacred/secular divide comes from our eschatology. If we got that picture right, perhaps we might lose the false divide? Or start to, anyway.

    On the getting support for the church — you’re right, the person needing support has to make sure they help other understand.

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