A form of Expression-ism?

Yesterday we used the colour tiles again. Steve Taylor had suggested 'colouring our worship' 4th August 2005. and how we name the wide range of emotions and experiences people bring, we bring to church. So.. with permission, as I already had used these tiles in another way previously, we passed round the basket and each person selected a colour. We were looking in Jonah 4 and Jonah’s anger – we listed the things that make us angry,especially the anger that is unrighteous and comes from thinking it's all about us. We did this with a screen in front of the communion table. We then removed the screen to reveal the table. Then, inviting people to select a colour that reflected their mood generally this week, this morning. As they came forward for communion they first placed the tile on the table and ready to accept Christ’s com-PASSION for us in these gifts at this table.

Expressionism was one of the main currents in art in late 19th and 20th centuries. Expressionists attempt to depict the emotions and responses that objects and events arouse in him/her. Unlike Impressionism, its goals were not to reproduce the impression suggested by the surrounding world, but to strongly bring the artist's own sensibility to the world's representation. It seems to me that there is something about what and how we express ourselves in church that needs to move us beyond the impressionistic worship forms. To allow for expressionistic, even abstract expressionism(!) I see as a way of recognising who we are in God's presence with greater honesty and in relationship.
Peter Matheson, (in The Imaginative World of the Reformation) states:

Simplicity is often at the heart of genius. Luther reached straight to the
heart of things, disregarding all peripheral issues and fussy details. In
his....very popular and influential book of prayers for lay people, his aim was
to provide an alternative to a calculating piety which weighed sins against
merits and sought to insure against failure by multiplying devotional exercises
and good works... removing legendary accretions and all Uberfluss, or
superfluity of words. What God really wanted from us was our sighs and tears.
(122)

I’m finding people are more and more open to engaging in this way and it helps bring who they are honestly before God. We have often been starting with a story, a question before we do much else in worship, so that we begin to cease a little and come to rest in God as we worship. I think we’ll try it at one service in the month and see how this develops among us as we deal with some Uberfluss among us and in each of us!

Howl's Moving Castle and....

Dunedin Film Festival has been running. I missed Hell on Wheels all about following the Telecom Cycle team in 2004 Tour de France, I missed to French films that sounded interesting but... my friend Rory came in the other day to the office and said 'Fancy coming to see an animation later today?" I couldn't recall the name of what I was heading to, but I am glad that Rory suggested it. The animation/art work was stupendous and especially in its fine details. Howl's Moving Castle is a story by Diana Wynne-Jones. (Looked her up since and see she has written many books all of imaginary worlds and maybe a bit like JKR, though of a different litirary style) This one I want to read having seen the anime. Humour weas throughout it too, and it had several layers or threads you could critique of course. But simply having watched it without coming at it with any Christian take on it, it seemed to address issues of war, but the other aspects of it revealed the main female character Sophie showing immense courage and humility and kindness, even unconditional compassion to others who were enemies and outcasts. I wouldn't say it was cheesy at all either. Although i would say the end seemed lame though. What I did love, was very much a reminder of CS Lewis world in the Magicians Nephew and the many pools that would take you to different worlds. The Moving Castle's front door had a coloured disc turn as you turned the handle and each time it would turn and open into worlds where it is utter darkness and ones where it is on a street and yet another into a utopia. I loved the imagination at work here. So I'm grateful to Rory for introducing me to Miyazaki the Japanese animator of this work. For the reason of the artwork and animation alone it is worth going to see and appreciating!