FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART?: BUT IS IT BEAUTIFUL?

According to Wikipedia anyway, the Skytree Tower in Tokyo is the tallest tower in the world.  But is it a work of art?  

We can ask the question as to whether it is attractive.  Is it noble?  Is it innovative?  Is it noteworthy?  Is it worth visiting?  It it awe inspiriring?  Is it an achievement of human innovation?  Does it ennoble the human person?  One might be tempted to answer yes to all of these questions and still there could ensue a lengthy debate as to whether it is a piece of art.

On the other hand, talk about Notre Dame Cathedral in France and no serious person would carry on a debate about whether it is also a piece of art or not.  Not even those who put a worn shoe under glass and declare it art would give us any serious push back.

The definition of the word “art” as grown so wide that almost any object on earth could be categorized under its label.  When it can mean just about anything, then it runs the risk of not meaning anything, a danger for so many of our once cherished words.  I think this is why so many of us “unwashed masses” become disappointed at “art” showings.  There is a nagging suspicion not that we are simply having our palettes stretched, but that we are being hoodwinked.  “Wait a minute,” the thought might come, “how can you glue two Rubrics Cubes to a mannequins foot, call it ART and charge me $25 to get in to see it?”

Once again, I have no problem with the pretty, the interesting, the innovative, the excellent achievement, the thought provoking being put on display and charging people to see it.  But we return to the question, “But is it art?”

Who gets to decide?  Well, you do.  Someone got to decide that an unmade bed is art, you get to decide that, “No, while it might be well done and interesting, it is not art.”  And do not worry that someone with a PhD who tells you that you are simply ignorant and do not understand, thank him or her for their time in enlightening you and move on.

What I caution is to have some open mind about stretching your personal taste in art.  Because I don’t like something (or experts like or do not like something) only time will make reveal its relevance to humanity.  Experts have been wildly wrong as have the unwashed masses (of which I am one.)  After fads have faded, after peer pressure has dissipated, after political correctness has turned a new corner, after the glare has worn off and we can see an object for what it is, then we will know if it is art.

And as for art needing to beautiful . . . there will be those (there are those) who vehemently disagree with me.  That’s Okay.  I think they are wrong.  That is not to say that some things are not worthy under a different category, it is simply that it is not art.  Beauty and art should be almost interchangeable (but not quite - there are differences - but that’s another post.)  If, for the average person, there is way too much explanation that needs to take place, then it is not beauty, it is a statement - and usually about the artist more than anything else.  (There is a danger here too in that it can be such a new way of seeing the world that we simply don’t “see” it yet - but then again - we return to time.)  Skill, detail, care, influence, meaning, attractiveness - all these things are not enough.  If the object is also not beautiful, then, as worthy or useful as it might be, it is not art.

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART: MORE THAN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

So the beautiful is not just matter of taste but a transcendental.  There are things that are fascinating, innovative, novel and maybe even pretty and which draws one in.  But does that make it beautiful?  

Beauty is more than personal taste.  Beauty is beauty by its nature.  It is Truth and the Good made visible.  Thomas Aquinas adds these characteristics: integrity, due proportion and claritas.  It is something that draws one in.  It is also admirable: when one stands before that which is beautiful it is more than being attracted, it is being awed and enveloped, it is being inspired deeper into truth and goodness.

A few decades ago a Supreme Court Justice (Potter Stewart) in rendering a decision on hard core pornography side stepped defining it, a thing which he found very difficult to do, by saying, “I know it when I see it.”  But is it entirely subjective?  No, there are elements that must be present.  Is it entirely objective?  No, there are things that seem to have all of the right elements but just, somehow, fail.  Can someone be coached into seeing the beauty of something that at first did not strike them as beautiful?  Well, yes.  It may be called developing good taste.  Can one be fooled?  Oh, definitely.  Can something be beautiful without me seeing the beauty in it?  Yes.  Etc.

Like the building up of a good culture, could it be that beauty needs the collective experience of “the many” and time to be declared truly so?  (This helps rid us of the bias against, "I don't like the color blue," or "Anything to do with this politically correct topic/style is tops with me.)  Are critics and experts just pretty good predictors who have a step up on weathermen but who, similarly, are at times spectacularly wrong?  Could a ten million dollar “work of art” today be thrown in the ash heap of the future along with the thought, “What were they thinking?”  I think so.  

