ReligionPast ampPresent

R P P

p r ev i ew

R e l i g i onPa st amp Pre s ent

En c yc lop e d ia o fTh e o lo g y and R e l i g i on

E D I T E D B Y

Hans Dieter BetzDon S BrowningBernd JanowskiEberhard Juumlngel

P R EV I EW

L E I D E N bull B O S T O N2007

RPP Previewindd iRPP Previewindd i 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

RPP Previewindd iiRPP Previewindd ii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

RPP Editorial and Translation Team

Editor-in-Chief David E Orton

Assistant Editors David E Green Ingrid Rosa Kitzberger Robert L Meyer Edgar W Smith Translators Mark E Biddle OC Dean David E Green David E Orton Joanne Orton Doug W Stott

RPP Previewindd iiiRPP Previewindd iii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

Biblical and Christian ArchaeologyHermann Michael Niemann Rostock Germany in cooperation with Guntram Koch Marburg Germany

Church History Asia Africa Latin AmericaKlaus Koschorke Munich Germany in cooperation with Martin N Dreher Sao Leopoldo Brazil Adrian Hastings (dagger) Johannes Meier Mainz Germany and Kevin Ward Leeds England

Church History Early ChurchChristoph Markschies Berlin Germany (preparation until 1995 Barbara Aland Muumlnster Germany)

Church History Middle Ages and ReformationUlrich Koumlpf Tuumlbingen Germany

Church History Europe in Modern Times IAlbrecht Beutel Muumlnster Germany (until vol II Johan-nes Wallman Bochum Germany)

Church History Europe in Modern Times IIFriedrich Wilhelm Graf Munich Germany (until vol II Joachim Mehlhausen (dagger))

Church History North America Great Britain Australia New ZealandMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Martin E Marty Chicago IL USA)

Church Music and LiturgyFranz Karl Praszligl Graz Austria in cooperation with Anthony William Ruff Collegeville MN USA (until vol III Don E Saliers Atlanta GA USA in coopera-tion with Robin A Leaver Princeton NJ USA vol IV J Neil Alexander Atlanta GA USA)

Church LawChristoph Link Erlangen Germany

Culture Art Media and ReligionEnno Rudolph Lucerne Switzerland in cooperation with Peter Burke Cambridge England Victoria von Flemming Braunschweig Germany Thomas Schmidt Goumlttingen Germany Reinhard Schmidt-Rost Bonn Germany and Horst Turk Goumlttingen Germany (until vol I Frank Burch Brown Indianapolis IL USA in cooperation with Rainer Volp (dagger) and Graham Howes Cambridge England)

Ecumenism CatholicismPeter Neuner Munich Germany (preparation until 1995 Werner G Jeanrond Lund Sweden)Ecumenism Orthodox ChurchKarl Christian Felmy Erlangen Germany

Ecumenism Reformed ChurchesMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Glenn Hinson Richmond VA USA)

DogmaticsChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Ethics and Related Social SciencesEilert Herms Tuumlbingen Germany

Fundamental TheologyChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Prehistory to the Ancient Near EastManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

History of Religion Greco-Roman AntiquityHubert Cancik Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Pre-Islamic Religions Islam and Arab ChristianityJosef van Ess Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion South Central and East AsiaHubert Seiwert Leipzig Germany

History of Religion Other ReligionsLawrence Sullivan Notre Dame IN USA

Judaism Early JudaismPeter Schaumlfer Berlin Germany and Princeton NJ USA in cooperation with Klaus Herrmann Berlin Germany

Judaism Middle Ages and Modern TimesMichael Brenner Munich Germany (until vol II Joseph Dan Jerusalem Israel and Berlin Germany)

New TestamentHans-Josef Klauck Chicago IL USA

Old TestamentHebrew BibleEckart Otto Munich Germany and Pretoria South Africa

Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd ivRPP Previewindd iv 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

R e l i g i onPa st amp Pre s ent

En c yc lop e d ia o fTh e o lo g y and R e l i g i on

E D I T E D B Y

Hans Dieter BetzDon S BrowningBernd JanowskiEberhard Juumlngel

P R EV I EW

L E I D E N bull B O S T O N2007

RPP Previewindd iRPP Previewindd i 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

RPP Previewindd iiRPP Previewindd ii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

RPP Editorial and Translation Team

Editor-in-Chief David E Orton

Assistant Editors David E Green Ingrid Rosa Kitzberger Robert L Meyer Edgar W Smith Translators Mark E Biddle OC Dean David E Green David E Orton Joanne Orton Doug W Stott

RPP Previewindd iiiRPP Previewindd iii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

Biblical and Christian ArchaeologyHermann Michael Niemann Rostock Germany in cooperation with Guntram Koch Marburg Germany

Church History Asia Africa Latin AmericaKlaus Koschorke Munich Germany in cooperation with Martin N Dreher Sao Leopoldo Brazil Adrian Hastings (dagger) Johannes Meier Mainz Germany and Kevin Ward Leeds England

Church History Early ChurchChristoph Markschies Berlin Germany (preparation until 1995 Barbara Aland Muumlnster Germany)

Church History Middle Ages and ReformationUlrich Koumlpf Tuumlbingen Germany

Church History Europe in Modern Times IAlbrecht Beutel Muumlnster Germany (until vol II Johan-nes Wallman Bochum Germany)

Church History Europe in Modern Times IIFriedrich Wilhelm Graf Munich Germany (until vol II Joachim Mehlhausen (dagger))

Church History North America Great Britain Australia New ZealandMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Martin E Marty Chicago IL USA)

Church Music and LiturgyFranz Karl Praszligl Graz Austria in cooperation with Anthony William Ruff Collegeville MN USA (until vol III Don E Saliers Atlanta GA USA in coopera-tion with Robin A Leaver Princeton NJ USA vol IV J Neil Alexander Atlanta GA USA)

Church LawChristoph Link Erlangen Germany

Culture Art Media and ReligionEnno Rudolph Lucerne Switzerland in cooperation with Peter Burke Cambridge England Victoria von Flemming Braunschweig Germany Thomas Schmidt Goumlttingen Germany Reinhard Schmidt-Rost Bonn Germany and Horst Turk Goumlttingen Germany (until vol I Frank Burch Brown Indianapolis IL USA in cooperation with Rainer Volp (dagger) and Graham Howes Cambridge England)

Ecumenism CatholicismPeter Neuner Munich Germany (preparation until 1995 Werner G Jeanrond Lund Sweden)Ecumenism Orthodox ChurchKarl Christian Felmy Erlangen Germany

Ecumenism Reformed ChurchesMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Glenn Hinson Richmond VA USA)

DogmaticsChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Ethics and Related Social SciencesEilert Herms Tuumlbingen Germany

Fundamental TheologyChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Prehistory to the Ancient Near EastManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

History of Religion Greco-Roman AntiquityHubert Cancik Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Pre-Islamic Religions Islam and Arab ChristianityJosef van Ess Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion South Central and East AsiaHubert Seiwert Leipzig Germany

History of Religion Other ReligionsLawrence Sullivan Notre Dame IN USA

Judaism Early JudaismPeter Schaumlfer Berlin Germany and Princeton NJ USA in cooperation with Klaus Herrmann Berlin Germany

Judaism Middle Ages and Modern TimesMichael Brenner Munich Germany (until vol II Joseph Dan Jerusalem Israel and Berlin Germany)

New TestamentHans-Josef Klauck Chicago IL USA

Old TestamentHebrew BibleEckart Otto Munich Germany and Pretoria South Africa

Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd ivRPP Previewindd iv 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP Previewindd iiRPP Previewindd ii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

RPP Editorial and Translation Team

Editor-in-Chief David E Orton

Assistant Editors David E Green Ingrid Rosa Kitzberger Robert L Meyer Edgar W Smith Translators Mark E Biddle OC Dean David E Green David E Orton Joanne Orton Doug W Stott

RPP Previewindd iiiRPP Previewindd iii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

Biblical and Christian ArchaeologyHermann Michael Niemann Rostock Germany in cooperation with Guntram Koch Marburg Germany

Church History Asia Africa Latin AmericaKlaus Koschorke Munich Germany in cooperation with Martin N Dreher Sao Leopoldo Brazil Adrian Hastings (dagger) Johannes Meier Mainz Germany and Kevin Ward Leeds England

Church History Early ChurchChristoph Markschies Berlin Germany (preparation until 1995 Barbara Aland Muumlnster Germany)

Church History Middle Ages and ReformationUlrich Koumlpf Tuumlbingen Germany

Church History Europe in Modern Times IAlbrecht Beutel Muumlnster Germany (until vol II Johan-nes Wallman Bochum Germany)

Church History Europe in Modern Times IIFriedrich Wilhelm Graf Munich Germany (until vol II Joachim Mehlhausen (dagger))

Church History North America Great Britain Australia New ZealandMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Martin E Marty Chicago IL USA)

Church Music and LiturgyFranz Karl Praszligl Graz Austria in cooperation with Anthony William Ruff Collegeville MN USA (until vol III Don E Saliers Atlanta GA USA in coopera-tion with Robin A Leaver Princeton NJ USA vol IV J Neil Alexander Atlanta GA USA)

Church LawChristoph Link Erlangen Germany

Culture Art Media and ReligionEnno Rudolph Lucerne Switzerland in cooperation with Peter Burke Cambridge England Victoria von Flemming Braunschweig Germany Thomas Schmidt Goumlttingen Germany Reinhard Schmidt-Rost Bonn Germany and Horst Turk Goumlttingen Germany (until vol I Frank Burch Brown Indianapolis IL USA in cooperation with Rainer Volp (dagger) and Graham Howes Cambridge England)

Ecumenism CatholicismPeter Neuner Munich Germany (preparation until 1995 Werner G Jeanrond Lund Sweden)Ecumenism Orthodox ChurchKarl Christian Felmy Erlangen Germany

Ecumenism Reformed ChurchesMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Glenn Hinson Richmond VA USA)

DogmaticsChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Ethics and Related Social SciencesEilert Herms Tuumlbingen Germany

Fundamental TheologyChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Prehistory to the Ancient Near EastManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

History of Religion Greco-Roman AntiquityHubert Cancik Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Pre-Islamic Religions Islam and Arab ChristianityJosef van Ess Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion South Central and East AsiaHubert Seiwert Leipzig Germany

History of Religion Other ReligionsLawrence Sullivan Notre Dame IN USA

Judaism Early JudaismPeter Schaumlfer Berlin Germany and Princeton NJ USA in cooperation with Klaus Herrmann Berlin Germany

Judaism Middle Ages and Modern TimesMichael Brenner Munich Germany (until vol II Joseph Dan Jerusalem Israel and Berlin Germany)

New TestamentHans-Josef Klauck Chicago IL USA

Old TestamentHebrew BibleEckart Otto Munich Germany and Pretoria South Africa

Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd ivRPP Previewindd iv 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP Editorial and Translation Team

Editor-in-Chief David E Orton

Assistant Editors David E Green Ingrid Rosa Kitzberger Robert L Meyer Edgar W Smith Translators Mark E Biddle OC Dean David E Green David E Orton Joanne Orton Doug W Stott

RPP Previewindd iiiRPP Previewindd iii 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

Biblical and Christian ArchaeologyHermann Michael Niemann Rostock Germany in cooperation with Guntram Koch Marburg Germany

Church History Asia Africa Latin AmericaKlaus Koschorke Munich Germany in cooperation with Martin N Dreher Sao Leopoldo Brazil Adrian Hastings (dagger) Johannes Meier Mainz Germany and Kevin Ward Leeds England

Church History Early ChurchChristoph Markschies Berlin Germany (preparation until 1995 Barbara Aland Muumlnster Germany)

Church History Middle Ages and ReformationUlrich Koumlpf Tuumlbingen Germany

Church History Europe in Modern Times IAlbrecht Beutel Muumlnster Germany (until vol II Johan-nes Wallman Bochum Germany)

Church History Europe in Modern Times IIFriedrich Wilhelm Graf Munich Germany (until vol II Joachim Mehlhausen (dagger))

Church History North America Great Britain Australia New ZealandMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Martin E Marty Chicago IL USA)

Church Music and LiturgyFranz Karl Praszligl Graz Austria in cooperation with Anthony William Ruff Collegeville MN USA (until vol III Don E Saliers Atlanta GA USA in coopera-tion with Robin A Leaver Princeton NJ USA vol IV J Neil Alexander Atlanta GA USA)

Church LawChristoph Link Erlangen Germany

Culture Art Media and ReligionEnno Rudolph Lucerne Switzerland in cooperation with Peter Burke Cambridge England Victoria von Flemming Braunschweig Germany Thomas Schmidt Goumlttingen Germany Reinhard Schmidt-Rost Bonn Germany and Horst Turk Goumlttingen Germany (until vol I Frank Burch Brown Indianapolis IL USA in cooperation with Rainer Volp (dagger) and Graham Howes Cambridge England)

Ecumenism CatholicismPeter Neuner Munich Germany (preparation until 1995 Werner G Jeanrond Lund Sweden)Ecumenism Orthodox ChurchKarl Christian Felmy Erlangen Germany

Ecumenism Reformed ChurchesMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Glenn Hinson Richmond VA USA)

DogmaticsChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Ethics and Related Social SciencesEilert Herms Tuumlbingen Germany

Fundamental TheologyChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Prehistory to the Ancient Near EastManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

History of Religion Greco-Roman AntiquityHubert Cancik Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Pre-Islamic Religions Islam and Arab ChristianityJosef van Ess Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion South Central and East AsiaHubert Seiwert Leipzig Germany

History of Religion Other ReligionsLawrence Sullivan Notre Dame IN USA

Judaism Early JudaismPeter Schaumlfer Berlin Germany and Princeton NJ USA in cooperation with Klaus Herrmann Berlin Germany

Judaism Middle Ages and Modern TimesMichael Brenner Munich Germany (until vol II Joseph Dan Jerusalem Israel and Berlin Germany)

New TestamentHans-Josef Klauck Chicago IL USA

Old TestamentHebrew BibleEckart Otto Munich Germany and Pretoria South Africa

Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd ivRPP Previewindd iv 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

Biblical and Christian ArchaeologyHermann Michael Niemann Rostock Germany in cooperation with Guntram Koch Marburg Germany

Church History Asia Africa Latin AmericaKlaus Koschorke Munich Germany in cooperation with Martin N Dreher Sao Leopoldo Brazil Adrian Hastings (dagger) Johannes Meier Mainz Germany and Kevin Ward Leeds England

Church History Early ChurchChristoph Markschies Berlin Germany (preparation until 1995 Barbara Aland Muumlnster Germany)

Church History Middle Ages and ReformationUlrich Koumlpf Tuumlbingen Germany

Church History Europe in Modern Times IAlbrecht Beutel Muumlnster Germany (until vol II Johan-nes Wallman Bochum Germany)

Church History Europe in Modern Times IIFriedrich Wilhelm Graf Munich Germany (until vol II Joachim Mehlhausen (dagger))

Church History North America Great Britain Australia New ZealandMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Martin E Marty Chicago IL USA)

Church Music and LiturgyFranz Karl Praszligl Graz Austria in cooperation with Anthony William Ruff Collegeville MN USA (until vol III Don E Saliers Atlanta GA USA in coopera-tion with Robin A Leaver Princeton NJ USA vol IV J Neil Alexander Atlanta GA USA)

Church LawChristoph Link Erlangen Germany

Culture Art Media and ReligionEnno Rudolph Lucerne Switzerland in cooperation with Peter Burke Cambridge England Victoria von Flemming Braunschweig Germany Thomas Schmidt Goumlttingen Germany Reinhard Schmidt-Rost Bonn Germany and Horst Turk Goumlttingen Germany (until vol I Frank Burch Brown Indianapolis IL USA in cooperation with Rainer Volp (dagger) and Graham Howes Cambridge England)

Ecumenism CatholicismPeter Neuner Munich Germany (preparation until 1995 Werner G Jeanrond Lund Sweden)Ecumenism Orthodox ChurchKarl Christian Felmy Erlangen Germany

Ecumenism Reformed ChurchesMark A Noll Wheaton IL USA (until vol I Glenn Hinson Richmond VA USA)

DogmaticsChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Ethics and Related Social SciencesEilert Herms Tuumlbingen Germany

Fundamental TheologyChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Prehistory to the Ancient Near EastManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

History of Religion Greco-Roman AntiquityHubert Cancik Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion Pre-Islamic Religions Islam and Arab ChristianityJosef van Ess Tuumlbingen Germany

History of Religion South Central and East AsiaHubert Seiwert Leipzig Germany

History of Religion Other ReligionsLawrence Sullivan Notre Dame IN USA

Judaism Early JudaismPeter Schaumlfer Berlin Germany and Princeton NJ USA in cooperation with Klaus Herrmann Berlin Germany

Judaism Middle Ages and Modern TimesMichael Brenner Munich Germany (until vol II Joseph Dan Jerusalem Israel and Berlin Germany)

New TestamentHans-Josef Klauck Chicago IL USA

Old TestamentHebrew BibleEckart Otto Munich Germany and Pretoria South Africa

Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd ivRPP Previewindd iv 91407 74023 PM91407 74023 PM

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

PhilosophyGuumlnter Figal Freiburg iBr Germany

Philosophy of ReligionChristoph Schwoumlbel Tuumlbingen Germany

Practical Theology and Related Social Sciences EducationChristian Grethlein Muumlnster Germany (until vol I Friedrich Schweitzer Tuumlbingen Germany in cooperation with Volker Drehsen Tuumlbingen Germany and Richard R Osmer Princeton NJ USA)

Religion and ScienceTed Peters Berkeley CA USA (until vol III Philip Hefner Chicago IL USA)

Religious StudiesManfred Hutter Bonn Germany (until vol IV Fritz Stolz (dagger))

Religious Studies and MissiologyWerner Ustorf Birmingham England

v Subject Areas and Area Editors

RPP Previewindd vRPP Previewindd v 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP Previewindd viRPP Previewindd vi 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

Introduction

Brill is proud to introduce Religion Past and Present a translation and adaptation of the fourth edition of Reli-gion in Geschichte und Gegenwart a leading theological encyclopedia of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries The eleven-volume work will provide a depth and breadth of information unmatched by any other reference sources In its comprehensive and systematic presentation it follows in the tradition of the universal encyclopedia providing a compendium of articles across a diverse range of disciplines RPP covers not only biblical studies church history systematic theology ethics church law and practical theology but also the allied fields of history philosophy sociology psychology science law economics archaeology and geography In addition there are substantial entries on literature music and the arts The entire field of religious studies ndash history of religions anthropology sociology and psychology of religion ndash is represented In addition to all the branches of Christianity the other world religions such as Judaism Islam Hinduism Buddhism and Confu-cianism are amply covered Manifestations of Christianity in Africa Asia and Central and South America are reviewed in addition to various expressions throughout Europe and North America Although its origins lie in the Protestant tradition its articles are written by a large number of leading scholars who are interdenomi-national and interfaith in background In addition to its comprehensiveness RPP is both international and contemporary providing summaries of the state of each theological and religious-studies discipline at the dawn of the twenty-first century

Although the integrity of the German edition is maintained a limited number of important changes are made to serve the needs of an international audience Minor articles have been omitted that were written pri-marily for the German situation Other articles have been lightly edited for the wider audiences who will use this important new resource A small number of new biographical articles have been added on recently deceased figures such as Gerhard Ebeling Hans-Georg Gadamer Paul Ricoeur Richard Rorty Donald Davidson and John Paul II Since RPP resists equating international scholarship with works available in English the bibliographies supporting its articles contain references written in all major European and many non-European languages

