From the Editor's Desk
World-renowned cellist, Yo-Yo Ma, has been talking over the last number of years about his vision of “art for life’s sake,” a philosophy that speaks of the artist potentially as a model citizen due to the artist’s role in forging and strengthening community. In speaking of this philosophy in conversation last summer with dancer Damian Woetzel at the Aspen Ideas Festival, Yo-Yo Ma referenced the immeasurable value of the humanities in the educational system. He discussed the idea of a CultureCorps, like AmeriCorps, and the doing of public service through the arts to create opportunities for maximal receptivity to the “aha” moment, when the arts awaken the imaginations of young people, potentially inspiring them to effect social change, sometimes even through artistic creation itself. In this conversation, Yo-Yo Ma commented on the “edge effect,” the phenomenon that the most ecological diversity, the greatest number of new life forms, are found where two eco-systems meet. On the cultural front, he said, such an edge is a breeding ground for creativity. The edge is an incubator for new ideas. Such an edge generates the fruit of the imagination. The implication is that engagement between disciplines is where significant discovery and innovation can occur.
It seems to me that ARTS is a journal that has taken up residence in this kind of an edge between disciplines. ARTS is situated between theology and art history, among other disciplines—religious studies, spirituality, aesthetics, political science, sociology, and more. ARTS, along with the professional society it serves, the Society for the Arts in Religious and Theological Studies, nurtures exploration of these edges—fertile ground where theological and religious studies meet the visual arts, music, poetry, and literature. We invite scholars, artists, and clergy to lead expeditions into this territory where new ideas and creativity flourish, always with an eye to imagining and bringing into being a better, more just, and more peaceful world.
It is my joy and privilege to continue the course set by Wilson Yates, who has worked tirelessly to establish a place in the academy for this kind of interdisciplinary work, and who introduced me to this world when I was his student at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. I worked with him on ARTS for sixteen years, from 1993-2009. Returning now in 2014, I have been going through past issues of ARTS to post descriptions of each one on our new blog. Doing so has underscored for me again the vital role that Wilson Yates has played in the establishment of theology and the arts as a unique discipline within theological education. While he would caution me here (I can hear him in my mind’s ear, whispering, “We’re not there, yet”), we are some distance towards our goal due to his unceasing commitment to the conviction that theological education is incomplete if it privileges only the word and neglects the image. Those of us engaged in this struggle are all in his debt—and so I hope he delights in this issue, and all the future ones we will produce, knowing that his work continues, living on in those of us who share his recognition that the holy is expressed not only through books and manuscripts, but also through paintings, sculptures, poetry, music, and still more. His work continues, too, as we pick up his banner, and recognize that theological education is incomplete when requirements are not in place to develop visual literacy, and where the arts are not consulted or considered as primary sources when doing theological research. By passing the editorial role to me, Wilson is able to devote more time to his writing, and I, for one, am looking forward to reading what he produces, as it will surely shape our field of inquiry.
In this issue, Frank Burch Brown contributes the paper he delivered at a SARTS session at the national American Academy of Religion meeting last November in Baltimore. Entitled “Orpheus Revisited: Can Arts Ever Lead Theology? And Where?,” Brown suggests that the arts have been accorded a limited and subordinate kind of leading role in the field of theology and the arts. But he hopes for a more formal role for the arts in doing the work of “faith seeking understanding.” He points to David Brown as one theologian who is doing precisely this. David Brown suggests that the arts contribute to an ongoing development of the tradition, and that the arts “typically deal with truth and experience in ways that cannot be translated entirely into the kinds of conceptual reasoning processes characteristic of theology’s endeavors to understand the realities of faith.” At the meeting, David Brown, himself, responded in person to Frank Burch Brown’s reflections, and his comments are published here, as well. Maeve Heaney, Larry Bouchard, and Russell Re Manning each also responded to Frank Burch Brown’s presentation, and their papers will be published in the online edition. Also in this issue, Patrick Beldio reflects on “My Creative Experience: Finding Voice, Finding Silence” for our “In the Studio” feature, speaking of the intoxicating joy and creeping disappointment of finishing a work. He also writes of coming to terms with what he calls the “selfishness” of the artistic life. And he reflects on the motivating powers of ignorance and instability that keep him going. Reproductions of two of his sculptures accompany the article. Cláudio Carvalhaes writes for our “In the Sanctuary” feature an article called, “Making ‘Sense’ in Theological Education.” He writes of the problematic hierarchy that exists within theological curricula, and seeks to equalize the playing field through a retrieval of the senses. He presents a few case studies in which he attempts to engage students’ senses through multi-sensory liturgical movements. John Shorb introduces a new category to ARTS with “In the Gallery.” He profiles the work of Linda Ekstrom. We also highlight the work of two of our partner schools in this issue, and round out the issue with Wilson Yates’ review of Rosemary Crumlin’s book about the Blake Prize in Australia, and with reviews of two books by William Dyrness, in addition to book notes compiled by our book review editor, Mark McInroy.
During his interview with Damian Woetzel, Yo-Yo Ma returned several times to Howard Gardner’s 2012 book, Truth, Beauty, and Goodness Reframed: Educating for the Virtues in the Twenty-First Century, commenting at one point, “The thing I love about the idea of truth, beauty, and goodness—it sounds, you know, it almost sounds really soft. Goodness? Truth? Beauty? . . . Right? But think about it. Beauty—deep beauty—includes awe and wonder. . . . It could be your first born. It could be a precious moment with a loved one. . . . And truth—if you actually include truth from different perspectives—that is awesome.” He asserts that the arts help us to make meaning and to weave together a story, a narrative, out of an otherwise relentless chronology of events, perceptions, and actions that constitute human life. The arts urge us to imagine the impossible and to create what before could not have been envisioned. The arts encourage people to imagine how to live the fullest life. Those of us reading this journal recognize that these things are also essentially theological tasks. And so we walk into the future, confident that the edge between theology and art will continue to yield amazing fruit. May this issue feed your spirit and inspire you to write your untried story, imagine a new song, doodle your next masterpiece.
