The Substance of Things Seen: Art, Faith, and the Christian Community (The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies

Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies

by Robin M. Jensen

While the average person rarely sees it, the visual arts play a subtle yet profound role in the teaching and formation of faith, both for individuals and religious communities. The Substance of Things Seen explores the intersection of art and faith, offering thoughtful reflections on the way art functions in Christian life and practice.

Highly readable and featuring instructive illustrations, this book is meant to engage church leaders as well as artists in constructive conversation about the critical role that art can play in the renewal of Christian education, worship, and study. It also challenges anyone who thinks the arts are only of marginal importance to the religious life. Robin Jensen considers here a broad range of topics relevant to Christian faith and culture, including the construction of sacred space, the use of art in worship and spiritual formation, the way that visual art interprets sacred texts, and the power and danger of art from a historical and contemporary perspective.

Genres: Art, Theology, Religion, Nonfiction, Spirituality

160 pages, Paperback

First published March 2, 2004

About the author

Robin M. Jensen (PhD, Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary) is Luce Chancellor’s Professor of the History of Christian Art and Worship at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. She has authored several books, including Face to Face: Portraits of the Divine in Early Christianity and Understanding Early Christian Art.

Reviews

[Theo Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thought provoking. Probably would be valuable for Protestant clergy to read as they consider the place of art in the life of the church.

[Miguel Gonzalez-Feliciano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought provoking and stimulating, Robin Jensen employs a writing style that I enjoyed as she talked through the often complex relationship between artists and theologians. Where I found a lot of enjoyment in her work was in understanding the narrative function a piece of art can fulfill.

[Sam Nesbitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jensen has provided one of the most readable and helpful introductions to art from the perspective of Christian theology and tradition that I have encountered. Touching on the philosophy of art, iconoclastic controversies, church architecture, cultural interaction, and more, she is able to cover much ground while remaining concise and insightful. She offers multiple perspectives within the book and is not polemical in spirit, although her own generally positive views on art do come out in some places. For example, although recognizing the potential dangers of art and images, she ultimately disagrees with the spirit of iconoclasm that seeks to purge images of Jesus in all contexts. Additionally, she finds objections to popular portrayals of Jesus in film more often to be interpretive errors: “In any case, we should see [films] on [their] own terms, as a piece of art, not a Bible study” (147).

Jensen also seems to prioritize the ethical dimension of art in her aesthetic judgment: “if the work presents an idealized, innocuous world, without any attempt to challenge the viewer at any level, how can we call it ‘good art’?” (135). Her allusions and examples throughout the book show a concern for many social issues, some more controversial than others from a Christian perspective.

The largest drawback for this book is its publishing format; not only are there no index and bibliography, but footnotes are also sparse. The lack of footnotes is especially felt in chapters in which historical arguments and analyses are made. This may be a good introduction in terms of content, but it is not a good resource for finding other, more advanced resources.

Overall, Jensen provides an enjoyable and edifying read on the nature of art from a Christian perspective, so much so that if any Christian wants to dive deeper into the issues of art and its relationship to theology, the Bible, the church, etc. should read this book.

[Mar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for a course. Jensen outlines the use (and abuse) of artworks in the Christian community whether in shared liturgical space or more personally. Her focus is mainly--but not exclusively on visual art. She covers icons vs. idols, the historical view of art in the Western church and how art and architecture are currently used. Jensen speaks of Western Christianity for the most part, and I'm curious to know how other cultures would receive her book and art. The overview is broad, but helpful, and recognises that some spaces are now shared with non-Christian artists and views and that some work is subjective.

[Tyson Guthrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Where she was good she was good. Where she was just ok was most of the book.

[Juli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robin Jensen writes this with an historian's perspective as she educates the reader on how the early church used the arts. From this academic angle she notes how this has and can influence the arts today. I enjoyed the reading and it brought up a lot of important factors to think about when trying to understand the arts role in worship and culture today.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insightful, theologically deep, and a pleasure to read.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explores the difficulties and gray areas involving art an Christianity. I hope Christians will pick this up in an effort to understand art and the role it should play in their faith.