Throughout the twentieth century each of the four editions of Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart served as an indispensable resource for theological and religious-studies teachers educators and students as well as ministers and authors with competence in German RPP will serve a similar role for those working in English It will be used in both introductory and advanced classroom teaching Its brilliant and sweeping serial articles often review topics such as allegory baptism God law prayer and sin from multiple perspectives ndashhistory of religions Old Testament New Testament church history fundamental theology ethics and practi-cal theology They can function as small but comprehensive books in themselves guiding beginning students and advanced scholars alike RPP provides authoritative summaries of major figures in Christianity and other religions ndash Moses and Confucius Jesus and Buddha Martin Luther King and Gandhi Thomas Aquinas and al-Ghazali

RPP will not just remain on library shelves It will be read assigned to students used in research and foot-noted in seminar papers scholarly monographs and research articles for several decades to come It will serve as a basis for new advances in scholarship and the general cultural understanding of religion It will constitute a trustworthy yet flexible guide from an ecumenical perspective to the entire world of religious life experience thought and institutions in the West and other parts of the world ndash for both the past and the present

The Editors Hans Dieter Betz Don S Browning Bernd Janowski Eberhard Juumlngel

RPP Previewindd viiRPP Previewindd vii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP Previewindd viiiRPP Previewindd viii 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

1 RPP preview

Art and Religion

I Religious Studies Systematics ndash II Academic Research Disciplines ndash III History ndash IV Christian Theology

I Religious Studies Systematics

1 Methodology In defining the relationship between art and religion from the perspective of religious stud-ies one cannot speak of a universal concept of art and religion on the phenomenal level To do comparative work however sufficient abstract characteristics must be established as a tertium comparationis to enable a systematic examination of the relationship between art and religion This is possible through a moderately func-tional perspective that determines the pertinent func-tion of art and religion as well as their contributions to each another apart from their historically and culturally varying manifestations without ignoring these entirely (on the functional definition of art and religion cf rarr Culture VI )

rarr Cultural history can no longer assume a ldquopan-sacralityrdquo according to which art only began to free itself from religion with increasing social differentiation (on the history of the discipline cf Krech) Instead one must assume that in every cultural stage but at the latest since early high cultures religion has shaped only part of the pertinent culture and society and that art like other realms has thus enjoyed a certain independence From this starting point various constellations in the rela-tionship between art and religion have occurred in the course of cultural development 2 Religio-historical constellations In the absence of sources reconstruction of the relationship between art and religion in the period before the high cultures is possible only by drawing (not unproblematic) conclu-sions from analogies with current nonliterate ldquotribal societiesrdquo The example of tribal cultures demonstrates that art and religion can endow crafted objects with a magical function enabling them to convey knowledge and enhance ritual actions The cultic use of such objects makes it possible to control the supernatural being pres-ent within them Conversely individuals are enabled to leave their everyday world behind and transform them-selves into divine beings by donning a mask in a cultic rarr dance for example or receiving rarr visions and rarr audi-tory hallucinations while listening to or making music Art objects (such as divine figurines or rarr masks ) serve in a cultic context to materialize powers invisibly at work in the everyday world and artistic performance (such as music and dance) serves to activate them

In the ANE contrary to long-held opinion we can because of the occurrence of art in both sacral and pro-fane contexts (jewelry decoration etc) readily speak of the beginnings of an independent realm that is now

called art (cf Cancik-Kirschbaum) The king nullified the difference between profane and sacral art by being simultaneously a priest and a deity venerated in the cult

Those religions that culminate in rarr Hinduism do not distinguish ontologically between ldquorealityrdquo and ldquofic-tionrdquo but only with respect to hierarchy and ldquodegree of freedomrdquo Art and religion are also incorporated into this cosmology The Indian cultic image (arcā) rests on the notion that the deity descends into the world (rarr Avatāra ) and assumes visible form in order to restore cosmic order The cultic image accordingly represents the deity or a medium through which the viewer trans-fers his or her veneration to the deity Specific rituals on the occasion of the pūjā cause the deity to manifest him-self in the image and to perform his protec tive function

In Eastern Asia (China Japan) the viewer ritually establishes the relationship between art objects and reli-gion Through pyschological excercises such as concen-tration posture facial expression and gesture the viewer venerates the artwork and what it symbolizes

In classical antiquity teacutechnēars denoted the skilled creation of objects and besides artistic production in its more limited sense also crafts and sciences Nevertheless an aesthetic discourse began to develop in ancient Greece that oriented itself toward its own ideals The statues of the gods were (now) not (any longer) esteemed for their cultic value but for their beauty The Romans put art in the service of religious policy After the emperor was ele-vated to deity his bust and the sacral architecture of the political buildings represented the rarr Roman Empire

The distinction between ldquoprofanerdquo and Christian art was sharply drawn in Late Antiquity Out of missionary necessity for example rarr Clement of Alexandria (Paed 31155ndash60) and rarr Tertullian (Idol 8) accepted pagan art to a certain degree Non-Christian cultic art however was rejected Despite theological objections Christian art developed from pagan art in the course of the 3rd century initially in the form of rarr catacomb paintings and figures on rarr sarcophagi Post-Constantine delight in art however did not result in tolerance for pagan art The distinction between eiacutedōlon and eikOslashn that emerged in the 4th century was central in this matter In the 6th and early 7th centuries images in the Eastern Church became rarr icons The veneration of images based on a Platonic model sparked the so-called iconoclastic con-troversy (see III 2 h below rarr Veneration of Images VI ) The iconoclasts (rarr Iconoclasm ) did not oppose art as such but only the veneration of representational portraits of Christ and the saints To a certain degree they promoted artistic autonomy while the Byzantine Church fused art and religion in the veneration of icons In Christianity the relationship between religion and art long remained linked to politics Medieval Christianity

RPP Previewindd 1RPP Previewindd 1 91407 74024 PM91407 74024 PM

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 2

was largely familiar only with sacral art that depicted the might of the church and the Christian Imperium

Art experienced a thrust toward autonomy in the Renaissance and the early modern period thanks on the one hand to internal religious processes (eg the icono-clasm of the Reformation churches) In addition criteria independent of religion developed with the discovery of perspective and individuality and with the accentuation of accidentals

The modern concept of autonomous art indepen-dent of other social spheres emerged in the course of the 18th century (eg the veritas aesthetica of AG rarr Baumgarten ) The competition between religion and art as a ldquosubstitute religionrdquo that developed especially in the 19th century (eg the Romantic religion of art [rarr Romanticism ] rarr Nazarenes [IV] rarr Pre-Raphaelites ) is unique to (Western) European cul tural history 3 Possibilities and Problems in Diachronic and Synchronic Comparisons No religion relates indiffer-ently to art art in contrast is not dependent on a rela-tionship with religion This asymmetry arises because religious communication (rarr Communication theory ) is dependent in a particular way on sensory percep-tion in order to render visible what is absent The polar extremes in the relationship of religion to art are marked by the terms idolatry and iconoclasm As the history of mentality (rarr Mentality History of ) concerning art and religion well knows however art has constantly inspired popular piety The religions of Egypt (rarr Egypt III) rarr Mesopotamia (IV V) the Greeks (rarr Greece I ) and Indian Central America in the pre-Columbian era were extremely receptive to imagery Hinduism rarr Jainism rarr Buddhism and Catholicism still are A marked incli-nation toward aniconism and the prohibition of sculp-ture and relief characterizes the theological programs of Judaism and Islam There the artistic emphasis is on poetry music architecture rarr calligraphy manuscript illumination sepulchral art and the applied arts

The varying semantic content of rarr transcendence eg the differing concepts of rarr incarnation (descent manifestation rarr epiphany etc) constitutes a possible point of comparison in the relationship of art and reli-gion Some semantic systems presume a more or less well-developed cosmological rarr dualism (eg early and medieval Christianity as well as rarr Islam ) ldquoTo take formrdquo can however refer to an immanent process of concretionmaterialization of otherwise invisible but immanently effective powers (eg in Asiatic religions and in so-called primitive cultures) The epiphany of the gods in their cultic images or ldquoindwellingrdquo as a particu-lar form of presence are concepts that seek to assure the authenticity of venerating cultic images (Gladigow 13) A different reference structure is also linked with this

difference a reference to a transcendent world beyond or to something absent (not visible) in the immanent world The reference structure determines whether art objects can be cultic objects that are venerated or whether they are symbolic or emblematic representa-tions of transcendence or are entirely rejected from a religious viewpoint

The assumption of pansacrality not only affects discourse concerning cultural history but also partially determines discourse concerning modern interferences between art and religion The description of art objects or the process of producing them as religious is however predominantly a phenomenon of reception within reli-gious communication and not part of art itself Genuine fusions appear in the intra-artistic imbuing and sur-rounding of art objects and processes with religious con-tent (art-as-religion Kuntreligion) and in the internal aestheticization of religious content (sacral art aesthetic religion)

H Bredekamp Kunst als Medium sozialer Konflikte Bilderkaumlmpfe von der Spaumltantike bis zur Hussitenrevolution 1975 H Belting Bild und Kult eine Geschichte des Bildes vor dem Zeitalter der Kunst 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 B Gladigow ldquoKult bildrdquo HRWG IV 1998 9ndash14 EC Cancik-Kirschbaum ldquoReligionsgeschichte oder Kulturgeschichte Uumlber das Verhaumlltnis von Religion und Kunst im Alten Orientrdquo in R Faber amp V Krech eds Kunst und Religion Studien zur Kultursoziologie und Kulturgeschichte 1999 101ndash118 V Krech ldquoDie Geburt der Kunst aus dem Geist der Religion Verhaumlltnis bestimmungen von Kunst und Religion um 1900rdquo ibid 21ndash49 Volkhard Krech

II Academic Disciplines The relationship between art and religion cannot be assigned to a single discipline Even today with the exception of Christian rarr archaeology (III) there are no university chairs devoted explicitly to this relation-ship The topic of art and religion appears as a compo-nent of the study of art and the humanities as well as theology and religious studies and is treated primarily historically Within theology liturgics church history and pastoral theology in particular deal with art and religion A priori cross-disciplinary approaches are desir-able linking both religio-theological and art historicalhistorical subjects and questions Depen ding on how the term ldquoartrdquo is understood philology architecture the-ater and music as well as philosophical and theological rarr aesthetics should also be involved In what follows art refers only to art that creates forms (painting illustra-tion sculpture architecture photo graphy cinema etc) The performing arts (theater music dance) poetry and literature will not be treated here nor will philosophical and theological aesthetics except as they explicitly con-front works of art with religion artistic production and its (religious) reception

RPP Previewindd 2RPP Previewindd 2 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

3 RPP preview

The subject area questions methodology and meth-ods for the relationship between art and religion depend on the individual disciplines and their heuristics Art history is thus required to address functional and con-textual questions (graphic praxis reception the artistrsquos self-understanding patrons exhibition interactions between form and content form and viewerrsquos expecta-tions etc) whereas theology and religious studies are required to address an educated approach to works of art and their use as well as a preliminary determination of their religious and theological relevance In the context of Christian theology various preliminary determina-tions can be cited ndash for example whether works of art are assigned a purely catechetical-pedagogical role or whether they possess a systematic potential that can have an epis-temological function Fundamentally this depends on whether precedence is given to the biblical rarr prohibition of images or to other biblical concepts and notions con-cerning images ( John 149 Col 115) Finally we may distinguish between approaches that seek agreement in content between art and religion and pay attention to rarr iconography (themes and their history graphic expres-sion of theological formulas) image theory (legitimacy of art relationship between theologumena and forms of artistic expression) and use (in ritual instruction and devotion interaction between visual aesthetic and reli-gious experience) or start from a fundamental structural analogy between art and religion The latter approach describes art and religion as two cultural symbol systems sui generis both ultimately shaped by a tension each in its own way and in differing degree (historically as well) requires mediality and materiality to bring to bear or at least bring into view the invisible and ineffable without becoming totally absorbed in it Apart from the question concerning the relationship between art and religion in terms of content such a cross-disciplinary approach makes it possible to contour the unique characteristics of religion and art (Lentes)

While theology has long restricted itself to iconog-raphy the relationship between church and art current liturgical usage and normative discourse at present there is a nascent independent ldquotheology of imageryrdquo concerned with art for genuinely theological reasons (revelation sacramental theology communication of faith Stock Lange Hoeps)

New paths are also being explored by aesthetics In the 19th and early 20th centuries Christian art still used its own Christian language to mark its Christian identity More recent approaches start from the idea that the graphic arts reveal the ldquoreligious awareness of structurerdquo and should be considered an ldquoorganon of reli-gious culturerdquo as an essential element in the unfolding of Christianity (Kemp) In addition art historyrsquos treat-

ment of images in the context of the cult has become central It distinguishes between an ldquoera of the imagerdquo and an ldquoera of artrdquo dating the transition roughly to the rarr Reformation This approach challenges any separa-tion of art and religion and even any autonomous concept of art in cultures shaped by religion The Reformationrsquos rejection of art for cultic use marked the emergence of art as an independent symbol system dis-tinct from religion and provided a new model for cul-tural historyrsquos consideration of the relationship between art and religion (Belting) The increasing openness of aesthetics to a Bildwissenschaft (image studies) (Boehm Belting) emphasizes anthropological medial and functional questions thus allowing a description of the relationship between art and religion based on the medi-ality and materiality of works of art as well as the visual models specific to each period and the religio-aes thetic expectations of the viewer Such an approach permits scholars to interpret works of art in terms of their religious significance and their value for fundamental theologumena (revelation incarnation sacrament cor-poreality knowledge of God vision and reality) and to introduce them into the discourse of cultural studies (Lentes)

H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock ed Wozu Bilder im Christentum 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 G Boehm ed Was ist ein Bild 1995 R Hoeps ldquoGebirgslandschaft mit Bilderstreitrdquo ThRv 96 2000 355ndash366 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 H Belting Bild-Anthropologie 2001 G Lange ldquoBild Bilddidaktikrdquo LexRP 1 2001 186ndash192

Thomas Lentes

III History 1 Jewish Art The existence of a specifically Jewish art and especially of a characteristic style was long a subject of controversy The spec tacular archaeological discoveries and extensive theoretical research of recent decades however laid the groundwork for demonstrat-ing the originality of certain works of art from Jewish cultural history The identifying criterion of an art aris-ing from a religious tradition that developed over four millennia cannot be defined on the basis of a homog-enous style Rather its identity manifests itself totally in its capacity to translate its particular message into the language of forms From this perspective Jewish art appears rich in original creations a few of which served as models for the art of other religions in its cultural environment Over the course of history Judaism has interpreted the biblical prohibition of images in various ways While originally only the production of idols was prohibited according to rarr Josephus (Ant XVII 6) the prohibition was also extended to other works of art The Talmud however relaxed the prohibition once again by

RPP Previewindd 3RPP Previewindd 3 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 4

permitting for example images made for scholarly pur-poses as well as depictions of animals and plants and by prohibiting other depictions only if they were carved in three dimensions but not if they were for instance drawn painted or embroidered a Jewish Art to the Second Temple Period The exodus from Egypt and the sojourn in the wilderness put their special impress on the origin of the fundamental notion that would forever define the fate of the new religion the transcendence of God whose being lies beyond the world of forms Based on this idea a new form of sanctu-ary was conceived whose rarr holy of holies (inner sanctu-ary) reserved for the deity had to remain vacant

The rarr ldquotabernaclerdquo erected in the wilderness ndash also called the ldquotent of meetingrdquo ndash was a temple that could be dismantled common among early and modern nomadic tribes It consisted of a composite wooden frame that formed three spaces the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant (rarr Ark of YHWH ) contain-ing the tables of the law that Moses received on Sinai was placed the holy place in which the seven-branch candelabra (rarr Menorah ) and the table for the bread of the Presence were located the altar of burnt offer-ing and the basin for ritual ablutions stood before the entrance to the tabernacle This first sanctuary crafted by Bezalel and Oholiav is known to us only from detailed descriptions in the Bible (Exod 25ndash30) which have inspired artists to create many graphic portrayals (rarr Iconography V )

Solomon (c 970ndash931 bce) built the second sanctu-ary based on this pattern after the Israelite tribes entered Canaan the promised land Solomonrsquos temple consists of three sections the vestibule (hucirclām) the holy place (hecirckāl) and the holy of holies (d^vicircr) Two columns Jachin and Boaz the meaning of whose names is unclear supported an architrave in front of the vestibule Despite its symbolic power the image of the first temple does not appear in Jewish art

After a time of political unrest that included the expan-sion of the Greek empire the period of the Hasmonaean monarchy (166ndash63 bce rarr Maccabees ) marked the begin-ning of a new heyday for the Israelite people The advance of the Roman army eastward and Pompeyrsquos entry into Jerusalem in 63 bce marked its end In 37 bce rarr Herod an Idumaean installed as king by the Roman Senate com-missioned the erection of magnificent structures and in particular the glorious restoration of the temple

Until a few decades ago Herodrsquos temple was known only from the enthusiastic descriptions of the historian Flavius Josephus (Bell V Ant XV) which have been impressively confirmed by the most recent excavations The sanctuary rose above a series of terraces surrounded by circular walls The first forecourt open to visitors was

bounded by a barrier with steles on which was written a prohibition against entering the interior of the temple The second forecourt was the ldquowomenrsquos courtrdquo which men in a state of purity could cross in order finally to reach the ldquogreat gaterdquo (Nicanor Gate) that permitted access to the ldquocourt of the Israelitesrdquo The temple rose at the extreme western end of this court Archaeologists compare this arrangement to a large nave containing the holy place This in turn was separated from the holy of holies where God was present by a curtain The high entrance to the holy place was crowned with a magnifi-cent golden vine presumably hanging from a triangular tympanum The decoration of the interior consisted of stylized floral patterns and geometric motifs in the style of the period

Herod had magnificent palaces built in rarr Jerusalem (I II VIII ) northwest of the Temple Mount in rarr Hero-dion where according to Josephus the kingrsquos grave was located and in rarr Masada The elegant mosaic floors there (white on a black background) are partially pre-served

During the Second Temple period Jerusalem was surrounded by an extensive necropolis to the south east and north containing the tombs of the Bene Hezir Absalom Zechariah and the Syrian queen Helena of Adiabene whom an Aramaic inscription calls ldquoQueen Saddanrdquo Typical burial objects in Herodrsquos time were ossuaries for the ritual of ossilegium and clay lamps whose Oriental ornamentation signifies in the language of forms rejection of Hellenistic culture and return to the values of the ancient Near East

The Second Temple period came to an end in 70 ce when the army of Titus destroyed the sanctuary (rarr Jewish Revolt ) The cultic objects in the temple which were plundered are represented on the interior of the Arch of Titus in the bas-relief that depicts his tri-umph The issue of a memorial coin also commemorated this event It bore the impression of a palm as a symbol of Judaism flanked on one side by a mourning female figure an allegory of the Jewish people on the other by Titus in military uniform The inscription Judea Capta surrounds this image The fall of the temple simultane-ously marked the end of a glorious era and the beginning of a profound change b Synagogues In the area of art the zenith of rabbinic Judaism manifested itself in two forms the construction of rarr synagogues and the spread of Jewish rarr symbols (XII) via everyday objects Menorah lulab and etrog became symbols of adherence to Judaism

The most important creation of rabbinic Judaism was the synagogue a new type of religious building cor-responding to the new form of religion based on prayer This ldquohouse of prayerrdquo became the location for regular

RPP Previewindd 4RPP Previewindd 4 91407 74025 PM91407 74025 PM

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

5 RPP preview

worship and a rarr liturgy (VII) that took place in the pres-ence of the faithful This was a revolutionary innovation in the religious life of antiquity where such a concept was entirely unknown at the time This type of cultic building in which people gather and pray in a certain direction (eg toward Jerusalem) can also be found in early Christianity and later in Islam

