Arts and Divine Message

[nablaise]

Most of the divine message we possess today was expressed long time ago through mainly hand writting. If we consider means used then:

.Handwritting
.Poetic, allegories, etc ways of telling a message

And consider today’s way of transmitting messages and receiving messages in most effective ways:

.audio visual: movies, games, etc

Do you think they will be a day when for example the Genesis account could be well expressed by something like a video game.

I mean don’t you think the poetic writter of the Genesis account, if he existed today, would instead compose a cosmic interactive video game or video program to express the same reality he wanted to express in Genesis.

So many time in order to understand the Bible we have to go into jewish understanding of some words, and then some understanding of old languages, etc. But the eternal message is the same.

Do you think one day the Church will canonize something which express the Truth of the Bible, the same eternal message in a clearer way to humanity?

Alain

 

[jmcrae]

No.

Anything that needs a machine to read it is only going to be available for as long as the machine that plays it is available, which in today’s world, isn’t very long. Also, the media used is not very durable; the games often wear out, or get scratched, or break after just a few uses.

 

[nablaise]

You have a good point. but don’t the books also wear out, and don’t people need to learn to read in order to read them. Yet they are becoming imperfect medium for the transmition of the divine message, specially for christianity.

Before oral tradition was used, but then it gets difformed one way or an other.

Plus Jesus never commanded anyone to write a book or use any particular medium. Just to preach the Gospel. And the CCC tells us the Christianity is not a religion of the book but of the Word.

I am just thinking that they could be better ways of transmitting the message of God more effectively.

 

[jmcrae]

You have a good point. but don’t the books also wear out, and don’t people need to learn to read in order to read them. Yet they are becoming imperfect medium for the transmition of the divine message, specially for christianity.

Before oral tradition was used, but then it gets difformed one way or an other.

Plus Jesus never commanded anyone to write a book or use any particular medium. Just to preach the Gospel. And the CCC tells us the Christianity is not a religion of the book but of the Word.

I am just thinking that they could be better ways of transmitting the message of God more effectively.

The metal plates that they print Bibles from are re-usable and have lasted a really long time. Every time a paper Bible wears out, they can print a new one from the metal plates.

Before that, they inscribed the text on clay tablets, and it was copied on to scrolls.

 

[nablaise]

Actually I have just remembered that recently the jewish put their Torah on a small piece of silicon. This is similar to Moses putting the laws on pieces of rocks or those metal plates you are talking about.

What I am saying is that the most important thing is the MESSAGE contained by sacred scripture or oral tradition. I am thinking that if a better way could be discovered by which the Church can transmit the message she teaches, she would certainly adapt it somehow. May be a council could be called for that .

Today really considering how many denominations which are using the Bible and claiming to understand the divine message, and how non-bilievers seem to be more confused by the Bible that enlithened, I think the language used in OT for example is getting closer to being impossible to understand. And only well learned people can understand.

Isn’t it sad that even catholic priests sometimes give us conflicting interpretation of the teaching of the Church?

God bless

Alain

 

[jmcrae]

Lots of people are using powerpoint, DVD, and other media to give presentations, etc. Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ is certainly popular, as well, and of course there are all kinds of movies, paintings, hymns, and so on that have been created on various Biblical subjects.

But I don’t think any of that will ever replace the written word.