Oscar Wilde, the 19th Century playwright and aesthetic philosopher, is known for his outspoken belief that, "Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life". Oscar and his contemporaries really believed that artists, poets, painters and playwrights had the ability to create a new reality and assign meaning where it never was before. Listen to one of his more famous quotes, "Although there has been fog in London for centuries, one notices the beauty and wonder of the fog because poets and painters have taught the loveliness of such effects...They did not exist till Art had invented them."
This way of viewing reality is the natural result of humanistic thinking where "man has become the measure of all things." When God is not included in the equation of meaning, man in his arrogance gladly takes over his Sovereign control. Before humanism took the reins away from God; European and early American culture was heavily influenced by Christianity and the Reformation. In the Judaeo-Christian paradigm, Art was meant to reflect the wonder of God's creation. The Artist's aim was to display the Father's genius. In other words, Art was merely a servant to the Creator, never to become the Creator himself. The majority once believed that God was the source from whom all good things flow, and it was proper for praise and honor to flow back to him. You could say art was both a theology (teaching of God) and doxology (praise of God) visibly on display. But not any more - - Artist's have become the new creators, they now assign meaning and beauty. And in their self-proclaimed sovereignty, they are not to be questioned. As modern philosophy has taught us, "truth is relative." So the goal of Art is no longer to reflect and magnify God's glory; but to be different, unique, novel and even shocking. Notice the difference between a painting by Rembrandt and Picasso? Or Rubens and Dali? Great artists are now considered geniuses based on their ability to change reality and get us to think different. As one Art expert has said, "The old definitions of art have become obsolete. Today, art is an evolving and global concept, open to new interpretation, too fluid to be pinned down. The 20th century was a turning point in our conception of art, which is mainly why contemporary artists frequently reach for new concepts, break with tradition and reject classic notions of beauty. The artist no longer tries to reflect reality, but rather tries to give expression to their inner world and feelings." Well guess what, this new way to view Art is now being applied to how we view and live our everyday lives. Instead of seeing your body, sexual orientation, family structure, and place in society as something designed by God; we now are to believe, like the modern artist, that we can create a new reality. Oscar Wilde was right, "Life is imitating Art." The old definitions are obsolete, we are now free to create as we choose. And just like Art, people are now trying to be different, unique, novel and even shocking in the choices they make. Here are some examples: * Bruce Jenner wants us to admit he has been a woman in a man's body. And mind you, his male body was very masculine! He won the decathlon for crying out-loud! And now with the help of plastic surgery, hormone therapy, Photoshop, and social media, he is able to twist, bend and turn reality into any shape and size he wants. And you and I are only to sit back and admire the new work of Art. Don't question it, just admire like you do when you look at Salvador Dali's melting clocks! * Rachel Dolezal, the white woman who wants us to believe she is black, has told the public that her real father was black, while her real father, who is white, denies that reality. But it is her realty, let her create it as she wishes! And if she wants to join in the civil rights struggle claiming it as her own, we must let her paint it her way.. * David, a man who will not release his real name, wants one of his legs amputated for the sheer reason that, "It feels like my soul doesn't extend into it." He even claims that every waking moment he longs for freedom from his leg, begging doctors to amputate. Psychologists, the true Art connoisseurs of life, were quick to jump to his side claiming there is a very normal community of people wanting similar relief. There is even a term for this, "Body Identity Integrity Disorder. (BIID)" Before you think these stories are abnormal, remember in our modern and post-modern world, there is no normal. No one knows what reality is meant to look like or designed to be. As all the cool atheists have told us, God is dead, remember? Well it is too bad because it is looking more and more like Picasso wasn't just painting abstractly. His pictures of deformed faces and fragmented reality is taking shape before our very eyes. He was painting what reality was soon to become. Now the weird, twisted, and distorted has become the new normal. Life imitating Art! When God and his word no longer determine meaning, we are left with non-sense as our god.
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