Once again the originality of Jewish artistic creativ-ity was manifest in its conception Stylistically Jews everywhere as a minority were forced to adopt the locally dominant style In the East in late antiquity this was the program of the Byzantine rarr basilica with mosaic floors as its most important decorative element They depicted either the tripartite universe (earthly world cosmos symbolically represented divine world [Hammat Tiberias 4th cent Bet Alpha 6th cent]) or fountains of life () supplemented with the tabernacle as an identity-establishing symbol (Malsquoon 6th cent) or King David with a harp The frescoes at rarr Dura-Europos (II 3rd cent) are the sole evidence for biblical murals

In the European rarr Diaspora (II) synagogue architec-ture gradually ran the gamut of every style eg Moorish style on the Iberian Peninsula (Toledo 1200 Coacuterdoba 1315) Romanesque (Rouen 1100 Worms 1175) Gothic (Prague Altneuschuhl Sopron 13th cent) and Baroque (in Italy Mantua 1543 Venice) Beginning in the 18th and above all in the 19th century we note an expansion of synagogues and simultaneously the search for an independent style Following structures in Romanesque-Byzantine style (Paris Man chester) then Neo-Romanesque (Nuumlrnberg Munich) and neoclassical (Bordeaux Karlsruhe Copenhagen) this ldquoexperimen-tal phaserdquo resulted in the development of an oriental style intended to embody both the oriental origins of the Jewish tradition as well as its specific uniqueness (Budapest 1859 Besanccedilon 1869 New York [Central Synagogue] 1872 Saint Petersburg 1879 Florence 1882) Even in the 20th century contemporary archi-tecture had its adherents as attested by the synagogues built by Frank Lloyd Wright (Elkins Park PA 1956) Claude Meyer Leacutevy (Strasbourg 1958) and Norman Jaffeacute (East Hampton NY 1989) In all periods the inte-riors of synagogues were decorated with furniture and cultic objects in the style of the structure c Manuscripts In the face of the profound changes brougt about by the Arab invasion (capture of Jerusalem 638) the intellectual life of the oriental Jews found ref-uge in the study of Scripture which was also the pre-ferred medium for artists In the oriental Bibles of the 10th and 11th centuries a double-page illumination pre-ceding the text portrayed the interior of the tabernacle in various arrangements (see also rarr Bible Illustrations 1 2 ) The only color used was gold Migrations brought

this tradition to the West There the double-page illumi-nation appeared in Bibles from Burgos (1260) Toledo (1277) and Perpignan (1299)

The centers of manuscript production multiplied very quickly in the West and offered great variety in genre and style Typical of Spain are the ritual manu-scripts for Passover (rarr Haggadah ) whose text was pre-ceded by a series of biblical scenes apparently copied from ancient originals Another genre the mahzor was developed in German countries (Worms Speyer Mainz) and contained liturgical texts for important holidays accompanied by illustrations in Gothic style The names of the artists are rarely known The few artists known by name were usually Jewish as their perfect mastery of the script would suggest A few manuscripts however can be shown to have been prepared by Christian art-ists eg in France (Mishneh Torah Budapest Kaufmann Collection 1296 British Library Add Ms 11639 13th cent) and in Italy (Israel Museum Ms 18051 Leonardo Bellini c 1470) These manuscripts attest to continued contact among artists even in times of politi-cal unrest d Modern and Contemporary Jewish Artists After Jewish rarr emancipation (III) (from the end of the 18th cent in the USA and Western Europe only in the 20th cent in Eastern Europe) Jewish artists including MD rarr Oppenheim Mark Antokolsky (1843ndash1902) Maurycy Gottlieb (1856ndash1879) and M rarr Liebermann endeavored to integrate universal and secular art They themselves often belonged to the avant-garde of their time At the end of the 19th century a few important Jewish artists such as Nathan Altmann (1889ndash1970) El Lissitzky (1890ndash1941) and especially M rarr Chagall joined the move-ment of ldquoJewish renewalrdquo in Russia A few artists belong to the Cubist group including Jacques Lipchitz (1891ndash1973) Sonia Delaunay (1885ndash1943) Sophie Taeuber-Arp (1889ndash1943) and Man Ray (1890ndash1976) Others belonged to the Dadaists in Zuumlrich including Tristan Tzara (1896ndash1963) and Marcel Janco (1895ndash1984) Lipchitz expressed his reaction to dawning rarr National Socialism in his work David and Goliath (1933) It reveals his hope for the coming of a new David who would deliver the Jews from danger After the war the trauma of the Shorsquoah (rarr Holocaust ) stamped some of Chagallrsquos works He endeavored to strengthen relations between Jews and Christians and saw the founding of the state of Israel as the only justified response to the Shorsquoah Other artists such as Avigdor Arikha (b 1929) attempted to find an interna-tional artistic language by turning to abstract art

Despite their wish for international recognition many Jewish and Israeli artists connected with their roots once again at some point in their careers by attempting to express their Jewish identity in their art A few artists in the

RPP Previewindd 5RPP Previewindd 5 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 6

Eacutecole de Paris publicly confessed their Jewish faith among them Chagall and Maneacute-Katz (1894ndash1962) whereas others such as Amadeo Modigliani (1884ndash1920) and Chaim Soutine (1893ndash 1943) chose assimilation

Among American artists Ben Shahn (1898ndash1969) Mark Rothko (1903ndash1970) and Barnett Newman (1905ndash1970) did not acknowledge their Jewish identity

In Europe some 19th-century Jewish artists attemp-ted to assimilate entirely to modern art without regard for their original identity They included Camille Pissarro (1830ndash1903) in France Joseph Israels (1824ndash1911) in Holland and Liebermann in Berlin who changed his attitude after 1933 however

Boris Schatz attempted to bring into being a Jewish art in Israel by founding a national school for Jewish art and crafts in 1906 which he named the Bezalel Academy after the biblical artist Bezalel In 1920 the artists of the younger generation rebelled against the anti-modernist ideas of Schatz and attempted to create a Jewish national art that united Eastern and Western schools while also exibiting an admixture of naive art The proponents of this trend include Reuven Rubin (1893ndash1974) Moshe Castel (1909ndash1991) and Mordecai Ardon (1896ndash1992) The Arab-Israeli wars motivated Jacob Steinhardt to hark back to biblical themes ndash the stories of rarr Cain and Abel rarr Jacob and Esau and especially the sacrifice of rarr Isaac ndash to characterize the fratricidal conflict Thus he wished to demonstrate that Israeli artists should be less concerned with developing a national style than with expressing the particular local context In no way can these artists be regarded as bearers of an official message None theless their art reflects accurately the spiritual world of an entire society

J Gutmann Jewish Ceremonial Art 1964 A Kampf Contem-porary Synagogue Art 1966 B Tammuz et al eds Art in Israel 1967 C Roth Jewish Art an Illustrated History 1971 J Gutmann ed No Graven Images Studies in Art and the Hebrew Bible 1971 H Kuumlnzl Juumldische Kunst von der biblischen Zeit bis in die Gegenwart 1992 G Sed-Rajna et al Lrsquoart juif 1995 (bibl) ET Jewish Art 1997 Gabrielle Sed-Rajna

2 Art and Christianity a Early Church The early churchrsquos relationship to art fed on the relative use of imagery in early Judaism (see 1 above) and on having to deal with the images of the emperor and the gods in Late Antiquity Even though recent research maintained that Christianity initially followed the Jewish mother-religion in reject-ing images current thought holds that the Judaism of Palestine which welcomed images was one of the roots of the Christian use of images Galilean synagogues for example have narrative image cycles as well as anthropomorphous figures and the Jewish use of amu-lets points to an image cult The rejection of autono-

mous portrayals of persons in contrast was aimed at the pagan image cult (rarr God Representations and Symbols of III rarr Veneration of Images ) and was con-sidered a sign of paganism and heresy This rejection was a response to the ancient understanding of images of the gods and of the emperor which identified the sculpture with the depicted Citing the biblical rarr prohi-bition of images early Christianity initially rejected the potrayal of God and Christ (even as a human person) arguing that the deity was fundamentally incapable of being depicted The suspi cion that all art was related to idolatry led not only to refusal to venerate artistic creations but also to rejection of all artistic activity (rarr Tertullian ) rarr Clement of Alexandria rarr Origen and others rejected art on moral grounds they maintained furthermore that works of art made from inert matter were incapable of depicting divine and spiritual truths

In the course of the 4th century especially after the Constantinian revolution positions shifted The great Cappadocians (rarr Basil the Great rarr Gregory of Nyssa rarr Gregory of Nazianzus rarr Cappadocian theology ) even advocated painting cycles and the decora tion of churches Legends telling of images not made by human hands (acheiropoieta) legitimized ndash in the face of continuing theological criticism ndash images of Christ and their ven-eration Now the conception of an image as a copy of an archetype based on neoplatonic ideas about images began to take root (rarr Neoplatonism ) Attempts to endow the everyday use of seal images with religious meaning and thus Christianize them demonstrate the extent to which Christians felt constrained to come to terms with ancient popular art (eg Clement of Alexandria) In all reservations regarding the cult of images continued to exist since the true imago the imago Dei (rarr Image of God ) is humanity itself Advocates of images legiti-mated portrayals of Christ (rarr Christ Representations of ) by appealing to the rarr incarnation Furthermore the pictorial representation of Christ and the martyrs would lead via the eyes to imitation (Basil the Great)

The beginnings of a Christian art can first be iden-tified in sepulchral art (sarcophagi catacombs) and the furnishing of sacral space (rarr Dura-Europos III ) From the 4th century on the martyr cult stimulated the image cult (rarr Martyrs Veneration of ) The rise of monumen-tal image cycles in prominent places (eg old St Peterrsquos) demonstrates the increasing acceptance of religious art Statues on the other hand were rejected occasioning its characterization as a process leading ldquofrom toler-ance to demonizationrdquo (Gramaccini) Iconographically a change from portrayals that were primarily symbolic and decorative to primarily anthropomorphic represen-tations took place it reached its zenith in the images of martyrs and influenced the image of Christ

RPP Previewindd 6RPP Previewindd 6 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

7 RPP preview

Objections to the image cult that even led to the destruction of images can be identified throughout the entire period (rarr Eusebius of Caesarea [d 339] against Christ icons rarr Epiphanius of Salamis [d 503]) The posi-tion of rarr Gregory I (d 604) was momentous he vindi-cated the use of images against the iconomachal bishop Serenus of Marseille His argument that images are the Bible of the laity and the threefold justification for their use (instruction refreshing the memory and stimulating the emotions) falsely attributed to him were repeated in this context well into the modern era The assessment of images as rarr adiaphora became a central idea in the theory of art As a result not art per se but primarily its (mis)use was subject to theological criticism The aesthetics of rarr Augustine (d 430) although it did not consider beauty autonomous was subsequently to link aesthetic experience with the possibility of encounter with the transcendent

J Kollwitz ldquoBild I (christliches)rdquo RAC II 1954 318ndash341 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder IV Alte Kircherdquo TRE VI 1980 525ndash531 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 9ndash134 ET Image and Presence 1994 G May ldquoKunst und Religion IV Urchristentum und Alte Kircherdquo TRE XX 1990 261ndash267 G Wolf Salus populi Romani 1990 W Kemp Christliche Kunst 1994 N Gramaccini Mirabilia 1996 Thomas Lentes

b Middle Ages The production and use of art con-cepts of imagery and aesthetics cannot be separated from Christianity throughout the entire Middle Ages Theological dispute and legitimization artistic innova-tions liturgical use and religious needs (sacrificial cult rarr devotion rarr indulgence ) are the coordinates within which their relationship was renegoti ated time and again almost always in periods of reform (Carolingian renaissance [rarr Carolingians ] 12th cent 15th cent) On the whole a theoretical theological restriction on the scope of art was at odds with its central role in the furnishing of churches in liturgy and in religious praxis (rarr processions rarr pilgrimage private devotion) so that it was even possible to speak of the ldquopower of imagesrdquo and the ldquopowerlessness of the theologiansrdquo (Belting) Where art and its use were contested the issue was less their absolute rejection than the question of the presence of the holy in works of art and consequently a prohibition against their cultic use As a legitimating topos the doc-trine of a triplex ratio of images attributed to Gregory I (see above) was repeatedly invoked instruction refresh-ment of the memory simulation of the emotions) As a further topos the doctrine of the presence of the invisible in the visible pervaded the discussion requiring in each case a determination whether it was to be understood as a material presence in the object or as an epistemo-logical act on the part of the observing subject Central to the practical legitimation of images were the cult of rarr relics and the many legends concerning so-called

acheiro poeieta images not made by human hands which were either revealed directly by God (eg the image of Abgar) or came into being through direct bodily contact with Christ like the Vera icon or through the artistrsquos eyewitness experience like the so-called St Luke Madonna

A first theoretical clarification in the Western reac-tions to the Byzantine controversy (rarr Veneration of Images VI ) was reached by Carolingian theologians especially in the rarr Libri Carolini (791) and at the syn-ods of Frankfurt (791) and Paris (825) They deci-sively rejected the worship (adoratio) of images and the Caroline Books even disallowed their veneration (veneratio) In the course of the Middle Ages how ever the veneration of images came to be permitted (eg rarr Thomas Aquinas ) The actual theoretical contribu-tion of the Frankish theologians consisted in the inclusion of works of art for the first time in the hierarchy of the material presence of the holy only the altar sacrament the ark of the covenant and relics bestowed salvation and to a lesser degree the crucifix but definitely not images In this sense it was also true in the West that the controversy over images was not simply a dispute concerning their cult but primarily a ldquodispute concerning the presence of the holyrdquo (Brown on the Eastern Iconoclastic contro-versy) Wherever a theory of images was debated in the West the discussion was analogous to the controversies over the Lordrsquos Supper (rarr EucharistCommunion II ) From the perspective of practical use in the course of the Middle Ages images were increasingly equated with the altar sacrament and could therefore be understood as a sacrament of the devout

A fundamental change in the use of images began when statuary images (eg the statue of Sainte-Foy at Conques) combined corporeal portrayal with the implan-tation of relics thus establishing an ldquoalliance of relic and imagerdquo that could be transferred in the High and late Middle Ages to the altarpiece and to autonomous pictures (Belting) As vigorously as the 12th-century rarr Cistercians (rarr Bernard of Clairvaux ) sought to maintain the tra-ditional prohibition against sculpture both statuary images and later also paintings depicting persons real-istically the subsequent debate was foreshadowed now the dispute involved primarily the relationship between image and person High Scholasticism distinguished between the image in its materiality as a res quaedam (wood stone etc) which had no religious dignity and its character as an imago alterius (of Christ or of saints) which deserved veneration but not worship (Thomas Aquinas) Nevertheless a vis spiritualis was attributed to images that also allowed them to become material vehicles of the sacred presence In the subsequent period down to the Reformation virtus and persona were distinguished

RPP Previewindd 7RPP Previewindd 7 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 8

so that miraculous power could be attributed to images but not a personal identity (Lentes)

In the course of the later Middle Ages devotional practice witnessed a growth in the use of images and confidence in their efficacy unparallelled in the his-tory of Christianity New vehicles for images (eg altarpieces) new purposes (eg rarr Pietagrave ) new content (man of sorrows imago pietatis Jesus-John groupings Mass of St Gregory) and new techniques of reproduc-tion (paper and printing) shaped the whole culture of images in the later Middle Ages The rarr Mendicants did more than propagate new images (eg stigmatization) The Franciscan movement (rarr Franciscans ) also intro-duced new forms of imagery and the establishment of the altarpiece (Kruumlger) the rarr Dominicans were the first order to permit each member an image in his cell In a religious climate of mysticism devotion and contempla-tion images became preferred sites of prayer especially in nunneries on the upper Rhine By the 14th century at the latest an ldquoalliance of indulgence and imagerdquo appeared whose importance for the increased use and production of images can hardly be exaggerated

As the image cult grew in the 15th century so did criticism and attempts to change the use of images and to reflect on it in strictly artistic terms Flemish painting underscored the contribution of the viewerrsquos imagina-tion by incorporating portrayals of patrons in formu-laic religious images viewing an image was to bridge the time between the saving event in the past and the observerrsquos present Reformers emphasized the moraliz-ing contribution of images and were already adducing all the arguments that scholarship usually attributes to the Reformation Theologians like rarr Nicholas of Cusa could employ the potential of images for catechesis while on the other underscoring their theological and gnoseologi-cal contribution to mystical ascent and the knowledge of God The changed conditions of production and the increased demand for images in any case made the period between 1480 and 1520 the most creative and productive phase of medieval art (Moeller)

P Brown ldquoA Dark-Age Crisis Aspects of the Iconoclastic Controversyrdquo English Historical Review 88 1973 1ndash34 H Belting Das Bild und sein Publikum im Mittelalter 1981 ET The Image and its Public in the Middle Ages 1990 idem Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 H Feld Der Ikonoklasmus des Westens 1990 G Wolf Salus Populi Romani 1990 B Moeller ldquoProbleme des kirchlichen Lebensrdquo in idem Die Reformation und das Mittelalter 1991 86ndash97 K Kruumlger Der fruumlhe Bildkult des Franziskus in Italien 1992 J Hamburger Nuns as Artists 1997 HL Kessler amp G Wolf eds The Holy Face and the Paradox of Repre sentation 1998 T Lentes ldquoAuf der Suche nach dem Ort des Gedaumlchtnissesrdquo in K Kruumlger amp A Nova eds Imagination und Wirklichkeit 2000 21ndash46 idem Gebetbuch und Gebaumlrde in preparation Thomas Lentes

c Renaissance Recent scholarship has spoken of a ldquopaganization of the Renaissancerdquo by art history arguing instead that the Renaissance bore a decidedly Catholic ie religious imprint (Traumlger) Although this theory has rightly been challenged it must be said that scholarship has long underestimated or intentionally overlooked the relationship between art and religion or between art and the economy of salvation in the rarr Renaissance (III) It is true that Renaissance art especially sculpture initially had recourse to rarr antiquity to help it carry out certain tasks (free-standing sculpture portrait busts) it did not copy ancient models but adapted them justifying its artistic approach by the claim to outdo antiquity But the production of art c 1400 likewise cannot be separated from religious rituals and communal events it arose predominantly from a complex interaction of religious life intimately intermeshed with political life an interac-tion of which social history has long since been cogni-zant (Burke Trexler) rarr Donatello rsquos bronze David the first free-standing statue since antiquity (c 14441446 according to Poeschke) and also his Judith and Holofernes (c 1446ndash1450) intentionally place religious themes in new expressive contexts (McHam) The works depart from the more restricted church setting in order to acti-vate public space ritually after the model of antiquity Their religious message is still clear what is new is that they take on the task of private and communal- public representation Not until the political upheavals in Florence (1494 1527) was it clear how closely reli-gious images in public space are linked with political intentions Thus Donatellorsquos Judith was removed from the family palace after the expulsion of the Medici and placed on the ringhiera before the Palazzo Vecchio as a republican monument until rarr Michelangelo rsquos David replaced it in 1504 The new location also gave his David originally intended for one of the buttresses of the cathedral a new republican (ie anti-Medici) signifi-cance which was not challenged ndash or rather turned on its head ndash until the addition of the pagan Hercules and Cacus group by Baccio Bandinelli (1525ndash1534)

Despite this increasingly independent use of reli-gious themes in public space however it must still be noted that the relationship of sculptural art to religion in the context of the church always remained auxiliary The traditions of popular religious art have continued unbroken for instance in the sacre rappresentazioni which (sometimes even today) employ sculptures as ldquosculptured actorsrdquo to represent the mysteries of the faith (such as the rarr resurrection and rarr ascension of Christ) in visible form (Tripp) Well into the Baroque period effigies (Warburg) and the important genre of cemetery statuary also bear unchanging and continuous witness

RPP Previewindd 8RPP Previewindd 8 91407 74026 PM91407 74026 PM

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

9 RPP preview

to patrons of religious art who embraced art as the monumental element of a personal assurance of salva-tion and as the guarantor of a personal earthly memoria (Borgolte)

