Grace and Necessity - Part One

A picture that I took in Switzerland.

WHEN IT ALL MADE SENSE

This past summer, I had the privilege of traveling through Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and France. In full honesty, I can say that the very moment I saw the alps was the very moment it became abundantly clear to me. It being my understanding of the greatest Artist to ever exist. I’ve always wondered about creativity. For some reason, “art” seems to sit in this separate box. For instance, in college, it’s almost as if every major is “normal” and art is the one for those with a unique gift. The amount of times I hear “I’m not good at art” or “I could never be an artist” or “I don’t have a creative bone in my body” is surprising to me. See, the thing that became so abundantly clear to me, is that I have no option but to be creative. If I truly believe that my identity is found in Christ, and He made me in His image, then it would be impossible for me to not be creative since God Himself is the one who is creativity. I have always grown up saying, “I’m thankful for the gifts and talents the Lord has blessed me with (as it applies to creativity)”. However, when I saw the alps, I couldn’t help but admit that the only reason I can produce anything considered beautiful or art, is because the God who formed me is the originator of it all. 

I have to be honest again, I’m not sure I can articulate my thoughts well enough for a reader to understand. What I just wrote above doesn’t even hint at that realization that God has stamped on my heart. It is also pretty much impossible for me to talk about art without God because I believe they can’t be separated. 

Rowan Williams

ON THAT NOTE

I appreciate this man named Rowan Williams and his book Grace and Necessity. I can thank him for reintroducing to me these thoughts I can’t articulate, and I can thank him even more for articulating them for me. I believe everything that I just talked about is expressed by part of Rowan William’s novel (just in a more sophisticated way). Before I get into William’s intellectual thought though, I thought I’d share this video that reiterates how I believe both Williams and I feel about art. 

Williams says, “If [art] is well and honestly made, it will tend towards beauty” (Williams, 14). Why is this so? I believe it’s because everything that God has made and will make is beautiful, and if art is made with the purist intent to simply “create”, then it can’t be anything but beautiful. Now, by the world’s standards, one may have an opinion on what is beautiful; however, the Truth is that it will remain beautiful. It’s not an accident that I capitalized the “T” in truth. I believe in this thing called Absolute Truth which is in line with God. Without Absolute Truth, we would never be able to explain our morality. For instance, we would never be able to argue that anything is good or bad if there was no such thing as good in the first place. This is Absolute Truth. I understand that Williams doesn’t talk about this in Grace and Necessity, but he is inspired by Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas has many books, such as On Law, Morality, and Politics and Summa Theologica, that describe this. Aquinas is also inspired by Augustine, who has written On the Free Choice of the Will. Both of these philosophers talk about the Transcendentals. Augustine says where there is truth, there is beauty and goodness also. Thus, I believe Rowan Williams is trying to say that art that is created to be simply art will naturally be good which also means it will be true and beautiful. This is what he means when he says honest art will tend towards beauty. My argument is that God is the truest thing that has ever been. He is the one who created truth. He is also the one who created us. This means that I truly believe each and every one of us possesses creativity and has the ability to create honest, beautiful art (in a myriad of forms). 

IN CONCLUSION

Unfortunately, I have to admit that I am not nearly as good at explaining these truths as the great philosophers: Williams, Aquinas, and Augustine. When writing this, I had every intent to explain my interpretation of many of William’s thoughts. However, it took over 700 words to even share my agreement on one of his ideas. I deeply resonated with and enjoyed the video we watched in class of Rowan Williams himself. He spoke on living in every moment and I believe he has a special understanding of the Lord’s will for our lives. I wish I could articulate my thoughts perfectly; however, in summary, I am deeply encouraged by Rowan William’s thoughts. I am in agreement with most of his arguments and have a better appreciation for the art I create everyday. I am on mission to create for God’s glory and as a result, I know my art will have the effect on this world that God intended. 

And finally, I thought I would share the video I made of my experience in Switzerland, Germany, France, and Austria. My main form of “art” that I practice is video so I thought it was entirely appropriate.

Sources:

Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologica. MobileReference.com, 2010.

Augustine, et al. On Free Choice of the Will. Bobbs-Merrill, 1964.

Thomas, et al. On Law, Morality, and Politics. Hackett Pub., 2002.

Williams, Rowan. Grace and Necessity: Reflections on Art and Love. Continuum, 2005.