The Way the Spirit Moves: A Prayer Painting /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

Six months ago, Midtown member Jennifer Kramer felt God calling her to turn her personal art practice public with Home Without Walls. Acting on this call, she reached out to Sojourn Arts about creating a prayer painting for the church.

For years, Jennifer’s painting process has been infused with prayer and practices from her training as a licensed art therapist. The finished artworks are visual forms of her prayer, emotions, and experiences.

Now, Jennifer is collaborating with people to bring their prayers, hopes, and longings to canvas so they can have “a physical reminder of prayers prayed and answered. A visual cue, prompting [them'] to return to God's presence again and again.”

Below, Jennifer shares about The Way the Spirit Moves, a prayer painting for Sojourn Midtown’s mission and vision as a church.

The Way the Spirit Moves (2026) by Jennifer Kramer. Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 48”

“I created this painting to serve as a visual reminder of prayers prayed and answered. In the Old Testament, we see God direct his people to create stone monuments as a reminder of the miracle that He performed on that ground. My hope is that your prayer painting points you to God’s goodness and faithfulness to see His ten year vision for Sojourn Midtown come to completion.

The Way the Spirit Moves is a product of much discussion, prayer, and intuitive painting. I collected prayers from Midtown staff both online and through an in person meeting, which gave me guidance on imagery and meaning. Then I followed an art process of prayer and spontaneous mark-making and color application until deeper symbolism began to emerge.

The end result is an abstract representation of ripples in water, with golden highlights and almond blossom branches emerging in an unexpected way.

As you continue to read the story behind the painting, you’ll see that the symbol of ‘ripples’ representing circles of influence was present from the start. We pray that each child, teen, and adult at Sojourn Midtown will grow in their confidence to share the gospel with those in their immediate surroundings and trust God to carry it even further.

The canvas began with a base of blue paint, but then was covered in yellow and red, followed by blue shades added back in. The yellow you see on the finished surface is the underneath layer shining through. This color in the painting represents God’s presence in our lives and in our efforts to make ripples. We pray for deeper rootedness in the gospel, a deep sense of God’s presence in our lives, and faith to let the Spirit move.

As I added layers of paint, I chose to tilt the canvas to allow watered-down yellow paint to drip from the center, toward the upper left corner of the piece. Once this layer of paint had dried, I used an acrylic paint pen to trace over the lines that the drips had created. In the following days, every time I looked at these outlined shapes, I saw the suggestion of branches, leaves, and flowers. ‘Is this going to be a painting of water ripples and branches?,’ I wondered out loud to God.

I trusted the process and began researching different plants and flowers mentioned in the Bible as having symbolic, spiritual meaning. The Holy Spirit led me to God’s use of an almond branch to speak to Jeremiah.

Then the word of the Lord came to me, asking, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

I replied, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”

The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I watch over my word to accomplish it.”

— Jeremiah 4:11-12 (CSB)

I added to the existing shapes that resembled branches, leaves, and flowers to make them more closely resemble almond branches. God is with us. He is watchful. He sticks around to see his promises fulfilled. We pray for discernment to hear God’s Spirit directing us as we accomplish the work he has called us to, and we thank God for his presence and protection.”

— Jennifer Kramer

You can view the painting and read more about Jennifer’s prayer and art process for the painting in the small gallery at Sojourn Midtown now through November 15, 2026. Afterwards, the painting will be on display at the Meridian Building.

If you or someone you know would be interested in a prayer painting, visit Jennifer’s website Home Without Walls for more information.

Using Visual Thinking Strategies to Look at Art /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

I want to share one technique for looking at art called Visual Thinking Strategies, which can be applied to anything visual such as children’s books or art exhibits. It asks three questions, again and again: What is happening in this image? What do you see that makes you say that? What more can you find? These questions are open-ended, with no wrong answers. 

After you’ve spent time looking at the artwork, you can read the label (aka a tombstone in art museums) and the exhibit statement for more information about the piece. You can revisit the questions and your earlier observations with the new details you've learned. 

You can do this with yourself, but I encourage you to try it with someone from your Community Group or your family the next time you’re at church. When you’re looking at a piece, you can consider the elements that make up the composition—like line, shape and form, color and value, space, and texture.

This process encourages slow, intentional looking. A study done over twenty years ago at the Metropolitan Museum of Art found that on average folks only spend 27.2 seconds looking at a work of art. In our age of endless scrolling, taking more than 30 seconds to look at something seems even harder. 

Rooted and Liminal No. 5 by Craig Hawkins. Oil on Canvas, 36” x 48”

So let’s look at this piece by Craig Hawkins with Kevin, Rochell, and Adam. It’s titled Rooted and Liminal No. 5, and it will be on display at Sojourn Arts in the exhibit Manifest, opening tomorrow. 

Jordan: What is happening in this image?
Rochell: So, I see communion. I see communion because I see the bread and the wine. And I see a table because these are just plates and cups and the ladder is also chairs, if you think about it.
Adam and Kevin: Whoa.
R: And then I also see from Genesis to Revelation.
J: What do you see that makes you say from Genesis to Revelation?
R: The G to the R.
A: I see that now, that's really cool.
K: I see the tree.
J: What makes you see a tree, Kevin?
K: The green, right. And it's in the shape of a tree. And then the red little dots, kind of like fruit.
J: What else is happening in this image?
A: The yellow is also like a cup, like of His sacrifice, His blood poured out. That's kind of what I was thinking with it too.
K: Also, we see Jesus, a person representing Jesus.
A: I see numbers. Ro was wondering what they stand for.
All: [Laughter]
J: Okay, we see numbers. We are not quite sure what they stand for.
A: It might represent a verse, but I don't know what it is. I thought this was a triangle, like, maybe the gold triangle is the Trinity.
R: I interpreted it as a mountain. I saw a mountain because of the shape of it.
A: That's good. The ladder…Maybe Jesus coming down from on high to us.
J: Yeah, so maybe the ladder represents Jesus coming down. Maybe the ladder could be like Jacob's ladder, too.
A: And I think these are chairs because of the place setting of, like, again, this idea of we have a spot at the table.

And it’s as simple as that! Our group then read Craig’s artist statement for more context about the series, adding to our understanding of the work.

Manifest features paintings by Craig Hawkins and Matt Armstrong. It opened on Friday, September 11th and is on view through Sunday, November 8, 2026.

This post originally existed as an email sent to Sojourn Midtown members.

The Third Annual Sojourn Artist Showcase /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

The Sojourn Artist Showcase has a long history at Sojourn Midtown, popping up periodically throughout the church’s history (see here and here). This year marks the 3rd consecutive row of hosting the Showcase in the summer, celebrating the artistic work of Sojourn Midtown and our extended church family through the visual and performing arts.

Above: Photograph by Allison Rushing. Below: 3 Photographs by Fred Games.

47 artists from Midtown and our extended church family submitted to the Showcase this year, with almost 100 pieces of artwork shared for consideration across multiple mediums: fiber arts, paintings, photography, sculpture, pottery, drawings, and illustrations.

The gallery features artwork by Jon Abreu, Jagur Allen, Melanie Harding Bates, Isabella Cape, Jordan Crump, Kelly Davenport, Camille Davis, Amanda Galloway, Alex Gerwe, Karen Grantz, Casey Hamm, Olin Hamm, Rachel Hamm, Savannah Harper, Brandon Hochhalter, Abigail Irving, Tasha Irving, Brittany Anne Jennings, Sylvan Jennings, Hannah Johnson, Elisabeth Kennedy, Jennifer Kramer, Deborah Leach, Skylar Mason, Sarah Mayer, Will Meadows, Ashley Miles, Jane Petry, Katie Petry, Marigold Petry, Sarah Ritz, Ian Robertson, Owen Robertson, Tim Robertson, Brian Rodman, Rhonda Rose, Allison Rushing, Thomas Sandlin, Asia Sloan, Suyun Son, Crystal Sridhar, Everly Sridhar, Meridian Sridhar, Daniel Vance, Dani Wallace, Annalee Weeks, and Maddie Wyatt.

Throughout the evening in the back of the sanctuary, we heard poetry, prose, and spoken word, songs and comedy. It was an evening full of enjoying the good gifts God has given us in creativity and community.

The Open Mic featured performances by Asher Chavez; Jonathon Crump with Dave Swanberg, Will Meadows, Chris Millett and Danley Pyles; Andy Fillebrown; Alex Gerwe; Rachel Hamm; Payton Harris; Nadia Irving; Skyler Markwell with Rachel Hamm; Christopher Owen; Tom Sandlin; Paul Sridhar with Michael Butterworth and Payton Harris; Sam Stevenson; Josiah Williams, Drew Dreher, Jonathan Shoemaker and Asher Chavez; and Annalee Weeks.

