A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original article, with pictures of the art of the author and of Christian Baran (see also the cover art), appears below. Jan Gray is an elder at St. Giles Church, Prince George.
THE NEED FOR HEALING IMAGES
We live in a society that is becoming more and more saturated with images of violence, hopelessness, destruction and deception. In this desert of despair, we need, more than ever, to raise up images of light and hope just as Moses raised up the image of the bronze serpent to help the people to look, see and know the reality that God Himself was their hope.
An artist is a person who attempts to make visible what is invisible, helping to pave the way for the walk of faith. The images attempt to express powerful experiences of humanity. Thus they can cause us to look a little more deeply into reality so that we can reflect and understand more clearly.
Visual images that speak of the goodness of God can help us to look away from the many and varied examples of visual confusion in our society and know more fully the treasures of life He is continually unfolding to us. “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light” (Mt. 6:22). It has been estimated that eyes bring 83% of all our knowledge and guide 90% of our actions. Scripture tells us to think about whatever is noble, true and right and that as a man thinks so he is (ref. to Phil. 4:8 and Prov. 23:7). What we see, what we visualize has a strong influence on what we think and therefore what we are.
A Christian artist has a call to serve – to serve, not in any elite sense, but to serve by presenting to the body of Christ and today’s society images of truth; to show forth a discipleship of love and vision, to be a sensitive reflection of the cry in people’s spirits today, and to affirm what is life-giving.
HEALING OF ATTITUDES TOWARD ART
To appreciate and to know true values of art, there needs to be healing of attitudes toward art. The call to be a Christian artist is not an attractive calling. The transformation of a talent into a gift is not easy because it involves a journey into the desert where testing can happen. This testing is essential to bring about the refinement of motives, character, and discipline for perseverance in the task of hard work to bring visions and dreams into tangible forms of expression. In the fire of refinement what is false is destroyed so that what is truth can come forth. For the artist to portray the ways of Christ, the life of Christ has to be lived.
The artist, too, has to face two damaging attitudes commonly reflected. One is that the artist is often regarded as “superhuman” and placed beyond the reach of being just another fellow human being with a work to do. Or else, the artist is seen as an unrealistic “dreamer” who wishes to while away time doing a “nice relaxing hobby” and not be willing to do “real work”. There is a blindness to the fact that to produce a piece of art that is portrayed aesthetically with meaningful expression often involves pain, tears and much tiring, back-breaking work.
The artist very much needs healing through others who show acceptance, a seeking to understand, listen and a willingness to make a place in the church where the gift of art can be valued. This gift is not to be valued above any of the other gifts, but nevertheless valued as one of the gifts that contributes to the healthy functioning and growing of the church body.
Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the word of God is “like a two-edged sword” that probes deeply into our inner being to separate in us what is destructive and what is life-giving. Art, too, can be probing, causing us to look at the meaning of life in new and fresh ways. Because of this probing, the artist is not always endeared to the viewers.
Also, there are many misunderstandings about art and artists. In the church, and only in the church, can the many centuries-old and centuries-seasoned misunderstandings be resolved and art restored. “The church is the real home of the artist. It is the place where humanity discovers its true identity and its eternal destiny” (Michael O’Brien, Art-The Cry of a People).
“… art may be used in the church, but should always be clearly interpreted and explained.”
HEALING THROUGH ART
There can be healing opportunities as one looks at Christian art. The use of visual images can cause one to focus and refocus so that one can come to understand a different aspect of the truth. This happens sometimes by the portrayal of a familiar symbol in a different way. A changed, or unfamiliar and sometimes startling image, can cause a refocussing to help one see the truth from a different perspective, and thus know and understand more deeply.
I have been given opportunities to share my art with my congregation, St. Giles Presbyterian Church, Prince George, B.C. The introduction of art as part of the worship service has not been without growing pains. I have hung banners in the sanctuary with written meditations and explanation, presented art as a bulletin cover and overheads as part of a sermon I preached, and shown slides of my art as a visual meditation while the choir sang an anthem. These multi-dimensional ways in being led in the worship of God has been met with negative as well as positive response. However, this has opened up opportunities for us to grow in understanding of art and seek its appropriate place. Session sought to remain faithful to our heritage as a reformed church, and yet be open to new insight of the Spirit. Our overarching thought was that art may be used in the church, but should always be clearly interpreted and explained. This has helped bring forth an openness in attitudes and paved the way for art to be used constructively and bring healing opportunities.
CHRISTIAN – HIS STRUGGLE WITH LEUKEMIA
Perhaps the most moving opportunity for me to use my art has been in my contacts with Christian Baran, a young boy who suffered from leukemia. Christian died just after his eighth birthday in February, 1983 after battling with leukemia for nearly three years. I was privileged to do art with Christian as well as share some of his art and mine as part of my participation in his memorial service.