A Warburg ldquoBildniskunst und Florentinisches Buumlrgertumrdquo (1902) in his Gesammelte Studien I 1932 89ndash126 340ndash352 J Pope-Hennessy Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1958 idem Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria amp Albert Museum 3 vols 1964 RC Trexler Public Life in Renaissance Florence 1980 idem Church and Community 1200ndash1600 1987 M Bor-golte Petrusnachfolge und Kaiserimitation die Grablegen der Paumlpste ihre Genese und Traditionsbildung 1989 J Poeschke Die Skulptur der Renaissance in Italien 2 vols 1990ndash1992 J Traeger Renaissance und Religion 1997 SB McHam ldquoPublic Sculpture in Renaissance Florencerdquo in idem ed Looking at Italian Renaissance Sculpture 1998 149ndash188 J Tripps Das handelnde Bildwerk in der Gotik 1998 Joseph Imorde

d Baroque For a long time scholarship accepted the formula rarr ldquo Baroque as the art of the Counter-Reformationrdquo (Weisbach) Today it seems more appropriate to place the relationship of Baroque art to religion under the heading of rarr ldquo confession alization rdquo making it possible to consider general tendencies affecting both Catholic and Protestant regions Transcending confessions Baroque art was marked by an increasingly established collectorsrsquo movement art was traded internationally and exhibited in collections the easel painting (Fr tableau) became the most sought-after picture medium This ldquoinstaura-tion du tableaurdquo (Stoichita) had profound consequences for the status of religious subjects in Baroque art the mixture of genres within the collections supported the connoisseurrsquos appreciation of artistic qualities even in response to religious images as the definitive form of reception a parade example being rarr Rembrandt rsquos Holy Family with a Curtain (Fig 1) While the emergence of the rarr confessional age throughout Europe will be out-lined here a more nuanced variety of religious art can be noted in Catholic areas Essential for this distinctive path was the decision of the Catholic Church to continue to use a full range of imagery in sacred space In tractates on imagery church authorities (such as GW rarr Molanus and Paleotti) sought to defend this position against criticism on the part of the Reformers (Hecht) But it was artistic practice itself that filled the newly-opened spaces with life On the one hand private patronage was retained Painted or sculpted altarpieces as well as com-plete orchestrated chapel ensembles often using several media (stucco fresco mural) were typical genres of such sacred art of private design A paradigmatic theme is the portrayal of a solitary visionary experience placed in tension with the subjective experience of the viewer (GL rarr Bernini Ecstasy of St Teresa) Beginning in the late 16th century on the other hand there developed a new type of multimedia ensemble within the insti-

tutional zone of the church in the central space Such space-filling complexes generally depict the lives of the martyrs or other founder figures of the church fram-ing and affirming their deeds with illusionistic repre-sentations of the hosts of heaven within the dome (eg Domenichino and Lanfranco Santrsquo Andrea della Valle in Rome) But even the ldquoartlessrdquo cultic images firmly rooted in popular piety the veneration of which under-went an upswing in the Baroque period could be placed at the center of such a display and thus be rendered inac-cessible to the devout (eg PP rarr Rubens and Pietro da Cortona Chiesa Nuova Rome) This institutional type of religious art initially represented primarily in the capital city of the Catholic Church produced a rich heritage in the late Baroque and Rococo churches of southern Germany (Wies Zwiefalten Birnau)

W Weisbach Der Barock als Kunst der Gegenreformation 1921 W Kemp ldquoKunst wird gesammeltrdquo in W Busch ed Funkkolleg Kunst 1997 C Hecht Katholische Bildertheologie im Zeitalter von Gegenreformation und Barock 1997 V Stoichita Das mysti-sche Auge Vision und Malerei im Spanien des Goldenen Zeitalters 1997 D Ganz Barocke Bilderbauten Erzaumlhlung Illusion und Institution in roumlmischen Kirchen 1580ndash1700 2003 David Ganz

e Neoclassicism and Romanticism As a chronological term ldquoNeoclassicismrdquo ndash German rarr ldquo Classicism rdquo ndash encom-passes the period from c 1760 to c 1830 it stands for a return to the ideal of Greco-Roman antiquity At times it was associated with sentimentalism (garden landscapes) ldquoSturm und Drangrdquo (rarr genius cult rarr sentimentalism) rarr Idealism (the idea of an aesthetic education) and rarr historicism In a departure from Baroque composition it pursued the idea of a normative art that can be taught free of historical and religious constraints After c 17801790 rarr Romanticism developed as an intellectual and cul tural countermovement contrasting the rationalism of the Enlightenment to the world of the irrational fantastic of

Fig 1 Rembrandt Holy Family with a Curtain 1646 (State Art Collection Kassel)

RPP Previewindd 9RPP Previewindd 9 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 10

feelings desire and melancholy It followed transcenden-tal individualistic and historical perspectives A major exponent of Neoclassicism such as Antonio Canova (1757ndash1822) acknowledged religion the church and the pope but avoided Christian allegories in his tomb paint-ings Other Neoclassical artists employed iconographic model on behalf of the Christian church political ideology ( Jacques-Louis Davidrsquos [1748ndash1825] Marat 1793) After the fall of rarr Napoleon I JAD Ingres (1780ndash1867) had conscious recourse to religious themes B rarr Thorvaldsen based his statue of Christ on the classical ideal of uni-versal humanity The artists of Romanticism how ever who regarded faith as the wellspring of their creativity objected to traditional Christian rarr iconography (IV) and theoreticians such as WH rarr Wackenroder Ludwig Tieck (1773ndash1853) and F rarr Schlegel demanded the renewal of religious painting by orienting it to the art of 15th- and 16th-century Germany and Italy Protestant landscape painters of early Romanticism such as PO rarr Runge and CD rarr Friedrich saw in nature the religious realm in which the individual encounters divine revelation The rarr Nazarenes (IV JF rarr Overbeck P von rarr Cornelius J rarr Schnorr von Carolsfeld ) who sometimes worked in Rome wanted to revive Christian art according to tradi-tional forms (rarr Raphael ) through an ethically pure life in community they inclined toward Catholicism and also influenced religious popular culture (devotional images creches rarr passion plays in Oberammergau) Retrospective tendencies undergirded the Biedermeier style of Moritz von Schwind (1804ndash1871) L rarr Richter and finally Carl Spitzwegrsquos (1808ndash1885) ldquoironic idyllsrdquo In French and English Romanticism ldquohistoryrdquo no longer refers only to epic episodes of a mythical history of nation culture or religion but an emotional spectacle The population explosion led to a great increase in church construction (rarr Church Architecture II) which was also encour-aged by social motives (ldquoCommissionersrsquo Churchesrdquo in England) Their sacral effect was supposed to be increased by an adherence to historical models often with nation-alistic connotations (Neo-Romanic Neo-Gothic early Chris tian basilicas Protestant longitudinal rather than central-plan churches)

G Eimer Zur Dialektik des Glaubens bei Caspar David Friedrich 1982 W Busch ldquoKlassizismus Bildende Kunstrdquo HWR IV 1998 1070ndash1081 H Schanze ed Romantik-Handbuch 2003 Yvonne Dohna

f Modern Period The relationship between the Christian religion and the graphic arts in the modern era is marked by a profound alienation The art of the Nazarenes in the 19th century developed a univer-sal program for imagery in churches as well as private spaces remained successful within the church until the

middle of the 20th century when pioneering artistic trends no longer felt obliged to the represent statements of the Christian faith Artists adopt the Enlighted posi-tions of criticism of Christian religion and institutions but also seek their own unconstrained forms of religi-osity The churchrsquos interest in such art has diminished the distinction between free art and ecclesiastical craft which continues the tradition of religious folk art as a matter of bourgeois taste has become fundamental Only superficially does this alienation manifest itself as a turning away from Christian iconography Also lamented are the loss of sacrality of normativity of the human standard and finally of objectively guaranteed order which seems to have been sacrificed to subjectiv-ity Sporadic artistic and theological attempts to bridge the chasm between art and religion (eg rarr Beuron ) have not been successful despite high ambitions Sedlmayrrsquos culture-critical observation concerning the ldquolost cen-terrdquo itself theologically based became the theologi-cal verdict on the art of the 19th20th centuries The focal point of this verdict is the systematically emerging autonomy of art in which the major artistic develop-ments of the modern era culminate Modern paintings and sculptures evade the dictates of preexisting ide-ologies and aesthetic criteria They demonstrate their independence through genuine conceptions of graphic forms of expression that open unimagined possibili-ties of perception This modern art cannot be identi-fied with the conceptual world of a particular religion Schoumlne saw in it the end of the portrayal of God in the West If we are nevertheless to determine the linkages between autonomous art and Christian religion we must expand the concept of religion Significant moves in this direction derive from FDE rarr Schleiermacher and P rarr Tillich On the other hand the liberation of art from religious regimentation has been traced back to Lutherrsquos theology of the image (Hofmann) Isolated projects involving individual artists and theologians (rarr Ronchamp rarr Vence etc) have tested the religious potential of modern art Broadly conceived exhibitions (eg Schmied) called attention to spiritual dimen-sions of autonomous art and created some interest in theology and the church despite general lack of inter-est Besides this interpretive perspective with its often sweeping judgment concerning the convergence of art and religion even in the modern period autonomous art points theology to the specific significance of aes-thetic perception and to the genuine power of imagery as it is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition of the prohibition of images as well as in many forms of imagery in the popular religious art of the past (miracu-lous and devotional images etc) cautioning against trite liberal attempts to make them seem harmless

RPP Previewindd 10RPP Previewindd 10 91407 74027 PM91407 74027 PM

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

11 RPP preview

H Sedlmayr Verlust der Mitte 1948 ET Art in Crisis The Lost Center 1957 W Schoumlne J Kollwitz amp H von Campenhausen Das Gottesbild im Abendland 1959 W Schmied ed Zeichen des Glaubens ndash Geist der Avantgarde 1980 W Hofmann Luther und die Folgen fuumlr die Kunst 1983 R Beck R Volp amp R Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen 1984 R Hoeps Bildsinn und religioumlse Erfahrung 1984 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 W Schmied ed Gegenwart Ewigkeit Spuren des Transzendenten in der Kunst unserer Zeit 1990 R Volp ldquoKunst und Religion VIIVIIIrdquo TRE XX 1990 292ndash329 (bibl) A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum theo logische Kunstkritik Positionen der Moderne 1991 (bibl) WE Muumlller amp J Heumann ed Kunst Positionen 1998 Reinhard Hoeps

g Contemporary Period Contemporary art is character-ized by the breakdown and recombination of traditional genres (crossover) and by the expanded use of a variety of materials and media (multimedia) The distinction between high and popular culture no longer applies painting and sculpture lay the same claim to artistic sta-tus as sound installations in industrial spaces music vid-eos and design objects As a result general statements concerning contemporary art must remain rudemen-tary There is a tendency toward contextual works that engage specific locations and situations (eg Muumlnster Sculpture Project 1997) The search for subjective self-assurance in the (post-)modern era (rarr Postmodernism) is often a theme of contemporary art (eg Nan Goldin [born 1953] Tracey Emin [born 1963]) The develop-ment of new media is ultimately leading to an increased involvement with questions of virtuality and reality and with the dissolution of the (material) work of art as it enters the virtual realm (eg Jeffrey Shaw [born 1944] Tony Oursler [born 1957]) Explicit involvement with Christianity occurs only sporadically Consequently dia-logue between art and Christianity must be sought on a broader basis transcending themes internal to the church Despite the distance between art and Christianity themes that occupied Christianity and its artistic cre-ations for centuries (death suffering love etc) have been continued in autonomous art Engagement with these traditions and ldquotransformationsrdquo occurs now and again in thematic exhibitions that juxtapose traditional Christian and contemporary art (eg Geissmar-Brandi) or seek a systematic overview of contemporary artistic positions concerning topoi that formerly were explic-itly Christian (eg Heaven Duumlsseldorf 1999) Artistic interventions in sacral spaces constitute an additional form of the dialogue between contemporary art and Christianity in which art engages the Christian tradition and formal language of these spaces and when success-ful gives them new relevance (eg Koumllbl) Theological reflection on contemporary art has two starting points First it compares aesthetic and religious experience thus identifying relevant structural analogies in which it dis-covers the specific value of artistic articulation includ-

ing that of its own tradition Philosophical proposals by W rarr Benjamin E rarr Leacutevinas TW rarr Adorno and Jean-Franccedilois Lyotard (born 1924) serve as prominent points of reference in this respect Second contemporary art is considered as a locus of theological knowledge a locus theo-logicus It can give information about the contemporary situation and forms of articulation and thus contribute to a proclamation of the gospel appropriate to our time In addition despite its distance from explicitly Christian themes contemporary art deals with relevant subjects (transcendence [im]materiality sacramentality presence [in]visibility time death suffering bodies etc) in spe-cifically aesthetic yet non-conceptual ways It therefore possesses an aesthetic potential that in the context of theological discourse may reveal important truths

C Geissmar-Brandi et al eds Glaube ndash Hoffnung ndash Liebe ndash Tod 1995 A Koumllbl et al eds Entgegen ReligionGedaumlchtnisKoumlrper in Gegenwartskunst 1997 J Herrmann et al eds Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 J Metzinger et al eds Galerien des Herrn KuKi 2 1998 J Rauchenberger Biblische Bildlichkeit Kunst Raum theologischer Erkenntnis 1999 Claudia Gaumlrtner

h Orthodox Churches The East initially seems to have been more cautious than the West regarding the emer-gence of a Christian figural art although a few items of church decoration figurally decorated liturgical objects sepulchral art etc from the 4th century and later are extant or attested A few early manuscript illuminations date from the 6th century

From the 6th century images acquired a new qual-ity as rarr icons The image was the place that received the veneration and prayer addressed to a holy figure and from which help was expected Legends (eg the miracles of Saints rarr Cosmas and Damian) reported miracles of deliverance and healing wrought by icons but also miraculous behavior of the icons themselves Theological literature also offered ndash hesitantly at first ndash defenses of images Anti-Jewish literature (esp Leontius of Naples see Thuumlmmel Fruumlhgeschichte no 70) laid out most extensively the reasons why Christians had images despite the biblical prohibition (Exod 204 etc) The standard example justifying (two-dimensional) images was the (three-dimensional) cherubim on the ark of the covenant (Exod 258ndash20)

Most of the earliest panel paintings are preserved in St Catharinersquos Monastery on Mount Sinai The new function is shown by an increase in representa-tive images The phenomenon appears to have spread gradually Churches were also decorated with images although the most important church of the empire the rarr Hagia Sophia in Constan tinople had only ornamental decoration until the 9th century

After c 726 the emperor who understood himself as the guardian of the tradition took up the battle

RPP Previewindd 11RPP Previewindd 11 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 12

against Christian images In 754 a council styling itself the seventh Ecumenical Council took place that prohibited images The primary proponent of images rarr John of Damascus expressed his views in three logoi but their text written in the Arabic sphere of influence seems hardly to have reached Byzantium In 787 with the assistance of the newly named patriarch Tarasius the empress Irene was able to see the veneration of images restored by a new council which declared itself the true seventh Ecumenical Council (rarr Veneration of Images VI) The first attempt of the council in 786 failed because of a putsch mounted by the iconoclasts The conciliar fathers had difficulties documenting the alleged rampages of the iconoclasts The legends of such behavior are of later date Neither in 754 nor in 787 was there an opposition party that refused to submit

In 815 the rejection of images was renewed (based on the council of 754) In contrast to the first period of the iconoclastic controversy there was now a party of iconodules that would mount opposition The most out-standing theologians in favor of images were patriarch rarr Nicephorus and rarr Theodore of Studios Several measures against those in favor of images are attested The attitude of the iconoclasts had altered If they had formerly been interested in abolishing all Christian images now they were interested only in abolishing the veneration of images for which reason they prohibited only those hung low enough to be accessible for ven-eration Thus the Eastern attitude came to approximate that of the Carolingian West In 843 under Empress rarr Theodora II the veneration of images still recognized today was reinstituted The official decision seems to have led only haltingly to a new wave of Christian art

John of Damascus first attempted a more profound theoretical justification for Christian imagery through a schema by which worship is accorded to the deity and veneration to the deityrsquos effectual presence in the icon The second Council of rarr Nicea codified this distinction without adopting the concept of the icon as an instru-ment of grace The theologians of the second period of the iconoclastic controversy patriarch Nicephorus and Theodore of Studios insisted instead on the unity of veneration and gave full weight to the statement of rarr Basil the Great ldquoThe veneration of the image passes on to its prototyperdquo (Spir [SC 17 106 19f]) In any case portrayal of the divine in an image was considered impossible Devotional practice was little concerned with such definitions and associated divine assistance directly with the image

Judging from the archaeological remains icons were initially reserved for central sanctuaries while private possession was limited to prominent persons Icons could be executed in ivory enamel and other materials

but also as paintings Since the 13th century painting has dominated The Balkans and (since the 11th cent) Russia have also been important centers of ecclesiastical art Although works of sculpture were never forbidden their role still remains modest

In the middle Byzantine period there evolved a dec-orative scheme for the domed cruciform church based on elements going back to the pre-Iconoclastic period with Christ depicted in the dome and Mary in the apse (11th cent monastery of Hosios Loukas St Sophia cathedral in Kiev Daphni)

The desire to secure the helping power of the image and also to continue the tradition led to the develop-ment of an rarr iconography defined according to types This is especially clear in the images of the Mother of God whose various types can be regarded as distinct subjects Usually these were copies of an icon that had particularly miraculous (hodegetria blacherniotissa vladimirskaya etc) Not until much later (14th cent) were icons consecrated probably because their aura of holiness had diminished now it had to be conveyed by a specific action

Christian imagery participated in the general devel-opment of art which with brief contrary tendencies moved toward an ever-increasing naturalism even in the Byzantine Empire The new trend is clearly evident for example in the Balkan murals of the 13th14th centu-ries (Mileševa Sopoćani Bojana Dečani) The Islamic conquest of the Middle East and the Balkans hardly caused problems In Russia in contrast the insistence on the traditional style and iconography on the one hand and the advance of general cultural development on the other created a problem still unresolved today In theory the desire not to change anything was generally asserted while some artists accused each other of adopt-ing novelties from the West The artifacts exhibit vari-ous types of innovation Stylistically for example the Stroganov school (eg Prokopy Čirin) created Baroque-inspired repristinations with naturalistic details while the Armory school (eg Simon Ushakov) expanded the old iconographic models in modern style Since the 16th century the advance of new themes has been aggressive Besides holy figures and the events of sal-vation didactic themes and illustrations of rarr hymns have become prominent The protest of the dean Ivan Viskovaty against this trend was rejected in 1554 With the schism of the rarr Old Believers these became the guard-ians of traditional icon painting In the 19th century despite their mass production icons were a disesteemed branch of popular religious art educated persons were much more attracted to paintings based on Western models as exemplified by St Isaacrsquos Cathedral in St Petersburg the church of the tsars (1848)

RPP Previewindd 12RPP Previewindd 12 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

13 RPP preview

Since the late 19th century Russian philosophy of religion has rediscovered and reinterpreted early Russian icons (E rarr Trubetskoy PA rarr Florensky SN rarr Bulgakov) There have also been attempts to equate the nature of the icon with that of the church both make the invisible heavenly world visible in this world and an early ldquoicon stylerdquo has also been theologically interpreted in this sense This rediscovery has also led to an enthu-siasm for icons in the West that admittedly generally disregards the concrete phenomenon of the icon in the Eastern Church There are also several new and idiosyn-cratic Eastern interpretations of the theology of icons (eg Ambrosios Giakalis) Even today Russian icon painting vacillates between an ideal based on Andrei Rublev (c 1400) and that of the 19th century This multiplicity hardly differs in other countries Romanian icons use the technique of verre eacuteglomiseacute