It seems to me that ARTS is a journal that has taken up residence in this kind of an edge between disciplines. ARTS is situated between theology and art history, among other disciplines—religious studies, spirituality, aesthetics, political science, sociology, and more. ARTS, along with the professional society it serves, the Society for the Arts in Religious and Theological Studies, nurtures exploration of these edges—fertile ground where theological and religious studies meet the visual arts, music, poetry, and literature. We invite scholars, artists, and clergy to lead expeditions into this territory where new ideas and creativity flourish, always with an eye to imagining and bringing into being a better, more just, and more peaceful world.
It is my joy and privilege to continue the course set by Wilson Yates, who has worked tirelessly to establish a place in the academy for this kind of interdisciplinary work, and who introduced me to this world when I was his student at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. I worked with him on ARTS for sixteen years, from 1993-2009. Returning now in 2014, I have been going through past issues of ARTS to post descriptions of each one on our new blog. Doing so has underscored for me again the vital role that Wilson Yates has played in the establishment of theology and the arts as a unique discipline within theological education. While he would caution me here (I can hear him in my mind’s ear, whispering, “We’re not there, yet”), we are some distance towards our goal due to his unceasing commitment to the conviction that theological education is incomplete if it privileges only the word and neglects the image. Those of us engaged in this struggle are all in his debt—and so I hope he delights in this issue, and all the future ones we will produce, knowing that his work continues, living on in those of us who share his recognition that the holy is expressed not only through books and manuscripts, but also through paintings, sculptures, poetry, music, and still more. His work continues, too, as we pick up his banner, and recognize that theological education is incomplete when requirements are not in place to develop visual literacy, and where the arts are not consulted or considered as primary sources when doing theological research. By passing the editorial role to me, Wilson is able to devote more time to his writing, and I, for one, am looking forward to reading what he produces, as it will surely shape our field of inquiry.
In this issue, Frank Burch Brown contributes the paper he delivered at a SARTS session at the national American Academy of Religion meeting last November in Baltimore. Entitled “Orpheus Revisited: Can Arts Ever Lead Theology? And Where?,” Brown suggests that the arts have been accorded a limited and subordinate kind of leading role in the field of theology and the arts. But he hopes for a more formal role for the arts in doing the work of “faith seeking understanding.” He points to David Brown as one theologian who is doing precisely this. David Brown suggests that the arts contribute to an ongoing development of the tradition, and that the arts “typically deal with truth and experience in ways that cannot be translated entirely into the kinds of conceptual reasoning processes characteristic of theology’s endeavors to understand the realities of faith.” At the meeting, David Brown, himself, responded in person to Frank Burch Brown’s reflections, and his comments are published here, as well. Maeve Heaney, Larry Bouchard, and Russell Re Manning each also responded to Frank Burch Brown’s presentation, and their papers will be published in the online edition. Also in this issue, Patrick Beldio reflects on “My Creative Experience: Finding Voice, Finding Silence” for our “In the Studio” feature, speaking of the intoxicating joy and creeping disappointment of finishing a work. He also writes of coming to terms with what he calls the “selfishness” of the artistic life. And he reflects on the motivating powers of ignorance and instability that keep him going. Reproductions of two of his sculptures accompany the article. Cláudio Carvalhaes writes for our “In the Sanctuary” feature an article called, “Making ‘Sense’ in Theological Education.” He writes of the problematic hierarchy that exists within theological curricula, and seeks to equalize the playing field through a retrieval of the senses. He presents a few case studies in which he attempts to engage students’ senses through multi-sensory liturgical movements. John Shorb introduces a new category to ARTS with “In the Gallery.” He profiles the work of Linda Ekstrom. We also highlight the work of two of our partner schools in this issue, and round out the issue with Wilson Yates’ review of Rosemary Crumlin’s book about the Blake Prize in Australia, and with reviews of two books by William Dyrness, in addition to book notes compiled by our book review editor, Mark McInroy.
During his interview with Damian Woetzel, Yo-Yo Ma returned several times to Howard Gardner’s 2012 book, Truth, Beauty, and Goodness Reframed: Educating for the Virtues in the Twenty-First Century, commenting at one point, “The thing I love about the idea of truth, beauty, and goodness—it sounds, you know, it almost sounds really soft. Goodness? Truth? Beauty? . . . Right? But think about it. Beauty—deep beauty—includes awe and wonder. . . . It could be your first born. It could be a precious moment with a loved one. . . . And truth—if you actually include truth from different perspectives—that is awesome.” He asserts that the arts help us to make meaning and to weave together a story, a narrative, out of an otherwise relentless chronology of events, perceptions, and actions that constitute human life. The arts urge us to imagine the impossible and to create what before could not have been envisioned. The arts encourage people to imagine how to live the fullest life. Those of us reading this journal recognize that these things are also essentially theological tasks. And so we walk into the future, confident that the edge between theology and art will continue to yield amazing fruit. May this issue feed your spirit and inspire you to write your untried story, imagine a new song, doodle your next masterpiece.