Those who ministered to Christian as he faced death learned that he had many fears of being alone and separated from his family and friends. Gradually, through various channels, he came to know in reality that heaven indeed was a good place to go to. God was there and other kids would be there for him to play with. He believed he was going to “stay with Jesus” who he saw as the baby sitter who was going to “baby-sit” him until the Moms and Dads came. The way in which Christian lived his last days and died evidenced a healing of these fears. Art was one of the means through which God brought healing of Christian’s fears.
HEALING OF CHRISTIAN’S FEARS
One day, while I was working with Christian, he painted a picture to show what heaven was like. He filled a large piece of paper with a pattern of many colors. When it was finished he had a real sense of satisfaction. Something happened in him as he did this, and other paintings, that helped build a reassurance that heaven indeed was a good place and God was there. After painting this picture, there was a special time of closeness as we read together the passages in Revelation 21 describing heaven and looked up verses telling about the new body God was going to give us.
One of Christian’s trips by air to Vancouver for treatment was a vivid clear day in which everything was painted with sunshine. As he looked from the airplane window and saw the glistening snow-covered mountains, he said, “Mummy, if I ever die, this is what the earth will look like when I’m in heaven.” Later he drew this picture of “Me and God in Hevin”. It was typical of his art in that it was happy and colourful and showed a sense of confidence.
Another time, Christian drew this picture and called it a funeral card. This resulted from his knowing of two boys of similar age who died in a house fire. This drawing showing the burning house and a coffin being carried out opened up further opportunities for him to express his feelings about dying. His mother found out that he had come to a realization that other young kids also died and they did not have to be sick. She sensed this was comforting to him because it also told him that “other kids would be in heaven for him to play with.” This, too, was contributing to the healing of his fear of being alone.
CHRISTIAN’S MOTHER
His mother needed reassurance that her son was not going to be frightened as he faced death. It was important for Christian to be acknowledging that he had fears, and better still, to give them expression. The conversation she had with him about the funeral card was an example of how art helped this and thus paved the way for the fears to be dispelled. Through his art, too, she saw tangible evidence of his growing belief and confidence that heaven was a good place to go and that he was not going to be alone.
Throughout the time of his illness, Christian drew and painted many pictures. As his mother saw these, and saw that they were all colourful with the portrayal of many happy things such as butterflies, birds, flowers, blue skies and rainbows, her fears, too, were dispelled.
Christian did go through many struggles facing death. However, when the actual time came, there was a tremendous sense of peace within him. The time I spent with Christian the night before he died are moments I shall never forget. They seemed like moments expanded into hours. They have remained an indelible part of my life because they were so filled with the peace that was radiating from Christian. I was so grateful that God was Healer. The nature of his leukemia was such that his death could have been lingering and painful, yet those who lived with him during his last days saw that this did not happen. Instead, he lived a quality of life in that he was able to be up and around, in his own environment with his family and friends. He died in his own room with his family and dog near him. Those who shared this experience were so thankful that is was so peaceful. Even with the pain involved in leave-taking, it was also a beautiful and non-frightening experience for those involved.
God used many channels to bring this about, art being one of them. Art was a healing activity for Christian, helping him to put expression to his innermost feelings. As this was shared, it helped bring healing for him as well as for others.
CHRISTIAN’S FRIENDS
After the burial, at Christian’s memorial service, I shared his picture of “Me and God in Hevin”. Children’s faces reflected that they knew the solemnity of the occasion as well as the joy. Even though we cried, we could still rejoice and be reassured of the fact that Christian was with God in heaven. It was good to look at Christian’s own drawing and see how he expressed his belief about this.
I also shared with the children a drawing I did. We live in an age in which there are many attempts to destroy the fact that man is created in the image of God and each life has significance. This drawing seeks to speak to the significance and dignity of Christian’s life as well as give reassurance of resurrection reality.
In discussion about the resurrection of the body with a seven-year-old friend, Eric, also a friend of Christian’s, he remarked, “That is a hard one to believe.” In this drawing there is an expression of Christian’s resurrection reality. The image of the seed helps our understanding of this. That day we had seen Christian’s body as a seed planted in the ground. Rapt attention was given by nearly sixty children, some who had cancer themselves, as I told the story of the seed and explained the symbols in the drawing. Each was given a card with the drawing and the story to take home and a pile of spares made available to the adults. These, too, were taken, and many adults told how this helped them as well.
A year later, Blake, (eight years), another friend of Christian’s, was asked what he did with his drawing. He said that he put it up in the closet where the dog would not get it and that he was going to keep it as long as possible. Asked if the drawing had helped him, he straight away said yes, and after thought, added that it made him feel better because it is “much better for Christian to be up there than down here because he wouldn’t get any more needles and suffer any more.”
I believe these drawings helped to contribute to the healing of fears about death and added a dimension to understanding about the resurrection of the body for children as well as adults.
Thus the Christian artist is called to hold up images of hope. As these images of hope speak truth in ways that probes to the innermost being, healing can come forth, healing from destructive thinking and clarifying of direction to God’s ways of life.