Christ calls His followers to excellence, as Artists, Doctors, Lawyers, Teachers or whatever vocation we are called to serve in. If we are to truly engage culture in a meaningful way as artist, we must be well versed in the language of art, art history, theory and practice.

I would bet that when God called Bezalel through Moses, Bezalel had a grounded knowledge and practical understanding of craftsmanship. He was not merely some local guy who was handy, God had blessed Bezalel’s hands to do God’s work, but I bet Bezalel still worked to be the best he could be. We must continue to stir our gifts. For Artists that means we must continually study God’s word night and day, and the craft of Painting (or whatever your media, you fill in the blank).

The bottom line is that we can’t engage the world with inferior work, sentimentality, or kitch because we will not be taken seriously. Thomas Kinkade is a good example of that. I pray I can undue his damage. Let’s get to work.

Be blessed,

Christopher

Yet the same level of artistic and architectural excellence required of building the Temple would probably not apply to spreading the gospel through cartoons.

i would disagree. regardless of what we do, we’re supposed to do it all for his glory, which, i think, requires our best. which requires constant growth and exploration, whether cartoons,”fine art” or architecture. excellence is always measured by the standards of the particular field, right? so it doesn’t matter which medium we swim in — there will still be standards and works by which we are compared and judged.

I can’t see God having a problem with someone who creates stick figure cartoon tracts, mass-produces them, and distributes them globally.
certainly there will be some people to whom such a thing ’speaks’…then again, why would we settle for stick-figure tracts when we could partner with people whose skills and artistic abilities are given by God and who could assist with making the tract even better. i mean, jack chick is not the standard for gospel tracts (which begs the question: how useful are tracts nowadays anyway?).

I do think there is a difference between, on the one hand, spreading the gospel via amateurish art and on the other hand creating a painting of the Second Coming displaying all the glory involved there. One is done to spread the Word, and the other is done more specifically for the Glory of God.
aren’t they both done for both reasons? shouldn’t they both be done to spread the Word and for his glory? i’m not sure those are separate things. shouldn’t everything be done “unto his glory”? in any case, if communicating the Truth in the right way at the right time is at all important, it does, in fact, matter how we present the gospel. for everything there is a season and all that…

As strange as it sounds, I don’t see the two things being on and the same when it comes to art. Maybe in other areas the glory of God and spreading the word would go hand-in-hand, but just simply put, art does allow for stick figures.
when? how? why or why not? are stick figures ‘milk’ then? then it behooves us to encourage them to go to the ‘meat’ of art. of course, i would argue that art (at least, in the way that i define it – which is as much about purpose and function as anything else) does not allow for stick figures if those stick figures are a result of one’s inability to exercise artistic skills. i can accept more simplistic figures if it is clear that other elements (style, idiom, content, context) make that a necessary and considered choice (e.g. haring, penck, paladino, cave men…).

Christians have come to the point where they cringe unnecessarily with embarassment at second-rate Christian productions. Frankly, there is a lot more heart, emotion, and gripping story in B-grade Christian movies than the secular garbage. It is a trick of Satan operating somewhere in all this that causes many Christians to cringe with embarrasment at Christian offerings. Perhaps these cringing Chrsitians need to get their priorities straight. After all, I don’t see any secular, atheist sexual-deviant types cringing at the talentless garbage on TV.
i dunno – personally, i cringe at second-rate christian productions being celebrated and offered to the [christian] public as first-rate examples. as if mediocrity or “good enough” should be acceptable. and i think that it is a gross oversimplification to state that there is more “heart etc.” (whatever that is, and however you would judge such a thing) in B-grade christian movies…as if non-christians are less engaged or passionate about the stories they have to tell. and as if “heart” justifies mediocrity, melodrama and cliche. yes, there are reprehensible movies made by non-christians, but there are also “christian” movies that do a pretty poor job or presenting the gospel in any relevant way (which is equally heinous, i think). an encounter with christ should propel the story and action, not end it. i mean, there are some significant christian contributors to that “secular garbage” (e.g. denzel washington) – you can find an interesting discussion about it at artsandfaith: http://ArtsAndFaith.com/index.php?showtopic=4426&st=40.

further, i think that the vast majority of tv watchers are not “secular, atheist sexual-deviant types”. most talentless TV ends up being cancelled (and then again, a lot of good stuff does too). besides, studies have shown that TV viewing habits differ very little between “christians” and non-christians so there’s little point in arguing that. it’s a straw man, really. the fact remains that whoever tells the best story (in the best, or most appropriate, way) wins. and we have the best story. we should tell it in a way that enables it to be received.

pax.

I don’t think it’s a matter of Cartoon tracts being compared to a Full Paintings, etc.
Both require training and skill to effectively execute and deliver the end result.

I think what some are saying here is when corners are cut and either the cartoonist or the painter does not put forth their full potential.

Many times that full potential falls short because individual practice and training are neglected.

I can’t see God having a problem with someone who creates stick figure cartoon tracts, mass-produces them, and distributes them globally. I do think there is a difference between, on the one hand, spreading the gospel via amateurish art and on the other hand creating a painting of the Second Coming displaying all the glory involved there. One is done to spread the Word, and the other is done more specifically for the Glory of God. As strange as it sounds, I don’t see the two things being on and the same when it comes to art. Maybe in other areas the glory of God and spreading the word would go hand-in-hand, but just simply put, art does allow for stick figures.

Christians have come to the point where they cringe unnecessarily with embarassment at second-rate Christian productions. Frankly, there is a lot more heart, emotion, and gripping story in B-grade Christian movies than the secular garbage. It is a trick of Satan operating somewhere in all this that causes many Christians to cringe with embarrasment at Christian offerings. Perhaps these cringing Chrsitians need to get their priorities straight. After all, I don’t see any secular, atheist sexual-deviant types cringing at the talentless garbage on TV.