REVEAL THE IMAGE OF THE CREATOR
The original germ of the idea for CREATION was about two years ago. Several folk from the Journey in Faith group were admiring the beautiful painting that Val Marshall depicting Mary in old age (where is that painting these days? It should be gracing one of our church walls, surely?). It occurred to us that in the small group assembled there were three artists. If we were to look at our whole church, how many artists would we find? And in all the local churches? We came up with the idea of having an exhibition of works by our artists, the better known and the lesser known, to serve as an encouragement to themselves and to others. It was also a celebration of the creative gifts that our God has bestowed upon so many of our people.
Suffice it to say, the idea was put on a back burner for a long time as other more immediate matters took centre stage. Then earlier this year, when the Parish Council Meeting seemed in danger of finishing early for a change, a long forgotten item under ‘Any Other Business’ came to the rescue. The pros and cons of an exhibition were discussed and the Council decided in favour of hosting this special event. We wanted to encourage everyone so we didn’t set a theme for the exhibition. We simply wanted to see the creative talents on view. I spent a long time praying about the event as I wanted it to be blessed by God (not least because being totally inexperienced in this particular area I was desperate for an army of good people to come forward and make the whole thing happen) but in the midst of my reflections the word ‘CREATION’ was coming through strongly. We are made, so the Bible tells us, in God’s image and likeness. One of the ways we are like God is in our desire to create. The universe and all that is in it is the Lord’s canvas. We may have less grand offerings such as skill in watercolours or pencil drawing but our creative urge mirrors that of our maker. So the exhibition had the subtitle ‘REVEAL THE IMAGE OF THE CREATOR’. Firstly we are revealing that which is within us which bears the likeness of God, i.e. our creativity. Secondly we are showing the works of the artist. The use of capital letters leaves the statement deliberately ambiguous – we mean both the creator and the Creator. My Bible study seemed to be affirming what we as a community were planning to do. The following snippet seemed to endorse that God wanted to be involved in the planning process:
“Woe to the rebellious children…who make plans which do not come from me and make alliances not inspired by me.” (Isaiah 30:1-18)
Hmm. Lots of prayer and go easy on the ego then, eh? Reading on, I had the story of David and Goliath. So, puny little weed that you are, don’t fear the Philistines, but don’t rely on your own strength (when we are weak, God is strong). The following Sunday, the second reading had five instances of the word ‘creation’ in it. I decided this was a sign.
We finally opened our doors to the public for a week in August. Although our original rationale behind the exhibition was to celebrate the creative gifts within our own parish and wider Christian community locally, the idea developed and it became clear that there were many other benefits to be had in terms of community building and outreach. Our beautiful, modern, dual purpose building lent itself surprisingly well to the event and attracted many positive comments from visitors. The art exhibition was complemented by CREATION – The Word, a poetry evening, which enabled us to also celebrate the spoken word with many readings of original works and personal favourites. We also had some musical contributions.
Having spent most of the week on the premises, I have many fond memories, some of which I would call sacramental moments. I enjoyed chatting with a local couple who are not churchgoers but were drawn in by the sign outside. They commented on the paintings, complimented the church building and enjoyed a cup of coffee with us. It was great fun to watch Val Marshall who, whilst stewarding, took the opportunity to do a painting; from blank canvas to recognisable figurative painting in two hours. Take note artists – we will be calling for the more confident to do an ‘artist in residence’ session next time. It was lovely to see the children produce their own works of art for us while their parents were viewing the exhibits. It was a delight to have parishioners pop in on their way back from Pensby shops, simply because they could, because this week the doors weren’t closed. And let’s face it, it was nice to have something happening in Pensby!
The week was a success, often in unexpected ways. Apart from discovering a good deal of previously hidden talent within the community, ecumenical links have been strengthened (we had entries from five other local churches), non-churchgoers have found a reason apart from the usual ceremonies to step over the threshold of a church and parishioners enjoyed a rare opportunity to reflect in the peaceful surroundings of their own church during the busy day. Many thanks to the people who, in many ways took ownership of this project and made it work. CREATION bears all the hallmarks of becoming a regular event on the Holy Family calendar.
Carole Hawkins