Redeeming Transcendence in the Arts: Bearing Witness to the Triune God

by Jeremy S. Begbie

Many people believe that there is something transcendent about the arts, that they can awaken a profound sense of awe, wonder, and mystery, of something “beyond” this world—even for those who may have no use for conventional forms of Christianity. In this book Jeremy Begbie—a leading voice on theology and the arts—employs a biblical, Trinitarian imagination to show how Christian involvement in the arts can be shaped by the distinctive vision of God’s transcendence opened up in and through Jesus Christ.

Genres: Theology, Music, Christian, Nonfiction, Religion, Art

222 pages, Paperback

Published February 14, 2018

About the author

Dr Jeremy Begbie is Thomas A. Langford Distinguished Research Professor of Theology at Duke Divinity School, Duke University, where he directs Duke Initiatives in Theology and the Arts. His primary research interest is the correlation between theology and the arts, in particular the interplay between music and theology. he is also an Affiliated Lecturer in the Faculty of Music at the University of Cambridge.

Reviews

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alright. So even though I gave this three stars I did find it to be quite illuminating and helpful when it comes to navigating the questions that we deal with in regards to theology meeting the arts. It’s good to see that scholars like Begbie are engaging with this work.

The reason that I gave this book three stars has more to do with how it is written. It’s good, but I think it’s a little too inside baseball. I’ve read a lot of the people he mentions and have some training in philosophy and theology, but I imagine that many others would struggle as much as I did or more.

His specialty is particularly in music and he does a great job breaking down Bach or using music metaphors. So I really appreciated those moments.

One thing I’m still figuring out is how do we balance interaction with the arts but also not making it too high brow where it can’t actually be applicable to the average Christian’s life. I’m glad Begbie is doing work like this and provides the rest of us with a template and philosophical/theological groundwork to build on, we just need to make it more approachable.

[Grant Klinefelter]

DNF. While the title absolutely enthralled me, the book did not. Kept trying to get into it but at best found myself simply skimming. I’ve heard Begbie’s writing is profound; I just didn’t find it to be the case with this book.