Sources E von Dobschuumltz Christusbilder TU 18 1899 H-J Geischer ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit TKTG IX 1968 H Hennephof ed Textus byzantini ad iconoma-chiam pertinentes ByNT I 1969 HG Thuumlmmel Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 Bibl K Schwarzlose Der Bilderstreit ein Kampf der griechischen Kirche um ihre Eigenart und um ihre Freiheit 1890 21970 EN Trubetzkoy Die religioumlse Weltanschauung der russischen Ikonen malerei 1927 A Grabar Lrsquoiconoclasme byzantin 1957 21984 K Onasch Ikonen 1961 ET Icons 1963 S Gero Byzantine Iconoclasm During the Reign of Leo III CSCO Sub 42 1973 H-G Beck Von der Fragwuumlrdigkeit der Ikone SBAWPH 7 1975 K Weitzmann The Monastery of St Catherine at Mount Sinai The Icons vol I 1976 S Gero Byzantine Ico noclasm dur-ing the Reign of Constantine V CSCOSub 52 1977 A Bryer ed Iconoclasm 1977 P Speck Kaiser Konstantin VI 1978 N Thon Ikone und Liturgie Sophia 19 1979 K Weitzmann et al Die Ikonen 1979 31993 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoBilder V1rdquo TRE VI 1980 532ndash540 (bibl) ET Icons 1993 J Irmscher ed Der byzantinische Bilderstreit 1980 C von Schoumlnborn Die Christus-Ikone 1984 G Dumeige Nizaumla II GoumlK 4 1985 F Boespflug amp N Lossky eds Niceacutee II 787ndash1987 1987 P Schreiner ldquoDer byzantinische Bilderstreitrdquo in Bisanzio Roma e lrsquoItalia nellrsquoalto medioevo I 1988 319ndash407 J Wohlmuth ed Streit um das Bild das zweite Konzil von Nizaumla (787) in oumlku-menischer Perspektive 1989 E Haustein-Bartsch ed Russsiche Ikonen ndash neue Forschungen 1991 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoDie Theorie der Ikonerdquo ThLZ 116 1991 641ndash650 idem Bilderlehre und Bilderstreit OumlC NF 40 1991 idem Die Fruumlhgeschichte der ostkirchlkichen Bilderlehre TU CIXL 1992 idem ldquoDie Ikone in der Ruśrdquo in Byzantium and its Neighbours from the Mid-9th till the 12th Centuries ed V Vavřiacutenek 1993 (= BySl 54 1993 232ndash241) A Giakalis Images of the Divine the Theology of Icons at the Seventh Ecumenical Council SHCT 54 1994 HG Thuumlmmel Das Schreiben der drei Patriarchen der Brief an Theophilos und die Synode von 836 AHC 2728 199596 109ndash127 idem ldquoPhaumlnomene der Ikonerdquo in Ab oriente et occidente (Mt 811) Kirche aus Ost und West ed W Nyssen M Schneider amp W Berschin 1996 487ndash497 K Parry Depicting the Word Byzantine Iconophile Thought of the Eighth and Ninth Centuries The Medieval Mediterranean 12 1996 H Maguire The Icons of Their Bodies Saints and Their Images in Byzantium 1996 R-J Lilie Die Patriarchen der ikonoklastischen Zeit BBS 5 1999 G Lange Bild und Wort die katechetischen Funktionen des Bildes in der griechischen Theologie des 6 bis 9 Jahrhunderts 21999 K-C Felmy amp E Haustein-Bartsch eds ldquoDie Weisheit baute ihr Hausrdquo Untersuchungen zu hymnischen und didaktischen Ikonen

1999 HG Thuumlmmel ldquoSergej Nikolaevič Bulgakov uumlber die Ikonerdquo in Spuren in der Vergangenheit ndash Begegnungen in der Gegenwart ed H-D Doumlpmann amp K Gaede 1999 167ndash173 H Ohme ldquoIkonen historische Kritik und Traditionrdquo ZKG 110 1999 1ndash24 Hans Georg Thuumlmmel

i Asia Africa Latin America Whether one can speak of Christian art at all is highly controversial in the dis-course of Western art history With reference to Africa Asia and Latin America however the second element of the phrase also comes under question Western con-ceptions of art are not directly transferable to creative activity in the context of other cultures and religions Art can be called Christian in the more restricted sense because of its intended use and its subject This observa-tion does not exclude the notion that every work of art has a religious dimension and is open to transcendence As to whether something is a work of art one must not only take into account the nonconcurrence of things that are concurrent in other contexts but also recognize the self-conception of the cultural and religious tradition involved The artist (mostly male) may be divided into three groups First there are those who accept commis-sions and have often been converted to the Christian faith through their engagement with biblical themes and with their patrons Second there are those Christian or not who engage with Christian subjects on their own ini-tiative The exponents of the third group finally under-stand themselves as distinctly Christian artists who wish to contribute through their works to the spread of the gospel in their countries Patrons as a rule are missionar-ies and missions Even artistic overproduction finds cus-tomers here In their own churches by contrast this art is mostly absent Patronage is indispensable however for any art Among the motifs portrayals of Christ and Mary (rarr Mary Mother of Jesus Representations of ) predomi-nate followed by scenes from the life of Jesus and parable illustrations (prodigal son good Samaritan etc) OT themes and images of saints are rare Occasionally one finds scenes from the history of missions In addition to Western prototypes the artists utilize the iconography of their own cultures and religions There is a rough distinc-tion between religious art as in rarr Hinduism (III) and rarr Buddhism (I) and court art that portrays and embel-lishes the life of the ruling class Popular art combines religious and genre motifs In the art of tribal cultures this differentiation between religious and secular does not apply If Christian content and cultural form are to be clearly distinguished missiology speaks of rarr accom-modation In contrast if a new iconology emerges from the cultural contact between Christian and indig-enous iconography rarr inculturation is involved An expres-sionism that could appropriately be called contextual art (rarr Contextual Theology) more concerned with

RPP Previewindd 13RPP Previewindd 13 91407 74028 PM91407 74028 PM

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 14

socio-economic and political problems is associated with the liberation movements and theologies (rarr Liberation Theology) of Latin America Africa and Asia

We may distinguish four historical phases that coin-cide with the various waves of expansion of the Christian faith Only scanty witnesses survive from the first phase representing in Asia the rarr Nestorian mission along the Silk Road and the rarr Thomas Christians in India and in Africa the Christian presence in Ethiopia about the beginnings we can only speculate In the Middle Ages and the early modern period missions followed the great journeys of discovery and colonial expansion (second phase) The missionaries carried in their bag-gage Western art to illustrate their preaching art which because of the increasing demand they soon had cop-ied or imitated by native artists The countermovement against this accommodation culminated in the disputes over rites (rarr Rites Controversies) The renaissance of the Christian mission in the 19th century was stamped by Europeanism or Americanism In the Protestant realm rarr Calvinismrsquos animosity toward images also played a role It remains to the credit of individual connoisseurs among the missionaries of this third phase that they inspired the creation of a Christian art The fourth phase coincides with the independence of the young churches In this phase art often anticipated the development of a contextual theology (Sundermeier)

The origins of Christian art in China lie in the Nestorian portrayal of the cross rising from the lotus blossom the central symbol of Buddhism In this con-text the cross stands for the risen Lord rather than Christrsquos passion Early artifacts include gravestones along the Silk Road and the famed Nestorian stele of Hsi-an (6th7th cent) Likewise only few artifacts survive from the second phase the Jesuit mission (rarr Jesuits) The establishment of the art department in Fu-Jen University in Beijing marked a new beginning (third phase) Celso Constantini (1876ndash1958) the apostolic delegate in China and later the secretary of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith was a major influence in this regard This art lover was able to win a congenial artist in Luke Chen By portraying Christian motifs in the traditional style of painting with water colors on silk Chen sought to introduce the Christian faith to his compatriots and Chinese culture to his Western viewers Today the broad palette of Christian art in China and Taiwan extends from folk art such as paper cuttings and knotted embroidery through portrayals of nature in the traditional style to the adaptations of Socialist Realism In Japan artistic production began with the second phase Once again the Jesuits were involved After a period when Christians were persecuted a new begin-ning came about through the influence of developments

in China it was marked by the founding of a Japanese artistsrsquo association (third phase) Modern Christian art in Japan exhibits a great variety that extends once again from folk art through ikehana to expressions of stylistic individualism Because missionaries were late in reaching Korea Christian art did not begin there until the third phase Today there is a vibrant Christian art scene Among the few Christian motifs of expressionist Minjung art (rarr Minjung Theology) there is a successful portrayal of the cross that makes the suffering of Christ present in the suffering of the people India like China is an Asian country that experienced all four phases Once again the symbol of the cross stands at the begin-ning of Indian Christian art The Syrian Mar Thomas Christians in Malabar early on adopted Hindu architec-ture for the construction of their churches The plethora of images in Hindu temples contrasted however with the undecorated churches where everything focused on the altar cross In the tradition of the Syrian church the cross once again represented the glory of the risen Lord The second phase produced two very different stylistic schools Portuguese-Indian art in Goa and Mughal art In the epoch of Golden Goa the materials used and the climatic conditions produced a local style of Western Christian architecture with hardly any indigenous ele-ments By decree the Hindu paintersrsquo guilds were per-mitted to portray only Christian motifs if the artists had converted to the Christian faith At the court of the Mughal ruler Akbar (1556ndash1605) and his son Jahangir engagement with Christian art resulted in stylistic changes especially in miniature painting Christian min-iatures represented a form of accommodation in an envi-ronment stamped by Islam Much as in China and Japan the impulse for the third phase in India came essentially from a school of painting The Bengal school however was a direct outgrowth of the Hindu renaissance and thus an Indian initiative Like the Hindu intellectuals who grappled intensively with the figure of Jesus Christ the pioneering artists never converted to Christianity Because of this particular constellation transitions to the fourth phase have been blurred in India Examples of Christian art can also be found in other Southeast Asian countries

The following discussion of Christian art in Africa is limited to the sub-Saharan region North Africa con-stitutes its own cultural realm from which Christianity was expelled in the course of 7th-century Islamicization except for the rarr Copts in Egypt Ethiopia is a borderline case The earliest Christianity in Black Africa (since the 4th cent) has traditional associations with the Coptic Church Besides liturgical crosses in a wealth of forms there are murals icons and illustrated manuscripts (rarr Magical Papyri) The earliest articrafts however date

RPP Previewindd 14RPP Previewindd 14 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

15 RPP preview

from the Middle Ages probably for climatic reasons In the second phase Jesuit influence again made itself felt In Ethopia as in the Christian art of Asia painting is the preferred medium whereas sculpture dominates elsewhere in Black Africa There are also significant differences with regard to architecture In contrast to the Hindu Buddhist and (sometimes) Islamic sacral structures in Asia in Africa again with the exception of Ethiopia there was no large-scale architecture that could serve as the model for African churches Examples of Christian African sculpture date predominantly from the third and fourth phases ie the 20th century As a rule stylistic features clearly identify the ethnic group of the artist who carved them The art centers or schools founded by the missionaries played an important role in their development Examples from the second phase have survived only from the former rarr Kongo Kingdom Among a large number of crucifixes there are also a few hermaphroditic portrayals of the crucified Christ They express the African conviction that perfection is simultaneously male and female After the collapse of Christianity in the kingdom of Kongo these crucifixes became cultic objects in the tribal religion as as is shown by late hybrid forms Figural sculptures and paintings have their Sitz in Leben in the ancestor cult An example of successful inculturation is a cement crucifix that por-trays the Christ in the form of a mask hanging on the cross In the rarr mask God is conceived as present in Jesus Christ In southern Africa an expressionist style also developed in the context of opposition to rarr apartheid finding expression in valuable woodcuts and linocuts

Latin America is still terra incognita with respect to research of Christian art There are no overviews Development began with the second phase From Mexico there are 16th-century picture catechisms in pottery form and feather mosaics Much as in India a local style of Portuguese and Spanish sacral architecture developed The fourth phase encompasses expression-ism connected with liberation theology and naiumlve paint-ing in the style of popular art

A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 Image Christ and Art in Asia 1ndash 1979ndash JF Thiel amp H Helf Christliche Kunst in Afrika 1984 T Sundermeier amp V Kuumlster eds Die Bilder und das Wort zum Verstehen christlicher Kunst in Afrika und Asien 1999 Volker Kuumlster

3 Islamic Art The term islᾱm (ldquosubmissionrdquo ie sub-mission to God) has a religious meaning the expres-sion ldquoIslamic artrdquo is used for creations both with and without religious connotation therefore the usage is a misleading generalization It can nevertheless be justi-fied by many common elements in the artistic activity of countries where Islam is or was the predominant reli-gion This region has extended over three continents

from the Atlantic Ocean to the Bay of Bengal almost from the 7th century until today The complicating fac-tors are self-evident for works that originate in such an area and over such a period cannot be given a common denominator In purely religious art however its func-tion enforces certain constant formal characteristics that have a unifying effect For secular structures ndash houses and palaces caravanserais cities royal cities and for-tresses bridges and city walls ndash and for objects of daily use ndash in clay metal glass rock crystal textiles ndash and also for books the forms of expression developed are mani-fold and often seem to have arisen from the encounter of authentic local traditions with a fund of rules laid down in often remote centers of power and prestige that were taken as a model Similarly the influence of religious art acted as a unifying element for all artistic activity

Architecture architectural decoration book illus-tration and refined handicrafts are the chief areas of artistic activity in the traditional Islamic world which knew neither monumental sculpture nor panel paint-ing mural painting is represented but it ranks behind glazed ceramics molded stucco and stone facing (cf Islam IV)

The similarities apart from the purely religious ele-ment are real major similarity seems to lie in the central role of the ruler in the early centuries the court of the caliph as model and focus of cultural patronage shaped artistic activity over vast areas Thus stucco patterns developed in Ar-Raqqah at the beginning of the 19th cen-tury appear almost simultaneously in Samarkand Later the countless regional princely courts played a similar role The anonymity of the artists often adduced as typ-ical for Islamic art does not stand up to closer observa-tion signatures of architects decorators and craftsmen are often found Even more often however the names of royal patrons appear often with extensive additional information If the signature of a craftsman includes no further information we are mostly unable to identity the creator

The widespread notion that the rarr Qurhān prohibits the depiction of living beings is equally false A certain iconophobia in the Islamic world specifically the reli-gious realm however cannot be denied Since power derives its legitimacy from religion the prince obviously cannot use portrayals of his person for propaganda Neither can religion employ picture stories to communi-cate its teaching In architecture and handicrafts we find mostly abstract ornaments that endlessly intertwine epi-graphic geometric and botanical motifs and configure them in visual inventions based on strictly mathematical rules in which mystics hope to recognize the reflection of the cosmic harmonies of the work of God the sole true creator

RPP Previewindd 15RPP Previewindd 15 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 16

A brief historical survey of Islamic art underscores the importance of the artistic and cultural centers that deter-mined artistic activity in extensive peripheral regions The succession of Near Eastern capitals under the Umayyads and the first aAbbasids (7thndash9th cents) saw the rise of an art displaying its Roman Byzantine and Sasanian heritage but having its own specific require-ments and functions so that a new artistic language rapidly arose establishing the criteria for all later Islamic civilization

In the 10th century certain regions with strong pre-Islamic artistic traditions succeeded in renewing the forms that had developed in the former Syrian and Mesopotamian caliphate capitals These creative centers crystallized in Al-Andalus the Maghrib and Egypt as well as in Iran and Central Asia Between the 11th and 13th centuries regional centers developed that exhib-ited such vitality that they burst the bounds established in the original caliphate structures the massive influx of Turkic peoples from central Asia onto the Islamic stage led to the formation of a number of Turkic centers of power and creativity between eastern Iran Anatolia and the Mediterranean The cultural gradient in Islamic Asia now clearly ran from East to West The Maghrib experienced its own parallel development in the rhythm of the contribution of the Berbers The Mongolian influx in the East and the rarr Reconquista in the West stamped the Islamic world of the 13th and 14th centuries Now the creative forces accumulated in the Iran of the Il-khanids then of the Timurids and led to an artistic uni-fication between the Punjab and the Near East There emerged a magnificent architecture with polychrome facing whose key elements are domes atop tall drums impressive minarets (rarr Mosque) majestic arcades and monumental gates In the Mamluk period (mid-13th cent to the early 16th cent) these traditions continued to survive in the Near East the architecture is more mas-sive and less resplendent but equally impressive and often of the highest quality Mehmed Fatihrsquos conquest of Constantinople in 1453 marked the beginning of the political and cultural dominance of the Ottoman Empire over the entire Near East and part of the Maghrib spa-cious domed halls flanked by towering minarets often of stone sprang up everywhere

In the 16th century three empires divided the Islamic world and stamped their aesthetic rules on their regions the Mughal Empire in India the Safavids in Iran and the Ottomans in the Near East and the Maghrib (except-ing Morocco) These three different artistic entities were closely intertwined the requirements of religion the power structures and the mixture of peoples attribut-able to the duty to make a rarr pilgrimage (IV) to rarr Mecca lent them an unmistakable unity that proved especially

splendid the closer the patrons and ateliers of these states were to each other

Islamic art is certainly not homogeneous but it can be understand as a unity with numerous facets its unity rests ultimately on the religious and social foundation underlying this civilization and its artistic creativity

J Sourdel-Thomine amp B Spuler Die Kunst des Islam PKG IV 1973 R Ettinghausen amp O Grabar The Art and Architecture of Islam 650ndash1250 The Pelican History of Art 1987 SS Blair amp JM Bloom The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250ndash1800 The Pelican History of Art 1994 Marianne Barrucand

IV Christian Theology 1 Fundamental Theology A history of necessary ten-sion characterizes the relationship between Christian faith and art This tension rests on the unique power of art to manifest those dimensions of reality that remain hidden in everyday as well as in scientific experi-ence Works of art therefore can be endowed with the capacity to manifest the transcendent in the realm of religion consequently art becomes either an ally or a competitor and opponent This situation obtains even for epochs and cultures that do not know the concept of art as it has developed since the Renaissance and also determines the contemporary understanding of art

Given a religious environment full of images repre-senting the sensible presence of the invisible and power-ful an overthrow of images of the gods was associated by biblical faith with disempowerment of the gods Where this understanding did not lead to a prohibition of images it became necessary to understand images and artistic praxis in a way that did not view images as an immediate presentation of the divine but rather under-stood them functionally as ornamentation as a medium of instruction but also as an indication of the transcen-dent After the iconoclastic controversies were decided in favor of images a critical balance was required that would allow images a religious dimension but simulta-neously emphasize their auxiliary function Devotional images (rarr Pietagrave) and icons have a mediating function They are not in themselves divine images are intended to focus the thoughts and feelings and direct them to the proper object of worship

In the modern era this balance initially shifted to a religious overestimation of art The work of art itself was understood as a manifestation of the rarr absolute thus claiming the heritage of religion Such an extreme burden is not only theologically objectionable but also aporetic because art now subjective cannot take on or produce a binding collective model of interpretation Art loses its way when it seeks to generate identity affirmatively its power resides in opposition to what is apparently certain customary and accepted By challenging the claims of what goes unquestioned as well as by the self- absorption

RPP Previewindd 16RPP Previewindd 16 91407 74029 PM91407 74029 PM

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

17 RPP preview

of the profane world (rarr Profaneness) art opens new religious perspectives without itself becoming an ersatz religion Autonomous art thus becomes an important opponent of faith as well as a form of expression of faith its theological significance does not reside directly in religious subject matter yet the aesthetic treatment of religious ideas and concepts can contribute to their criti-cal examination and clarification It is rather the work of artistic creation itself that in its search for aesthetic coherence even in articulating the negative evokes sen-sible forms of unbroken life As is especially clear in the abnegation of the object in abstract and absolute art the phenomenality of phenomena themselves becomes perceptible in works of art this points in turn to the experience of rarr creatureliness in its vulnerability and its promise