Photographs above by Allison Rushing.

The Showcase is on view through Sunday, September 6, 2026. We hope sharing our creative work inspires others in our community and beyond to make and share their own creative projects too!

Recorded Wanderings /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

Recorded Wanderings opened last week at Sojourn Midtown. The exhibit features artwork by Daniel Buffenmeyer, Young-Ly Hong Chandra, Julia Hendrickson, Jocelyn Mathewes, Matthew Whitney, and Michael Winters.

Throughout Scripture we read that God leads us in paths of righteousness, makes known to us the path of life, and makes our paths straight. He records our wanderings and bottles our tears; He sets the boundaries of our time and place; His presence is with us in the heights and depths. 

The artists in this exhibit have recorded their wanderings, whether paths and places intentionally set down or ones they come upon. They have taken note of their places. 

Matthew Whitney and Michael Winters walk or bike particular paths in their cities, recording their movement through the places they live by drawing maps and making photographs. 

Julia Hendrickson and Jocelyn Mathewes create paintings and cyanotypes, respectively, from the regional nature surrounding them, from recording particular California raindrops to the seasonal flora of Appalachia.  

Daniel Buffenmeyer seeks out God’s presence in wild woods, places untouched by human hands, and Young-Ly Hong Chandra’s pieces remind us of God’s presence wherever we go, placemaking in the midst of migration.  

Much like God knows our daily wanderings, trials, and joys, these artists are intentionally attuned to the places and paths around them. May we also seek to be present to the people, places and paths God leads us to as well.

Daniel Buffenmeyer earned a BFA in Printmaking from Tyler School of Art (Temple University) in Philadelphia. Some of his past involvements include: Curator for Lebanon Valley Council on the Arts and adjunct professor at Lebanon Valley College. Currently, Daniel exhibits throughout South-Central Pennsylvania, and works both on location and from his studio in rural Pennsylvania. See more of Daniel’s art at Buffenmeyer.com.

Middle Creek Preserve, Pennsylvania, 11-03-2022 by Daniel Buffenmeyer

What Upholds Us by Young-Ly Hong Chandra

Young-Ly Hong Chandra is a Seoul born, interdisciplinary artist. With her roots across multiple cultures and countries, she explores layered  boundary crossing in physical, cultural, material and spiritual realms through making soft sculpture, painting, drawing, experimental filmmaking and site specific installations.

Her work-process engages contemplative gazing at her environment and her mediums and ushering their own stories out, through her bodily labor. It often involves repetitive acts of cutting, stretching, wrapping, squeezing, stroking and knotting. See more of Young-Ly’s work at younglyhongchandra.com.

Julia Hendrickson is a practice and process-based visual artist and theologian. She lives a Covid conscious life, as a mechanism of inclusion and care, in the Los Angeles Plain ecoregion. Julia works serially with watercolor and salt, digital formats, and relief prints. She expands the Benedictine tradition of ora et labora to opera Divina, daily work as prayer, with each artwork being a manifold conversation with the Divine. As a professor, Julia facilitates reflections about the role of art in the world and self-filmed digital studio visits she models this on social media. Julia has an M.F.A. from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Print | Media and an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary. These dual degrees distinctly inform her thought and studio practice. She is a Fujimura Fellow and strives to be generative in acts of Culture Care. While waiting for paint to dry, she takes long walks, documents flowers, and reads a lot of books. See more of Julia’s work at juliahendrickson.com.

Hedgerow by Julia Hendrickson

From The Harvest by Jocelyn Mathewes

Jocelyn Mathewes is a mixed-media interdisciplinary artist living with her family in rural Appalachia in East Tennessee. She earned a B.A. in Studio Art and English Literature from Messiah College, and her work has been exhibited in galleries, museums, and community spaces across the United States and internationally. Working primarily in alternative photographic processes—especially cyanotype—alongside film photography, collage, and mixed media, her practice investigates the unrepeatable moment: what it means to document time passing through a body, a season, a place.

In 2020, Jocelyn founded EAT/ART space, a dining room pop-up gallery in Johnson City that celebrates hyper-local Appalachian artists and culture, and has hosted 19+ exhibits since its founding. She is the current executive chair of her local public art committee, and releases a monthly newsletter featuring arts events across the Southern Highlands, connecting creatives throughout East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, and Southwest Virginia. Her work has appeared in publications including The HAND Magazine and Cyanotype: The Blueprint in Contemporary Practice by Christina Z. Anderson, and has been collected by the Reece Museum. See more of Jocelyn’s artwork at jocelynmathewes.com.

Matthew Whitney (he/his/him) is a multidisciplinary artist, educator, and pedestrian. He works between drawing, painting, photography, collage, video, performance, and group facilitation, with a focus on the metaphorical and spiritual power generated through the everyday rhythms of walking, making things, and stillness. He has a BA in Art from Whitworth University and an MFA in Visual Art from Vermont College of Fine Arts. See more of Matthew’s work at matthewwhitney.com.

Detail of Movement in Kind by Matthew Whitney

Photograph by Michael Winters

Michael Winters is a photo-based artist in Louisville, KY. His artwork has been featured in galleries including Kentucky Museum of Art & Craft, Georgetown College, and Intersect Arts Center. His work has also been featured online on Vice and in print in CIVA’s Seen Journal. Michael led Sojourn Arts from 2007-2025. He now works as a Marriage and Family Therapy Associate and is a church member of Sojourn East. See more of Michael's art at michaeltwinters.com.

Recorded Wanderings is on view at Sojourn Midtown until July 12, 2026.

A Weekend of Wilderness Waiting /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

Wilderness Waiting: Art inspired by old songs of lament, hope, and deliverance for Adam’s race by assemblage artist Marianne Lettieri opened Sunday, March 15 at Sojourn Midtown and was on display through Sunday, May 10, 2026.

About her work, Marianne writes:

“Wilderness Waiting illustrates popular Christian songs that crossed over from religious to secular audiences and were recorded in multiple musical genres by famous performers of the 20th Century. Songs were selected for their deeply spiritual lyrics offering hope in the midst of trials and tribulations. Many have origins in the struggle for freedom and equality, some became catalysts for social and cultural change, and others have provided comfort and resilience throughout the ages. The emotional power of these old songs have the ability to unite people across different backgrounds, fostering a sense of community and shared humanity.”

Sojourn Arts had the joy of hosting Marianne for a weekend of stories, music, and art making in April.

On Friday, April 17, Marianne shared her story as an artist and believer, and a group of vocalists and musicians from Sojourn Midtown performed 4 hymns featured in the exhibit, selecting the songs based on the personal significance to them.

Jonathon Crump, Rachel Hamm, Dani Wallace, Bekah Polley, Brittany Jennings, Liz Klee, Will Meadows, Estrella Flores, and Michael White performed “Great is Thy Faithfulness”, “Be Thou My Vision”, “It Is Well”, and “Amazing Grace.”

You can view a video of Marianne’s artist talk and the musical performances on Sojourn Arts’ Instagram, here.

The following morning Marianne led 14 participants in a collage workshop in the gallery. Marianne shared her process of creating collages that explore God’s presence in the midst of lament and encouraged participants to make a collage that visually expressed the idea of hope.

Marianne Lettieri creates art with found objects and repurposed materials. Her work explores the brevity of life, human preoccupations, and shifts in cultural values associated with historical artifacts. She is interested in the interconnectedness of people, communities, and nature through time. Her work has been exhibited extensively across the country. She has an MFA in Spatial Arts from San Jose State University and BFA in Drawing and Printmaking from University of Florida. She resides near Fort Worth, Texas.

 

A Meal of Remembrance /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

A Meal of Remembrance is on view January 18 - March 8, 2026, at Sojourn Midtown, and details the process of artist Lauren Stevens illustrating the book A Meal of Remembrance, written by Leah Roberts of Poor Bishop Hooper. Below, you’ll find photographs of the exhibit, showcasing Lauren’s initial sketches, watercolor paintings and final book spreads, along with the context and history written by Leah for the exhibit.

“In the book of Exodus the LORD tells the Israelites to remember the Passover for all generations. As this command has been followed by practicing Jews over the years, a liturgy, called a 'Seder,' was formed to guide the meal. A Meal of Remembrance uses the framework and tradition of the Seder, but celebrates Christ as the Passover lamb, shedding light on His fulfillment of both biblical prophecy and many of the mysterious Seder traditions.”

