In this book club episode, we discuss "Art and Faith" by Makoto Fujimura. This was a book recommended to us, and we sort out the parts of this book that we appreciated, and the parts where we would disagree.

Fujimura is an artist and a Christian who writes about the theology of making, and how imagination and faith interact. We talk about the Japanese influence in theology, and the struggle to translate not just words but cultural ideas.

We talk about our struggle with the word "co-creator" and our love for the word "vocation." We debate our involvement with the work of God, and contemplate how Fujimura breaks down and illuminates the word author-ity.

We agreed that his chapter on kintsugi is where this book shines. The taking on of someone else's shame involved in the backstory of kintsugi, and the big theme of redemption of what was broken was profound.

We wrestle through this book, and process it together, and ask hard questions--which is what good art prompts us to do.

Show Notes:

• Adam and Eve sculpture we discuss by Munehiro Ikeda.
• Theology and the Pain of God by Kazoah Kitamori

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More from the hosts:

• Gretchen Ronnevik

• Katie Koplin