Aesthetics as a Religious Factor in Eastern and Western Christianity

Aesthetics as a Religious Factor in Eastern and Western Christianity

Author: William Peter van den Bercken

Publisher: Peeters Publishers

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 458

ISBN-13: 9789042916821

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This volume contains selected papers of a conference in 2004 at Utrecht University on aesthetics as a religious factor in Eastern and Western Christianity. They discuss the role of aesthetics in the presentation and expression of Christian faith in Catholic and Orthodox tradition. During its history Christianity has produced many works of art: church architecture, iconography, painting, music and literary texts. And in Orthodoxy beauty has always been the main form of religious expression, more than verbal presentation of Christian teaching, which is embedded in the aesthetic context of liturgy. In Christian theology beauty has often been seen as a form of divine revelation, related to the mystery of incarnation. The relation between aesthetics and religious belief has acquired new relevance in our secularised world. Today the visible products of Catholic and Orthodox aesthetics are for many people the main means through which they come into contact with Christianity and many people without affinity to religion are attracted by the beauty of Christian art, inside and outside the church. In modern religious studies the experience of beauty is recognised as a factor in explaining religious feelings. The papers are divided in four sections: 1. Comparative aspects of Orthodox and Catholic aesthetics, 2. Religious aesthetics in Russian literary culture, 3. Applied aesthetics in church art, 4. Art-theoretical, ideological and religious-philosophical aspects.


Book Synopsis Aesthetics as a Religious Factor in Eastern and Western Christianity by : William Peter van den Bercken

Download or read book Aesthetics as a Religious Factor in Eastern and Western Christianity written by William Peter van den Bercken and published by Peeters Publishers. This book was released on 2005 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume contains selected papers of a conference in 2004 at Utrecht University on aesthetics as a religious factor in Eastern and Western Christianity. They discuss the role of aesthetics in the presentation and expression of Christian faith in Catholic and Orthodox tradition. During its history Christianity has produced many works of art: church architecture, iconography, painting, music and literary texts. And in Orthodoxy beauty has always been the main form of religious expression, more than verbal presentation of Christian teaching, which is embedded in the aesthetic context of liturgy. In Christian theology beauty has often been seen as a form of divine revelation, related to the mystery of incarnation. The relation between aesthetics and religious belief has acquired new relevance in our secularised world. Today the visible products of Catholic and Orthodox aesthetics are for many people the main means through which they come into contact with Christianity and many people without affinity to religion are attracted by the beauty of Christian art, inside and outside the church. In modern religious studies the experience of beauty is recognised as a factor in explaining religious feelings. The papers are divided in four sections: 1. Comparative aspects of Orthodox and Catholic aesthetics, 2. Religious aesthetics in Russian literary culture, 3. Applied aesthetics in church art, 4. Art-theoretical, ideological and religious-philosophical aspects.

Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church

Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church

Author: DeBoer

Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

Published: 2016

Total Pages: 310

ISBN-13: 0802869513

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Although numerous studies have examined biblical and theological rationales for using the visual arts in worship, this book by Lisa J. DeBoer fills in a piece of the picture missing so far -- the social dimensions of both our churches and the various art worlds represented in our congregations. The first part of the book looks at Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and Protestantism in turn -- including case studies of specific congregations -- showing how each tradition's use of the visual arts reveals an underlying ecclesiology. DeBoer then focuses on six themes that emerge when Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant uses of the visual arts are examined together -- the arts as expressions of the church's local and universal character, the meanings attributed to particular styles of art for the church, the role of the arts in enculturating the gospel, and more. DeBoer's Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church will focus and deepen the thinking of pastors, worship leaders, artists, students, and laypeople regarding what the arts might do in the midst of their congregations.


Book Synopsis Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church by : DeBoer

Download or read book Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church written by DeBoer and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2016 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although numerous studies have examined biblical and theological rationales for using the visual arts in worship, this book by Lisa J. DeBoer fills in a piece of the picture missing so far -- the social dimensions of both our churches and the various art worlds represented in our congregations. The first part of the book looks at Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and Protestantism in turn -- including case studies of specific congregations -- showing how each tradition's use of the visual arts reveals an underlying ecclesiology. DeBoer then focuses on six themes that emerge when Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant uses of the visual arts are examined together -- the arts as expressions of the church's local and universal character, the meanings attributed to particular styles of art for the church, the role of the arts in enculturating the gospel, and more. DeBoer's Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church will focus and deepen the thinking of pastors, worship leaders, artists, students, and laypeople regarding what the arts might do in the midst of their congregations.