What is a Haggadah

“Before the Lord sent the final plague in Egypt, He told the Israelites to remember the events that were soon to take place. Exodus 12:14 says, 

‘This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance.’

The Lord gave instructions on what to eat (a yearling lamb), how to roast it and several other specifics. This meal was, as instructed, remembered, and is still celebrated today. The feast of Passover is the meal wherein the people of God remember His mighty hand and outstretched arm as seen through the Exodus of Egypt. We are to remember, looking over our shoulders as well as before us. Looking back, we recall the character and power of God. Looking forward, we face the challenges of life with a fresh reminder that the God we know, love, and believe is with us. A Haggadah is the formalized text read at the Passover meal. The term Seder refers to the order of the meal that participants follow when led through the script of a Haggadah. 

In Exodus 13:8, Fathers are commanded to commemorate the day and stand ready to declare to their children how the Lord brought them out of Egypt. Through the text of A Meal of Remembrance, we obey this command to remember, while longing for the return of the Messiah who is Christ the Lord.”

What A Meal of Remembrance is About

“A Meal of Remembrance is a written liturgy to accompany a Passover meal held in the home. The book contains practical information (how to set the table, how to cook a lamb, how to manage the timeline of the elongated reading with a supper presentation, etc.) as well as the formal Seder liturgy. Traditionally, the meal is hosted by a mother and father with up to eight children or additional guests. Because of this, the text has been written for ten assigned readers. Through the text, the Biblical history of Passover is told. Those present recite or sing the Hallel Psalms and participate in Jewish traditions that are fulfilled through the life of Christ, our Passover lamb. 

The text follows a traditional Seder order. It is full of accompanying artwork, both to captivate the children (and adults) and to contribute to the overall conversation. Historically, the artwork was never intended to merely illustrate the story, but to contribute to the mystery and add to the wonder of the text. Some of the artwork in this book comes from Jewish folklore, like Pharaoh bathing in the blood of the male Hebrew babies. Other images come from interesting Seder tropes throughout history. Rabbits seen throughout the book call upon a Hebrew mnemonic device created to aid in the memorization of the Seder, which in German sounds like, ‘hunt the hare.’ Because of this, hare hunting scenes were illustrated on the borders of some old manuscripts.

The hope is to honor the past and gather courage for the future. Because Jesus came, died and was resurrected, the Passover meal has the potential to be of such great significance to those who believe in Him. We believe that He is the lamb of God, sent to take away the sins of the world. We believe that He will come again. When participating in The Meal of Remembrance, readers will recall His suffering in parallel to the story of the Exodus of Egypt, then take time to look up and watch, for He said He will come again.” 

Historical Connections

“The Passover meal began the night the Israelites were liberated from their bondage in Egypt. The Passover meal was observed for many years following the exodus – in the wilderness, in the Promised Land, in the Kingdom of Israel and in exile. Sometime after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD, a home service liturgy was formalized. Up until that point, the Temple was crucial in fulfilling the traditions established for a Passover meal. With the Temple gone, the home took the place as the center for the observance of Passover. This led to the structure and formalized order known as a Seder meal. The script followed during a Seder, known as a Haggadah, began to be compiled as a book in the 13th century. Rabbi Samuel ben Solomon of France has been accredited with formalizing the order of the Seder meal which has been followed ever since. In the 16th century, a special Seder plate was introduced. In the 19th century, songs, poems and other additions were added to the overall meal.

‘Wealthy Jewish families commissioned artists and Hebrew scribes with fine hands to create beautiful Haggadot. In places in Europe where Jews were said to have been excluded from artists’ guilds, Christian artists in secular workshops were sometimes instructed by Jewish patrons (with advice of rabbis) to create the images for the Haggadah. Whether the artists were Jewish or Christian, they were exposed to Christian images and illuminating techniques. In particular, traditions of layout, including decorations of initial words, full-page miniatures, and marginal decorations, were resources for Jewish expression. Unlike Christian Bibles with images meant to teach the illiterate, illuminated Haggadot generally assumed readers were familiar with the Bible and popular midrashic interpretations. Further, for Jewish readers, the Haggadah’s images were not intended as icons, fostering devotion through a practice of visual meditation. Adding images to a Haggadah was motivated by a principle called hiddur mitzvah, enhancing a commanded practice (in this case, telling the Passover story) with beauty’ (The Passover Haggadah by Vanessa L. Ochs page 47).

“Many captivating illuminated Haggadot have been made, but the earliest one known is perhaps the most fascinating. In Western Germany around the year 1300, the Birds' Head Haggadah was created. Entrancing images drawn by a scribe named Menachem led the readers through the Seder meal by bird headed characters. A sort of side story running along the tracks of the Passover meal is played out of the borders of the text. The imagery is unusual and lovely.

Over time, a standard practice for illuminated Haggadah took shape. This was comprised of four elements, all of which the Birds' Head Haggadah contained. These images were originally seen in hand made manuscripts and later used when printing became available. One standard was illustrations of Exodus specific images, such as the ten plagues and other midrashic stories. Pictures of Passover rituals such as baking matzah or finding the afikomen were also included. Additionally, illustrations from outside the Haggadah (scenes not mentioned directly in the text but ones that are alluded to, such as the early life of Moses or his death) were seen, with some artists going well beyond the specifics of the Exodus story and employing general Biblical imagery, such as scenes from Genesis. The fourth standard was eschatological illustrations depicting the end of days. These could include images of Elijah, the forerunner for the Messiah who was expected to announce Himself at the time of Passover. Others might be of paradise or of a rebuilt Jerusalem. This historical standard can be seen throughout the pages of A Meal of Remembrance. 

Just like all humans have their own fingerprint, each artist carries their own unique touch. The artwork seen in A Meal of Remembrance carries the fragrance of the artist Lauren Stevens.” 

— Leah Roberts, Poor Bishop Hooper

 

Lauren Stevens was raised alongside car engineers and theology majors in the desert terrain of Chandler, Arizona. She studied traditional copper etching at the Kansas City Art Institute and is now furthering her research as the Fall 2023 printmaking candidate at Arizona State University. The focus of her graduate studies has been the illumination of the prophetic visions of Ezekiel and John. Her artwork is to be completed and presented in April of 2026. See more of Lauren’s work at www.laurenstevensart.com. 

Hailing originally from small towns in central Kansas and now residing in Grandview, MO, Poor Bishop Hooper (PBH) began writing, recoding, and performing in 2013. What began as a duo, weaving together a patchwork of melodies atop an upright bass and a guitar, has since blossomed into a plethora of technicolor expressions - all to bring glory to God and beauty to the earth.

Though still often performing simple tunes in simple places, PBH has been blessed to develop a vibrant musical ministry - ranging from full band, heavy mood moments like that in ‘The Golgotha Experience,’ to their ambitious and sonically diverse ‘EveryPsalm' project, to their most recent release ‘As Foretold’ which walks through the prophetic fulfillment passages in Matthew’s gospel. Over the years, they’ve shared music and conversations with thousands around the country, in concert halls and living rooms, prisons and schools.

25 Years of Sojourn Arts /  by Jordan Lienhoop Crump

by Jordan Crump

Installation shot of 25 Years of Sojourn Arts

Sojourn Community Church had its first public church service 25 years ago. In its quarter century history, art and culture making have been a part of Sojourn’s ethos: cultivating beauty, being fruitful, and building up the church through the arts. 

In this exhibit, on view September 14 - November 9, 2025, each year of Sojourn’s history is represented by a piece of artwork– from the original logo and bulletin designs to worship albums and commissioned artworks. 

Behind each piece are many hands and stories of artists visualizing scripture and members putting what their ears hear into what their hands make. Since its start, Sojourn Arts has hosted over 100 monthly artist meetings and curated more than 150 exhibits featuring artwork from more than 500 artists. 

2000: Photograph of early service, early documents.

The official ‘launch’ service of Sojourn Community Church took place in Fall of 2000. For about a year leading up to that point, a community was being brought together, mostly young people who were looking for a fresh expression of Christian faith. After Fall 2000, the worship services of the church took place on Sunday evenings in Highland Baptist Church at Grinstead and Cherokee Parkway.

2001: Mosaic Table by Sojourn Community Church

This table top was probably the first community arts project completed by the church. Everyone present in that week’s worship service was invited to place a piece on the table. The table originally had no base, as it was moved in and out of storage since we rented worship space from other churches. After being used by Sojourn Midtown for many years, this table was given to Sojourn East where Joel Nussbaum created the wooden base.

