I Love An Atheist
Active Member
We all as individuals may be susceptible to some temptations more than others. Those who have an artistic temperament may have special temptation to make their art into idolatry. They may also be at risk of creative output that can be a stumbling block or a trap for their audience members. One may suppose that creative types must have some options and freedom within Biblical parameters. But what should those parameters be?
Various fiction writers have handled creativity and Christianity in various ways. The Catholic (or Anglican?) Christian fantasy fiction writers, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, have been criticized by both secular purists and by Christian purists. Secular purists have criticized the Christian themes in their works, while Christians have criticized the themes of magic. Some argue their fantasy fiction may have paved the way for later works, like the Harry Potter series, that could be tempting children into wanting to experiment with magic.
Evangelical screenwriter and fiction writer Brian Godawa has written Old Testament fiction series that rely heavily on extra-Biblical sources, as well as his own imagination, for filling in the details. He argues strongly for a role of imagination and imagery, both in interpreting the Bible and in creating works for fiction and screen.
On the other hand, it may be argued that the novel form itself would not exist outside of a Christian conceptual framework. Traditionally fiction has often featured themes of good vs. evil. Not all religious and spiritual traditions teach good vs. evil. Traditionally fictional plots have often been driven forward by characters' moral decision points. Not all religious and spiritual traditions have taught that this life is about making moral choices. Traditionally the fictional timeline has had a beginning, middle and end. Not all cultures have believed in linear time. Many have believed in cyclical time. Since the novel form, it characters have not been required to be great men of history or mythical heroes or gods or goddesses. The novel form has featured stories about ordinary men and women. Christianity gave a narrative to the little people, where previously the grand narratives had belonged only to heroic men.
The modernist and postmodernist innovations to storytelling have often involved changing or subverting each of the traditional features. Anti-heroes have been presented as sympathetic, good and evil have been reversed or made into endless shades of gray, timelines have been handled in non-linear ways and many other traditional concepts have been challenged.
Influences on modernism and postmodernism have included sources with both occult influences and Frankfurt school pedigrees. For just one example, Freud was influenced by the Lurianic Kabbalah. It would be impossible to overstate the influence of Freud -- even though it is mostly Freudian revisionism and not Freud's ideas in their original form -- on the arts.
I don't have a narrowly defined question, but I've suggested just a few of the many issues, and now I'm asking for thoughts in a wide open manner. I am especially interested in any thoughts as to how a certain denomination may be prone to affect one's approach to issues of creativity within Christian parameters.
Various fiction writers have handled creativity and Christianity in various ways. The Catholic (or Anglican?) Christian fantasy fiction writers, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, have been criticized by both secular purists and by Christian purists. Secular purists have criticized the Christian themes in their works, while Christians have criticized the themes of magic. Some argue their fantasy fiction may have paved the way for later works, like the Harry Potter series, that could be tempting children into wanting to experiment with magic.
Evangelical screenwriter and fiction writer Brian Godawa has written Old Testament fiction series that rely heavily on extra-Biblical sources, as well as his own imagination, for filling in the details. He argues strongly for a role of imagination and imagery, both in interpreting the Bible and in creating works for fiction and screen.
On the other hand, it may be argued that the novel form itself would not exist outside of a Christian conceptual framework. Traditionally fiction has often featured themes of good vs. evil. Not all religious and spiritual traditions teach good vs. evil. Traditionally fictional plots have often been driven forward by characters' moral decision points. Not all religious and spiritual traditions have taught that this life is about making moral choices. Traditionally the fictional timeline has had a beginning, middle and end. Not all cultures have believed in linear time. Many have believed in cyclical time. Since the novel form, it characters have not been required to be great men of history or mythical heroes or gods or goddesses. The novel form has featured stories about ordinary men and women. Christianity gave a narrative to the little people, where previously the grand narratives had belonged only to heroic men.
The modernist and postmodernist innovations to storytelling have often involved changing or subverting each of the traditional features. Anti-heroes have been presented as sympathetic, good and evil have been reversed or made into endless shades of gray, timelines have been handled in non-linear ways and many other traditional concepts have been challenged.
Influences on modernism and postmodernism have included sources with both occult influences and Frankfurt school pedigrees. For just one example, Freud was influenced by the Lurianic Kabbalah. It would be impossible to overstate the influence of Freud -- even though it is mostly Freudian revisionism and not Freud's ideas in their original form -- on the arts.
I don't have a narrowly defined question, but I've suggested just a few of the many issues, and now I'm asking for thoughts in a wide open manner. I am especially interested in any thoughts as to how a certain denomination may be prone to affect one's approach to issues of creativity within Christian parameters.
