The relationship between theology and art has been the subject matter of many theological studies. The interest is how works of art mediate the meaning of religious beliefs and how faith is expressed in the language of art. According to Van Der Leeuw art can be divided into six categories; dance, drama, word, image, building and music. Between these six fields many similarities can be found between faith and art. Both refer to reality symbolically and affect people in a way that seems to be ultimately inexpressible. Though, art and faith are different in manner and method. Art and beauty can be used and studied as a means of better understanding the subject of theology. Theology participates in both the life of creation and the artistic process of making meaning.
Another commonality between theology and art is the idea of the shared experience – the communal aspects between art and religion. Be it aesthetic beauty or spiritual beauty it is still the shared experience of something beautiful for which words can often not describe. It is in this shared experience that one can see that both religion and art seek for and understanding as opposed to an explanation. One can experience the sublime through both art and religious experience. Often times it is not words are not necessary and can often take away from the affect of the sublime.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment