Artlyst: The black Magus and black Jesus

My latest piece for Artlyst explores themes from the National Gallery's 'Sensing the Unseen' experience and Heart and Soul's 'Black Jesus' programme:

'Before Christmas, on the BBC World Service in a programme entitled ‘Black Jesus’, Beckford explored the impact Black Theology has had in raising awareness of these rejections, the implications for the church and whether seeing Jesus as black is having a revival due to the influence of black lives matter. In the programme, this realisation came home most forcefully when Chine McDonald says, ‘When I pray I see a white man – that’s problematic’. It’s problematic because, as Beckford notes, ‘Jesus is a man of colour from the ancient near east’; an olive-skinned Palestinian, not a blonde European.

If Jesus was a darker-skinned Palestinian rather than a blonde European, we need to ask, as Beckford does, if ‘Jesus is a man of colour from the ancient near east’, how then ‘did we make him an Aryan and use that image to oppress other people?’ ‘Faith doesn’t stand outside politics,’ Beckford notes, ‘In fact, it is a political move to separate the two.’ The problematic nature of this can be seen in the reality that, even today, a black woman like Chine McDonald still pictures a white man when she prays, even though this is a reverse of the image of God found in Jesus.'

See also my sermons, 'A journey to the edge' and '90th Anniversary Celebration Service - Cathedral of St Mary the Virgin Johannesburg'.

My other Artlyst pieces are:

Interviews:

Nicola Ravenscroft - Sculpture With A Peaceful Stillness
Artist Hannah Rose Thomas – Tears of Gold – Interview
Marcus Lyon: Human Atlas Explorations
Elizabeth Kwant Interview
Helaine Blumenfeld: Undulating Structures
National Gallery Explores ‘Sin’ In New Exhibition – Interview Dr Joost Joustra Curator
Betty Spackman: Posthumanism Debates
Christopher Clack: Connecting The Material And Immaterial
Peter Howson Artlyst Interview
Marleen Hengelaar-Rookmaaker On The Legacy Of ArtWay
Alastair Gordon A Testament To His Faith
Katrina Moss Chaiya Art Awards Interview: Where is God in our 21st century world?
Apocalypse Now: Michael Takeo Magruder Interviewed
Jonathan Anderson: Religious Inspirations Behind Modernism
Caravan – An Interview With Rev Paul Gordon Chandler On Arts Peacebuilding
Art Awakening Humanity Alexander de Cadenet Interviewed
Michael Pendry New Installation Lights Up St Martin In The Fields
Mark Dean Projects Stations of the Cross Videos On Henry Moore Altar

Articles:

Cosmic Patches And Quilts Five Exhibitions

Everyday Heroes: Southbank Exhibition Celebrates Low-paid Key Workers
Entwining Spiritualism And Art – Three Shows
Of Church And The Visual Arts
Has The Word Master Reached Its Sell-By Date?
The People Behind Community Is Kindness Billboard Campaign
André Daughtry: Art, Rebellion And Racial Justice
Salisbury Cathedral 800 Years Of Art And Spirit
Home Alone Together Twenty Five Artists
Botanical Mind Online: Art, Mysticism and the Cosmic Tree
Salvador Dalí The Enigma of Faith
Art And Faith A Time For Seeing
Andy Warhol: Catholicism His Work, Faith And Legacy
Kiki Smith: Embodied Art
Art and Christianity Awards A Positive New Millennium Legacy
Arnulf Rainer: 90th Birthday Exhibition Celebrated At Albertina Museum
A Belonging Project And Exiles Loss and Displacement
Robert Polidori: Fra Angelico Opus Operantis
Art, Faith, Church Patronage and Modernity
Contemplating the Spiritual in Contemporary Art
Mat Collishaw Challenges Faith Perspectives With Ushaw Installation
Waterloo Festival Launches At St. John’s Waterloo
John Bellany Alan Davie Spiritual Joy and Magic
RIFT Unites 17 Art and Science MA Graduates At Central St Martins
Visionary Cities: Michael Takeo Magruder – British Library
Van Gogh’s Religious Journey Around London
William Congdon Holy Sites And The Kettle’s Yard Connection
Mark Dean Premieres Pastiche Mass At Banqueting Hall Chelsea College of Arts
John Kirby: The Torment
Underlying The Civilised Facade
Curating Spiritual Sensibilities In Changing Times
Homeless Highlighted: New Beau Exhibition At St Martin-in-the-Fields
Ken Currie: Protest Defeat And Victory
Bosco Sodi: A Moment Of Genesis
Bill Viola And The Art Of Contemplation
Art In Churches 2018: Spiritual Combinations Explored
Sister Wendy Beckett – A Reminiscence
Guido Guidi: Per Strada Flowers Gallery London
Peter Howson: The play is over – Flowers Gallery
Camille Henrot: Scientific History And Creation Story Mash Up
Nicola Green Explores Recent And Contemporary Religious Leaders – St Martin-in-the-Fields
Art And The Consequences Of War Explored In Two Exhibitions
Helaine Blumenfeld Translating Her Vision
Sam Ivin: Physically Scratched Portraits Of Asylum Seekers Exhibited
Sacred Noise: Explores Religion, Faith And Divinity
Bill Viola: Quiet Contemplative Video Installation St Cuthbert’s Church Edinburgh
The ground-breaking work of Sister Corita Kent
Picasso To Souza: The Crucifixion Imagery Rarely Exhibited
Michael Takeo Magruder: De / coding the Apocalypse – Panacea Museum
Giorgio Griffa: The Golden Ratio And Inexplicable Knowledge
Arabella Dorman Unveils New Installation At St James Church Piccadilly
Can Art Transform Society?
Art Awakening Humanity Conference Report
Central St Martins in the Fields Design Then And Now
The Sacramental And Liturgical Nature Of Conceptual Art
Polish Art In Britain Centenary Marked At London’s Ben Uri Gallery
Refugee Artists Learning from The Lives Of Others
The Religious Impulses Of Robert Rauschenberg
The Christian Science Connection Within The British Modern Art Movement
Artists Rebranding The Christmas Tree Tradition
Art Impacted - A Radical Response To Radicalisation
The Art of St Martin-in-the-Fields
Was Caravaggio A Good Christian?

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Blessid Union of Souls - I Still Believe In Love.