2002: Aslan’s How design plan and photo.

Because Sojourn rented space for worship gatherings, the leaders desired a space where other meetings could happen during the week. Instead of only using the space as a private office, they opened the storefront space at 1906 Bardstown Road in the Highlands to also function as an art gallery and small music venue.

A document from that time describes the ministry’s purpose as: “to foster a relational environment for all people which celebrates the process of artistic creativity and discovering truth in association with a Christian community.” 

2003: Heart print by Aaron Marrs. Silkscreen print on paper.

This print was produced to celebrate the release of Sojourn Music’s first CD, With the Angels. Aaron Marrs was a prominent early member of the church. He was a graphic designer and helped establish the early creative aesthetic of the church. Listen to the album here.

2004: Kill Your TV, Cultivate Beauty

In 2002, April was named Kill Your TV, Cultivate Beauty month where members were encouraged to intentionally fast from TV and movies in order to give more space to cultivating beauty through other things such as sharing meals with friends, gardening, or making things. The month kicked off with TVs being smashed in the parking lot (or piñatas in the years after we realized how hazardous it was to break old tvs) and ended with a ‘film festival’ of wacky films made by people in the church, usually within community groups. Cultivate Beauty month was celebrated from ~2002-2005, with rebooted variations around 2008 and 2010. 

2005: Artwork for These Things I Remember album by Michael Winters, In Memory of Aaron Marrs

Original promo text: This 11-track collection of aesthetically diverse songs of faith, pain, longing and reflection based on the Psalms features worship music by Sojourn Community members Mike Cosper, Rebecca Dennison and Jeremy Quillo.

With stylistic influences ranging from the mountains of Appalachia to the villages of Asia to modern American rock, this record reconnects modern listeners with the language of the Psalms, reflects the diversity of creation and explores the tension between faith and doubt, triumph and struggle, laughter and lament.

Dedicated to the memory of Aaron Marrs, a community member lost at sea when the vessel he was working on capsized off the coast of Alaska, These Things I Remember focuses on loss and healing, and the stubborn faith in the midst of tragedy and questions that only comes from the Spirit of God. Listen to the album here.

2006: Travelogues by Sojourn Members, Print Magazine.

Travelogue was Sojourn’s printed zine, produced first in ~2002-2003 and then brought back ~2005-2007. It wasn’t a strategic communications piece, but was produced mostly for fun, to tell stories we thought were worth telling.

2007: Before the Throne Project by Sojourn Music and Sojourn Arts. Devotional, CD, and Passing of the Piece (1 of 10 original mixed media artworks).  Funded by Lilly Foundation via Calvin Institute for Christian Worship Grant

Written in 2007: “Sunday worship services at Sojourn Community Church generally follow the same pattern each week. It’s a pattern of Gospel remembrance. Before the Throne is an art, music, and writing project that explores this pattern, often called the liturgy. These images were placed in a daily devotional that walks through the patterns of our Sunday worship services in a way that hopefully extends worship of the One True God into our daily lives and educates the church on why we worship the way we do when we gather on Sundays.” 

Listen to the album here. 

2008: Feather & Keys by Katherine Groce. Reproduced digital print from original drawing and collage.

For many years, the church handed out paper bulletins to everyone who came for worship services. During this time period, it was typically an 8.5x11” sheet folded in half. The cover would have an image on it that was produced specifically for that week’s sermon text by a member of the congregation. This image was one of many images produced for a sermon series on the book of Romans. 

2009: Wisdom, Proverbs illustrations. Community-based project led by Sojourn Arts.

In this project, participants were invited to illustrate a proverb. A large grid of over 200 of these was hung in the 930 gallery as part of a larger exhibit that reflected upon the biblical Psalms and Proverbs called Prayer and Wisdom.

2010: We are the Church by Sojourn Midtown. Photograph

Photographed from the roof of Sojourn Midtown’s previous 930 Mary Street location, this image was made after a worship service. People were invited to stand in the shape of a building to illustrate the idea that the people are the church.

2011: Water & the Blood by Sojourn Music. Vinyl Record.

This album reimagined the hymns of Isaac Watts. Listen to the album here.

2012: Who is Shelby Park? by Sojourn Arts Photography Class. Photographs, wood, paint, pencil.

In 2012, Sojourn Midtown moved from 930 Mary Street in Germantown to our current location in Shelby Park. One of the ways we prepared for this was creating a photography class that would walk Shelby Park, make photographs and get to know the place and some of the people. The class made this ‘map’ of Shelby Park, which became part of the larger exhibit also titled Who is Shelby Park?

2013: Local Church by Wayne Adams. Aluminum foil on wood.

In the exhibit Signals and Reflectors, Artist Wayne Adams exhibited four large aluminum foil panels like this in our gallery. At the end of the exhibit, he gave one of them to us to keep; it usually hangs in the art collection by the balcony. He thought the way these panels reflect light is akin to how the church might reflect the light of Christ.

2014: Breadth by Stephen Watson. Measuring tapes, wood, screws.

As the church was preparing to study the book of Ephesians in a sermon series, we commissioned artist Stephen Watson to create an installation made for our sanctuary. Stephen noticed that the book of Ephesians uses a lot of measurement language and created something to reflect that. 

“I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” –Ephesians 3:17b-18

2015: Ten Commandments from Exodus by Kristin Busby. Charcoal.

As we prepared to study the book of Exodus in a sermon series, Kristin Busby created a series of drawings illustrating the book. The drawings were hung throughout the sanctuary. Kristin was a Sojourn Arts intern through Love Thy Neighborhood.

2016: Jesus carries his cross from Urban Stations by Steve Prince with Sojourn Midtown. Cut MDF, ink.

This piece is one of 14 pieces created for our sanctuary, meant to retell the story of Jesus going to the cross. These pieces often hang in the sanctuary during Lent. Artist Steve Prince created the red image in the center of the panel and members of the church created all the black parts during a series of workshops.

2017: Water Cup by Craig Hawkins. Charcoal on paper.

This drawing was created during a worship service, the only time we’ve had visual art produced on the platform during service. Craig Hawkins had produced many similar artworks for his home church in Georgia, and while we were exhibiting his art in Emmaus Road, we invited him to respond live to the sermon by making this drawing as part of the worship service.

2018: ‘Jesus Warrior’, AL by Devin Lunsford. Photograph.

This print was part of the exhibit Roadside Jesus, curated by Michael Howard. The exhibit surveyed how contemporary photographers around the country were documenting Christian artifacts in the American landscape.

2019: Personal Saints from Asphalt Saints by Kiana Brown, Love Thy Neighborhood. Engineer prints, laser color prints, gold leafing.

These pieces were originally created for the offices of Love Thy Neighborhood (LTN) and then shared in an exhibit at Sojourn Midtown. This series of images pair ordinary neighbors with popular heroes of the faith; for Kiana’s saints, Timothy Keller hangs beside neighborhood matriarch Niki Ross. The goal LTN named with this project  “[was] to provoke the viewer to awaken to Christ at work inside of them and in our city.”

LTN was a non-profit that gathered young adults from around the world to relocate to Louisville where they lived in intentional community together, did nonprofit service, and practiced Christian discipleship. 

2020: Let Justice Roll. Community-based project, led by Sojourn Arts

During the sermon series “The Gospel, Race, and Justice”, we invited church attenders to decorate these plywood letters with images and phrases imagining a just world. The resulting sign was fixed to the exterior of our church building.

“But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” 

–Amos 5:24

2021: Moveable Garden by Tim Robertson and Sojourn Midtown. Risograph printed paper, glue, wood panel.

On Easter morning 2021, Tim Robertson led us in this community arts project. Participants created bouquets and then scanned and Riso printed them on bright, colorful paper. The prints were then cut up and collaged on panel, creating our very own “Moveable Garden.”

2022: Community weaving (Pentecost Banners) by Jenny Stopher and Sojourn Arts. Hospital blankets, yarn, thread.

Artist Jenny Stopher started this community art project on Easter Sunday, inviting participants to weave colorful yarn into a hospital blanket, a visual metaphor for weaving our lives into Christ’s. The banners, one with a cross and the other with flames, remind us of Jesus’s promise in John 14:26 to send the Holy Spirit to the disciples, and in Acts 2 when the Spirit poured out. The other banner is hanging in the stairwell to the balcony. 

2023: Resurrection: 1 Corinthians 15:42 by Jared Boggess. Illustration.

From the exhibit The Resurrection and the Life by Fishcoin Press. “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.” –1 Corinthians 15:42

2024: Raised from Stations of the Resurrection by Scott Erickson.

