The divine signature

Nativity by Dorian

Most working days, as I amble along the main road on my morning walk to work, I'm passed by a large white van with black windows so you cannot see in, with bold red letters stating "PROFESSIONAL CHILD MINDERS". I guess this, in the light of recent cases, is all meant to provide some measure of assurance for parents that use the service that their children will be 'safe', but the world is rarely that simple. Often, as has been shown in recent times, it is those very institutions which we assume are there to aid or protect us which become the vehicle for all manner of neglect, even abuse. The white van with it's bold letters tells me that each of us need to invest well in our lives, and that includes on our understanding of the matter of nudity.

Recently, a British television network found themselves at the sharp end of some unexpected flack when they aired a fourth program on art classes. The reason? Unlike the first three, this one took the bold step of showing the life model the class was working with - nude!
The scandal quickly made it into the media, as the creators of the show were charged of showing 'adult material' in the afternoon - time for the white van and black windows... this sort of thing shouldn't be allowed.

As a Christian, it made me wonder just how much of the truth of our faith is submitted to the same treatment. When was the last time that you heard a message, for example, on the garden of Eden which does not trip over Augustine's fallacy that only in the fall did the body truly become sexual and sensual, and therefore nudity itself became shameful?
It's a tragic approach, for it negates the actual faith and understanding of the first Christians, who affirmed the body in their understanding of God 'at home' amongst us in the coming of Jesus Christ. The incarnation, as many theologians have realized, tells us so much about God's delight and intent for the body within creation. The work he fashioned in a fellowship of love from the red earth of a new world is still the essential physical 'building block' of the marvelous renewed creation that is fast approaching, so if this is such a striking, wonderful work of God, why are we so troubled, so detached from it for most of our lives, apart from at birth and death?

Nakedness powerfully says so much about us, especially when the context is art, or actions which seek to convey some aspect of the significance of life, or faith, or either our majesty or frailty. As an artist, there are moments when I have been truly shaken or overwhelmed by the glory of the human form, not in any sexual manner, but by the way in which this truly "speaks" of the handiwork of God.

Study by Paul Kelley

Perhaps there is a similarity here to other things or fields we often mark as off limits - they're unsafe, so don't venture there - but what would our hope be if we didn't have a Maker and Redeemer who constantly crosses that line, who takes what is vile and unclean and turns such polluted creatures into people who truly know and share His profound love?

Next time we see a 'non-sexualised' nude, in a painting, a photo, or a TV program, like the life model, will our reaction be to slam down our eye-lids and evade the moment fast, or will we learn something about the one who makes such beauty?
It's worth thinking about.

What it's all about...

Once more, the seasons turn, and earth, so rich in summer greens and autumn hues, will know the disrobing chill of winter's stripping rite, and yet, on crisp mornings, such exposure conveys a sharp clarity, endearing and as vivid as the rush of spring, instructing us well, on the grace of nature so disrobed, echoing the coming amidst such a barren season, of God, clothed in no more than our frail flesh, to seize us, nurture us back, to Eden's endearing beauty... So, stark undinted nudity, calls in rich tones, of wholeness, soon to herald, upon all Creation's brow.

During the Renaissance, the world enjoyed a certain clarity regarding the value and place of nudity in art and culture. The values of the time informed a four-fold categorization of the matter, distinguishing between immoral nudity and affirming an enriching appreciation to the nude in art and culture.
The four categories were:

Nuditus Temporalis - Nakedness due to peril or poverty, or sometimes due to lifestyle.

Nuditus Virtualis - Nudity as a symbol, usually of innocence, echoed when practiced in actual nudity for certain purposes (repentance and confession).

Nuditus Criminalis - Nakedness in relation to non-virtuous sexual deeds through vanity.

Nuditus Naturalis - The normal (natural) state of humanity, as found in the communion of Eden, conducive in actions such as repentance, and earnestly desired in the forthcoming resurrection (glorification) of the body and the renewal of all creation.

It doesn't take much to work out where most of our modern world's engagement and activity commonly transpires, but this perspective reveals there are certainly other, and I would say more edifying ways in which we can engage with and enjoy the gift of our common state.

I'd like to use this blog to look afresh at nudity as a true wonder - a state which can so enthrall and edify us that we glimpse the art of the divine. So, that's the goal.
I'll seek to furnish entries as research allows with glints of that wonder, including my work as a fine art photographer but my hope is that others will contribute as well, so please engage with the material here, and let's learn more together.

Here's to some moments of value!