Beware of the prophet that declares something beautiful too out of the norm and pressures you to follow suit (but be open to skeptically considering) and don’t be too quick to jump on board declaring something long thought to be beautiful to be destroyed because what might only be fashion has influenced us too much.  Beauty doesn’t get to be beauty simply because someone says so.  But a lot of human beings over a long period of times certainly have a defining voice.

All of which makes judging art more difficult (but not completely impossible either.)  So the next question is, “Are art and beauty permanently joined at the hip?  Does a work need to be beautiful in order to be art?”

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART: RULES OF THE GAME

So far the subject of what is Beauty and the question of whether beauty is necessary for something to be called art has been avoided.  What we have done is clarified that some people have a broader interpretation of art than others.  Some will include almost anything and the other extreme (where I find myself) would say that, while not denying that many things may still be of great interest, the actual category of “art” is comparatively small.  The matter of beauty being in an object compared to how a person receives beauty has been explored.  Differenting world views have been acknowledged.  Great talent vs great art was bandied about.  These distinctions can help a person see why one person is enamored with a piece of art while another thinks he is an unsophisticated idiot with more money than brains.  Is one wrong and one right?  Well, that depends.  What are the rules for engagement?

If you are going to judge Icons, for example, and someone paints one with Western sensibilities and ideas of beauty, will you let it into the competition or by the rules of the contest, is it clearly not a true icon?  It depends.  It can beautiful in itself.  It can be perceived by some as beautiful.  But is it beautiful as an icon?  Is it a failed icon?  Is it a failed Western painting?  How much is in the receiver and how much is in the object?  Am I too narrow minded or too broadminded?  Maybe it is art but just the wrong kind of art - or maybe it just isn't really that good in the first place and we are waisting our time debating it.

So what is beauty?  I have a lot riding on this question in my priesthood.  As a priest I am afforded, under certain restrictions, to have a non-hereditary coat of arms so OF COURSE I had mine made up.  (I mean, who wouldn’t?  Really?)  - actually, plenty of people - but I think it’s cool so there’s that - ANYWAY, my motto is “Tandum Pulchritudine Salvabit Nos” which means roughly, “Ultimately Beauty Will Save Us.”  This formulation of this idea I received from the late, great Fr. Benedict Groeschel while on retreat with him at the Trinity Retreat House.  There is more to beauty than feelings or ideas of balance in that these things are not what make something beautiful but are characteristics of that which is beautiful.

Okay - as we get the heart of the matter - do you notice I am getting wordier?  It is like walking a path in the woods at night.  You know the path and feel when you are on it and when you are off of it but instead of just pointing at the trail and saying, “There!” you must describe how to tell when you are on the trail and when you are not.  So . . . as I have been long promising, next week we will look more closely at beauty (not necessarily if it is connected art yet.)

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART?: WHAT IS BEAUTY?

Today we enter into more murky waters.  It seems as though that which is beautiful should be easily defined, but it is not.  Last week was given the argument that it is beyond mere attractiveness or that which is pretty.  It is also beyond that which simply stirs the senses and has some connection to Truth.

Now, part of understanding what is beautiful is in the receiver.  How has the receiver been trained?  Is the receiver situated in the 1970s and is caught up in the fashions of his day?  A painting of Jesus with a Farah Faucet haircut may have wowed the viewer in an era of bellbottom jeans, but 50 years later a viewer might be inclined to think, like a person who looks at their high school picture, “Oh my!  How stuck in the 70s!  That looks terrible!”  So clearly part of what we accept as beautiful is culturally influenced.

Side note:  Keep in mind that this article is restricted to art and man’s creation, not God’s creation.  For example, a person is always beautiful because they reflect Christ Who is Truth, an interesting thought as our culture thinks this less and less and human life is thought less beautiful and valuable.

