Dan's Thoughts

Vision #17 - August 03, 2006

I have been reading The Beginning of Wisdom by Leon Kass (Simon & Shuster). It is a commentary on Genesis by a scientist who was once challenged by a college class to read the Bible. He decided that he owed it to himself to become better acquainted with the foundation of Western Civilization. However, as he read he discovered something; that when you read the Holy Scriptures, something reaches out from the pages and grabs you.

Interestingly enough, Kass is still not a believer. Nonetheless, it has been wonderful to see the Bible through the eyes of a man who is reading it for the first time. It is startling to realize that many of the phrases I tend to overlook as “throwaway lines” because they have become so familiar, deeply move him. When I see them through his eyes, they move me too.

I was particularly impacted by Kass’s comments on creation. He claims that the Genesis account is a description of any sort of creation, divine or human. First, there is unformed matter, material substance without specific purpose. The matter is empty, void of anything other than potential. Then the Spirit begins brooding over it, pondering upon it, preparing it for the creative moment ahead. Next, comes the proclaimed Word; informed, intelligent design that tells the material what to do, what shape to take and how to behave. Finally, there is the benediction, “it is good,” or, in the case of the seventh day, “it is holy.”

Creation of any sort begins in chaos. That is because the presence of potential implies as well the presence of uncertainty. A formless and void thing may become something great; it may not. One thing for sure, it cannot become anything of worth unless it becomes the object of focused concern. The Spirit, either of God or a human being must care enough to consider and value its potential. The spirit must “quicken” -- to use an old English word -- the latent potential of unformed matter, cause that potential to stir and become aroused. Only then does unformed matter have the power to become something that is formed and meaningful.

A “quickening” of potential however does not necessarily predict a good outcome. The history of Christianity for example, is filled with accounts of “quickenings,” revivals that became sideshows of bizarre and undirected displays of power and passion. For such a quickening of the Spirit to become something of lasting worth, the Word must be pronounced, order must be given and government must be established. Immature artists, who often make an idol of their talent and inspiration, tend to keep wallowing in the brooding phase. Planning and methodical crafting seem beneath them, a stifling of their artistic life. They don’t pay attention to how the Creator works.

All real artists know that inspiration is only the first step of the creative process. To create great art, inspiration must lead to “crafting.” Without formal training, young Sally, who “can draw anything,” will still be amazing her family and friends when she grows up with cute depictions of family and friends. The proper training teaches a creative person to craft his or her art until it lives and speaks.

Every creative endeavor follows this path. For a writer, crafting consists of “editing,” and “rewriting.” The original powerful thought must be molded, illustrated, placed in context, and then surrounded by interesting words and phrases that both informs and delights the reader. For the entrepreneur, a business idea grips the imagination and cries out for funding and organization, for marketing and distribution. For the would-be saint, the hunger for goodness and truth must lead on to a struggle with the Word and with self; God slowly molds tragedy and joy, ecstasy and agony, victories and defeats, knowledge and mystery, into a light-bearing soul.

When the work of creating art gets done, the material is no longer formless and void. It has become infused with meaning and purpose. It has become an expression of the creator. Sometimes the expression seems “very good.” Sometimes, it even seems “holy.”

Dan