TW Adorno Aumlsthetische Theorie 1970 ET Aesthetic Theory 1997 G Rombold Der Streit um das Bild 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 A Stock Keine Kunst 1996 P Biehl ed Kunst und Religion JRP 13 1997 Wolfgang Schoberth

2 Ethics Closely as religion and art have been linked since their historical beginnings they nonetheless stand in a relationship of tension In the course of the history of theology an exclusive antithesis between rarr aesthetics (II) and ethics has been proclaimed most radically by S rarr Kierkegaard In a similar vein theological reserva-tions have been expressed about art especially the graphic arts There has been fear that theological truth would be destroyed by artistic interests The bibli-cal prohibition of images and the iconoclasm that has appeared sporadically throughout church history are based on this fear The element of truth in these theo-logical reservations and religious movements reflects the fact that the spheres of religion and aesthetics do indeed overlap although each displays its own dynamic which cannot be transferred seamlessly to the other To this extent ethical reservations regarding to art should not be rejected a limine

That said however theology cannot address art exclusively with an ethic of negation and reservation A Christian ethic must assess art from the perspec-tive of creation theology as the result of the human joy of aesthetic creation Furthermore aesthetic and reli-gious experience are closely related (Graumlb) and thus approach justify an ethical stance Currently the relation-ships between aesthetics and ethics are more likely to be emphasized than their differences and antagonisms Questions concerning the Christian conduct of life (rarr lifestyle) are articulated as questions concerning life-style (Korsch) Finally among the theorists of postmo-

dernity the boundaries between art and ethics aesthetics and theological truth have become blurred

Precisely because the relationship between art and religion can never be made unequivocal but remains per-sistently ambivalent theology needs an ldquoethics of artrdquo that protects aesthetic and theological interests equally Such an ldquoethics of artrdquo presupposes a careful apprecia-tion of the uncompromising historical variety of works of art as well as an interdisciplinary discussion between philosophical and theological aesthetics and ethics

S Kierkegaard Enten-Eller 1843 ET EitherOr 1959 1987 W Welsch ed Die Aktualitaumlt des Aumlsthetischen 1993 W Graumlb ldquoDer inszenierte Text Erwaumlgungen zum Aufbau aumlsthetischer und religioumlser Erfahrung in Gottesdienst und Predigtrdquo IJPT I 1997 209ndash226 D Korsch Religion mit Stil Protestantis mus in der Kulturwende 1997 J Herrmann A Mertin amp E Valtink eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst aumlsthetische und religioumlse Erfahrung heute 1998 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen Kunst als Thema gegenwaumlrtiger evangelischer und katholischer Theologie 1998 Albrecht Groumlzinger

3 Sociology The thesis formulated by J rarr Burckhardt in his Weltgeschichtliche Betrachtungen (Gesammelte Werke 41970 77) that all art was ldquoonce in the service of the holy and passed through the templerdquo can be proven sociologically In this regard the institutional and per-sonal interweaving of art and religion underwent many changes in the course of history In antiquity many art-ists were in the direct service of temple hierarchies in the Middle Ages artists organized in craft guilds lived in the construction huts as cathedrals were built Religious institutions very soon came into competition with the nobility and the bourgeoisie as the latter became increas-ingly important as patrons of the arts

By the Renaissance at the latest the relationship of the arts to religious institutions had changed decisively On the one hand urban patricians and the emerging middle class exceeded the church in economic power and thus in the capacity to patronize the arts On the other the growing modern self-consciousness of the autonomy of art placed artists in an increasingly criti-cal relationship to the church With a few exceptions art commissioned by the church came generally to be regarded as artistically second-rate

In todayrsquos pluralistic societies the relationship between art and religion seems itself to be increas ingly pluralistic The church and theology are rediscovering the importance of art and aesthetics for religious experi-ence and church practice while many artists for their part are giving new weight to the religious dimension of art and letting it shape their aesthetic practice

From an institutional perspective churches are responding in diverse ways to the newly developed mutual interests of art and religion Aesthetic themes appear in rarr education of adults especially in the academies

RPP Previewindd 17RPP Previewindd 17 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 18

Exhibitions of contemporary art take place in churches and other ecclesiastical spaces For its part the church is often present in exhibitions especially in the Documenta (Kassel Germany) or accompanies them themat ically Experiences from the theater have enri ched liturgical education and directors help train future pastors Last but not least the tectonic shifts in the relationship of religion the church and society demand a new relation-ship between art and religion the churchrsquos presence in the rarr media requires aesthetic competence churches in the old city centers survive in large part on their artis-tic offerings rarr church concerts reach more people than the traditional worship services which themselves are configured with a greater liturgical-artistic sensibility In rarr postmodernism a new more relaxed relationship between art and religion is in progress

A Hauser Soziologie der Kunst 1974 ET Sociology of Art 1982 G Duby Le temps des catheacutedrales 1976 ET The age of the Cathedrals Art and Society 980ndash1420 1981 R Beck R Volp amp G Schmirber eds Die Kunst und die Kirchen der Streit um die Bilder heute 1984 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Belting Bild und Kult 1990 ET Likeness and Presence 1994 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige ndash Theologie im Schnittpunkt von Kunst Kultur und Kommunikation 1991

Albrecht Groumlzinger

4 Missiology With respect to the historical devel-opment of Christian art in missionary regions we can distinguish three phases The first was the foreign mis-sion phase in which the influence of Western art domi-nated In the Roman Catholic missions missionaries and traders introduced various works of art such as sculp-tures paintings and art prints Many of these works of art were used in the worship space and attracted people In the Orthodox Church icons served to inspire people in the church Most Protestant missionaries exercised restraint toward religious graphic art for theological reasons (prohibition of images) and concentrated their efforts on the translation of the Bible Through contact with Western culture many works of art with biblical themes by artists such as rarr Rembrandt V van rarr Gogh and GH rarr Rouault were introduced later and gained extraordinarily far-reaching influence

The second phase characterized by efforts at rarr indi-genization began after WWII through the efforts of mis-sion churches to establish independence as demanded in the context of the establishment of national indepen-dence In Asia many Christian artists who had been relatively isolated joined together in national associa-tions for Christian art In 1978 the Asian Christian Art Association was established for all of Asia It has since published a quarterly with the title IMAGE which func-tions as an information organ and a forum for theologi-cal reflection on Christian art

One of the critical theological questions is that of Christology Who is Jesus Christ How should Jesus Christ be given expression in onersquos own cultural context A few artists have attempted to portray Christ in the style of traditional religious leaders in India for example as a Hindu guru or in China in the figure of a Confucian sage KH Ting (Ting Kuang-hsun Din Guangxun) the president of the China Christian Council described the attempt to portray Christ in the framework of onersquos own cultural identity in the following words ldquoIn the last 40 years Chinese Christianity has endeavored to lay aside its Western dress and to replace it with an Eastern Chinese identity and has thus become an integral part of Chinese culturerdquo (Christian Art in China [catalogue] China Christian Council 1995 1) This endeavor is defined by its objective of bringing the gospel to indigenous people and thus simultaneously enriching the universal church While a few of these attempts attracted significant atten-tion in the beginning this program has been increas-ingly perceived as a demand for artistic conformity and as a restriction of creative freedom Furthermore this approach tends to address the question of indigenization to the past and not to the present and future

In the third phase not always clearly distinct from the second the key question asks Who is Jesus Christ here and now Christian artists struggle with the task of responding to the presence of God in their own cultural and social contexts through creative works of art

Furthermore no socio-cultural context stands in iso-lation each is related to others in global mutual interde-pendence Bagong Kussudiardja (b 1928) the leading proponent of dance art and theatre in Indonesia has repeatedly attempted to give expression to the biblical drama in contemporary contexts as in his Dancing Madonna or his portrayal of Jesus with sunglasses and fishermen

At the plenary assembly of the World Council of Churches in Nairobi in 1975 many took note of a provocative work of art The Tortured Christ by the Brazilian sculptor Guido Rochan gave pointed expres-sion to the agonized cries of the oppressed Ang Ku Kob (b 1931) similarly configured the agony of the crucifix-ion through the stylistic means of cubism The works of Tadao Tanaka (1903ndash1995) one of Japanrsquos leading art-ists represented repeated attempts to give new expres-sion to the biblical drama in contemporary historical and social contexts as in his painting Exodus (1966)

The biblical drama has also proven to be a source of inspiration for artists in other religions and has chal-lenged them to produce their own artistic response Thus KC Shankara Panker a Hindu artist portrayed the face of Christ in his Sorrow of Christ as that of a leper

The play Wings of Love written and produced by Yuko Yuasa (b 1939) in 2000 elaborates the recip-

RPP Previewindd 18RPP Previewindd 18 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

19 RPP preview

rocal resonance between the person and work of rarr Francis of Assisi (1181ndash1226) and the Buddhist her-mit Ryokan (1758ndash1831) through the traditional forms of Noh theatre Works like this indicate the possibility of interreligious cooperation in which shared concern for the common good justice and peace of the one world replace conflict and compe tition

Journal IMAGE publ Asian Christian Art Association 1ndash 1979ndash1984 2000 Bibl J Jobe Ecce Homo 1962 A Lehmann Afroasiatische christliche Kunst 1966 ET Christian Art in Africa and Asia 1969 M Takenaka Christian Art in Asia 1973 RH Bainton Behold the Christ A Portrayal of Christ in Words and Pictures 1974 J Sahi Stepping Stones Reflection on the Theology of Indian Culture 1986 M Takenaka amp R OrsquoGrady The Bible through Asian Eyes 1991 Y Yuasa Wings of Love A Story of Ryokan and St Francis of Assissi Told of Teishinni and St Chiara 2000 Masao Takenaka

5 Practical Theology Since the mid-1960s German practical theology has turned its attention to the rela-tionship between art and religion (Hans-Eckehard Bahr Schwebel Volp) examined the theological implications of modern art engaged in dialogue with artists and works of art given critical attention to the churchrsquos treat-ment of art especially contemporary art and undergone a change in its understanding of the visual arts based on a methodologically differentiated procedure involving art

studies as a partner discipline This new understanding no longer focuses on how to use for the exclusive pur-pose of proclaiming the gospel it accepts the auton omy of art and frees it ldquofrom the spell of specialized appli-cationrdquo (Volp 324) in the sense of illustrating religious experience and biblical history This understanding acknowledges that contemporary art has indeed eman-cipated itself from its function as an instrument for the self-interpretation of Christian tradition but without severing all relationship to the Christian religion We must largely refrain from understanding the religious aspect of art solely thematically since this aspect always involves an aspect of form as well Thus the dialogue with art leads to a shift of interest that may even extend to a fundamental aesthetic grounding of practical theol-ogy as a discipline at the interface between science and art (Groumlzinger) which understands art as a practical dimension of how the church acts (Volp)

Art thus becomes an autonomous medium of expres-sion and experience for religion not subject in its rules and conditions of production to the needs of the church which opens access to a new religiosity as a rule no longer linked to the church and contains traces of the practice of Christian faith With attention to this char-acter contemporary art can be responsibly incorporated

Fig 1 Bagong Kussudiardja Dancing Madonna batik (Masso Takenaka Collection) Fig 2 KC Shankara Paniker Sorrow of Christ (Masao Takenaka

Collection)

RPP Previewindd 19RPP Previewindd 19 91407 74030 PM91407 74030 PM

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 20

in proclamation worship and instruction It discloses ndash independently of the personal beliefs of the artist ndash spiritual experiences in the process of reception Art is available to practical theology as a sensitive instrument for recording experiences that cannot be expressed appro-priately in written form Practical theology allows art its own approach to religion which makes contempo-rary religious experience and interpretation of the world accessible with particular attention to the dimension of corporeality

Works of art present complex models for the experi-ence of faith Where their impact is accepted they create a transitional space for experience Art also confronts the Christian faith wih a difficult demand because it forces the viewer to appreciate religious experience linked to the artistrsquos possibly objectionable life story Works of art produce their own ongoing effect in the viewer and set in motion a vital communication into which God can enter with the Holy Spirit

A lack of discernment in church circles often remains a problem leading to confusion of artistic handicraft that merely puts a modernistic cast on the traditional motifs of Christian iconography with authentic and cre-ative contemporary art R Volp ldquoImagines Deirdquo ThLZ 108 1983 324ndash334 A Mertin amp H Schwebel eds Kirche und moderne Kunst 1988 H Schwebel amp A Mertin eds Bilder und ihre Macht 1989 I Moumlller ed Anstoumlszlige FS R Volp 1991 A Stock Zwischen Tempel und Museum 1991 K Raschzok ldquoDas Bild als Erlebnisraum fuumlr die Gottes begegnungrdquo KuK 70 1992 10ndash17 idem ldquoMit Bildern verkuumlndigenrdquo ibid 42ndash48 P Graumlb ldquoKunst und Kircherdquo in P Graumlb amp K-C Epting eds 1993 208ndash227 A Groumlzinger Praktische Theologie als Kunst der Wahrnehmung 1995 J Heumann amp WE Muumlller Auf der Suche nach Wirklichkeit 1996 I Maumldler Kirche und bildende Kunst der Moderne 1997 DM Meiering Kunst im Dienst (an) der Kirche 1997 S Natrup ldquoDas postmoderne Kunstmuseumrdquo in A Groumlzinger amp J Lott eds Gelebte Religion FS G Otto 1997 50ndash62 W Graumlb ldquoKunst und Religion in der Modernerdquo in J Herrmann et al eds Die Gegenwart der Kunst 1998 57ndash72 WE Muumlller amp J Heumann eds Kunst-Positionen 1998 M Zink ed Kreuz+Quer 1998 K Raschzok Christuserfahrung und kuumlnstlerische Existenz 1999 A Kraetzschmer Kuumlnstlerische und wirtschaftliche Spezifika der temporaumlren Praumlsentation zeit-genoumlssischer Kunst in evangelischen Kirchen 1999 M Kuumlnne Bildbetrachtung im Wandel 1999 J Doppelstein ed Lost Paradise Lost 2000 K Raschzok ldquorsquoMethode der Predigtrsquo vom homiletischen Nutzen einer zeitgenoumlssischen Kuumlnstler-theorierdquo ZThK 97 2000 110ndash127 Klaus Raschzok

Christmas

I History ndash II Christian Liturgy ndash III Practical Theology ndash IV Art History ndash V Music

I History1 Origins ldquoChristmasrdquo the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25 comes from Middle English Christmesse Christrsquos Mass cf Dutch Kerstmis The German Weihnachten ldquoholy nightsrdquo refers to the

twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6 The Lat natalis dies nativitatis or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span navidad Ital natale Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίουhēgeneacutethlios hēmeacutera taacute geneacutethlia hē kataacute saacuterka geacutennēsis touacute kyriacuteou The Scandinavian Jul corresponds to the older English Yule

The origin of the second-oldest Christian yearly feast (after Easter) has never been fully explained The true birth date of Christ is unknown In spite of the lack of proof for its origins and its rationale liturgical historians have developed two non-exclusive theories According to the Calculation hypothesis for the origins of Christmas the pivotal point for determining the birth date of Jesus was the spring equinox (Mar 25 in the Julian calendar) which was believed to mark the anniversary of Creation and the day of Jesusrsquo crucifixion as well as the day of his Incarnation The belief attested by the Scriptures that the Hebrew patriarchs lived a full number of years (and thus died on their birthday) because the perfection of God does not admit of fractions meant that in the case of Jesus the date of his conception (the Annunciation to Mary) and his date of death would fall on the same day His birth would then have taken place exactly nine months after conception Dec 25 Evidence against the Calculation theory can be found in Sextus Julius Afri-canus rarr Clement of Alexandria pseudo- rarr Hippoly tus and De Pascha computus that place the birth not the conception of Jesus on the 25th of March as well as several weaknesses in the argument itself

According to the more likely history-of-religions hypothesis the date of Christmas can be explained by some striking parallels with the Roman state cult of the Invincible Sun Sol Invictus celebrated on the winter sol-stice Dec 25 in the Julian calendar This feast instituted in 275 by the emperor Aurelian celebrated the ldquorebirthrdquo of the unconquered sun as the days grew longer The period in which the Nativity feast appears between 243 and 336 coincides with the rise of the monotheistic solar cult in Rome Christian preachers such as Leo the Great made use of such analogies for Christ as ldquothe light dawning upon us from on highrdquo (Luke 178) the ldquosun of righteousnessrdquo (Mal 320 [42]) and ldquothe true Light coming into the worldrdquo ( John 19) suggesting a pos-sible motive for the celebration of the nativity feast on Dec 25 Christrsquos resurrection as a victory over the dark night of death was thus projected back upon his birth By the time of Augustine four key feasts were aligned with the turning points of the solar year the birth of Christ at the winter solstice the conception of Christ at the spring equinox the birth of rarr John the Baptist at the summer solstice and the conception of John the Baptist at the autumn equinox

RPP Previewindd 20RPP Previewindd 20 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

21 RPP preview

The extreme form of the history-of-religions hypo-thesis that 4th-century Christians ldquoadoptedrdquo or ldquobap-tizedrdquo the Roman feast of Sol Invictus cannot be proven on the basis of the extant evidence Christians would have strongly denied that they were influenced by Roman practices and there is good evidence that Chris-tians did not necessarily adopt pagan celebrations (cf New Yearrsquos day as a day of abstinence for Christians) yet the analogies between Christ and the sun clearly drew from the culture of late imperial Rome

One theory for the rapid spread of the feast in the late 4th and 5th centuries was due to its use as an occasion for aggressive polemic preaching by Nicene (rarr Nicea Council of ) Christian bishops against Arians and splin-ter groups of Christians or against non-Christians The Cappadocian fathers and John Chrysostom were also anti-Arian crusaders Leo the Great preached a series of ten Christmas sermons in Rome in which he attacked various Christian and non-Christian groups contrasting their ldquodarknessrdquo with the ldquolightrdquo of Nicene Christianity2 The spread of Christmas The first calendar nota-tion of the nativity feast of Christ on December 25 appears on the Chronograph or Almanac of 354 whose source material for the Dec 25 date can be traced to the year 336 shortly before the death of the emperor rarr Constantine (who probably exerted no influence on its introduction since Constantinople did not celebrate Christmas until 380) The earliest evidence for the spread of the feast comes from North Africa in 361 (the hom-ily of rarr Optatus of Milevis which used not the infancy narratives but Herodrsquos murder of the innocents Revue des sciences religieuses 12 1922 279ndash302) north-ern Italy (rarr Philastrius of Brescia De haeresibus 140) rarr Ambrose (the hymn ldquoIntende qui regis Israelrdquo [second stanza ldquoVeni redemptor gentium rdquo]) Spain (Synod of Saragossa 380 canon 4) Gaul (rarr Gregory of Tours late 5th cent Historia 1031) The churches of the East already celebrated rarr Epiphany as an incarnation feast and reluctantly accepted the Roman Dec 25 feast The earliest evidence for a Dec 25 Christmas in the East comes from a sermon of Basil (+379) (Homilia in s Christi generationem) In 379 rarr Gregory of Nazianzus introduced the feast into Constantinople and John rarr Chrysostom (in diem natalem) argued for its estab-lishment in Antioch in 386 The first witness for Egypt dates from 432 and for Jerusalem during the reign of Justinian II (565ndash578) Only the Armenian Church (rarr Armenia II) does not celebrate Dec 25

B Botte Les origines de la Noeumll et de lrsquoEacutepiphanie 1932 O Cull-mann Der Ursprung des Weihnachtsfestes 1963 H Engberding ldquo25 Dezember als Tag der Feier der Geburt des Herrnrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 25ndash43 L Fendt ldquoDer heutige Stand der Forschung uumlber das Geburtsfest Jesu am 2512 und uumlber Epiphanierdquo ThLZ 78 (1953) 1ndash10 H Frank ldquoFruumlhge-

schichte und Ursprung des roumlmischen Weihnachtsfestes im Lichte neuerer Forschungrdquo Archiv fuumlr Liturgiewissenschaft 2 (1952) 1ndash15 H auf der Maur ldquoFeiern im Rhythmus der Zeitrdquo Gottesdienst der Kirche 5 (1983) 165ndash176 SK Roll Toward the Origins of Christmas 1995 T Talley The Origins of the Liturgical Year 1986 1991 H Foumlrster Die Feier der Geburt Christi in der Alten Kirche 2000 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

