I would like to preface this with the realization that this is not a step by step guide to instant community for christian artists, It is instead some thoughts that I have recently had concerning some of the characteristics that make up such a group. I believe that Christian community serves as an effective mechanism by which we can live missionaly and it is therefore important to think about what makes up such an environment. There is no doubt that I will post more about this and other related topics as I think more on the issues, and some of my views may expand or change, but it is important to start somewhere. So without further ado here are some of my thoughts on the matter.
I have been doing a lot of thinking lately on the Idea of Christian Creatives and creating a community of such individuals. I have often thought about such an group for multiple reasons. First of all, these groups, if done properly, can challenge the individuals in the group to live Christ centered lives, cause growth in the artistic ability of the group through shared knowledge, and provide a platform where non-christians can experience authentic Christian community through the shared love of art (in whatever form it takes). While these are all well and good they cannot be achieved unless the community is founded on the right principles. That is to say, just because you want these end results in a group does not mean that you are going to get them if the effort is not made on the front end to build a culture that will naturally form these traits.
In a creative environment it would be easy to make art the focus and goal of the community. However, I would argue that the focus should be people first, art second. Without strong friendships it is unlikely that a group will succeed. People who are willing to spend time together and hang out whether doing creative tasks or otherwise are arguably going to be more effective in creating creative community than if they were not so close. By developing a close group of individuals on the front end it becomes possible for all of the other aspects to fall into place.
The question of how christians creatives should act in the world today is a vital question that should be asked and debated. It is a question that dictates the types of stories that we tell and the ideas that our artwork presents. We are in a unique position that we have the ability to not just emulate the culture around us but to create it. The difficulty that arrises is that we don’t always know how to do this. Is the gospel best presented through the films, books, and art created primarily for the christian marketplace or are these mediums missing the mark when it comes to communicating ideas to the general populace? With todays culture throwing thousands of messages at us it is important that we wrestle with the deep questions and the hard questions of media lest we create media that fails to communicate and is received only by the christian sub-culture.
I am also struck by the idea of creatively in community. As christians creatives I feel that it we have each been gifted with different strengths and abilities that, while on their own may be good, together can form an even better creation. Creatively in community allows for individuals to teach others what they know and encourage each other towards growth in their art. Another additional benefit that the concept of creatively in community presents is the opportunity for non-christians to be brought into a community where they can connect to other creatives and at the same time experience what real christian fellowship looks like. This is Ideal because it brings them into a group of people that they can relate to and get to know, where spiritual questions can be discussed in relation to issues that artists deal with, and the gospel can be experienced and explained without being forced upon them.
Still, In the end none of this can occur if the initial focus of the group is not the people and what they need. It is through meeting the needs (spiritually, relationally, artistically) of individuals that community grows and effective missional living.