Faith and Beauty

Faith and Beauty

Author: Edward Farley

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-04-14

Total Pages: 145

ISBN-13: 1351937367

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'Aesthetics' and 'theological aesthetics' usually imply a focus on questions about the arts and how faith or religion relates to the arts; only the final pages of this work take up that problem. The central theme of this book is that of beauty. Farley employs a new typology of western texts on beauty and a theological analysis of the image of God and redemption to counter the centuries-long tendency to ignore or marginalize beauty and the aesthetic as part of the life of faith. Studying the interpretation of beauty in ancient Greece, eighteenth-century England, the work of Jonathan Edwards, and nineteenth and twentieth-century philosophies of human self-transcendence, the author explores whether Christian existence, the life of faith, and the ethical exclude or require an aesthetic dimension in the sense of beauty. The work will be of particular interest to those interested in Christian theology, ethics, and religion and the arts.


Book Synopsis Faith and Beauty by : Edward Farley

Download or read book Faith and Beauty written by Edward Farley and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-04-14 with total page 145 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Aesthetics' and 'theological aesthetics' usually imply a focus on questions about the arts and how faith or religion relates to the arts; only the final pages of this work take up that problem. The central theme of this book is that of beauty. Farley employs a new typology of western texts on beauty and a theological analysis of the image of God and redemption to counter the centuries-long tendency to ignore or marginalize beauty and the aesthetic as part of the life of faith. Studying the interpretation of beauty in ancient Greece, eighteenth-century England, the work of Jonathan Edwards, and nineteenth and twentieth-century philosophies of human self-transcendence, the author explores whether Christian existence, the life of faith, and the ethical exclude or require an aesthetic dimension in the sense of beauty. The work will be of particular interest to those interested in Christian theology, ethics, and religion and the arts.

Urban Religion

Urban Religion

Author: Jörg Rüpke

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2020-02-24

Total Pages: 250

ISBN-13: 3110634422

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So far religion has been seen as cause for dramatic developments in the history of cities, it has contributed to the monumentalisation of centres and or has given importance to ex-centric places. Very recently, anthropologists have been discovering religion in the contemporary global city. But still awaiting historical investigation is the specific urban character of religious ideas, practices and institutions and the role of urban space shaping this very ‘religion’ in the course of history. The time-span from the Hellenistic age to Late Antiquity was crucial in the establishment of concepts and institutions of ‘religion’ and witnessed extended waves of urbanisation, Rome being central to this. In addressing this problem, this book fills a significant gap in the scholarship on urban religion across time. Taking seriously the proposition that space is condition, medium and outcome of social relations, the development of ‘urban religion’ in lived urban space and urban culture or urbanity offers a lens onto processes of religious change that have been neglected for the history of religion and for the study of urbanism. The key thesis is that city-space engineered the major changes that revolutionised religions. »This stimulating book makes use of archaeology and history to address religion as an essential component of urban life in both the past and the present. -With a strong basis in the ancient Mediterranean as well as an insightful view of modern urban life, Rüpke emphasizes that the practice and performance of religion at the everyday level is as essential in the creation of an urban ethos as the grand temples and institutions promulgated by the elite.« Monica L. Smith, author of Cities: The First 6,000 Years »Jörg Rüpke offers a characteristically original and learned series of reflections on some of the many ways in which the history of religions and the history of cities might be entangled. Urban Religion offers no single overarching thesis, but it is consistently thought-provoking and suggests many intriguing lines of investigation for the future.« Greg Woolf, Institute of Classical Studies, London


Book Synopsis Urban Religion by : Jörg Rüpke

Download or read book Urban Religion written by Jörg Rüpke and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2020-02-24 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: So far religion has been seen as cause for dramatic developments in the history of cities, it has contributed to the monumentalisation of centres and or has given importance to ex-centric places. Very recently, anthropologists have been discovering religion in the contemporary global city. But still awaiting historical investigation is the specific urban character of religious ideas, practices and institutions and the role of urban space shaping this very ‘religion’ in the course of history. The time-span from the Hellenistic age to Late Antiquity was crucial in the establishment of concepts and institutions of ‘religion’ and witnessed extended waves of urbanisation, Rome being central to this. In addressing this problem, this book fills a significant gap in the scholarship on urban religion across time. Taking seriously the proposition that space is condition, medium and outcome of social relations, the development of ‘urban religion’ in lived urban space and urban culture or urbanity offers a lens onto processes of religious change that have been neglected for the history of religion and for the study of urbanism. The key thesis is that city-space engineered the major changes that revolutionised religions. »This stimulating book makes use of archaeology and history to address religion as an essential component of urban life in both the past and the present. -With a strong basis in the ancient Mediterranean as well as an insightful view of modern urban life, Rüpke emphasizes that the practice and performance of religion at the everyday level is as essential in the creation of an urban ethos as the grand temples and institutions promulgated by the elite.« Monica L. Smith, author of Cities: The First 6,000 Years »Jörg Rüpke offers a characteristically original and learned series of reflections on some of the many ways in which the history of religions and the history of cities might be entangled. Urban Religion offers no single overarching thesis, but it is consistently thought-provoking and suggests many intriguing lines of investigation for the future.« Greg Woolf, Institute of Classical Studies, London

