Leland Ryken, The Liberated
Imagination: Thinking Christianly about the Arts. (Eugene: Wipf & Stock
Publishers, 1996). Paperback, 283
pages. Grades 10-14.
Why you should read this:
• Chapters 4-7 are brilliantly conceived and
will spark your imagination for the arts and their role in Christian
living.Why you should read this:
• Chapters 4-7 are brilliantly conceived and
will spark your imagination for the arts and their role in Christian
living.
This book should be considered a classic for any thinking Christian who
wishes to learn more about the Arts and its intersection with
Christianity.
One takeaway:
Ryken states in such a powerful way how the arts are truthful,
comprising a different way of looking at truth than the sciences.
Why you should read this:
• Chapters 4-7 are brilliantly
conceived and will spark your imagination for the arts and their role
in Christian living.
The early part of the book, chapters 1 and 2 provide a solid overview
of what the Bible states about the arts and their role in worship,
living, etc. I found much of this section to be a sort of doctoral
dissertation recasting of available viewpoints. Don’t stop
here, the best part of the book is yet to come!
Chapter 3, Creativity, Beauty, and Recreation hint at what might be
coming. The phrase on p. 68 that the artists’ work is making
the “fullness of creation fuller” is rich in
meaning.
Chapter 4 (The World of Imagination) however, begins some of the
greatest insights in the book. Consider these statements:
• Realities of art exist only in
our minds and imaginations, p. 98.
• Imagination is part of
God’s created reality, p. 99
• The normal state of experience
is incommutable by science (C.S. Lewis), p. 101
Chapter 5 (Art and Truth). Building upon imagination, now Ryken sets
forth art as purveyors of truth.
• Art awakens reality central to
living, p. 132.
• The arts are incarnation of
truth not an abstraction of it, p. 134
Chapter 6 (Perspective and Interpretation in the Arts). This chapter
presents mature insights into how to interpret the arts from a
Christian perspective. Subject matter is considered as comment upon
human values of different times and artists. A careful reading of this
chapter is tremendously rewarding. The exposition of
Shakespeare’s Macbeth is remarkable and provides a valuable
example of the methodology Ryken proposes.
Chapter 7 (What is Christian Art?) further builds upon the distinctions
made in the prior chapter. Ryken asserts that the Christian vision of
art encompasses the whole range of human emotions, experiences, and yes
even depravity. Nothing prudish about his vision of Christianly arts,
however, he does provide important moral advice for Christians.
Other Book
Reviews by Ewell