On Wednesday, October 26, 2011, Makoto Fujimura, internationally known artist, author, speaker and advocate for the arts visited Philadelphia Biblical University to speak about his Four Holy Gospels project, The Tears of Christ. Over the past few years, PBU and Fujimura have had many interactions and Mr. Fujimura has spoken at conferences, in chapels, and given special lectures at the University.
The day began in chapel as Mr. Fujimura spoke on passages from John 11 and 12. The PBU Chamber Singers began the service, performing pieces from the Christmas repertoire they will use when they travel to Japan in December with Fujimura to celebrate the opening of his Four Holy Gospels exhibit, The Tears of Christ. The project has been displayed at the Museum of Biblical Art in New York City, and is currently in the Duke Art Gallery at Azuza Pacific University. In December, the exhibit will open as a part of the 180th anniversary celebration of Takashimaya, the premier department store in Tokyo.
Fujimura examined the characters of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus in the passage, and Jesus’ response to Mary’s questioning of his delay when Lazarus was sick: Jesus wept. “For the past four years during the Lenten season I’ve been meditating on John 11,” Fujimura said. “I haven’t been able to get out of it.” Fujimura went on to talk about the “Ground Zero conditions” around the world and in our lives – referring to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as well as, of course, 9/11, but broadening the definition to encompass the many crises we face in a broken and suffering world.
As he has considered Ground Zero conditions over the years, particularly since the tragedy of 9/11, Fujimura has meditated upon the shortest verse in Scripture, “Jesus wept.” As Fujimura has tried to describe the indescribable and deal with the horror of the many Ground Zeros he has encountered in this world, he sees the tears of Christ as significant. “Jesus weeps for us today. And His tears lead us to His resurrection,” he said. “That helps us move from the desperation of Ground Zero conditions to a more generative reality – hope.”
In his evening session, Mr. Fujimura focused more closely on the process of creating the pieces in the Four Holy Gospels project. He was commissioned by Crossway books to illuminate the gospels, the first single artist to be commissioned to such a task in over 400 years. At the beginning, Fujimura did a lot of research into medieval illuminated texts, which he found to be enormously creative and generative. The monks seem to have been interested in more than descriptive art and often included abstract and fantastic designs in their illuminations. As a modern abstract artist, who works in the ancient abstract Nihonga style, Fujimura found himself uniquely equipped to attempt illumination of the biblical text in today’s world.
“This entire process was a journey of being illumined by the creator God, exposing all sorts of things – some very uncomfortable, some dealing with the depravity and wretchedness of my own heart – and feeling completely unable or justified, or deserving to place these images on the text.” Fujimura found that the daunting task was made more manageable by focusing on the short passage, “Jesus wept.” For Fujimura, that moment exemplifies the incarnation of Christ – He was wholly present with Mary’s grief.
At the end of the morning’s chapel, Fujimura challenged the students to be part of a new culture, one that recognizes that no matter how messy the world we live in, the suffering cannot not compare with the future glory. What would be the result of such a culture? Fujimura sees it as a collective of extravagant devotion to God, who together face a difficult world by creating beauty.
In the evening, he brought another challenge. “Art taps into our intuitive side; it allows us to express a longing and sadness we have. Refine your desires, using whatever your gifts are, toward meeting a need. Work through your Ground Zero conditions, your deepest fears, until your deepest longings meet the greatest needs of the world.”
Read one student’s response to Fujimura’s chapel message on PBU’s Masland Library Blog.
> Listen to a recording of his chapel message
