Statistics from June 2014 (the most recent readily statistics for Canada I found) from the Canadian Bible Engagement Study state that 5% of Canadians read the Bible daily (down from 9% in 1996), 14% of Canadians read the Bible at least once a month (down from 28% in 1996) and weekly Bible reading is down 60%. Reading of the Bible is needed in order to obtain biblical literacy. With biblically literacy declining in recent years, I wondered about ‘artistic illiteracy’ – including how it relates to biblical illiteracy – and a lack of knowledge of what the Bible says about art – including such areas as creativity, the artistic process, art, and more – and their place within the Church today. Regarding ‘artistic illiteracy’, Erik Robelen blogs that, “At the heart of [artistic literacy] is a belief in the need to ‘do’ art, or to make it”, and he defines artistic literacy as “the knowledge and understanding required to participate authentically in the arts” (http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2013/01/what_is_artistic_literacy.html). I reflect – How artistically literate are churches and Christians today? To what extent does the 21stCentury Church believe in the need to produce art? Do Christian leaders and laity today realize and know the place of the arts in the church today?
Biblical Literacy and Artistic Literacy
Updated: Oct 11, 2023