Scott Erickson created a series of 14 images that together tell the story of Christ’s resurrection and invite viewers to contemplate the meaning of Christ’s resurrection in their own lives.

2025: from Alee / Aweather by Phaedra Taylor with Sojourn Midtown. Monoprint with collage. Created for Easter 2025.

Together with participants of Sojourn Midtown, Phaedra Taylor created a series of 14 arch-shaped artworks like this for our sanctuary. This rectangular one was also created at the same time for the art collection next to the balcony.

May we continue to cultivate beauty for the next 25 years!

Many thanks to Michael Winters for sharing the memories above that were printed on each title card.

The Creator at a Slant /  by Michael Winters

by Michael Winters

Emily Dickinson famously wrote “Tell all the truth but tell it slant.” Art often works like that. It hits us from an unexpected angle. A song lyric may sneak up on you and reveal some corner of your inner life you didn’t know existed. A photograph may unexpectedly light up some part of your neural network that’s been dark for decades.

In James K.A. Smith’s new book How to Inhabit Time: Understanding the Past, Facing the Future, and Living Faithfully Now, the author points out how God’s self-revelation also often arrives from unexpected angles.

“The Creator of the cosmos comes at us slant. He shows up in a way that also hides. God’s self-communication, as Kierkegaard would put it, is always indirect, which means it takes more than ears and eyes to see and hear. God can come to the creation he made and yet not be received or perceived (John 1:10–11). When God empties himself, humbles himself, taking the form of a servant, the revelation is oblique (Phil. 2:6–7). On the road to Emmaus, not even resurrection immediately translates into recognition; something else has to be given. There is a grace needed to glimpse the God who graces history.”

As an artist, I find something comforting and encouraging about that. The Creator is artful in his own revelations, rarely as “clear” and undeniable as we’d like. I’ve talked with many artists who feel conflicted about how their faith relates to their art. They feel the gospel truth should be more evident in their artwork. Some feel their art should proclaim the gospel in more linear fashion. No doubt, some are called to this and they need encouragement to work in that way. For most with these types of thoughts though, an unnecessary guilt arises when they can’t figure out how to authentically and clearly make their art tell “all the truth.” But the truth is, God doesn’t even communicate like that, so why do we feel the pressure to?

Some artists that feel that pressure stuff the problem down until it seems to go away. Some make ineffective art that attempts a straight telling of the truth. However, those that end up making compelling, truth-witnessing art usually do so by making it “slant”…and by learning what Dickinson knew at the end of that same poem:

The Truth must dazzle gradually
Or every man be blind —

No single artwork can tell the whole capital-T Truth all at once, but the Truth comes out slant and gradually, and, the truth is, that might be all we can bear. Don’t give up on telling the truth through your art. Indeed tell all the truth, but tell it slant, knowing the Truth must dazzle gradually.

W.W.J.S.? /  by Michael Winters

by Michael Winters

I’ve often wondered if there is such a thing as “Christian vision.” In other words, is there a way of seeing— a way of connecting subject, eyesight, and mind—that is uniquely Christian?

Among the first words spoken by Jesus in the gospel of John are, “Come and see.” Come and see. So much of the life of an artist, or anyone else for that matter, is directed by what we lay our eyes on. A few weeks ago, Pastor Josh Rothschild preached a sermon titled “You Become What You Behold,” in which he encouraged us to behold Jesus. I was curious: Along with beholding Jesus, can we also learn to behold like Jesus?

If there is such a thing as “Christian vision,” it could only be so in its likeness to Jesus’ own way of seeing. I recently read an interesting book that makes Jesus’ sight its subject. It’s called What Would Jesus See?: Ways of Looking at a Disorienting World by Aaron Rosen.

Rosen makes thoughtful observations regarding sight in the gospels. For example, in discussing Jesus’ declaration that “the eye is the lamp of the body,” Rosen writes, “By declaring the eye a ‘lamp,’ burning and emanating, he invites us to think about it engaging the world not as a passive recipient or even processor of information but as a dynamic force that engages the entire body and soul.”

Humans are not machines. Our sight isn’t like a camera that simply records the information into a box. Our sight is connected to the rest of our bodies and our actions. Like Rosen acknowledges, there’s a dynamism at work that Jesus knew and put to use.

While Rosen himself is not a Christian, but a practicing Jew, it’s clear he has great respect for Jesus: “Few people in the history of the world have understood as clearly and intuitively as Jesus that the way we look at people is intimately entwined with how we treat them.”

After discussing eyesight in the gospels, Rosen goes on to speculate about how Jesus-like seeing might function in our time and place. In drawing to a conclusion, he writes:

“This Jesus, more eagle-eyed, unpredictable, and brilliant than I expected, was not someone I recognized initially, and he still continues to surprise me. Ultimately, the enduring capacity of Jesus to stun and befuddle is a revelation in its own right. As clear as he can be at times—especially regarding how we should regard others—it seems that the Jesus of the Gospels does not want to be, or will not allow himself to be, completely recognizable. With uncanny foresight, Jesus not only avoided the full comprehension of his peers, he took evasive maneuvers for the future, many of which remain effective to this day. Our inquiry into how Jesus would see the world today must remain subjunctive, speculative.”

While this is true, it doesn’t make the question, “What would Jesus see?” any less provocative. It’s a question that will stay with me.

This post originally existed as a newsletter sent to Arts Feedback Group participants. You can learn more about Arts Feedback here.

Al Shands: Embracing the Mystery Reflections /  by Michael Winters

by Claire Davey

Mystery profoundly marks our lives. For as long as we are on earth, we are under the divine mystery of God and we do not yet understand. Unanswered questions and gray areas may frustrate us into eternity. However, Al Shands – Episcopalian priest, filmmaker, art collector, writer, philanthropist, amongst other titles –offers a new perspective. Shands embraces the mysteries and complexities of life headfirst:

“It’s the unknowns, the tantalizing edges of truth, the hints and guesses of what might be but is not yet, that prove to be the most significant parts of the human experience. In the meantime, that mystery is to be celebrated and cherished.” 

The contemporary art he and his wife, Mary Shands, collected throughout their lives reflects this very idea. In his book Rounding the Circle, Shands writes how contemporary art is often difficult to understand because it takes active engagement with the art. This art will not explain itself. We must become a part of it. This practice does not fall short of being a spiritual one.

Just as there are aspects of God that remain hidden to us, we must use our imagination to make sense of it all. By this, we learn to display a faith that is childlike – one that does not so much seek to have the right answers or the correct theology, but leans more into the wonder of God, gazing with open eyes. And what a beautiful picture of faith this could be.

As I walked the Mary and Al Shands collection at the Speed Art Museum this past week, I had a similar realization with one particular piece. Untitled by Anish Kapoor was at first quite an unassuming piece. A large, yellow disk. That is it. I was quick to judge, writing it off as another piece of modern art that makes me frustrated in my inability to understand the deeper meaning, ultimately doubting that there is one to begin with. Upon further notice, I had no other choice but to interact with the artwork. As I approached, it began to approach me back, as if it was moving closer by the dominance of its deep yellow hue. It became mesmerizing to me. I was lost in it.

“Untitled” by Anish Kapoor. Stainless steel and yellow paint. Promised gift of The Mary and Alfred Shands Art Collection. Speed Art Museum.

We seek to further understand God through the presence of art. As in the rest of life, in contemporary art we experience ambiguity. Yet when we allow ourselves to take a step forward, to observe, and to witness, the beauty begins to unfold. Perhaps the mystery is not such a bad place to linger after all.

Al Shands passed away in 2021, yet his legacy lives on through his artwork collection, writings, films, and philanthropic legacy. The Mary and Al Shands Collection was on display at the Speed Art Museum March 24 - August 6, 2023. 

Claire Davey is currently studying sociology and studio art at Wheaton College in Illinois. Originally from Portland, Oregon, she served this summer as an intern for Sojourn Arts through Love Thy Neighborhood.

“Vision of the parts rejoined” /  by Michael Winters

by Michael Winters

Earlier this year, we read Remembering by Wendell Berry for the Faith in Fiction book discussion. The book opens with the following prayer as an epigraph or prologue. It’s a beautiful prayer for a storyteller or artist of any kind:

Heavenly Muse, Spirit who brooded on
The world and raised it shapely out of nothing,
Touch my lips with fire and burn away
All dross of speech, so that I keep in mind
The truth and end to which my words now move
In hope. Keep my mind within that Mind
Of which it is a part, whose wholeness is
The hope of sense in what I tell. And though
I go among the scatterings of that sense,
The members of its worldly body broken,
Rule my sight by vision of the parts
Rejoined. And in my exile’s journey far
From home, be with me, so I may return.