Then there is the education of the viewer.  Like fine wine, a person’s first taste of it may sicken them.  But as they grow older and their tastes develop, they may become an accomplished sommelier.  Likewise, there were some impressionistic paintings at the museum that I did not care for at all.  My cousin taught me how to see them and I gained an appreciation for them to the point of having purchased a couple of such paintings for myself.  So clearly, that which is able to be seen as beautiful is at least partly within the receiver.  (There are definite limits to this.)

Then there is beauty present in the object itself.  It is not entirely subjective.  There was a print of a painting in my confessional of the Blessed Virgin Mary painted by the grandmother of a couple I married.  It brought comfort to a lot of people.  One night, a number of years ago, a couple of teenage boys caused some mischief in the church, one of the things being to mar the picture with two long swipes of some kind of blade.  They didn’t rip the canvas but made a couple of permanent creases down Mary’s face.  It did have an effect on the print.  A person (within my school of art appreciation) would say that the beautiful was marred now (and if it were insured for lots of money, I would expect a payment!  No one would be able to convince me (with rare exception), “Hey!  They just added to the artistic heritage of the print!”  Some of the beautify that it represented has been taken away.

Granted, someone will argue that, once the story of the marring was explained, it may become of great interest to others.  But this would make it interesting.  It would become a commentary.  It might even become attractive.  But it did not make it more artistic.  (The artistry might be in the description!)  

Very few people have seen the painting that will be presented to the parish at Easter to help celebrate our 90th anniversary.  The few that have, upon walking into the room, invariably jump back for a moment and involuntarily utter a cry a kin to "Oh my!" or "Wow!"  Does that make it art?  We will continue to explore but here we are so far:  If a thing is beautiful, part of its beauty lies within itself.  Part of the perception of beauty of an object lies within the viewer.  

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART?: OR IS IT PRETTY ATTRACTIVE?

Living at a parish once, I would often run into visitors who would come in and say, “This is a beautiful building!”  The first thought that would pop into my mind was, “Really?”  It was not what I would consider a beautiful building but would thank the person and try to find out why they were drawn to it.

Like the word “love,” the word “beautiful” is also over used.  It seems to have become a synonym for others words such as “pretty” or “attractive.”  Something can be attractive without being beautiful  (I realize that this is being said without beautiful yet being defined.)  I think many people found the building mentioned above attractive but were moved to say beautiful.  The building was spacious, comforting, clean, functional, colorful and comfortable.  In this way it was also very attractive - it drew your attention.  Even after a lot of time had been spent in the building, one could still feel very much “at home” in the building.  But, I would argue, the building itself was not beautiful.  It did not continue to inspire a person to observe it and where it was attempting to lead you.  It did not, of itself, inspire a person to go out and see beauty in the world or to create something beautiful from its inspiration.  In fact, it somewhat fell into the background.  It was an attractive and functional building, it was not a work of art.  Nobody would ever take a bus trip there to see the building.  Ever.

“Pretty” works much the same way.  The pretty object too is pleasing to (many/most) human beings, but something about it falls short of beautiful.  The colors may be pleasing to the eye, it may bring a smile to your face, it may be clever, pull at the heartstrings but seldom (if ever) has any deep meaning.  A typical little girl’s bedroom might be pretty.  A painting that matches the couch might be pretty.  A Christmas tree might be pretty, but is it necessarily beautiful or art?  

Not that there is necessarily anything wrong with attractiveness or prettiness.  In the right context they are exactly what we need.  At other times they are distasteful.  When a person wants that which is beautiful, to be confronted with the merely attractive or pretty (or interesting) is mightily disappointing.  That is the inner urge in you to say (and you are polite enough not to blurt it out) “I could have done that!”  This is confronting the lack of inspiration, the lack of being drawn in, the lack of being transformed, the lack of being moved to create beauty in the world for having been exposed to the beautiful.

Of course, this assumes art and beauty are connected which, you may have well guessed, I do, though I have not really defined much yet except via the negative.  I also know my former art teachers are turning in their symbolic graves but there you go.

YOU ALWAYS SAY MORE THAN YOU INTEND TO REVEAL

There is a saying that goes, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”  When a person is not careful about their speech they can end up revealing much more than they intend.  It is part of the “why” behind the Gospel injunction to always be truthful and speak that which is Good, True and Beautiful.

