Telling the Truth is an annual forum of Christian artists, theologians, patrons, intercessors and all those concerned about the future of God in the artistic community.

The purpose of Telling the Truth is to open discussion towards

a) a proper theology and vision of worship in which the arts play their rightful role
b) a vision of theological art as a window for outreach from the local church into the wider community of victoria
c) creative, practical and effective initiatives that will move us forward towards realizing such a vision


Past Speakers:

Randy Hein: Randy is the lead pastor of The Place Community, a thriving local community of ~600 people comprised mostly of college students, based out of Lambrick Park Church. Over the past 8 years, The Place has been radically committed to the development and nurturing of artists in the church. Randy is a passionate speaker with keen vision and insight into postmodern art and culture. He lives in Victoria with his wife and two children.

James Nesbitt: James is a young, gifted Christian painter whose work is gaining prominence in Victoria and beyond. James was one of the artists featured in the 'Orcas in the City' project a few years back(remember all those neat-looking killer whales downtown in the summer of 2001? the one in front of Roger's Chocolates?). James studied visual art at Camosun College. He lives with his wife and family in the Western Communities.



The Lion Breathed, by J. Nesbitt


Daniel and Fanny Priest: Daniel and Fanny are both published poets who have gained recognition in Texas and B.C. respectively; both of them write poetry dealing with God, nature and common life in the tradition of poets like Mary Oliver and Billy Collins. They are happily married and live in Victoria. Fanny studied English at Concordia University; Daniel studied philosophy and creative writing at the University of Texas.

Matthew Davidson: Matthew is the director of arts in worship at Saanichton Bible Fellowship. He is a published songwriter and professional musician. Over the past 7 years, Matthew has been active in the music industry; he has put out two independent solo albums, played on mainstream Christian albums and produced albums for local bands. His worship material has been released on various compilations. Matthew has a strong sense of liturgical rhythm that informs his writing, worship leading and vision for the church.

But Why?

It’s well known, almost cliché now, that the Church and artists have never really mixed well. Many conferences and books about this topic simply reiterate the existence of the Church-art divide and tell us to do better. “Fellow Christians, smarten up; support your artists,” they say, or something to that effect. But the sharp divide between artists seeking a place in the Church and the people who want their church plain ("without all that ‘sauce’") is slowly becoming a thing of the past.

Telling the Truth is not about why we should or shouldn’t have more art in Church. Most of us agree that plain Church (oxymoron?) with no ketchup is boring, and is in fact a failure to glorify God as He is due. The Bride of Christ is not a paper bag princess; she is radiant and glorious; she is adorned with all the works of her saints. We can all agree on this. Jeremy Begbie, leader of the Theology Through the Arts project at Cambridge, notes the following:

Massive shifts are taking place as we move from what the commentators call a ‘modernist’ culture through a ‘postmodernist’ one towards a relatively unknown future.

A growing disillusionment about the grand claims once made for the sciences has led many to the world of the arts and the imagination.

The communications revolution has made the arts accessible as never before.

Barriers between ‘high’ and ‘low’ art are crumbling rapidly.

People of all generations are increasingly artistically literate. Young people in particular are influenced in a myriad of ways by the arts.

Christians are responding to these changes. It is very likely that the arts are going to play an increasing role in the way people discover and articulate Christian faith.

‘Theology’ is another name for this process of discovery and articulation. It is ‘faith seeking deeper wisdom’. It is done not only done by academics, but by anyone who thinks seriously about the Christian faith.

Theology ‘through the arts' is about allowing the arts to help us do theology better.

Most people who think critically about the future of the Church in North America have seen the evidence of what Begbie is talking about. We all agree that there should be more Christian art, better Christian art, and more widely promoted Christian art. But Christian art and artists do not thrive well in small churches. Talented Christian artists are often big fish in little ponds. And the word is out: Christian art is lame. Once the big fish hit bigger ponds, they usually find out how small they were after all.

Ultimately, we want to ask, “How can Christian artists in the community of Greater Victoria unite around creative and practical initiatives to impact their local churches and communities? How can we build a healthy creative community of artists that can serve as a means of growth, education and encouragement? How can we make art that isn’t lame? How can we enrich our worship and the worship of others? What if, instead of trying to keep our own small artistic projects separate and confined to our own small settings, we began to pool our talents and seriously impact our community? What would that look like?”

The title of Telling the Truth means that art can only be as powerful as it is vulnerable and honest. It can only be as relevant as it is true to the way things really are. And as it is with art, so it is with the gospel. We can take this one step further; so also it is with the Church. Artists need to interact with other artists; art needs to interact with art. What happens when we come together? What happens when we tell the truth together, and everyone sees it? (Answer: Christ is glorified in His Church.)

Please stay tuned for announcements about Telling the Truth - Fall 2006.