Curious Christian

This morning as I caught the train to work I was experimenting with some creative visualisation exercises. The question that was foremost in my mind was how to critically contextualise Christianity for a visual culture where experimentation in creative visualisation is undergoing a renaissance.

As visions passed before my eyes the word that lodged there was hope. And the images that arose were ones of resurrection – of trees springing to life out of the ashes of a Sydney bush fire, of children laughing, of new dawns and spring growth. I considered how the gospel, the good news (greek: evangelion) about Jesus is – above all else – a message of hope and how the rhythms of hope in our culture and our environment are something we need to attune ourselves to. They are ripples of the movement of Spirit in the waters of creation. Esoteric symbols of hope also bubbled to the surface and I considered the how the language of semiotics converses with our subconscious. It reinforced for me – more than ever – that critical contextualisation is not about some trite appropriation of techniques from other religions. Christianity is ever adaptable but ever at risk of dilution. Instead we must dive deep into our teachings. The visions of the apostle John were above all visions of hope – of an end to injustice and a renewal of the earth – and I see any Christian reappropriation of creative visualisation needs to be true to this also.