arts + faith

We offer several opportunities to explore the intersection of the arts with faith.

 

He was despised and rejected,
A MAN OF SORROWS
acquainted with grief

Outdoor Exhibit of Lenten Art

Man of Sorrows by artist Sean Marnul

Commissioned artwork will be on display on the outside archway next to St. John’s Church, In his twelve expressionistic works of ink on paper, artist Sean Marnul takes up the challenge of depicting the undepictable – the death of one who is not only the (visible) son of Mary but the (invisible) Son of God. For Marnul, it is in the figure of the one who is “disfigured” for us, that we learn who Christ truly is.

 


 

The first movie night is March 10

Monthly Faith + Film

Simón of the Desert

Join us for our inaugural movie night:
Friday, March 10, starting at 6 p.m.
Cranmer Hall

We are beginning a monthly movie night, where we will view a film with theological themes and informally discuss it as a group. The first movie will be the 1965 Spanish language film, Simón of the Desert, directed by Luis Buñuel. It’s the story of a deeply religious man in the 4th century, who wants to be nearer to God, but the Devil tries to tempt him from his path of holiness.

Please be advised: this film is intended for a mature audience.

The second movie night on Friday, April 28 (Cranmer Hall) will feature the film version of the book title being discussed earlier in the week during our Faith + Fiction on April 26 (see below), Babette’s Feast, which has the distinction as being the first Danish movie to win an Academy Award for best foreign language film.

 

Monthly Faith + Fiction

One Wednesday a month, starting at 5:30 p.m in the Green-Meldrim House

Fr. Jameson and Heather Cross facilitate a discussion on the moral and theological issues surrounding a monthly book selection. The upcoming selections are:

  • Wednesday, March 29 – The Death of Ivan Illych, Leo Tolstoy
  • Wednesday, April  26 – “Babette’s Feast” + “Sorrow Acre” We’ll also watch the movie together version on Friday, April 28 in Cranmer Hall
  • Wednesday, May 24 – Persuasion, Jane Austen 

Previous titles include The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey; Descent Into Hell by Charles Williams; As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, and Our Town, Thornton Wilder

The group meets once a month (with March having two) at 5:30 p.m. in the Green-Meldrim House. Refreshments will be served. If you are planning to join the discussion, please email Fr. Jameson to let him know.

 

PAST EVENTS

Living Creatures, a Local Arts + Faith Group

Living Creatures, a local arts + faith group that St. John’s is beginning to partner with, will be having an art exhibit this Friday, Feb. 3, from 6-8 p.m. at the Whitfield Center (106 E. 37th St., Savannah) featuring local oil painters.

Doors will open at 6 p.m. with light refreshments. At 7 p.m., Savannah painter Daniel Bonnell will give a visual presentation followed by a Q&A session. All are encouraged to attend and enjoy this evening filled with art.

The Art of Advent

December  2022

A three-week series exploring the theology of Christ through works of art (including an art exhibition in the colonnade by a Ukrainian iconographer).  (Image source: WikiArt, Annunciation by Fra Angelico)

Art Installation for Advent

Dawn on our Darkness: The Hidden Life of Jesus from the Annunciation to the Epiphany
St. John’s is presenting this installation which features six artworks by Ukrainian artist, Ivanka Demchuk. These modern iconographic works play on the starkness of the world as we encounter it — broken by sin and death — while also allowing the eternal to break through, even in the ordinary, with beauty and with “healing in his wings.” She writes of her work: “In my art, God comes to man again in human form.” Her artworks will be featured in the arches (or colonnade) at St. John’s through Epiphany.

Advent Devotional Recommendation

In conjunction with our Thursday evening Advent programming, the Rector and Associate Rector would like to recommend a daily devotional for this important time in the Church Year. The book, The Art of Advent by Jane Williams (theology professor and wife of Rowan Williams), offers daily theological reflections on beloved works of art from Advent through Epiphany. This is a wonderful way to begin each morning with our Lord as we prepare our hearts for his advent (coming), meditating on his nativity and anticipating his coming again.  To view online visit, IVPress.com/the-art-of-advent