- Wendell Berry, from the novel Remembering

I think I’ll write this poem out and put it next to this printout pinned above my desk…

That’s a photo by Ralph Eugene Meatyard I grabbed off the internet, printed and put above my desk. Seen from left to right is Wendell Berry, Denise Levertov, and Thomas Merton. It was a one-time gathering at Merton’s hermitage at the Abbey of Gethsemane near Bardstown, Kentucky. I would’ve loved to have been there that day.

Berry, Meatyard and Merton were all active in central Kentucky in the late 1960s (Levertov was visiting from out of state). Each of these individuals was incredibly talented, but a big part of what made them that way was their conversations with others. Merton and Berry especially are known for their prolific letter writing as well as their published works.

Our talent is not merely a matter of individual giftedness. Our talent is also greatly grown by what we give and take with others who are also yearning for a “vision of the parts Rejoined.” That’s why we do Arts Feedback Groups, fostering a generative community of intentional creatives. In conversation with each other, we hope to help each become better artists.

This post originally existed as a newsletter sent to Arts Feedback Group participants. You can learn more about Arts Feedback here.

Wrestling with Creativity and God /  by Michael Winters

by Michael Winters

The Vision after the Sermon (Jacob and the Angel) by Paul Gaugin (1888)

Art, faith and wrestling share a lot in common. After painting The Vision after the Sermon (Jacob and the Angel) in 1888, Paul Gaugin wrote a letter to Vincent van Gogh:

“…I have just painted a religious picture, very clumsily; but it interested me and I like it. I wanted to give it to the church of Pont-Aven. Naturally they don’t want it. A group of Breton women are praying, their costumes a very intense black. The bonnets a very luminous yellowy-white….. An apple tree cuts across the canvas, dark purple with its foliage drawn in masses like emerald green clouds with greenish yellow chinks of sunlight. The ground (pure vermilion). In the church it darkens and becomes a browny red. The angel is dressed in violent ultramarine blue and Jacob in bottle green. The angel’s wings pure chrome yellow.  The angel’s hair chrome  and the feet flesh orange…”

In this letter, you can hear Gaugin’s love of painting. Of course, in his day and age he couldn’t send easily send a pic to his friend, so he describes the painting in words. As he vividly names the colors and shapes, you can sense the joy he takes in the unique qualities of each.

You can also hear Gaugin wrestling with his own abilities. Though he admits liking the painting, he says he painted it “very clumsily.” He wrestles not only with his skill but also with the problem of others’ reception of the work. He offered the painting to the church of Pont-Aven, but he writes (cynically?), “Naturally they don’t want it.”

Along the creative journey we must wrestle with our abilities and with offering our work to the public. Our Christian friends might not even value our work. The gallery, or record producer, or publisher we wish wanted our work may not want it.

We can find ourselves like Jacob in Gaugin’s painting and in Genesis 32, on a wilderness journey trying to find our place, wrestling with everything. Maybe, like Jacob, without even knowing it, we’ve been wrestling with God.

Thanks to My Daily Art Display for pointing to the story of Gaugin’s painting. This post originally existed as a newsletter sent to Arts Feedback Group participants. You can learn more about Arts Feedback here.

Drawing Near with Joshua Jean-Marie /  by Michael Winters

by Jordan Lienhoop

DSC09920.jpg

Drawing near is embodied in Joshua Jean-Marie’s life, extending from his creative practice to his community involvement. A self-taught photographer with a love for film, Josh notices moments of intimacy between people, resulting in work that contains layers of connection. His photographs invite viewers to look closely at the people around them and to engage in a more meaningful way, whether on a bus, at a park, or in a food truck line.

See more of Josh’s work on his Instagram @joshuajeanmarie, and check out his work with the podcast How You Create.

Sojourn Arts' Artist Feature: Joshua Jean-Marie
photographs by Joshua Jean-Marie

photographs by Joshua Jean-Marie

jjeanmaire-8426-TMX400-33.jpg
jjeanmarie-0364-P400-11.jpg
jjeanmarie-7209-P800-04.jpg
img20210523_08584261.jpg
jjeanmarie-7209-P800-15.jpg

Stitching Stories Workshop: Kabul, Afghanistan /  by Michael Winters

by Jenny Stopher

Original fabric pieces now on view in our gallery through November 7, 2021.

IMG_7060.jpg

My husband and I traveled to Kabul for a second time in early 2020 for the purpose of building relationships with and assisting the staff of a non-profit organization there. My talented and experienced husband had many opportunities to work with the staff of a small business school in the city and assisted in teaching ethics and leadership classes.

However, in the middle of a culture whose views of women and gender roles are so different than here in the United States, I sought to find a way to connect and serve using my God-given calling to work as an artist. My vision was to have an artist-residency-type approach while there. I felt particularly burdened to open some doors to the often-overlooked women who had graduated from sewing and embroidery classes of a local trade school. As a professional fiber artist, I sought to work together with these artisans on some projects with the dual purpose of building relationships and making textile art focusing on our stories of family and faith. 

IMG_6214.jpg

I introduced the idea of stitching our stories by borrowing from the practice of henna designs used in cultural celebrations. I told them my story of family and faith in picture and encouraged them to draw their stories and then stitch those designs into provided fabric.  

I brought these embroideries home just as the pandemic was shutting down the world, setting them aside to quarantine. My mind turned to self-care and surviving isolation as the world changed.

Now, over a year later, the world news turns to Afghanistan. I pulled the neglected embroideries out of their lengthy quarantine and, longing to care for the women who stitched them, I ironed them. I ironed and I cried, and I prayed and I journaled, and I ironed some more.  

Tuesday, August 17, 2021:

… My heart breaks with each pass of the iron.

I sat with these young ladies and shared life stories as we stitched together. Their lives didn't look like mine, but we marveled at similar heartbreak of lost family and unexpected family struggles. Now they face unimaginable things, the loss of freedoms that were hard won and not knowing how much will be asked of them from the Taliban troops. The single women fear losing their right to choose their own husband or worse; the married women fear losing their husbands and their children. They all fear losing what little livelihood and possessions they have.

I wish I could erase their pain like this warm iron smooths the wrinkled cotton. But I pray for each as the iron works its magic causing their names stitched into the fabric to pop in bright silk thread.

Please pray for these women.

Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry: A Faith in Fiction Discussion Guide /  by Michael Winters

81axjRkEYUL.jpg

SYNOPSIS (via the publisher)

“This is a book about Heaven,” says Jayber Crow, “but I must say too that . . . I have wondered sometimes if it would not finally turn out to be a book about Hell.” It is 1932 and he has returned to his native Port William to become the town’s barber.

Orphaned at age ten, Jayber Crow’s acquaintance with loneliness and want have made him a patient observer of the human animal, in both its goodness and frailty.

He began his search as a “pre–ministerial student” at Pigeonville College. There, freedom met with new burdens and a young man needed more than a mirror to find himself. But the beginning of that finding was a short conversation with “Old Grit,” his profound professor of New Testament Greek.

“You have been given questions to which you cannot be given answers. You will have to live them out—perhaps a little at a time.”

“And how long is that going to take?”

“I don’t know. As long as you live, perhaps.”

“That could be a long time.”“I will tell you a further mystery,” he said. “It may take longer.”

Wendell Berry’s clear–sighted depiction of humanity’s gifts—love and loss, joy and despair—is seen though his intimate knowledge of the Port William Membership.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1. INTERPRETING FICTION - The book begins with this notice: “NOTICE - Persons attempting to find a “text” in this book will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a “subtext” in it will be banished; persons attempting to explain, interpret, explicate, analyze, deconstruct, or otherwise “understand” it will be exiled to a desert island in the company only of other explainers.   BY ORDER OF THE AUTHOR.”
Why do you think this notice was included? How do you think it should affect the way we discuss this book? 

2. CONVERSIONS - As a way of remembering some of the book, Jayber seems to go through a number of turning points, or conversions: What were some of these?

3. PLACE - So much of the book is about place. After he determines to go home to Port William, the world Jayber inhabits is all sacred. He writes, “And I knew that the Spirit that had gone forth to shape the world and make it live was still alive in it. I just had no doubt. I could see that I lived in the created world, and it was still being created. I would be part of it forever. There was no escape. The Spirit that made it was in it, shaping it and reshaping it, sometimes lying at rest, sometimes standing up and shaking itself, like a muddy horse, and letting the pieces fly.”
Is this familiar to you, or does it describe a different way of seeing the physical world?