Religious Aesthetics

Religious Aesthetics

Author: Frank Burch Brown

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 1993-05-09

Total Pages: 247

ISBN-13: 0691024723

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In this groundbreaking work, Brown shows how aesthetics, no less than ethics, can play a central role in the study of religion and in the practice of theology. "An important book, wide ranging, often very witty . . . showing an impressive grasp of the current state of aesthetics and possible new directions".--Nick McAdoo, British Journal of Aesthetics.


Book Synopsis Religious Aesthetics by : Frank Burch Brown

Download or read book Religious Aesthetics written by Frank Burch Brown and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 1993-05-09 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this groundbreaking work, Brown shows how aesthetics, no less than ethics, can play a central role in the study of religion and in the practice of theology. "An important book, wide ranging, often very witty . . . showing an impressive grasp of the current state of aesthetics and possible new directions".--Nick McAdoo, British Journal of Aesthetics.

Law and Religious Cultural Heritage in Europe

Law and Religious Cultural Heritage in Europe

Author: Theodosios Tsivolas

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2014-07-22

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 3319079328

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This book examines in detail both historical and current legal concepts of ‘religious cultural heritage’ within the context of the European continent. The latter group is primarily based on the variety of sacred cultural elements emanating from the different religious traditions of the peoples of Europe, which are deemed worthy of protection and preservation due to their outstanding value, in terms of their social, cultural and religious significance. In view of this, the study provides evidence of the European States’ active involvement with their sacred/cultural treasures, on the basis of the political and legal foundations of neutrality and pluralism. Furthermore, the book analyzes all relevant international legislative instruments (i.e. the plethora of EU, EC and UNESCO norms), as well as all major European legislative patterns, in light of their significance for the aforementioned aspects of pluralism and neutrality. The interdisciplinary references listed at the end of each chapter provide an additional incentive for further reading on the subject matter. The most important finding to emerge from the study is that there is a shared legal ethos in Europe that imposes a duty of appropriate care concerning the vast variety of sacred cultural goods and the religious cultural heritage in general, as an invaluable repository of European cultural capital. It also considers the sui generis nature of this capital: like any other type of asset, it may deteriorate or fade over time, necessitating investment in its preservation or refurbishment; nevertheless, like no other, this particular capital maintains a distinct cultural value, as it contains an additional characteristic of ‘sacredness’ expressed in the form of its ‘religious character,’ the latter being analyzed as a triptych of religious memory, religious aesthetics and religious beliefs.


Book Synopsis Law and Religious Cultural Heritage in Europe by : Theodosios Tsivolas

Download or read book Law and Religious Cultural Heritage in Europe written by Theodosios Tsivolas and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-07-22 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines in detail both historical and current legal concepts of ‘religious cultural heritage’ within the context of the European continent. The latter group is primarily based on the variety of sacred cultural elements emanating from the different religious traditions of the peoples of Europe, which are deemed worthy of protection and preservation due to their outstanding value, in terms of their social, cultural and religious significance. In view of this, the study provides evidence of the European States’ active involvement with their sacred/cultural treasures, on the basis of the political and legal foundations of neutrality and pluralism. Furthermore, the book analyzes all relevant international legislative instruments (i.e. the plethora of EU, EC and UNESCO norms), as well as all major European legislative patterns, in light of their significance for the aforementioned aspects of pluralism and neutrality. The interdisciplinary references listed at the end of each chapter provide an additional incentive for further reading on the subject matter. The most important finding to emerge from the study is that there is a shared legal ethos in Europe that imposes a duty of appropriate care concerning the vast variety of sacred cultural goods and the religious cultural heritage in general, as an invaluable repository of European cultural capital. It also considers the sui generis nature of this capital: like any other type of asset, it may deteriorate or fade over time, necessitating investment in its preservation or refurbishment; nevertheless, like no other, this particular capital maintains a distinct cultural value, as it contains an additional characteristic of ‘sacredness’ expressed in the form of its ‘religious character,’ the latter being analyzed as a triptych of religious memory, religious aesthetics and religious beliefs.

Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God

Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God

Author: Eric Bugyis

Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess

Published: 2015-11-15

Total Pages: 443

ISBN-13: 0268075980

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In the face of religious and cultural diversity, some doubt whether Christian faith remains possible today. Critics claim that religion is irrational and violent, and the loudest defenders of Christianity are equally strident. In response, Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God: Essays in Honor of Denys Turner explores the uncertainty essential to Christian commitment; it suggests that faith is moved by a desire for that which cannot be known. This approach is inspired by the tradition of Christian apophatic theology, which argues that language cannot capture divine transcendence. From this perspective, contemporary debates over God’s existence represent a dead end: if God is not simply another object in the world, then faith begins not in abstract certainty but in a love that exceeds the limits of knowledge. The essays engage classic Christian thought alongside literary and philosophical sources ranging from Pseudo-Dionysius and Dante to Karl Marx and Jacques Derrida. Building on the work of Denys Turner, they indicate that the boundary between atheism and Christian thought is productively blurry. Instead of settling the stale dispute over whether religion is rationally justified, their work suggests instead that Christian life is an ethical and political practice impassioned by a God who transcends understanding.


Book Synopsis Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God by : Eric Bugyis

Download or read book Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God written by Eric Bugyis and published by University of Notre Dame Pess. This book was released on 2015-11-15 with total page 443 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the face of religious and cultural diversity, some doubt whether Christian faith remains possible today. Critics claim that religion is irrational and violent, and the loudest defenders of Christianity are equally strident. In response, Desire, Faith, and the Darkness of God: Essays in Honor of Denys Turner explores the uncertainty essential to Christian commitment; it suggests that faith is moved by a desire for that which cannot be known. This approach is inspired by the tradition of Christian apophatic theology, which argues that language cannot capture divine transcendence. From this perspective, contemporary debates over God’s existence represent a dead end: if God is not simply another object in the world, then faith begins not in abstract certainty but in a love that exceeds the limits of knowledge. The essays engage classic Christian thought alongside literary and philosophical sources ranging from Pseudo-Dionysius and Dante to Karl Marx and Jacques Derrida. Building on the work of Denys Turner, they indicate that the boundary between atheism and Christian thought is productively blurry. Instead of settling the stale dispute over whether religion is rationally justified, their work suggests instead that Christian life is an ethical and political practice impassioned by a God who transcends understanding.

Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought

Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought

Author: Jennifer Newsome Martin

Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess

Published: 2015-09-15

Total Pages: 302

ISBN-13: 0268158754

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In Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought, Jennifer Newsome Martin offers the first systematic treatment and evaluation of the Swiss Catholic theologian’s complex relation to modern speculative Russian religious philosophy. Her constructive analysis proceeds through Balthasar’s critical reception of Vladimir Soloviev, Nicholai Berdyaev, and Sergei Bulgakov with respect to theological aesthetics, myth, eschatology, and Trinitarian discourse and examines how Balthasar adjudicates both the possibilities and the limits of theological appropriation, especially considering the degree to which these Russian thinkers have been influenced by German Idealism and Romanticism. Martin argues that Balthasar’s creative reception and modulation of the thought of these Russian philosophers is indicative of a broad speculative tendency in his work that deserves further attention. In this respect, Martin consciously challenges the prevailing view of Balthasar as a fundamentally conservative or nostalgic thinker. In her discussion of the relation between tradition and theological speculation, Martin also draws upon the understudied relation between Balthasar and F. W. J. Schelling, especially as Schelling's form of Idealism was passed down through the Russian thinkers. In doing so, she persuasively recasts Balthasar as an ecumenical, creatively anti-nostalgic theologian hospitable to the richness of contributions from extra-magisterial and non-Catholic sources.


Book Synopsis Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought by : Jennifer Newsome Martin

Download or read book Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought written by Jennifer Newsome Martin and published by University of Notre Dame Pess. This book was released on 2015-09-15 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Critical Appropriation of Russian Religious Thought, Jennifer Newsome Martin offers the first systematic treatment and evaluation of the Swiss Catholic theologian’s complex relation to modern speculative Russian religious philosophy. Her constructive analysis proceeds through Balthasar’s critical reception of Vladimir Soloviev, Nicholai Berdyaev, and Sergei Bulgakov with respect to theological aesthetics, myth, eschatology, and Trinitarian discourse and examines how Balthasar adjudicates both the possibilities and the limits of theological appropriation, especially considering the degree to which these Russian thinkers have been influenced by German Idealism and Romanticism. Martin argues that Balthasar’s creative reception and modulation of the thought of these Russian philosophers is indicative of a broad speculative tendency in his work that deserves further attention. In this respect, Martin consciously challenges the prevailing view of Balthasar as a fundamentally conservative or nostalgic thinker. In her discussion of the relation between tradition and theological speculation, Martin also draws upon the understudied relation between Balthasar and F. W. J. Schelling, especially as Schelling's form of Idealism was passed down through the Russian thinkers. In doing so, she persuasively recasts Balthasar as an ecumenical, creatively anti-nostalgic theologian hospitable to the richness of contributions from extra-magisterial and non-Catholic sources.