3 History of customs Christmas was and is the high-est festival period of the year in our culture a time of holiday and rest for children for gift-giving the end of the year ndash functions mirrored in its customs It origi-nally encompassed the period from Martini (Nov 11) to Candlemas (Feb 2) The message of Christmas with its topoi of light (rarr Light and darkness) warmth celebra-tion wishes and gifts is a culture of contrasts with the darkness and cold the slowing and domestication of work in agrarian society Christmas as a 12-week-long period of feasting and fasting offered secular (alongside church) customs involving noise hubbub and magic Martini (the end of the labor and economic year the day for charging interest and payment dismissal day for domestics) with Martini markets geese and dances was the prelude to the quiet time the Advent fast originally six weeks in duration (rarr Advent) Until sometime in the 18th century dancing and marriage were prohib-ited Processions (with costumes begging) took place on St Andrewrsquos Day (Nov 30) and St Thomasrsquos Day (Dec 21) on New Yearrsquos Eve and the three Thursdays before Christmas (the so-called knocking nights) Until the end of the 18th century Christmas was a church festival With the Enlightenment critique of ldquoexcesses among the peoplerdquo two different cultures became evi-dent in Christmas a public loud Christmas and new middle-classprivate forms of the feast crystallized around rarr family religion tradition Christmas moved inside where the family celebrated internally (Eber-spaumlcher) German Christmas was reconfigured after 1800 The period before Christmas was especially important for the churchrsquos education by customs JH rarr Wichern ldquoinventedrdquo the Advent wreath in the Rauh Haus around 1840 (a wooden ring with 23 then 24 and finally four candles) In 1846 the first so-called Advent tree is attested in T rarr Fliednerrsquos shelter for boys in Duisburg additional witnesses mention Advent bridges and gates fir twigs with stars red paper roses promise sayings (Nagy) The breadth of customs is evi-dent in the network of diaconate nobility pastoral influ-ence and compulsory labor rarr youth organizations and church art and womenrsquos associations (rarr Womenrsquos organi-zations) Advent calendars also served as ldquocounting aidsrdquo up to Christmas it was customary in monastery schools in the form of clocks or houses illuminated by candles and transparent paper (1904) and first printed as ldquotime counter for openingrdquo (Gajek) As late as the beginning

RPP Previewindd 21RPP Previewindd 21 91407 74031 PM91407 74031 PM

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 22

of the 20th century Advent and Christmas trees (but not Advent wreaths) were in competition even with the Catholic crib (Bausinger) In 1605 decorated fir trees were a familiar sight in Alsace and previously there were decrees prohibiting the cutting of sprigs of fir for Christmas (elsewhere spindle wood yew or holly) to decorate the parlor There were trees in cities middle-class homes in courtyards the war of 187071 (and esp of 1914ndash1915) popularized the Christmas tree (as well as the Advent wreath) ndash initially decorated with fruits baked goods sugar products since the 19th cen-tury with ornaments of tin brass lead wax glass etc So-called Yule decorations adorned the Yule tree in the Third Reich toys adorned winter fir in the GDR Can-dles became widespread after the invention of stearin and paraffin electric lights after 1920 The first public tree was erected in New York in 1912 today there is a trend toward ldquosecond and third treesrdquo in gardens and in front of houses The secretly decorated tree first illumi-nated on Christmas Eve with the gifts beneath was the heart of German Christmas from c 1800 until the mid-20th century ndash before it children servants and the poor received gifts since the Middle Ages from St Nicho-las accompanied by wild companions (Hans Trapp Klaubauf Duumlvel Krampus Schmutzli Knight Rupert the latter could also appear alone as also Nuszligmaumlrtel Schellenmaumlrtel or Pelzmaumlrtel or Pelznickel devil fig-ures) ldquoFather Christmasrdquo (since the mid-19th cent) conceals a ldquomixturerdquo (Mezger) of St Nicholas horror figures and the personified season of winter New media aided his dominance his ldquouniform appearancerdquo is an indicator of the ldquodomestication of Christmasrdquo Admo-nition rewards and penalties have become secondary the evil and demonic have been banned Today the beloved benefactor (including the Christ-child whom Luther substituted for the popular wild and evil beings) is the ldquocollective termrdquo (Eberspaumlcher) and trademark of Christmas The ldquotwelve nightsrdquo (rough nights) between Christmas and Jan 6 were a special time of prohibition of work oracles magical practices and anxieties Like visits and parades (see above) there were supposed to accom-pany and protect the period of transition as were fire-works and noise at yearrsquos end and well-wishes and ldquoNew Year observancesrdquo at the beginning It finally became evident in the Christmas cycle how the wild became ldquomoralrdquo on Jan 6 (Epiphany the old end of Christmas) conduct in (pre-carnival) parades gave way to the ldquogoodrdquo custom of carolingrsquo singing and collecting for the Third World Today Christmas markets with music caril-lons cribs giant trees and arts-and-crafts communicate the image of the historic Christmas work to create an atmosphere and to market the city Cultural criticism

of Christmas (commerce leveling etc) misconstrues the essence of customs their constant change New light customs (peace lights in windows and on graves etc initiated in 1952 by Ernst Reuter in Berlin) are as much signs of the times as are refraining from gift-giving charitable campaigns (Brot fuumlr die Welt etc) time campaigns (against commercial exploitation as early as September) the Christmas bear or ldquoChristmas Eve morningrdquo on Dec 24 in the city as a gathering in the streets and pubs before the celebration at home with the nuclear family Today Christmas is thus a mirror of the history of customs ndash in Germany as in other cultures by comparison however in cultural terms Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean forms of the traditional festivities seem increasingly dominant Christmas as both a public and a domestic festival as a lusty and exuberant party with global characteristics (Father Christmas in red and white winter decor outside glittery decor inside) that are neutral and variable ndash like ldquoChristnukkardquo which has developed in assimilated Judaism as a mixture of Hanuk-kah and Christmas

A Spamer Weihnacht in alter und neuer Zeit 1937 H Bausin-ger ldquoDer Adventskranzrdquo 1970 in M Scharfe ed Brauchforsc-hung 1991 225ndash255 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest Eine Kultur- und Sozialgeschichte der Weihnachtszeit 19781987 (bibl on Christmas in Germany and other countries) W Mezger Sankt Nikolaus Zwische Kult und Klamauk 1993 D Sauermann Von Advent bis Dreikoumlnige Weihnacht in West-falen 1996 R Faber amp E Gajek eds Politische Weihnacht in Antike und Moderne 1997 S Nagy Der Adventsbaum Ein evangelisches Verheiszligungsbrauch 1998 N Gockerell ed Weih-nachtszeit Feste zwischen Advent und Neujahr in Suumlddeutschland und Oumlsterreich 1840ndash1940 2000 HM Wolf Das neue Brauch-Buch 2000 M Eberspaumlcher Der Weihnachtsmann Zur Ent-stehung einer Bildtradition in Aufklaumlrung und Romantik 2002 Christel Koumlhle-Hezinger

II Christian Liturgy1 Catholicism Christmas is a holy day of obligation for Catholics The Christmas season starts with Evening Prayer I of Christmas Eve includes the feast of the Holy Family the solemnity of Mary Mother of God (also a holy day of obligation in many regions) and the solem-nity of Epiphany and concludes with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which begins the first week of the year or Ordinary Time

The earliest sources show the primary object of the feast to be the appearance of Christ as the saviour of humanity in his incarnation Secondary early themes include the massacre of the innocents and the visit of the Magi Anti-Arian polemics may have affected the contents of the feast For Augustine Christmas was a memoria a commemoration of a historical event not a mystery feast such as Easter Less than 50 years later Leo the Great called Christmas a mysterion a mystery feast

RPP Previewindd 22RPP Previewindd 22 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

23 RPP preview

or sacrament So Christmas became the liturgical cele-bration of the mystery of the Incarnation yet intimately related to the rarr Paschal Mystery of which it forms one facet

The Feast of Christmas has three traditional masses at midnight at dawn and during the day in addition to a vigil mass on Dec 24 (formerly a Christmas Eve mass but since Missale Romanum [1970] part of the feast) This multiple liturgy is first mentioned by Gregory the Great (Homil 8 in evang) but probably evolved ear-lier The earliest record of a mass at midnight occurs in the diary of rarr Egeria in Bethlehem on Jan 6 Another celebration took place in the morning at the church on Calvary This custom soon spread to Rome Sixtus III may have introduced it when he rebuilt the Liberian Basilica (St Mary Major) with a replica of the grotto of Bethlehem behind the main altar Relics claimed to be the true crib were acquired in the 7th century The sta-tion for the Mass at midnight is still at this altar of the crib now in the Sistine Chapel

The mass at dawn may also have been instituted in imitation of the liturgy at Palestine Egeria describes a procession from Bethlehem back to Jerusalem with a gathering at the Holy Sepulchre at dawn Though it is not known whether a mass followed (a page is missing at this point) the Psalms repeated during the procession appear in the Gradual of the Roman Missal In Rome the church of St Anastasia the Byzantine martyr served as the station for the early mass In solidarity with Byzan-tine residents of Rome the bishop of Rome celebrated mass here at dawn on the feast of the martyr Dec 25 When the influence of Byzantium waned the station was preserved and the mass became one of Christmas with a commemoration of the martyr

The third mass the oldest and principal mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St Peter from the time of Leo the Great Originally the three masses were stational and therefore celebrated only by the pope until the mul-tiple liturgy spread beyond Rome In the Carolingian period the three masses were mandated as three separate liturgies celebrated at different times on one day in one church

In the current Lectionary the readings for the three Christmas masses and the Vigil mass are invariable over the three yearly cycles The Vigil mass uses the Gospel of Matthew 11ndash25 the long genealogy of Christ fol-lowed by the annunciation to Joseph although the short form uses only the latter The midnight mass begins with Isa 91ndash6 on the Messiah who will free his people from war and oppression ldquoThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great lightrdquo The Gospel reading is Luke 21ndash14 the narrative of Jesusrsquo birth in Bethlehem

and the annunciation to the shepherds For the mass at dawn the Gospel is Luke 215ndash20 the shepherdsrsquo visit to the child The daytime mass uses John 11ndash18 the incarnation of Christ the eternal Word of God The predominant themes progress with the time of day from the theme of expectation to the narrative of Christrsquos birth to the annunciation to the shepherds and their presence and witness to the overarching eternal plan of God expressed in the prologue of the Gospel of John

Some of the eight prayer formulas from the Leonine rarr sacramentary as well as other ancient sources have been used in the rarr Missale Romanum The opening prayer for mass during the day is taken from the Leo-nine sacramentary and presents Leo the Greatrsquos theme of the ldquoadmirable exchangerdquo that Christ became human so that through his humility humanity may share in his glory The opening prayer for mass at midnight taken from the Gelasian sacramentary echoes the theme of darkness and light presenting Christ by implication as the true sun The second preface for Christmas echoes the controversies between Nicene and Arian Christians in the 4th century ldquoChrist is your Son before all ages yet now he is born in time rdquo In fact the theological substance of the feast is the celebration of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Christology (Deum de Deo lumen de lumine ) Christ the newborn child is real God from God expressed in the (Gregorian) chants by selected verses from Pss 2 93 96 98 100 and Isa 6 Contempo-rary pastoral issues hindering the conscious and fruitful liturgical celebration of Christmas in many countries include (1) the relatively large numbers of marginal Christians attending particularly Christmas Midnight Mass and how to evangelize them (2) the often intense commercial pressure that can easily obscure the religious meaning of the feast for Christians (3) the premature celebration of Christmas by means of concerts pageants and other Christmas festivities throughout Advent (4) the winter symbolism characteristic of the Northern Hemisphere which largely determines the character of Christmas imagery and music which is completely reversed in the Southern Hemisphere (5) replacement of the traditional chants by popular songs has brought about a significant detheologization of the feast (though this may partly account for its popularity) as in the customary omission of the theological third verse of Stille Nacht

A Nocent Cegravelegravebrer Jegravesu-Christ lrsquoannegravee liturgique 1975 A Adam Das Kirchenjahr mitfeiern 1979 A Heinz ldquoWeih-nachtsfroumlmmigkeit in der roumlmischen Liturgie und im deutschen Kirchenliedrdquo Liturgisches Jahrbuch 30 (1980) 215ndash229 Susan K Roll ( for RPP)

RPP Previewindd 23RPP Previewindd 23 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 24

2 Orthodox Church All the Chalcedonian Eastern churches (rarr Chalcedon Council of ) and all non-Chalcedonian churches except for the Armenian have celebrated a separate festival of Christrsquos birth on Dec 25 since Late Antiquity This celebration also encompasses the theme of the visit of the Magi while Jan 6 is devoted exclusively to the baptism of Christ Orthodoxy stamped by Palestinian and Byzantine influ-ences does not know an Advent period proper although since the 7th century the feast has been preceded by a 50ndashday fast rarr (Fasting III 3) beginning on Nov 15 which adopts a stricter form on Dec 13 and reaches its highpoint on Dec 24 The memorial of Christrsquos ances-tors on the ultimate and penultimate Sundays before Christmas and five days of preliminary celebration (Dec 20ndash24) serve as preparation for the feast The rarr Vespers (IV) introduced by the Basil liturgy on the eve-ning of Dec 24 in the course of which Heb 11ndash12 and Luke 21ndash20 are read may be considered the cen-tral worship service of the feast The great Compline (rarr Liturgy of the hours IV) combines with the morn-ing worship (orthros) in the night watch (ἀγρυπνίαagrypniacutea) which proclaims the mystery of Christrsquos birth according to Matt 118ndash25 In the second fesitval liturgy on the morning of Dec 25 which employs the Chryso-stom anaphora (rarr Chrysostom liturgy) the reading of Matt 21ndash12 shifts attention to the visit of the Magi In a subsequent six-day feast beginning with the synaxis of the Mother of God on Dec 26 the festival winds down Its liturgical configuration imitates as does that of the Feast of Theophany ( Jan 6 rarr Epiphany V) in part even in the details those of the Easter Pascha (Spasskij)

The Orthodox Church owes the hymnic configu-ration of its Feast of Christrsquos Birth to the expertise of its hymnographers who were active from the 6th to the 9th centuries Although only remnants of the two Christmas kontakia of Romanos the Melodist remain in use on Dec 25 and 26 the vespers which begin the evening of Christmas Day already reach a first apex through the idiomela of Patriarch rarr Germanus I of Con-stantinople and the famous doxasticon of the nun Cassia (1st half of the 9th cent) ldquoWhen Augustus was Ruler of the Earthrdquo The canon on Christrsquos Birth by Cosmas of Maiuma and John of Damascus composed in iambs dominates the orthros In the midst of the plethora of often surprising biblical references and images with which the Byzantine melodists illuminate and interpret the festal mystery the repeatedly adduced light symbol-ism stands out in the context of which the Incarnate Son of God is praised as the ldquoSun of righteousnessrdquo in reference to Mal 43 (320) and as the ldquoDawn from on highrdquo in reference to Luke 178

Texts Μηναῖον τοῦ Δεκεμβρίου 1993 partial German trans-lation Av Maltzew Menologion der Orthodox-Katholischen Kirche des Morgenlandes vol I 1900 600ndash643 (inadequate) Romanos le Meacutelode Hymnes intr ed and trans I Grosdidier de Matons vol II SC 110 1965 43ndash111 Bibl T Spasskij ldquoLa Pacircque de Noeumllrdquo Ireacuten 30 1957 289ndash306 K Onasch Das Weihnachtsfest im orthodoxen Kirchenjahr 1958 I Rochow Studien zu der Person den Werken und dem Nachleben der Dich-terin Kassia 1967 T Xydes Βυζαντιγὴ ὑμνογραφία 1978 T Detorakes Κοσμᾶς ὁ Μελωδός Βίος καὶ ἔργο 1979 183ndash185 P Plank ldquoGottesgebaumlrerin und Immerjungfraurdquo in H Petri ed Christsein und marianische Spiritualitaumlt 1984 59ndash76 (exege-sis of Romanos 71ndash76) Peter Plank

3 Protestantisma In German Protestant churches the celebration of Christmas begins as a rule with vespers on Christ-mas Eve The so-called promises (usually Mic 51ndash3 Isa 95ndash61 Isa 1112) and the Lukan birth narrative (Luke 21ndash20) are read interspersed with Christ-mas songs and music Often Christmas pageants are performed a practice tracing back to the period of the Reformation in order to manage ldquonocturnal exuber-ancerdquo (Graff vol I 115) Christmas mass ndash still the cen-ter of Protestant celebration of Christmas in some central and southern German regions ndash has been moved to the early morning of the feast day (often around 4 orsquoclock) or the nighttime worship is replaced by vespers earlier in the evening The official ldquostruggle against the Christ-mas massrdquo (Graff vol II 73) caused unrest on into the 18th century though the Christmas night worship ser-vices continued in some places (cf Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtsfest 47ndash50) Today once again a growing number of Protestant congregations celebrate a worship service at night once again for which the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch (Evangelical Worship Manual] 1999) provides a separate formulary (readings Isa 710ndash14 Rom 117 Matt 1[1ndash17] 18ndash21 [2225] cf the old Vigil mass) One peculiarity of the Protestant celebration of Christmas whose roots reach back before the Refor-mation period is its extension to a second (earlier also a third) Christmas holiday many church orders explic-itly prescribe preaching the birth of Christ not just on Dec 25 but also on the following days Correspondingly the Evangelisches Gottesdienstbuch offers the formula of the Festival of Christ I (Mic 51ndash4a Tit 34ndash7 Luke 2[1ndash14]15ndash20 the old mass in the morning) and the Festival of Christ II (Isa 111ndash9 Heb 11ndash3[4ndash6] John 11ndash5[6ndash8] 19ndash14 the old mass of the day) which however are interchangeable The suggestion has been made that the memorial of the archmartyr Stephen be celebrated on Dec 26 in an evening service

b No other festival has given occasion in the mod-ern era to so much singing playing and music as Prot-estant Christmas has (highpoints Weihnachtshistorie H Schuumltz 16601664 Christmas oratorio by JS rarr Bach 173435) Congregations thus adopted medieval prac-

RPP Previewindd 24RPP Previewindd 24 91407 74032 PM91407 74032 PM

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

25 RPP preview

tices (rarr Christmas plays Auf der Maur 173) and recon-figured them according to their needs In the Christmas Mass many ldquoschoolchildren clothed as angels appeared sang promises and angelic hymns (Quem pastores)rdquo in which the congregation also participated (Graff vol I 115 on Quem pastores cf EG 29) Luther paraphrased traditional hymns (eg ldquoChristum wir sollen loben schonrdquo based on the hymn ldquoA solis ortus cardinerdquo) extended them (eg EG 23) and added new songs which quickly became popular (eg EG 24 strophe 14 of which alludes to the custom of ldquorocking the childrdquo) While 16th-century songs (cf EG 27 by N rarr Herman) still stand in Lutherrsquos succession a certain turn ldquoinwardrdquo (Weber-Kellermann Weihnachtslieder 127) is associ-ated with the ldquosecond great wave of Protestant songrdquo in the 17th century (cf EG 37 by P rarr Gerhardt) In the 18th and 19th centuries ldquofamily singing in the living room under the Christmas treerdquo appeared with a plethora of new sometimes interdenominational song material (ibid 8 cf EG 43 44 46)

