by Monica Chamness
Staff Writer
The arts and religion are two phenomenons whose paths once ran parallel but whose roads are now quite divergent. Four area churches have taken steps to close the gap between these two worlds that seem to be poles apart.
“Originally, all the art that was ever done was commandeered by the church to paint; that’s why the Sistine Chapel is there,” said Pat Brown, events manager at Church of the Messiah off Arlington Expressway.
“They [artists] worked for and were supported by the church. As the years progressed, the churches lost that. We want to bring music and dance back to the church where it began. We believe our church was called [by God] to restore the arts back to the church.”
For 20 years, Church of the Messiah has sponsored events open to the public whereby visual and performing artists from outside their congregation visit their sanctuary.
The latest show at the church was a dance performance by Ballet Magnificat. Others making appearances have included author Steve Fry, singer Rob Stearns and recording artist Paul Wilbur. A Russian art exhibit has been hosted at the site as well. International artists are the church’s main focus.
“The church vernacular is different from secular music,” said Brown.
“They’re all Christian groups. Every song is worship — if it’s telling a story or proclaiming the glory of God in a song. Churches shut their doors to the arts at one point so a lot of talented artists, dancers and singers have gone out into the world. We believe they should use their talent for God and God has set a mandate for our church to be a part of this.”
Accordingly, all dancers are dressed in modest attire and refrain from any suggestive movements. To underscore their acceptance of the art form, the church has an in-house ballet school and incorporates dance into their church services. The artistically enthusiastic bunch has even recorded their own album of music featuring their choir.
The free shows are open to anyone who wishes to attend.
“That person [performing] has a message for our church or our city at that time,” said Brown. “God told us we needed to do this to minister.”
How many events are scheduled varies quite a bit since the church does not calendar events in a set manner.
“It depends on the time of year, what we’re doing at the church and how the Lord leads you,” she explained. “We don’t schedule just to schedule.”
Although all of the churches surveyed stressed that the artistic events taking place on their premises held an undertone of spiritual meaning, some do take a different approach than others.
The Church of the Good Shepherd is one example.
“It started out as an outreach to the community,” said Dr. Ross Krueger, a leading lay member at the Episcopal church in Riverside.
“We have a historic organ, the E.M. Skinner, was built in 1929 and had been totally restored in the early 1990s. We wanted to feature the organ and our good acoustics so we started a concert series.”
Situated near historic Five Points, The Church of the Good Shepherd offers the widest array of artistic experiences of the churches in the immediate area. Thespians, dancers, singers, musicians, painters and photographers have all been in the spotlight at the Good Shepherd. School dances and square dances are allowed at the facilities, too.
Running the list of past headliners are the Vienna Boys Choir, the Russian Male Chair, Chanticleer (a male vocal group), the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, the Jacksonville Stage Company and the Anonymous Four women’s quartet. The American Boy Choir was the first performer of 50 total at the church in the eight years they have been allowing outsiders in. The church often pairs with the Riverside Fine Arts Association as well.
“These are all professional artists from around the world,” said Krueger.
“We had a dozen here from France, some from Great Britain, a brass band from Cleveland. Because of the international flavor of the performers, we have to schedule nine months to a year ahead of time. The artists are certainly not rock or rap but it’s not all classical either. We keep it in good taste. The idea is to give people high quality concerts at a reasonable price right in their neighborhood.”
Talent is discovered through agents or the church may seek out performers to invite there.
Despite the local emphasis, the church has drawn crowds from the beaches, Gainesville and St. Simons Island.
For patrons, only a minimal amount is charged. The church takes care of the rest.
“Ticket sales only cover 30-40 percent of the cost so we have to have sponsors and contributors,” said Krueger.
“A concert can be as much as $20,000. Our citizens pride themselves on the Jaguars but culture is important, too. Businesses looking to come here will check out the symphonies and the ballets. Arts go back millenniums. It’s an important part of human nature and important to people’s morale. We’re pleased to provide the service and have so many volunteers. A lot of people work together to put on this endeavor.”
The First Presbyterian Church in the heart of downtown also offers musical performers. The Don Thompson Chorale regularly rehearses and performs there. Linda Hodges, the church’s music director, is also the director of the vocal group Friday Musicale which routinely has shows at the site as well.
Hodges could not be reached for comment as she is touring the East Coast with her youth choir.
Another church permitting artistic influences is Riverside Baptist Church.
Ten years ago, Riverside Baptist Church began the C. Edwards Bryan Art Series named after their late organist.
“The series was created for the purpose of exposing Riverside Church to the Jacksonville Community,” recalled David Holladay, associate minister of the church, which is on the corner of Park and King.
“Any church that opens their facility for this has an ulterior motive, exposing themselves to the community. Most functions here center around the church’s organ. Outside of the one at Jacoby Hall (in the T-U Center,) it is the largest organ in town. We’ve had local, national and international artists play for us.”
FCCJ’s Chorale was the last act to entertain there with their music. Organist Florence Jowers, assistant professor of music at Lenior-Rhyne College in North Carolina, will be there October 20. The event is co-sponsored by the American Guild of Organists.
Other genres include chamber groups, college vocal groups, classical guitar and brass quartets. Performances are held an average of three times a year and all are open to the public at no cost. Artists come to the church by invitation only.
“This is a classical art series,” said Holladay.
“We do this for the sake of the arts and the exposure given. It is funded by the church membership.”