Take today’s Gospel for example.  Jesus drives out a mute demon and his detractors say, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”  In their carelessness in denouncing Jesus, they inadvertently bring Him some credence.  Notice that they didn’t say, “Nothing happened.”  Clearly something happened and they needed a way to discount it and so ascribed the miraculous thing they witnessed as being evil.

So first they inadvertently give great testimony to something that they themselves witnessed.  Then they reveal something about themselves in turn.  Jesus explains the weak logic of their argument and then says, “Those who are not with me are against me.”  Who is He?  God.  If one are not with God, with whom else can one be?  There is a lot of things being revealed here though an attempted deception.

Something similar happened in the local newspaper recently.  In a letter to the editor this week entitled, “Stop the Hatred,” the author rallied against what she saw as growing division in the United States.  She wrote, “If you are an anti-Semite, racist or whatever else, bigotry is an equal opportunity killer.”  What is interesting here is that she takes a group of people (who by and large are clearly in the wrong from a Christian point of view) and separates them from the rest of the “good people” (My words, not hers) and then sort of sets up this “we good people” pointing that the “bad people” and berating them.  “What these bigots don’t realize . . .”  (To whom is she speaking?  People who who are not bigots?  Wouldn’t they already know this?)  While I agree with her premise that if we allow hatred of any group, we may, one day, find ourselves on the wrong end of the stick, her method for getting there is not to engage those whom she may desire to convert to a more loving stance, but to put them in a group and denounce them and inadvertently becomes, at least somewhat, what she hates.

In another interesting article in the Beacon Journal this past Saturday entitled, “Planned Parenthood funding cut.”  The subtitle was, “Federal Appeals Court upholds laws ending flow of state dollars to abortion providers.”  The title and much of the writing is an enormous reversal of language normally used in the public media.  There was no mention of “abortion foes” (as opposed “Pro-Life Advocates” that those who promote life would prefer to be called) or the masking of abortion by the writer as “women’s health care” and in describing an abortion procedure the baby is referred to as a fetus not a mass of cells.   

Is this, too, starting to reveal a change in popular culture?  Only time will tell.  It was only one article.  But it was published and makes one wonder what truths it may be revealing.

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BUT IS IT ART?: NOW THAT'S INTERESTING

(This is not exactly what I said I was going to talk about but . . . )

Furthering my distance from modern culture and making people upset, there is the problem of exactly what is meant by “art.”  For some people, almost any human effort - and sometimes happenstance - can be considered art.  Quite literally, putting an old shoe on a pedestal with a clever title, in some people's book, could not only be considered art, but high art.  

I was swimming in Lake Erie and stubbed my toe.  Reaching down I brought out of the water a worn brick with tiny pebbles stuck in the holes.  It was interesting.  There was something oddly attractive about it.  My sister suggested that I keep it and put it on a shelf in the rectory which I did.  In some people’s opinion, this is art, or more specifically, “found art.”

I can’t stretch out my definition (not given yet) of art that far.  That doesn’t mean that something like this should not be put on display.  There are things that are truly interesting, the definition of which is something that arouses curiosity.  It draws you to itself for some reason like that brick.  There are things in local museums that come nowhere near my definition of a combination of the concepts of Beautiful and Art but none-the-less deserve to be on display.

There is still such a thing as craftsmanship, ability and perfection.  A certain piece may inspire me with its human ability to pull something off.  Often (personally) I see such things as great ability being ready to be applied to art - or extreme talent applied to something ordinary.  Even if you do not see a piece as art, you can still appreciate the human endeavor.

Then there is the brick.  It is an oddity.  Human forces (some intentional and some carelessness) and nature combined to put something together that draws one’s attention - at least for a moment.  (Since I found it and recognized it, am I the artist?)  It might not bring more than a smile to your face or it might spark a project in your mind to create something like it.  But is that enough to consider it art or merely interesting?

In this blogger’s humble opinion: it is worthy to put such things on display for interest and inspiration.  It curles my black oxfords however that it is classified as Art.  I wish there was another term such as “Interesting.”  But then, who would pay $25 to see the West Akron Museum of Interesting?

