ENGAGING CULTURE

tells us to “logizesthe” on beautiful things, among others. The word “logizesthe” means to dwell on deeply, to meditate. It does not mean to skim over. It would be silly to imagine that Paul would urge his readers to “logizesthe” on things that were not worthy of it. So, what things are worthy of the “logizesthe” kind of thinking? I argue that complex things will stand up to that kind of meditation, not simple things.

Also, Paul does not tell us to “logizesthe” on those things we think are beautiful, but the things that are beautiful. This automatically implies that things have intrinsic beauty whether we see that beauty or not. Put another way, beauty is absolute, not relative.

I believe that those things that have at least a layer of complexity to them in some aspect are more beautiful than those things with are simple no matter which way you look at them. The reason is that they stand up to “logizesthe”.

Now where does such beauty come from? From the beauty of holiness. The beauty of otherness, of being set apart. The Trinity is nothing if not holy, but the Trinity is also exceedingly highly beautiful above all else. It has complexity to it. (You might also argue that it has a simplicity to as well. We worship one God in three Persons.) So there is simplicity and complexity.

So things which well represent this philosophical idea of the one and the many simultaneously, will be a far greater art than that which does not. The greatest art of all is that art which seems simple at first glance, but has complexity when you analyze it. In Matthew Henry’s commentary on , he writes, “the perfection of art is to conceal it.”

This flies directly in the face of popular culture, as Ken Myers would say in his book “All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes“. Popular culture is not interested in complexity, because complexity interferes with instantaneous gratification. We want it NOW! Appreciating complexity requires time, which popular culture does not want to spend. And thus Myers argues that popular culture is not healthy for the Christian because it propagates a mind-set antithetical to proper Christian thinking. That’s not to say that exposure to popular culture will hopelessly corrupt you, we do believe in grace for crying out loud!

But what is the balance in your life? Weigh the popular culture against the folk and high culture (these two, Myers argues, are conducive to proper Christian thinking) in your life, and see what comes out on top. Beware a steady diet of popular culture and nothing else! Take the time and energy to explore and meditate on true beauty. In doing so you will be one step closer to seeing the beauty of God in Christ, and you will be using your eyes and your mind in the way that God intended.