Journal - June 15 2010

Stuff to do:
Exam next week (study today)
Video Blog to make (ideas about things I want to get rid of in my life)
Watch world cup matches
Watch season one of The A-Team
Ask about chainsaw from the shop
Pay Rent

Better pay the rent.....done

Then there's the exam, its for my arts class: Philosophy of the Creative Arts. Sounds impressive doesn't it, well it is impressive thinking about the place of art, the creation of art, the place of the artist. The history of art and its progression is amazing from cave paintings to the glorious art of the Sistine chapel, the beauty of the impressionists, the risk taking of artists like Dali, Warhol, Duchamp, and the eventual chaos that is modern art is an amazing ride. Yet the thinking that has lead to these developments - or regressions if you think about the constant shock that is modern art - can be charted to the effect of the image and place of God in humanity. In fact the classical thinking about God led to the art of the Sistine chapel, to David yet the foundations of these great works lay in the Greek philosophers and the tools of thinking that we still use today. Kind of funny that is, that Christian thinking has been influenced by the thought patterns and logic of the Greek philosophers. Those of us in the western world still use the same thinking and modes of logic. Which of course leads me to think how different Christianity would be if it went Eastward and not Westward, if the center of Christian thought went away from the Mediterranean and into the Hindus Valley. I cannot imagine such a church but maybe it did exist certain disciples are said to have made it to the Hindus Valley.

That was fun. To begin at art and end up thinking about the possible development of Christianity as an Asian religion and not a Mediterranean one. This is of course not excluding the east from the joys of knowing and living in Christ, no one is excluded from that offer. It is just that what differences and tools would have developed and molded Christian thought and what would have been the big topics. How important would have the two natures of Christ have been? Would the Cross been a symbol of power and authority? Would the creedal language have developed at all? Would there have been dogma and confessions of faith? What would have the images of Jesus have looked like?

To realise that the way we see Jesus, art, God, life have been from the influences of a few Greek guys over 2000 years ago is actually quite scary. I don't know Plato and Aristotle from Adam yet their thoughts are still being taught today. I am not sure how happy I am with this, that my thoughts are influenced by those so many years hence. However I try I am never going to get outside of the influence of those who came before me, even if I succeed in losing the influence of all humanity I am still going to be influenced by God. No one can escape the influence of the Creator God a piece of art cannot exist without its maker artist. So I am always under the influence of someone whether it is humans or God. We are from what has come before, you cannot have Michelangelo without cave painting, what has been before even if it is considered worthless still has its influence on us. No escape, can't run from it, so then we better use it.