" In light of Ignatius' 'Two Standards' and 'The Mystries Done From The Garden To The House Of Annas', at any moment we can be Judas or Peter, a Christian life can be a fine line."
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Jesuit On The Value Of Ugliness
In the center of a Toledo church known for its architectural and artistic beauty, a Catholic theologian from New York gave a lecture this week on the value of ugliness.
The Rev. Leo O'Donovan, a Jesuit priest and former president of Georgetown University,
helped Toledo's Corpus Christi University Parish celebrate the 10th anniversary of the dedication of the building by giving a talk Tuesday night entitled, "The Seduction of the Sacred."
"I wanted to be a little provocative," Father O'Donovan said of the lecture title, which refers to the way humans are "drawn to the holy mystery" by images of the world, and also how created images help humans discover God.
The focus of art is often on the beauty of form, color, and harmony, but "what may at first seem repellent, or even repugnant" can serve a purpose, he said.
"An art of protest has used distortion and intentional ugliness to awaken viewers to the suffering and injustice around them," Father O'Donovan said.
Link (here) to the full article entitled, Scholar beholds value of ugliness.
2 comments:
Anonymous
said...
"In the center of a Toledo church known for its architectural and artistic beauty, "
I almost spit out my milk when I read this. I have been to Corpus Christi many times... Typical "college church" that is mostly there for aging hipster baby boomers.
Anyone who thinks that eyesore is an architectual beauty is already sold on the value of ugliness.
I am not a Jesuit, nor am I a cleric. I spent about 5 years under the spiritual direction of a Jesuit, 3 of those years in a weekly directed retreat in everyday life. The profound impact that the Society and the Excercises had upon my life, resulted in me, trying to deal with that impact in some way by sharing my view of Jesus Christ with others. My intention is to pull together Jesuitical and Catholic subjects that interest me. I was born on the feast day of St. Paul Miki, S.J.. I am the father of three small children and an infant, I am married to a great wife.
In the center of a Toledo church known for its architectural and artistic beauty, a Catholic theologian from New York gave a lecture this week on the value of ugliness.
2 comments:
"In the center of a Toledo church known for its architectural and artistic beauty, "
I almost spit out my milk when I read this. I have been to Corpus Christi many times... Typical "college church" that is mostly there for aging hipster baby boomers.
Anyone who thinks that eyesore is an architectual beauty is already sold on the value of ugliness.
Yech.
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