GUEST BLOGGER: I CON SEE YOU

Today's guest blogger is 13 year old David Beatty of St. Sebastian who gave this presentation when we unveiled the new icon of St. Sebastian written by Sr. Iliana of Christ the Bridegroom Monastery, in Burton, OH, to help us celebrate our 90th anniversary:

The Creation and Spirituality of Icons

The Panel

The panel is traditionally of wood. Plywood or MDF (medium density fibre board) is often used as cheaper options, especially for large panels, but the longevity of these as a support is unknown. We know that icons on wood have survived many centuries but MDF and plywood are inventions of the twentieth century so only time will tell. The board is sized with an animal based glue and allowed to dry.

The Ground

This is made of gesso, which is the Italian word for gypsum, or calcium sulphate. The gesso is made by mixing the gypsum, or whiting powder, in an animal based glue such as rabbit skin glue or gelatin. Several coats of gesso are then applied with a brush and allowed to dry between coats. Usually at least 8 coats of gesso are needed to make a good ground.
The ground is then smoothed with an abrasive paper or scraper. The resulting surface is white and smooth and is the only suitable surface for painting in egg tempera.

The Drawing

A line drawing is made of the icon to be painted and this is transferred to the gessoed panel by coating the back of the drawing with a powder pigment and tracing with a suitable instrument. The drawing is then brushed over with ink to make it more stable for painting.

The Gilding

Usually the haloes and (if required) the background are then gilded. This may be oil gilded (using transfer gold) or water gilded using layers of bole (a type of red clay) and gold leaf. In either case real gold is used. Water gilding allows tooling (embossing) of the gold and finishing with olipha. If oil gilding is used then the icon may be finished with shellac or a proprietary varnish.

The Painting

The icon is painted with pure powdered pigments, mainly earth colours, which are mixed (tempered) with egg yolk. The dark colours are painted first and then the lighter colours are added. Any very small gold details are then added. Finally the face and hands are painted – this brings the whole icon to life.

Finishing

The icon is then allowed to dry for a few weeks and is then be coated with a varnish for protection. The varnish is usually olipha, which is a mixture of refined linseed oil and stand oil.

An icon can be viewed as just a piece of art or it can be viewed as a spiritual work of grace created for the glory of God. The simple creation of an icon is not complete without constant prayer during the creation and finishing of an icon. It’s not just art and it should be viewed as such; a symbol of love for our lord.

Icons have had a place in Christian worship as early as we can establish. In the broader sense, icons may be found in basic wall paintings, graffiti of crosses and symbols on ancient tombs, to magnificent frescos, icons and stained glass windows in churches and cathedrals.

“In the beginning was the Word,” wrote St John. “He is the image [ikon in Greek] of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation,” wrote St. Paul. We meet him still in both word and image. Icons may be beautiful, but they do not exist just to add a little color or a special atmosphere to the rooms they happen to be in. They’re there to help us pray. An icon that isn’t being used in prayer is like a musical instrument not being played or a cookbook that never gives birth to a meal.

Praying before an Icon is just the same as praying before anything else like a crucifix or an altar. Although with the icon the preferred position of prayer is known as the Orant. This is to expose your body in heart mind and soul to the spirituality of the icon.

No icon is ever prayed the same way. As the icon is created different prayers are used specific to what the icon is an image of. The wood base is used to symbolize the cross and crucifixion of our Lord, the simple earthly colors display the pain and plainness during the time he was dead, and the gold symbolizes his glorious resurrection.

No less than the written

word, an icon is an instrument for the transmission of Christian tradition and faith. Through sacred imagery, the Holy Spirit speaks to the believer, revealing truths that may not be evident to those using only the tools of reason. And this is one of the most important aspects of the spirituality of icons, that they teach us that dogma, which is the revealed knowledge of God, is first and foremost beautiful. The icon gives us the sight of the saints, and reveals Christian dogma, such as the Trinity and the Incarnation, as being extremely beautiful.

