On a sunny, leaf-strewn fall afternoon a couple of years ago I visited the Philadelphia Museum of Art, which is one of the finest art museums in the United States. I was captivated by their fine array of classic and modern masterpieces, lingered over their wonderful collection of Impressionist paintings, and even paused outside the building for a few minutes at the top of their long flight of steps leading up to the entrance, where Rocky Balboa once stood triumphant in the iconic scene from the movie. I barely managed to restrain myself from raising my hands like the fictional prizefighter had done.
One of the areas of the museum where I spent a little extra time that day was in their impressive American Art galleries. I won’t soon forget the experience of entering one of the rooms in that area and finding my eyes immediately drawn to a large and powerful painting depicting Mary’s visit from the angel Gabriel in which he announced that she would be the mother of Jesus. I hadn’t previously known of this painting, but the warm, bright golden tones, the look of shy astonishment on Mary’s face, and the unusually creative way the angel had been rendered all combined to take my breath away. This moment of biblical history portrayed in the painting is commonly known as “the annunciation,” and as I bent forward to read the information plaque affixed to the wall nearby I discovered that this was the title of the work, and that its creator was Henry Ossawa Tanner.
When I returned to my hotel room I searched the internet for information about Tanner and found that he was an African-American painter from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who specialized in paintings of biblical subject matter and was himself a committed Christian. The more I researched, the more fascinated I became by the man and his work, and the more I was inspired by his vision of the biblical stories.
It’s my hope that this book can have the same effect on you as that moment of discovery in the museum had on me—of introducing you to some of the great artistic achievements of fellow believers, from the very beginnings of the church to our present time. I’d love for you to meet some of these fascinating people and experience some of their work so that you might be inspired, entertained, and challenged by their art, music, writing, and films.
It is not possible to do full justice to the works discussed in this book within the constraints imposed by page count. These short introductions are more like trailers for a movie rather than the movie itself. Think of this book, if you will, as a fistful of invitations—invitations to begin your own personal exploration of art, music, literature, and films that you’ve never experienced before, or as an opportunity to revisit some old favorites. Let this volume be a departure point for your own journey of exploration.
As a culture we are often enamored with the latest thing. We “consume” art, music, books, and films and then pass on quickly to whatever is the next big thing, often neglecting the rich heritage of the past. I think this is especially true for Christians; many of us are unaware of how many of the great masterpieces—works universally admired—were created by people who share our faith commitment. We have a heritage in the arts of which we can justifiably be proud.
What this book offers is a selection of seventy-five creative expressions of faith that range across time, genres, and nationalities. This is most emphatically not a list of the absolute best or greatest works, nor does it imply any ranking system. Instead, it attempts to represent the breadth and depth of what Christians have accomplished in the arts, and is an intentionally quirky mix of the widely known and the mostly unknown. I could easily offer an alternative collection of seventy-five works that would be just as valid as these. Frankly, it was a painful process to limit myself to the works represented in these pages. Many of my favorites got left out in my desire to express something of the stylistic variety of creative work done by believers.
My guidelines for the selection of the works featured in this volume were pretty simple: (1) they had to be works that are universally esteemed for their craftsmanship and creativity, not only admired by Christians but also by those outside the faith; (2) they had to be works that stand up well to repeated exposure, the kind of art that can be visited again and again, because there is always something new to discover; (3) they had to be works that speak to people across time, cultures, national boundaries, and denominational divides.
The artists whose works are represented here come from a variety of traditions—Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, and sometimes a little bit unorthodox. They didn’t always express their beliefs with carefully constructed theology. They were not theologians, but through their works they give us fresh insights into Scripture and into the key teachings and experiences of faith.
Though the works of these artists deserve the highest regard, their lives were not always so praiseworthy. As you read their stories you’ll discover that many of them lived messy and imperfect lives, and didn’t always live out their convictions very well. They were fellow strugglers more than role models, and their honesty about their own personal battles makes them that much more accessible to us today.
These artists were not interested in creating propaganda or some sort of advertisement for Christianity but simply in recording the truth as they saw and felt it. Through the years, though, many people have ultimately found their witness to faith more compelling and convincing than even the best of sermons or theological treatises. Art can reach places in the human heart that reasoned argument can never penetrate.
As you begin to explore these works you’ll find that some are pretty easy to access and immediately enjoyable, while others may take a little more time to reveal themselves, especially when they represent an unfamiliar musical or artistic style. Just because you don’t “get it” the first time around doesn’t mean there is something deficient in the work or in you. For example, I grew up with virtually no exposure to jazz, and when I first started to explore it, it seemed hard to access. But spending a little time with Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Charles Mingus taught me to love jazz. All it took was a little patience and some exposure.
On the other hand, if you find that some of the works in this book just don’t touch your heart and mind, then don’t sweat it. We all have different tastes, and different things appeal to different people. Just make sure you have allowed yourself to be challenged a bit before you move on. Remember, great art is the result of hard work on the part of its creator, and therefore it sometimes demands a bit of work on the part of its audience—deeper and more focused attention than we are often used to giving in this fast-paced world of ours.
Whether you are looking to expose yourself to some of the greatest masterpieces ever created by people of faith or are an artist looking for inspiration and motivation, I hope you’ll enjoy seeing your faith, the world around you, and maybe even your own self a bit differently than you did before. May this book be a modest doorway into a world of deeper appreciation, a sort of travel guide to the treasures of our tradition.