4. TIME - Early in the book, Jayber describes reflections on the water. He eventually lives by the river watching the surface of the water. He connects with the river as a metaphor of past, present, and future. “The surface of the river is like a living soul, which is easy to disturb, is often disturbed, but, growing calm, shows what it was, is, and will be.”
This book has a long view of time and how individuals, communities, families, and places change over time. What did you notice about the passage of time in this book?

5. RELIGION - Jayber sees the world in a thoroughly Christian way, but he admits streaks of doubt and doesn’t think much of the rotating cast of preachers he hears in church. “To them, the soul was something dark and musty, stuck away for later. In their brief passage through or over it, most of the young preachers knew Port William only as it theoretically was (“lost”) and as it theoretically might be (“saved”).” 
He also writes, “the belief has grown in me that Christ did not come to found an organized religion but came instead to found an unorganized one. He seems to have come to carry religion out of the temples into the fields and sheep pastures, onto the roadsides and the banks of rivers, into the houses of sinners and publicans, into the town and the wilderness, toward the membership of all that is here. Well, you can read and see what you think.”
What did you think of Jayber’s Christianity?

6. MEMBERSHIP - Jayber sees the people of Port William as belonging to the Membership. What can we learn from his understanding of a community?

7. WORK - Jayber dropped out of seminary and gave up his calling to become a preacher. In becoming Port William’s barber he fulfilled a unique social role and in his other work too. What roles did Jayber fulfill for his community?

8. THE NEWS, THE ECONOMY, AND THE WAR - Jayber is critical of the wars and the aggressive modern economy. What are examples of this, and what did you think of his ideas? Is he just an old crank? An idealist? Or did you find him compelling on these themes?

9. LOVE and FIDELITY - After Jayber sees Troy in Hargrave with another woman (not his wife Mattie), Jayber jumps out of the roadhouse’s bathroom window, abandoning Clydie to walk home. Why do you think he responded this way? What did you make of his “marriage” to Mattie?

10. HEAVEN - “This is a book about Heaven. I know it now. It floats among us like a cloud and is the realest thing we know and the least to be captured, the least to be possessed by anybody for himself. It is like a grain of mustard seed, which you cannot see among the crumbs of earth where it lies. It is like the reflection of the trees on the water.”
In what ways is this book about heaven? What do you think Jayber means?

A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings /  by Michael Winters

by Kathleen Childs

I tend to go about my day in a blur. I move from one problem to the next. One task to the next. I fly about leaving chaos in my wake, not stopping to realize that the car I cut in front of on the highway contained a person, and that person is just like me. The lady checking my groceries, the guy sitting on the bench at the park, my mailman, the person I share my studio with, my boss, my roommate, my mom—all of them are just like me: a person uniquely created in the image of God.

They have wants and needs; a life I barely touch. They aren’t robots that power off when I’m not in the room. They are alive. Breath circulates through their lungs and blood pumps in their veins. They have complex thoughts and feelings and histories that I will never, ever know. They are loved by God just as much as I am. He made them. He sent his Son to die for them. And I have the audacity to so easily function like I’m the only person on this planet who is capable of complexity. 

“A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings” by Kathleen Childs.

For my year-long internship project with Sojourn Arts, I created nine pieces about Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings instead of the standard lone portrait—and I still feel like I barely scratched the surface of her complexity. How do I even begin to look at someone made in the image of God and try to capture them on paper? You can’t! It is physically impossible to take enough photos, draw enough drawings, paint enough paintings, to really truly convey a person in their entirety. If you know anyone in any sort of real way you already know that. And yet even knowing all of that, in my hubris, I tried.

I started by looking at her. Her long dark hair with the beginnings of grey. I tend to think of her more stony and straight-faced expressions, but I know that when she smiles it is bright and meaningful. She’s a deep thinker and wants to know and question what’s around her. 

From “A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings” by Kathleen Childs, in collaboration with Beren Jennings.

I then looked at her family. Her son Beren, young and exploring who he is and what he’s passionate about. I worked with him on his portrait and allowed him to create his own art and give himself surroundings since Brittany has done art with Beren as well. Sylvan, her second born, full of life and ready to share the joy he finds in the world around him. Darren, her husband, someone I don’t know and a type of relationship I can’t fully understand, but someone she loves and someone who loves her. 

From “A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings” by Kathleen Childs.

From “A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings” by Kathleen Childs.

I explored what she's passionate about. Playing the cello and the music she loves to listen to. Creating art on paper, with portraits of trees, abstract graphite, repetitive lines, and squiggly splotchy patterns with paint. I also collaborated with her on one of these pieces. I asked her to have fun and create whatever she wanted around the portrait I did of her hands which are her tools in creation.

I even tried to contemplate and wrestle with what she’s struggled with. Postpartum depression, anxiety, her relationship with her sons.

From “A Study in Human Complexity: Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings” by Kathleen Childs, in collaboration with Brittany Anne Jarboe Jennings.

In the end I didn’t produce a portrait of Brittany; I produced my perspective of Brittany. It has giant holes and is incomplete in places. It would take more than a lifetime to be able to understand just how many holes there are and it would take even more time to create enough art to fill those holes. I haven’t shared in or even experienced something similar to a lot of what makes her herself. I don’t know what it’s like to be married or even have a significant other. I don’t have sons. I haven’t experienced depression like hers.

But not understanding and having these gaps is okay. That’s the point. Through studying Brittany I was reminded of why I started this project in the first place: in my pride I believe I can somehow fully know a person through my limited, human interactions with them, when in reality no matter how much time and energy I put into knowing someone there will always be more to know.

Yet it is still well worth getting to know them and putting in the effort. We have to keep trying. The people surrounding us are beautiful image bearers of God who are complex and unfathomable, but worth every second we spend on them. 

DM7A7407.jpg

Kathleen Childs spent the past year interning with Sojourn Arts through Love Thy Neighborhood. In the Fall she will attend North Greenville University to study Production Design. As a visual artist, Kathleen loves creating detailed graphite portraits and playing with paint. You can view her work by following her on Instagram @kathleenchilds_art.

Mirrored in Mourning /  by Michael Winters

by Jordan Lienhoop

I was standing before two alabaster statues in the Speed Art Museum: Hooded Mourner with Rosary and Hooded Mourner with Missal. Created in the mid-1400s at the School of Jean Cambrai in France, the sculptures are encased behind glass, standing no more than two feet high. Their faces are somber, heads bent, covered by heavily draped cloaks.

These two statues were created to mourn over the tomb of a lost loved one far beyond the life of the person who commissioned them. Past my reflection in the glass encasement, six hundred years later, I found myself mirrored in their mourning. 

Hooded Mourner with Rosary, School of Jean Cambrai (French, active 1420-1435). Alabaster. Bequest from the Preston Pope Satterwhite Collection, Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY.

Hooded Mourner with Rosary, School of Jean Cambrai (French, active 1420-1435). Alabaster. Bequest from the Preston Pope Satterwhite Collection, Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY.

Seven weeks earlier, my sister Kait and I sat in our grandparents’ living room, visiting with them before our drive up to Chicago O’Hare. We were about to embark on a two and a half week trip throughout Europe—five countries, Kait’s graduation tour. 

Just before leaving their house, Grandma got a call from the hospital: would she please come in to meet with the radiologist. As my sister and I left for the airport, Grandma and Grandpa left for the hospital. 

It was in Naples, Italy, after a day trip to Pompeii, that we found out about the large mass on her pancreas; that’s all Mom would tell us, as she and Grandma had been avoiding most of our questions, not wanting to worry us. The next day, though, my brother texted me that it was cancerous, untreatable. 

Over the course of one week, Grandma had been diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer. 

Sitting in the Chiesa di Santo Stefano on the Isle of Capri, I prayed: Lord, please heal her. 

In the Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona: Lord, please heal her. 

In the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris: Lord, please heal her. 

Back from Europe, sitting once again in our grandparents’ living room, everything had changed. After a horse and pony show of photos, stories, and souvenirs, we began to talk about her cancer and what chemotherapy would look like. In the rawness of processing the diagnosis, Grandma’s voice was unsteady, crying as she talked about it and trusting Jesus. 

After that long weekend, Kait returned to Indianapolis, Indiana, and I went back to Louisville, Kentucky, where a month later I got a second part-time job at the Speed Art Museum as a security guard, a position that involved hours of walking, looking, and thinking. 