The ecumenical council of 787 AD stated that the Icon was equal with Scripture, since it instructs with shape and colour in the same way as Scripture with words. Thus, icons do not simply attempt to instruct us about the life of Christ or the saints depicted, but they instruct us in the Theology of the Church. And the eyes, posture, colour and gesture come together to point to Theological truths.

The spirituality of icons also results from the fact that the icon is silent. No mouths are open, nor are there any other physical details which suggest sound. But the silence is not empty. St Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, made the comment: “He who possesses in truth the word of Jesus, can hear even its silence.”

The above was prepared for St. Sebastian Parish by Mr. David Beatty, age 13, for the dedication of the 90th anniversary St. Sebastian icon.

WHY WASN'T THE PERFUME SOLD AND THE MONEY USED TO FEED THE POOR?

Starting Easter Monday, St. Sebastian church will be closed weekdays for restoration.  Someone might rightly ask, “Why drop this amount of change on a building?” and list any number of worthwhile causes were the resources might be spent.  It is a good question to ask and one not to be taken lightly. 

At the center of a Catholic community is not a thing (building of otherwise) or a theology or philosophy or any thought or thing.  It is a Person: Jesus Christ.  And not a center where Jesus is remembered or merely in some way mysteriously present in a people or proclamation.  According to our 2,000 years of belief, Jesus is present substantially, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity under the appearance of bread.  He is present to us just as He was 2,000 years ago when John the Baptist pointed to Him and said, “Behold!  The Lamb of God!” 

The epicenter then - the very core of our parish can be found in the tabernacle - in the Sacred Species.  You can find this in the most conspicuous spot in the most conspicuous building on our campus.  There is no mistaking this from the clues given by our art and architecture.  

As a result, this is where a large number of (mostly) local residents voluntarily gather at least once a week to discuss what it is to be human, what it is to be good men, good women, what it is to be a good citizen, to hear and be sent out on mission to form Western Culture.  It is no academic exercise.  It is a duty to which we are expected to respond the benefits of which are for more than ourselves but for the good of all, particularly the most oppressed or disenfranchised.

Its doors are open to all.  Its beauty is even for those who have no funds to support it.  It is all done voluntarily and not just for the good of itself but, as it sees itself, for the good of the whole world.

Such noble gems of intentions are of course enshrined in a beautiful space.  The center of our source of beauty, goodness, and of truth is reflected in the space in which it is nurtured.  The idea is not to have a building that stands out beautifully in a less-than-beautiful world, but to inspire the world to be as beautiful.

IN ITS OWN WAY

“The fact that we die makes everything more beautiful.”

It took a long time to figure this saying out.  I find that it is true.  The fact that everything has a time limit gives us the impetus to see and experience here and now.  

At my first assignment there was a public garden that I passed all of the time.  I always told myself that one of these days I am going to stop in there and see what all of the fuss is about.  At first the assignment was for five years and I kept thinking, “There will be time later.”  And then when winter hit, “I’ll see it next summer.”  When time was running out I received two extensions which just made me put if off even longer.  Sadly I left the parish without ever seeing those gardens.

Sometimes that happens with love.  After a period of doting, we can take each other for granted.  There is just so much to do and to accomplish, when all of this fussing is passed I will refocus on my spouse, my family, on God.

This happened notably once to me while growing up.  I had a dog named Benny that I loved dearly.  Every time I had a wish to make (shooting star, dandelion, birthday candles) I would wish that he would live forever.  I entered a period of life when I became very busy and our relationship consisted largely of, “Not now dog,” or “Later,” or “Out of my way I don’t want to trip!”  Then one day coming home, he was excited to see me as he always was I realized I hadn’t paid much attention to him for some time.  I immediately fell down on my knees and petted and played with him feeling guilty and happy at the same time now that we were reconnecting.

Dogs aren’t forever.  There time is very limited compared to ours.  That makes the time we spend with them so much more beautiful.  If we face the fact that everything is passing (this beautiful fall) we will really see it and appreciate it.  It will seem more beautiful because we didn’t rush passed it.

These end dates - death - if we face them with the confidence of a true Christian, give us the freedom to remember love is more important that getting that thing done.  He or she won’t be here forever.  You won’t be able to walk forever.  That garden won’t bloom forever.  Stop and smell that rose before the frost.  They are beautiful now.