Art and Truth after Plato

Art and Truth after Plato

Author: Tom Rockmore

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2013-06-24

Total Pages: 344

ISBN-13: 022604016X

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Despite its foundational role in the history of philosophy, Plato’s famous argument that art does not have access to truth or knowledge is now rarely examined, in part because recent philosophers have assumed that Plato’s challenge was resolved long ago. In Art and Truth after Plato, Tom Rockmore argues that Plato has in fact never been satisfactorily answered—and to demonstrate that, he offers a comprehensive account of Plato’s influence through nearly the whole history of Western aesthetics. Rockmore offers a cogent reading of the post-Platonic aesthetic tradition as a series of responses to Plato’s position, examining a stunning diversity of thinkers and ideas. He visits Aristotle’s Poetics, the medieval Christians, Kant’s Critique of Judgment, Hegel’s phenomenology, Marxism, social realism, Heidegger, and many other works and thinkers, ending with a powerful synthesis that lands on four central aesthetic arguments that philosophers have debated. More than a mere history of aesthetics, Art and Truth after Plato presents a fresh look at an ancient question, bringing it into contemporary relief.


Book Synopsis Art and Truth after Plato by : Tom Rockmore

Download or read book Art and Truth after Plato written by Tom Rockmore and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2013-06-24 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite its foundational role in the history of philosophy, Plato’s famous argument that art does not have access to truth or knowledge is now rarely examined, in part because recent philosophers have assumed that Plato’s challenge was resolved long ago. In Art and Truth after Plato, Tom Rockmore argues that Plato has in fact never been satisfactorily answered—and to demonstrate that, he offers a comprehensive account of Plato’s influence through nearly the whole history of Western aesthetics. Rockmore offers a cogent reading of the post-Platonic aesthetic tradition as a series of responses to Plato’s position, examining a stunning diversity of thinkers and ideas. He visits Aristotle’s Poetics, the medieval Christians, Kant’s Critique of Judgment, Hegel’s phenomenology, Marxism, social realism, Heidegger, and many other works and thinkers, ending with a powerful synthesis that lands on four central aesthetic arguments that philosophers have debated. More than a mere history of aesthetics, Art and Truth after Plato presents a fresh look at an ancient question, bringing it into contemporary relief.

Phenomenology of the Icon

Phenomenology of the Icon

Author: Stephanie Rumpza

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2023-03-31

Total Pages: 313

ISBN-13: 100931789X

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How can something finite mediate an infinite God? Weaving patristics, theology, art history, aesthetics, and religious practice with the hermeneutic phenomenology of Hans-George Gadamer and Jean-Luc Marion, Stephanie Rumpza proposes a new answer to this paradox by offering a fresh and original approach to the Byzantine icon. She demonstrates the power and relevance of the phenomenological method to integrate hermeneutic aesthetics and divine transcendence, notably how the material and visual dimensions of the icon are illuminated by traditional practices of prayer. Rumpza's study targets a problem that is a major fault line in the continental philosophy of religion – the integrity of finite beings I relation to a God that transcends them. For philosophers, her book demonstrates the relevance of a cherished religious practice of Eastern Christianity. For art historians, she proposes a novel philosophical paradigm for understanding the icon as it is approached in practice.


Book Synopsis Phenomenology of the Icon by : Stephanie Rumpza

Download or read book Phenomenology of the Icon written by Stephanie Rumpza and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2023-03-31 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How can something finite mediate an infinite God? Weaving patristics, theology, art history, aesthetics, and religious practice with the hermeneutic phenomenology of Hans-George Gadamer and Jean-Luc Marion, Stephanie Rumpza proposes a new answer to this paradox by offering a fresh and original approach to the Byzantine icon. She demonstrates the power and relevance of the phenomenological method to integrate hermeneutic aesthetics and divine transcendence, notably how the material and visual dimensions of the icon are illuminated by traditional practices of prayer. Rumpza's study targets a problem that is a major fault line in the continental philosophy of religion – the integrity of finite beings I relation to a God that transcends them. For philosophers, her book demonstrates the relevance of a cherished religious practice of Eastern Christianity. For art historians, she proposes a novel philosophical paradigm for understanding the icon as it is approached in practice.