In this present post I will continue to look at Christianity from an aesthetic perspective rather than from the common moral perspective.
On my last post we saw that God is not only good but also beautiful (Psalm 27:4), and His beauty can be bestowed upon us through grace and divine skill.
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us” (Psalm 90:17)
The truth of the matter is that there exists a correlation between morals and aesthetics—at least as far as we humans are concerned. Actually we can say: true goodness and true beauty always coexist, and their coexistence is always proportional. It must be so since we are talking about the same thing viewed from two different perspectives. In other words, your beauty will never exceed your goodness and your goodness will never exceed your beauty. Therefore among all people we, Christians, are called to be holy, and since holiness is beautiful (Psalm 29:2) we are also called—through the same exhortation—to be beautiful. Strictly speaking, we are urged to manifest what is highly aesthetic, i.e., the life of Christ, and this, through verbal and corporeal expressions, i.e., through words and deeds.
Gracefulness and beauty
When time comes to manifest beauty there is a scripture challenging all of us. It is found in the Song of Solomon. It reads:
Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon you! What would you see in the Shulamite—as it were, the dance of the two camps?” (Song of Solomon 6:13).
The first part of the verse reveals a sense of aesthetic: “… return, return, that we may look upon you!” Then the second part focuses on the beauty of the Shulamite, i.e., the beauty of her corporeal expression. Actually, one of the most classic corporeal expressions of aesthetic is found in what is commonly called “dancing”. So here we are told that the Shulamite was as dancing. In other words, her corporeal expression displayed such characteristics as harmony, gracefulness, beauty and elegance. Now it must be understood that we also are called to dance, so to speak, for the Scripture exhorts us to show forth the praises of him who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9 KJV). That’s right! The responsibility falls on us. We are supposed to corporally exhibit divine comeliness and heavenly dignity.
The dance of two camps
The Shulamite was not only dancing, she was dancing the dance of two camps, i.e., the dance proceeding from delightful events, but also the dance proceeding from trials and adversity. Maybe that is the reason why they wanted to look at her. She was dancing a rare dance.
Obviously, most people know how to dance on the sound of lovely occurrences, but what about the sound of afflictions or tribulations, or perhaps of tragedies or distresses? Do we manifest divine nobility and heavenly beauty under these disheartening circumstances? That’s precisely what the Shulamite could do. She could emanate elegance and virtue regardless of the nature of her immediate context.
The pleasant and troublesome melodies
The Song of Solomon presents us the two melodies upon which the Shulamite was dancing. The first one is encapsulated in the following verses:
Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love is better than wine. Because of the fragrance of your good ointments, Your name is ointment poured forth; therefore the virgins love you. Draw me away!” (Song of Solomon 1:2–4)
Here we have an example of pleasantness, namely, the fellowship with her Lover. To dance amidst the colors of this camp is quite easy. But then comes the tune of adversity:
The watchmen who went about the city found me. They struck me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took my veil away from me.” (Song of Solomon 5:7)
Here the Shulamite is being beaten and humiliated, yet her composure doesn’t deteriorate and her corporeal demeanor continues to exalt the One she loves and seeks. Endearment and devotion are being displayed, and displayed with grace and beauty, a beauty that prompted the daughters of Jerusalem to ask her:
What is your beloved more than another beloved, O fairest among women?” (Song of Solomon 5:9)
They referred to her as the most beautiful among all, and this, in a time of absolute adversity. Here the pertinent questions are: What about me? Do I express beauty and elegance when confronted with adversity? Am I able to dance the dance of the two camps?
Prompting words
There are several scriptures exhorting us to show the beauty of Christ in times of adversity. One of them is found in Matthew’s gospel:
But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you”. (Matthew 5:44)
The person exuding such reactions must be, in all sincerity, beautiful.
Then we have Paul and Silas. These men were singing while being incarcerated. The hostile circumstances didn’t disfigure their behavior. They had learned the dance of the two camps and they were not going to be confounded. So there they were, exhibiting elegance and nobility.
We have also the words of Peter, burning as a torch in the dark:
Having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.” (1 Peter 2:12)
The works Peter refers to are not only good but also beautiful.
Then we have the exhortation of James:
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom.” (James 3:13)
The good conduct James refers to will also be, by necessity, beautiful.
Then we have Jesus walking up to Golgotha with gracefulness and beauty. There was nothing repulsive in His behavior, on the contrary, His was the expression of a Person who knew how to dance the dance of the two camps with absolute perfection.
Let us learn from these “dancers” and let us express corporally the beauty of divine life.
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On Christian Aesthetic (part three)