TECHNOLOGY SAVED BY BEAUTY or The Qwerkywriter for the Qwerky Among Us

So I got a new toy.  I am using it to write to you.  This toy is very important to me because it marks, what I hope to be, a new phase in technology - a phase that might actually get this Luddite's buy in.

Yes, technology has made life easier.  This I do not argue.  It does things more quickly and often better.  I benefit in many ways because of it.  But in many ways life is also uglier because of it.  When I see a computer in someone's office, I see awkward black objects strung together with black cables that is often at odds with the rest of the feel of the room not unlike a utility box appears in the middle of your otherwise green front lawn.

It may be sleek and powerful and well designed, but I rarely find it beautiful to look at.  (Not everyone agrees I understand.). In fact, a lot of money is spent covering up these devices to make them more palatable.  (Is this because I am 50 years old?). Here is a picture of my iPad, my Kindle, and my iPhone all of which have things that hide them and make them more pleasing.

Not too long ago I was on a junk buying trip with Fr. Orndorf and I bought a mid-last century Underwood Typewriter.  I use it for art projects and typing forms and envelopes when going into the next room to set up the printer is too much work.  Maybe not to everybody, but to me it is also beautiful.  There is some style to it.  Even if it is not used, there is something pleasing about being in its presence.  Some of that might be nostalgia but not all of it.  It is one of the objects in my office that receives attention when people visit.  "Wow!  Look at that!  Awesome!"

Then Father Ott told me of a new keyboard called "Qwerkywriter".  The keyboard resembles that of my Underwood.  It is fully functional except for the paper advance knobs on the sides.  (I would have rated it AAA+++ if these had been made the on/off switch or something.)  It is of metal construction, wireless save for charging and I find it pleasing to look at as well as fun to use.  It feels permanent and important.  When people come into my office, they are drawn to it now to an even greater degree than they are to the Underwood because it is taking the best in design and marrying it to the practicalities of modern need and technology.

This may sound like shameless product placement but I am not receiving anything for writing this nor was I asked to give a review.  This is important to me and IMHO to us as a people of faith as it relates to beauty.  That we can do more and better and more quickly and cheaper is wonderful, but we are neglecting an essential element of what it is to be human if we do not also make it beautiful.  If we ignore the beautiful it will be to our soul like missing a vitamin or mineral would be to our bodies.  We may get along just fine without it for a long time, but after a while, the effects will start to show and we may not even be able to put a finger on exactly what is wrong, but we will know that something is missing and that our lives will be less for it.

DAZZLE ME

I pray for wonder.

God is so awesome.  But we are so accustomed to HIs awesomeness.  And just as it is a terrible thing to grow accustomed to evil, it is even more egregious to allow the glorious to grow common.

So pray and fight against it.

One way to do this is through beauty.  Beauty grabs your mind and heart in a vice grip and says, “Wait a minute!  Consider me!”  And instead of fighting against it like we might a dissertation or street preacher, we are utterly helpless, at least for a moment, before true beauty.

The other day I was sitting in the a side chair of our sanctuary praying my Liturgy of the Hours and reviewing my homily before Mass when a server came out to put something on the credence table.  Out of the corner of my eye I saw him look, do a double take, and then just stand and stare at a painting we put in our sanctuary for lent.  

As you saw yesterday, St. Sebastian is in another periodical because of the art generated at the parish.  Nobody asked for a printout of my last homily (which was brilliant and erudite by the way), but they did an article on a painting and because of it I was able to also talk about some truths of the faith.

I think about the time we were on tour with the choir and they began to warm up in the parking lot of a church in which they were about to perform.  People paused in their touring about and stopped and listened.  Had I been simply extolling the virtues of beauty my bet is I would catch fewer people and held on to them for a shorter period.

As Fr. Benedict Groeschel would say, “It is ultimately beauty that will save us.”  You cannot win anyone over if you do not first have their attention.  You won’t get anybody’s attention if you don’t have something beautiful.  Beauty does not come out of a catalogue of mass produced articles.  People are looking for a unique, beautiful voice.  How are you going to give it to them?

I pray for wonder.