P Graff Geschichte der Aufloumlsung der alten gottesdienstlichen For-men in der evangelischen Kirche Deutschlands 2 vols 21937ndash1939 I Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen Themen des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 H auf der Maur Feiern im Rhythmus der Zeit vol I Herrenfeste in Woche und Jahr GDK 5 1983 I Weber-Kellermann Das Buch der Weihnachtslieder 71992

Karl-Heinrich Bieritz

III Practical Theology1 Perspectives from the sociology of religion Christ-mas owes its great social significance since the 19th cen-tury primarily to the circumstance that it portrays essential elements of the dominant modern middle class culture (Weber-Kellermann) As a feast of the (nuclear) rarr family Christmas stages the middle class tendencies toward the privacy and intimacy of life its rationaliza-tion aestheticization and pedagogization The rigid structuring of the time and space associated with Christ-mas and its clear (and gender-specific) assignment of roles mirror modern economic conditions

As a specific ldquosocial timerdquo (Blaumeier amp Blimlinger) Christmas functions as a medium of individual social-ization in the basic traditions of the respective fami-lies their contexts and religious milieus to this end Christmas structures the perception of biographical and cultural change (Zimmermann) To the degree that the feast actualizes universal values such as rarr peace humanitarianism rarr reconciliation and forgiveness it fulfills the civil religious functions of stabilization and symbolic integration (Hoffmann) Simultaneously however the current structure of Christmas strength-ens the demarcation of non-familial lifestyles and social marginality

In addition elementary ambivalences of everyday society find expression in the Christmas celebration its economic-rational form is affirmed ndash eg through gift-giving rituals ndash and at the same time criticized ndash eg by claiming utopian and egalitarian values In terms of the theory of feasts this form can be reconstructed as an irreducible tension between affirmation and excess (Biehl 106) In terms of the theory of religion this form explains the extraordinarily high proportion of explicit religious and church participation characteristic of the specific practice of the feast of Christmas

Attendance at worship on Christmas Eve has risen in Germany between 1975 and 1995 by almost two-thirds relative to the number of church members Since the mid-1990s it has been stable at one-third of the membership although with significant regional differ-ences (eastern Germany over 50 Hamburg under 20) The growing plurality of worship times and forms is worthy of note2 Perspectives on the behavior of the church In terms of cultural hermeneutics Christmas can be interpreted as a specifically modern transformation or contextu-alization of Christianity which from the perspective of systematic theology raises its own interpretive tasks (Morgenroth) ndash for example by shifting the center of gravity from the rarr Passion to the rarr Incarnation In terms of practical theology the issue can be formulated as fol-lows In the current culture of Christmas the behavior of the church encounters not least its own history of influ-ence Thus any non-dialectical confrontation of gener-ally social with specifically ecclesial festal practice is not permissible With respect to Christmas the behavior of the church also stands before the task of an interpretive mediation between biblical-theological traditions of the feast and its current importance for individual and social life (Korsch) This circumstance implies further the (a) adoption (b) critique and (c) transcendence of the social practice of the feast ( Josuttis 95ff) through mean-ingful enactment of traditional motifs

a Adoption The integrative tendencies of civil religionrsquos practice of Christmas mirror central motifs of Christian tradition the biblical tradition of Christ-mas already promises and assures universal peace reconciliation and righteousness (rarr Justice and righ-teousness) The dominant interest in childhood and family can also be deepened with recourse to biblical discussion of rarr regeneration and the status of being a rarr child of God Characteristic symbols of Christmas ndash rarr angels rarr candles the star or the manger ndash can be devel-oped and profiled in narrative fashion in light of the tradition

b Critique The Christian interpretive adoption of the current culture of Christmas will always be carried

RPP Previewindd 25RPP Previewindd 25 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 26

out as a critical assessment This assessment includes the reminder of the Christian traditions unrelated to fam-ily of the critique of ldquomammonrdquo and of political power on the part of the biblical Christmas texts or of the fact that being a child of God implies forgiveness repentance and new obedience Even these motifs are not altogether foreign to the general semantics of Christmas

c Transcendence An explicitly Christian inter-pretation transcends the general social understanding of Christmas in many respects The praxis of the church follows exclusively the appropriate OT and Jewish traditions it can ndash in song material or in custom (see above I 3) ndash exhibit ecumenical alternatives above all it will display the eschatological character of Christmas symbolism peace reconciliation righteousness and regeneration are promised in full but are present only in fragments Consequently the Christian practice of Christmas includes the dimension of rarr Advent prayer for the coming of the rarr kingdom of God rarr lament in response to the present

d Enactment A necessary precondition for a nuanced interpretation of current festal praxis is the convincing presentation of the Christian tradition in the fullness of its themes and symbols ndash in worship ser-vices (see above II) and other fields of the churchrsquos activ-ity In choosing from the multitude of available aids one should also consider the degree to which the integrative and criticaleschatological impulses of that tradition find expression

With regard to Christmas (cf Biehl) religious educa-tion aims ndash against a variety of learning settings (family school congregation and public) ndash to enable an inde-pendent practice of the feast related to the situation and peoplersquos lives This intention includes aids for the apper-ception and interpretation of the traditional symbols including their practical and ethical consequences it also includes ndash especially in the secondary school area and in work with confirmation candidates ndash however cultural and religio-historical analysis and theological critique of the general ambivalent per se practice of Christmas

Various Christian perspectives on the interpreta-tion of the feast can be combined in the Christmas celebration (or memorial) of rarr baptism here central motifs such as (re-)birth lightdarkness forgiveness and renewed communion undergo both a biographically and a socially and spiritually meaningful exegesisI Weber-Kellermann Das Weihnachtsfest 1978 21987 K Hoffmann ldquoCivil Religion in der Bundesrepublik Deutsch-land am Beispiel des Weihnachtsfestesrdquo LWBD 12 1982 1ndash26 H Blaumeier amp E Blimlinger ldquoWeihnacht als soziale Zeitrdquo in idem eds Alle Jahre wieder Weihnacht zwischen Kaiserzeit und Wirtschaftswunder 1984 275ndash315 P Zimmermann Das Wunder jener Nacht Religioumlse Interpretation autobiographischer Weihnachtserzaumlhlungen 1992 M Josuttis ldquoWeihnachten ndash das

Fest und die Predigtrdquo in P Cornehl ed ldquo in der Schar derer die da feiernrdquo 1993 88ndash97 P Biehl ldquoManifestation des Chris-tusglaubens in den Festen ZB Weihnachtenrdquo JRP 15 1999 105ndash128 D Korsch ldquoWeihnachten ndash Menschwerdung Gottes und Fest der Familie Systematische-theologische Gedanken zu gelebter Religionrdquo IJPT 3 1999 213ndash228 M Morgenroth Weihnachtschristentum Moderner Religiositaumlt auf der Spur 2002

Jan Hermelink

IV Art HistoryThe narrative cycle of the Nativity of Christ initially developed in Christian art from the depictions of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and from Prot Jas (rarr Infancy gospels) Edifying and legendary texts con-tributed to a further expansion with detailed descriptions From the earliest catacomb paintings (rarr Catacombs) in the 3rd century through to the great altar paintings of the Renaissance the Nativity scene was associated with elements from the announcement to the shepherds and the adoration by the shepherds andor the Magi The mutual influence of the arts especially however the development of the genre of the liturgical drama the theological reinterpretation of the birth and cultural events influenced the rarr iconography The scenes fol-lowing the birth were portrayed these included the first moments of maternal and familial devotion the first bath and scenes of the adoration of the child The ear-liest catacomb paintings emphasized the wonder of the rarr Incarnation and of the rarr Epiphany with the newborn child being held or nursed by his mother and the star standing over Mary (Domitilla and Priscilla catacombs late 3rd cent) The early Christian problem of simulta-neously visualizing the humanity and divinity of Christ produced the Nativity iconography Apart from the Milan agreement (rarr Toleration Edicts of ) two impor-tant events awakened interest in Christmas images the discovery of the grotto in rarr Bethlehem by Flavia Iulia rarr Helena and the construction of the Church of the Nativity there by her son Emperor rarr Constantine as well as the ldquosnow miraclerdquo on Aug 5 352 which marked the location on which the Basilica of S Maria ad Prae-sepe (now S Maria Maggiore) was to be built in Rome ndash the latter occasioned by the transfer of the rarr relics of the original manger by rarr Jerome (rarr Sophronius according to other legends) The depictions of the birth stemming from the early 4th century display ox and donkey whose importance was emphasized in the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew Ox and donkey underscore the connection between Incarnation and redemption they ldquowatch overrdquo the newborn child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger or on the altar as an allusion to his subsequent sacrifice The 5th and 6th-century por-trayals of the birth connect the motif of ox and donkey with those of the shepherds and the magi as a sign of the

RPP Previewindd 26RPP Previewindd 26 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

27 RPP preview

childrsquos uniqueness all of them the highest and the lowli-est living beings honor and venerate the child

The early Christmas images omit rarr Mary She began to be the second focal point only in the 5th century after the Council of rarr Ephesus (431) recognized Mary as Theotoacutekos (ldquoGod-bearerrdquo) Byzantine iconography gave particular value to certain elements of the Nativ-ity scene such as the two midwives that bathed the newborn according to Prot Jas and thus attested to the uniqueness of the rarr virgin birth The God-bearer rests on a kline (sofa) meant to illustrate the physical exhaustion of birth and to show that this special child ldquowas born of a womanrdquo The child lying in a manger is wrapped in a cloth similar to the later burial cloth to indicate that he was born to die ndash still watched over by ox and donkey (see above) In reference to the discovery of the grotto (see above) the Nativity scene is concealed in a cave also to symbolize Jesus as the one who ndash in analogy to rarr Platorsquos parable of the cave ndash brought the light (of faith) into the world rarr Joseph who is already depicted as somewhat older figures as the guardian of mother and child with his head either in his right hand or resting on his staff Early Christian or Byzantine wit-nesses to the birth are rather rare in comparison to wit-nesses to the Epiphany of the Adoration of the Magi and the Baptism of Christ

Medieval Italo-Byzantine painters such as Duccio di Buoninsegna (12551260ndash13151319) united elements of Byzantine iconography with Western art On the Nativity tableau of the ldquoMaestagrave altarrdquo (1308ndash1310 see illus) the darkened cellar is associated with the bright light of the star illuminating the stall The resting figure of Mary is positioned off center horizontally between her swaddled son lying in the manger and the midwives

in the foreground who are bathing the newborn Maryrsquos outstretched figure touches ox and donkey and forms a semi-circular ldquoprotective wallrdquo around the child A choir of angels hovers over Joseph seated at Maryrsquos right The opposite side of the tableau is filled with singing angels two shepherds five sheep and a small dog The defini-tive characteristic that separates such an image from the category of Byzantine icons is the connection and the development of ldquofeelingsrdquo between the figures such as for example between the shepherds and the angel among the midwives and also with the child The adjoining tableaus demonstrate that the Old Testament prophets rarr Isaiah and rarr Ezekiel who foretold the virgin birth according to Christian tradition are the norm in western narrative composition

In comparison to the medieval portrayal of the Ado-ration of the Magi the Baptism of Christ and the Cruci-fixion portrayals of the nativity were altered much less often a situation that then can be traced to a change in the attitude concerning humanism Marian devotion (rarr Mary veneration of ) and to Franciscan rarr spirituality The relationship between mother and child changed Whereas they had been portrayed as two persons physi-cally and psychologically ldquodistancedrdquo from one another they now appear more naturally ndash and most closely tied to one another internally ndash independently of whether Mary is positioned reclining or sitting She nurses the child or holds him in her arms while both sleep This altera-tion also changes the role of Joseph who now becomes an active participant in the event Thus he hands the child to his wife or receives him from the midwives An example of this new manner of portrayal is rarr Giotto di Bondonersquos Nativity scene in the Arena Chapel in Padua

Duccio di Buoninsegna The Birth of Christ The Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel detail of the Maestagrave Altar 1308ndash1311 (Andrew W Mellon Collection Image copy 2004 Board of Trustees National Gallery of Art Washington DC)

RPP Previewindd 27RPP Previewindd 27 91407 74033 PM91407 74033 PM

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

RPP preview 28

Texts from devotional literature namely the Medita-tiones Vitae Christi and the Legenda Aurea (rarr Jacobus de Voragine) influenced late medieval artists as evidenced eg by the Portinari altar (1476ndash1478) by Hugo van der Goes (14361440ndash1482) and the portrayal of the Nativity by Petrus Christus (c 1410ndash147273)

Pseudo- rarr Bonaventurarsquos interpretation of the birth event depicts Mary leaning on a column during the birth and the child departing the womb painlessly Sub-sequently Mary kneels to adore the child According to Christian typology the columns were an allusion to the crucifixion and signified the relationship between the passio Christi and the compassio Mariae The absence of pain during the birth was emphasized as was the warming breath of ox and ass which was supposed to have given the newborn child security Kneeling (step-) father Joseph joined Mary in prayer an expression of reverence and veneration The detailed descriptions by rarr Bridget of Sweden in her Revelations also confirm the painless birth adding that Mary laid the naked child on the floor in order to adore him

A new motif in the Middle Ages was the transfer of the Nativity scene to a ruin The move to a collapsed church or royal ruins signified the ldquo(old) covenantrdquo As in the Portinari altar more than one architectural style is often visible in the portrayal of the ldquostallrdquo This is to be interpreted as a reference to the two religious systems Judaism and Christianity or to the two parts of the Holy Scriptures

An additional medieval motif is the involvement of Passion motifs in the portrayal of the Nativity scene These motifs extend from the columns (see above) to the nails and thus connect incarnational theology and the doctrine of redemption The mysterious birth portrayed in M rarr Gruumlnewaldrsquos ldquoIsenheim Altarrdquo combines several visible symbols internally on one table or externally on several tables Thus for instance the swaddling cloths with which Mary covers her child allude to the form of Jesusrsquo loincloth on the cross

Northern artists of the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance such as Geertgen tot Sint Jans (14601465ndash1490) began to move the Nativity scene to the night Although already inspired by earlier painters the artistic portrayal of a twilight environment was technically dif-ficult Painters such as Sint Jans Hans Baldung Grien (148485ndash1545) Frederico Barocci (1535ndash1612) El rarr Greco Gerrit van Honthorst (1590ndash1656) rarr Cara-vaggio and rarr Rembrandt (see rarr Art and Religion illust Holy Family with the Curtain 1646) created extraordi-nary portrayals of Christmas night They executed the birth event with historical precision and adhered to the theological symbolism of the newborn child as the source of light

From the 16th century onward it became difficult if not wholly impossible to separate the Nativity scene from the other episodes of the birth cycle this applied above all to the Adoration of the Shepherds and the Magi The division of western Christianity into the Roman Catholic and the Reformation traditions led to a breach in Christian art since Protestant artists no longer received the churchrsquos protection and art with bib-lical themes was limited to what could be categorized as ldquohistoricalrdquo ie the portrayal of the Nativity scene was permitted that of the Resurrection was not Simi-lar restrictions were placed on Roman Catholic artists whom the church or private persons continued to com-mission to produce ldquoappropriaterdquo Christian art The essential directives issued by rarr Trent along with papal decretals and councils gave impetus to an increasingly present Mary while in contrast details and motifs from the apocrypha such as the midwives disappeared Ironi-cally the midwives ndash now no longer interpreted as those who ldquofirstrdquo bathed the child but as witnesses to Maryrsquos virginity and purity ndash persisted in Nativity scenes until the eve of the Reformation

From the 16th century onward the style and attri-butes of native cultures shaped art in the mission churches in South America Africa Asia and Oceania

G Schiller Iconography of Christian Art vol I 1969 D Apos-tolos-Cappadona Dictionary of Christian Art 1994 P and L Murray The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architec-ture 1996 Diane Apostolos-Cappadona

V MusicFeast and Music Whenever people celebrate there is and must be music As a now worldwide festival often loosed from its Christian backgrounds Christmas is an outstanding both popular and private occasion to make both music and song Music concentrates the special time expected in the rhythm of the year and gives it a more profound dimension But because music is a lan-guage with its own laws it offers only rarely unambigu-ous statements in its nuanced multi-layered structure It is essentially open to interpretation and simultane-ously a vessel that can accept a variety of contents and emotions depending on the situation Consequently at Christmas in Protestantism too it assumes an elevated role in relation to other arts

Singing and Instruments The ability to express oneself musically to sing to play instruments even to dance is one of the basic forms of human articulation and communication In this manner Christmas joy gains individual and personal (ldquoper-sonarerdquo) form Sing-ing and music-making occurs in private and familial cir-cles in choirs and ensembles as solos and in groups Of central importance here are hymns and songs Some of

RPP Previewindd 28RPP Previewindd 28 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

29 RPP preview

these innumerable songs are known worldwide ldquoSilent Night Holy Nightrdquo ldquoO du froumlhlicherdquo ldquoJingle bellsrdquo ldquoWe Wish You a Merry Christmasrdquo Narrative or con-templative sentimental or solemn artistic or popular along with Advent and pre-Christmas songs they form the opening sections of most official hymnals In addi-tion one should not overlook the inestimable number of songbooks and collections with Christmas material The are no special instruments for the Christmas season although trumpets with tympani and the cymbelstern organ register on some organs bestow a particular festive brilliance and oboes can stand for the idyllic idealized world of the shepherd scenes

Forms and Genres It cannot be determined with certainty that Christmas content seeks its own form Nonetheless an international comparison reveals spe-cial terms for the Christmas song eg ldquocarolrdquo (English) ldquokol=ndardquo (Polish) or ldquonoeumllrdquo (French) along with terms reflected in instrumental treatment in the organ reper-toire in arrangements and settings The scenery of the shepherds gains musical expression in the ldquopastoralerdquo The ldquoChristmas oratoriordquo is a special mixed vocal-instrumental genre that interrelates narrative (Gospel) and reflective sections (arias choruses) Stemming from different centuries and thus divergent in terms of the history of genre however one might mention JS rarr Bach Carl Heinrich Graun JG rarr Rheinberger Engelbert Humperdinck L-H rarr Berlioz C rarr Saint-Saeumlns F rarr Martin and Giselher Klebe

In Catholic liturgy the ldquopastoral massrdquo has been an independent genre since the 17th century (Antonio Diabelli Karl Kempter et al)

Space and Time Christmas music can be heard in sacred (church and church hall) communitycivic (town hall and commercial spaces) and private rooms (Christ-mas space ldquobeneath the Christmas treerdquo) The specific time of Dec 25 with introductory Christmas evening and subsequent festal period (until the end of Epiphany week) has been anticipated not without problems in the general social understanding of the Advent season sometimes already before the first Sunday of Advent

Consumption and Function The understanding of functional music to be found for example in the court and aristocratic context namely to have others play for one on festal occasions in enhancement of onersquos reputa-tion is strongly in evidence in the production and use of Christmas music for the CD and DVD market in tele-vision programs and in attendance at concerts Indeed it municipal settings today good taste almost necessi-tates attending a performance of the Christmas Oratorio by JS Bach to assure oneself of a merrier more festive mood

M Roumlssler Da Christus geboren war Texte Typen und The-men des deutschen Weihnachtsliedes 1981 W Blankenburg Das Weihnachts-Oratorium von Johann Sebastian Bach 1982 A Luff ldquoCarols of the British Islesrdquo JLH 28 1984 127ndash146 H Loos Weihnacht in der Musik 1991 H Kurzke ldquoStille Nachtrdquo in H Becker et al eds Geistlicher Wunderhorn 2001 408ndash416 W Herbst Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht Die Erfolgsgeschichte eines Weihnachtsliedes 2002 J Schaber ed Die Kindheit Jesu in Kunst und Musik Theologie Film und Literatur 2002 Christian Finke

RPP Previewindd 29RPP Previewindd 29 91407 74035 PM91407 74035 PM

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm

wwwbrillnlRPP

265

mm

190mm