Within the careful shaping of the figures, within the graceful draping of the fabric, I saw a beauty in the midst of sorrow; a beauty I experienced, too, in the weeks before Grandma’s passing. Some of the sweetest moments with her were wrapped in the deepest sorrow, as the preciousness of the time we had left together met the ache of the physical reminders of her lessening days. 

Tucking her into bed at night. Watching the ginkgo tree drop its fruit. Reading the cards sent to her. Feeling October’s sun on my face. Seeing a new depth to my grandparents’ marriage. 

Hooded Mourner with Missal, School of Jean Cambrai (French, active 1420-1435). Alabaster. Bequest from the Preston Pope Satterwhite Collection, Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY.

Hooded Mourner with Missal, School of Jean Cambrai (French, active 1420-1435). Alabaster. Bequest from the Preston Pope Satterwhite Collection, Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY.

Seven weeks after her diagnosis, around one o’clock in the morning, Grandma died in her sleep. Though Mom had messaged me early in the morning, I still went into work at the Speed, thinking I would just get through the day, that her death wouldn’t be real if I barely acknowledged it. Before the shift had even started I was in tears, and my coworkers, though they had only known me for two weeks, gave me some of the first comfort I was to receive. 

In the weeks after her death, during my shifts at the museum, I would think about Grandma, endlessly walking circles around the galleries, endlessly walking circles around her in my mind. It was in the tapestry room—a gallery filled with floor to ceiling tapestries of battle victories and parables, with illuminated books of hours and gold reliquaries—that I would stop before the cream-colored statues. 

Though no one in Louisville was affected by the death of my grandma, those statues gave testament to my grief; I did not grieve alone. In front of me was the weight of sorrow carved out of stone, an attempt to honor the life lost, to say, “I will not forget.”

These works of art began a process of grieving my grandma’s death. They led to reflections and revelations, to the working out of my faith, as I questioned God’s power to heal diseases, as I sought hope in the promise of resurrection. 

Three years later, as I look at the statues in the photo, I know that I’m not cast in a permanent state of grief. I have the hope that one day I will see my grandma again when I see my Savior face-to-face—a hope that she clung to as well in the midst of suffering. 

JordanLienhoop-12.jpg

As a visual artist, Jordan Lienhoop is interested in themes of memory, loss, and redemption. After graduating from DePauw University, she moved to Louisville and has been on staff with Sojourn Arts for the past four years. Jordan loves working with artists and encouraging them in their creative and spiritual walks.

 

This post is part of an ongoing series where we ask artists and arts professionals to share artwork that has significantly impacted their formation as a Christian. 

My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok: A Faith in Fiction Discussion Guide /  by Michael Winters

71CrbGtIaWL.jpeg

SYNOPSIS (via the publisher)

Asher Lev is a Ladover Hasid who keeps kosher, prays three times a day and believes in the Ribbono Shel Olom, the Master of the Universe. Asher Lev is an artist who is compulsively driven to render the world he sees and feels, even when it leads him to blasphemy. In this stirring and often visionary novel, Chaim Potok traces Asher’s passage between these two identities, the one consecrated to God, the other subject only to the imagination.

Asher Lev grows up in a cloistered Hasidic community in postwar Brooklyn, a world suffused by ritual and revolving around a charismatic Rebbe. But in time, his gift threatens to estrange him from that world and the parents he adores. As it follows his struggle, My Name Is Asher Lev becomes a luminous portrait of the artist, by turns heartbreaking and exultant, a modern classic.

PERSONAL REFLECTION by Michael Winters

Someone in our discussion group pointed out that this story is like a superhero origin story. It’s true. Asher struggles to please his parents and fumbles at fitting into his community but he has a gift of artistic talent. With the help of a few guides along the way, he figures out how to overcome his challenges, though there are many negative consequences in the wake.

This book was excellent for discussion in our context of a church-based arts program. Reading this book made me even more want to help foster a culture of acceptance and welcome for artists in our own Christian community. Asher’s community didn’t know what to do with artists. There wasn’t room for Asher to be his full creative self and thrive there. I hope we can help make room for people to be their full creative selves through Sojourn Arts and at Sojourn Midtown.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

  1. The paintings Asher paints and exhibits at the end of the book bring the tension between him and his family to a breaking point. What do you think of Asher’s decision to make and exhibit those paintings?

  2. Various characters have different ideas about the role of the artist in society. What did Jacob Kahn, the Rebbe, Asher’s mom and Asher’s dad think the role of an artist was? Do you agree or disagree with their ideas?

  3. At one point when he is young, Asher’s father questions whether Asher’s artistic gift is from “the Other Side”, meaning not from God. Later, Asher himself questions his gift, too. What do you make of Asher’s gift and his seemingly intrinsic drive to create?

  4. Asher has a rich inner world that his parents don’t seem to see. What did you notice about Asher when he was young?

  5. As Asher continues making art in his youth, tensions develop not just with his parents but with his community. The religious community he’s part of has clear expectations for a “good Jewish boy.” Asher mostly wants to please the community but finds himself at odds with it. What did you think about the role of the religious community in Asher’s life?

  6. A number of times through the book Asher is drawn to Christian imagery of Jesus, such as pietà and crucifixion images. What do you think these images meant to him?

Joy & Grief in Meena Matocha's Art /  by Michael Winters

by Jordan Lienhoop

iusa_400x400.82462792_msxi.jpg

During Lent 2018, Meena Matocha’s process of art making radically changed. After experiencing loss within her family and community, she began using ash, charcoal, and soil to create deeply emotive paintings—a way of physically and spiritually grappling with the reality of both grief and joy in this life. Both figurative and abstracted, Meena’s work invites slower looking and contemplation through its many layers, materials, and expressive forms.

See more of Meena’s work on her Instagram @meenamatochaart and Facebook page.

Sojourn Arts' Artist Feature: Meena Matocha
“A Prayer in Times of Isolation” by Meena Matocha. 36”x48”, 2020.

“A Prayer in Times of Isolation” by Meena Matocha. 36”x48”, 2020.

“Redemption of Ashes I” by Meena Matocha. Commissioned by Church of the Cross Austin for Lent and Easter 2018. Charcoal, ashes, acrylic and wax on panel, 48”x36”.

“Where O Death is Your Sting?” by Meena Matocha. Charcoal, ashes, acrylic, & cold wax on panel.

“Where O Death is Your Sting?” by Meena Matocha. Charcoal, ashes, acrylic, & cold wax on panel.

“Gravity and Grace” by Meena Matocha. Charcoal, ashes, soil, acrylic and wax on panel, 36x48”, 2019.

“Gravity and Grace” by Meena Matocha. Charcoal, ashes, soil, acrylic and wax on panel, 36x48”, 2019.

“Through a Glass Darkly” by Meena Matocha. Charcoal, ashes, soil, acrylic, wax on panel, 12”x12”, 2019.

“Covid Journal” by Meena Matocha. Fine art paper print of ink sketch on watercolor paper, 2020-2021.

On Motherhood & Artmaking: Jocelyn Mathewes /  by Michael Winters

by Jordan Lienhoop

JocelynMathewes_portrait.jpg

In her artist book Offspring: of motherhood and artmaking, interdisciplinary artist Jocelyn Mathewes uses analog mediums to create an expressive portrait of motherhood, childhood, and time. From pigment transfers to emulsion lifts, her use of alternative processes allows for experimentation and exploration—ways of making that were cultivated in her own childhood and are found today throughout her creative practice.

Jocelyn’s work from Offspring was featured in our exhibit The Art of Motherhood. View more of her work on her website and her Instagram at @jocelynmathewes.art.

Sojourn Arts' Artist Feature: Jocelyn Mathewes

“Offspring: of motherhood & artmaking” artist book by Jocelyn Mathewes. 9 x 12 inches, 48 pages, hardcover.

"The Gaze" by Jocelyn Mathews. Polaroid emulsion lifts on watercolor paper with gold leaf.⁠

“Medicine Threshold” by Jocelyn Mathewes. From Within Normal Limits series, 2021. Prescription bottles, paint, shredded money, metallic fiber, elastic, curtain rod. Approx 6' x 4' x 3" (dimensions variable).

“The Heart Size is Unremarkable” by Jocelyn Mathewes. From Within Normal Limits series. Image transfer, collage, embroidery on paper, 9 x 12 inches.

“The Heart Size is Unremarkable” by Jocelyn Mathewes. From Within Normal Limits series. Image transfer, collage, embroidery on paper, 9 x 12 inches.

“30 Works in 30 Days” by Jocelyn Mathewes. Vintage recipe cards, gauze, medical supplies, prescription sheets, maps. Approx 36 x 36. inches.