Nudity In Art & Faith
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I know I said I wasn’t going to be writing this week, but since that officially doesn’t start until tomorrow, I thought I could get away with sneaking this one in here. This morning, while reading through my daily blogs, I discovered that my good e-friend, the Naked Pastor, has come under fire from a certain watchdog website (who I will neither name nor link). One of the main topic that emerged in the comment section was his use of and defense of nude art on his blog (and in general).
Before I go on, I want to say that I think he was treated terribly by the blog and judged unfairly. His blog is one of my daily favourites (especially the cartoons) and easily gets my recommendation. This post is not about him or his blog, but was simply inspired by the events he mentioned recently.
It brought to mind my Friday Art Reflection from last November “Nudity In Art”. Before you click there, I warn you that the top image is of Michelangelo’s David statue. I have no issue with posting this image, but if there are some of you who feel differently, I do not want to upset you. Fair warning given. The discussion on that post was quite engaging, though I promised to return to it and promptly forgot. So, here goes.
In my previous post on this topic, I closed by saying that I was not opposed to nudity in art. By that I meant, like with the example of the David statue, there are times where it is appropriate and beautiful. However, that does not mean I believe that all nudity in art is. Frankly, I do not want the job of decide what is in and what is out, but I also see that I could use that as a cop out for not dealing with the issue at all. So where do I stand?
First, here in North America especially, we live in a hyper-sexualized world. As I stated in my previous post, part of this is a result of the Church being overly critical of sexuality. Be that as it may, it is a reality that requires us to be cautious and careful in our own use of such art. Pornography has never been so freely available than it is today. While pornography and nude art are different, they are somewhat related on a level that we cannot ignore.
Second, right or wrong, a large segment of Christian culture in the West clearly opposes nudity in art, calling it no different than pornography. Again, I disagree with this critique on many levels, but this does not mean we can ignore it. Like it or not, we are one Body, one Church. While we shouldn’t just submit to their stance, neither should our default response be to throw it in their faces (NOTE: I am not saying that Naked Pastor has done this. I am making general observations). We must find a way to move forward with our convictions while honouring those who we call brother and sister (even if they deny our own salvation- in fact, all the more reason).
Third, in the pervasive and completely open medium of the internet, we have to consider that our words and images are crossing beyond the confines of our own context and culture into the whole world. The impact of our expressions here have direct impact on the missional callings of other believers in contexts that might not understand or be ready for such freedom. Again, this does not mean we should abstain completely for fear of what others might do with it in their unique context, but rather that we must be hyper-aware of the potential as we go forward.
I have chosen on my own blog to avoid certain expressions that I would otherwise feel free to use in my own life. While I have no issue with the statue of David, I did, in fact, wrestle with whether I should have posted it when I did. This is a topic that deserves exploration and dialogue in the Church. The watch dog site in question does not, in my opinion, offer much to that conversation. The comments at the site even less so. This topic connects to broader issues, such as art or sexuality, that we must engage in.
What do you think?
Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 “…anyone who looks at a woman lustfully had already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
Anonymous,
I presume by your quoting of this Scripture is meant to suggest that this clearly closes the book on the topic (though correct me if I am wrong).
The fact is that a man can look and lust after a woman in full clothing, just as another could appreciate the beauty of an artistic nude photograph without lusting at all. The Scripture you quote, then, does not have broad application to the topic at hand, unless of course you think it impossible not to lust after nude art. If so, then we simply disagree.
I would encourage you to develop your responses more thoroughly in the future, as quoting Scripture without an explanation of your intent isn’t very helpful. I hope to see you comment here again.
Peace,
Jamie
Something that should be clarified in every discussion of Matthew 5:28 is that it cannot mean that there is no difference between thinking a thing and doing a thing. There is a huge difference between those.
In context, Jesus is saying here to not think you are self-justified because you have never done the thing in question, we have all done the thing in our hearts. The point is that there is nobody who does not need grace. So, we can then exclude the graceless response of clothing other people in sacks to prevent the sins of our own minds.
Everyone is responsible to govern their own mind. To varying degrees for us all, this includes governing content input. It is impossible, though, to know and decide regarding all content input for others.
And we also have a call to respect the boundaries of others. However, we can never make others’ boundaries the sole criterion for our governance at all times.
Here is one category which I find useful for understanding this issue: conversation. In any conversation there are always two things, the topic of conversation and what the persons involved are doing with the topic of conversation. I try to keep my eye open to what people (myself included) are doing with whatever we are involved in, whether it be words or minds or bodies. I find that gives me God-given parameters as well as God-given latitute, a true compass where maps distort the landscape.
Rev. Larry Gregan
New Life Ministries
Winnipeg, Canada
Larry,
Wow, thanks. Excellently put. I may quote you on this!
Peace,
Jamie