God can be found in creativity
Art and creativitity has fuelled the human species rise and if there is a God then they can be found there moreso than in religion. When we think of religion we think of creative expressions.
Not everyone goes looking for God. For those that do I can save you some time. God is expressed through human creativity. Through our art, music and writing we begin to see the soul of not only humankind, but that of a creator (if there even is one). The existence of God is known by none and claimed by many but art belongs to everyone. The creative field is actively working in what Christians would call in the spirit. Artists, musicians and writers all receive their inspiration from somewhere and it is that spirit of God that speaks to them, and through them, to us.
The type of God you believe in will change the way you perceive human creativity. If you believe in a vengeful and angry God then you will fear angering Him (or Her) by enjoying the wrong music or reading the wrong literature. Your view of the world becomes warped by what you believe God wants you to think or feel.
A creative on the other hand will let the world (and God) speak to them directly. They will be driven by Spirit to create certain things, sing certain words and write about particular subjects. That is (if you believe in it) how the world works with an active God. But what if God isn’t active and is actually passive? It doesn’t matter for art. It will continue to inspire and create joy for billions of people with or without a concept of God.
What is lost, I think, in a denial that God plays any part in creative works is a connection we all share as creatives. We all tune into that same ether to grab words, or lyrics or images from. Or, we are consumers of those creative works. We can see this most clearly when it comes to religion’s relationship with creativity.
Religion cannot exist without the creative mind. It was creative minds that formed the stories of the early gospel just as it was creative minds that came up with all the rituals religion enjoys. Baptism is a creative concept and highly symbolic. All church and religious services (that I know of) employ some form of music and singing (or chanting) in their services.
A minister of religion can share in this “Creative Holy Spirit” when they sit down to write their sermons. They are employing that same skills as a writer and speaker that does it for creative enjoyment. The same spirit is at work. The difference I guess is the dogma involved. While an artist may have styles and certain ideas they explore, they are less likely to be constrained by a set system of beliefs.
That isn’t to say there are not creative people of faith. Of course there are. Rather that when we engage our creative minds we are focused on the process rather than our core beliefs. So while we may be guided in our creative work by religious beliefs, we are free to break free from them when it comes to art.
If humans were made in God’s image then we can be certain that art is God’s voice. If God is a God of peace then there is no more peaceful endeavour than creative work. While religion claims to speak for God we can see by the great creative works of all major religions that it is art that speaks for the Almighty.