Schaeffer's articulates the minor and major themes in the Christian message and how Christian art should include both. Every man, artist or not, is bound to the Word of God. But that doesn't necessarily mean we embrace what that artist is saying morally. To enjoy an author's skill with words or a director's vision of the world is a way to honour the image of God in those people.

'Why? Because a work of art is a work of creativity, and creativity has value because God is the Creator.'įor Schaeffer, art is an expression of 'the nature and character of humanity.' We can recognize the excellence of an artist's work without having to agree with his outlook on life. If we are made in the image of God, we too are called to be creative and our art has value in itself. Notice the wide range of writing styles that are included in scriptures. Read the descriptions on the various types of art God commissioned for the tabernacle and the temple.

And beauty has a place in the worship of God.' Observe the beauty and complexity of His creation. And both point to a God who is himself creative and who made us to worship him creatively. We see the character of God both in his creation of the world and in how he directs us through his word. With such an anchoring in the objective, true reality, we have both the strength and the freedom to pursue knowledge and art. Christ is Lord over everything, giving us context and boldness for our own acts of artistic creation. The doctrines of the creation, the redemption, and the future resurrection provide a framework that permeates all aspects of reality. The Bible's portrayal of reality is not limited to matters of the soul. So why is the Evangelical church marked by both an aesthetic barrenness and an attitude of fear and avoidance towards the arts? Is our church's understanding of the arts actually rooted in a proper understanding of the Bible? Francis Schaeffer's seminal work, Art and the Bible, provided a much needed clarity when it was first published in 1973 and continues to offer a reorienting view of a proper doctrine of creativity. The writings of Dante, the music of Bach, the paintings of Rembrandt, and the songwriting of Bono are small sampling of this heritage. The Christian faith has enjoyed a historically rich relationship with the arts.

Art and the bible schaeffer