Artists Struggle with Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism has its history in the Protestant Reformation, which stressed only the written Word of God, and not any visual representations (or in some traditions, even music). The Protestants had become overly suspicious of the idolatry that they saw in Roman Catholicism and wanted to return the faith to a pure spirituality of the Word.

Of course, idolatry is always a very legitimate concern and I’m sure that Protestants had pure motives, but as often happens in church renewal movements, the “baby gets thrown out with the bathwater” (so to speak).

What the Reformers failed to recognize was the legitimate desire in the human spirit to express deep theological truths through various artistic media, such as music, painting, sculpture, etc… And even well into the 20th century, I think the arts have been regarded with a great deal of suspicion by many in the evangelical fold.

That’s my two cents, anyway…….

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