A Glimpse...

What is beauty? It seems like such a simple question, but posed to 20 different people, I'm sure there would be 20 different answers.

Skimming the surface of the word "beauty," we come in contact with the pop-culture mantra: beauty is purely physical. Height, weight, dress size, hair color, eye color, skin color...the list goes on, but it all points towards the same end: beauty is defined simply by external appearance. If you look right, you can do or have anything you wish; the prettier you are, the more successful or happy you will be.

Modern-day artists (authors, poets, painters, actors, etc.) define beauty with more sensory terms: feeling, line, form, rhyme, taste, sound, rhythm, or song. Beauty is a relative experience to the modern artist; you define beauty as you see it, therefore it is neutral. There is no right or wrong.

Religious groups (namely Christians) define beauty by adhering to a misguided belief that self-denial is the way to achieve spiritual blessing (i.e. true beauty). External appearance has no place or value, and those who do appreciate it are condemned.

So, what is beauty? Is it an adherence to the pop-culture's ever-changing-outer-only view? Is it an artist's post-modern reflection on thought and feeling? Is it a rigid religious denial of the outer-self in favor of the inner?

I would argue that God is bigger than all of this. It is myopic and sinful to reduce beauty to any one of the above views. Besides, these views are defining beauty by itself, or what they wish it to mean. A word, of course, has no meaning unless it is defined by its source, or Creator.

God is a God of beauty. Proof of this is present all throughout the Bible. The intricacy and detail of our created world is a daily reminder that God is actively present over His work. And in the first chapter of Genesis, not only are we reminded that God brought light and life out of nothing, He also called it "good." Of course, the theological complexities of these passages run deep, but one obvious key truth is this: God's creation is something that ought to be admired, appreciated, respected, loved and cherished. Beautiful? Indeed. This truth has particular relevance for the artists; sensory reflections on beauty are important, but only insofar as they flow out of joy and wonder for the Lord's handiwork. Our artistry ought to praise and glorify Him.

What we often skip over in an effort to define beauty is God's view of man. In our culture, we are apt to think of ourselves in one of these two ways (as I said before): man's beauty is either external, or internal, exclusively.

To the "beauty externalist": To focus merely on the outward appearance of man is to forget God's investment in our souls. The internal workings of our hearts and minds must be a daily outpouring of our faith in, love for, and worship of Christ, for His life, death, and resurrection. The life we have has been given to us by God, it is not for ourselves or for a worship of self: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20). 1 Peter 3: 3-4 calls women in particular to remember that "beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." It is easy to see that the Lord places primary emphasis on our hearts as a source of beauty. Our hearts are regenerated, transformed, beautiful if we believe in what Christ accomplished on our behalf, and live in accordance with God's will with joy and humbled thankfulness.

To the "beauty internalist:" To focus merely on inner self-discipline is to rob ourselves of the joy God intended us to have as His image-bearers. Yes, our hearts are of primary importance to the Lord as sources of beauty, but they are not of sole importance. God intended for us to place value in physical appearance. Psalm 139 expresses that He "knit us together" in our mother's wombs; and in Genesis 1:31, God calls his creation of man "very good." Both point to the intimate relationship God has with us, a relationship that encompasses both soul AND body. This, along with the truth that our bodies "are temples of the Holy Spirit" (1 Corinthians 6:9) , ought to compel us to treat our bodies with respect and honor.

Perhaps the most clear proof that God intended for us to admire physical beauty is Song of Solomon. A love song, Song of Solomon is a Biblical book full of adoration and love for the body. Of course, this joy and appreciation for physical beauty is only experienced fully within the confines of marriage, a covenant that God has established between one man and one woman. When the culture refuses to abide by the standards of marriage God has set forth, it immediately cheapens physical beauty, and produces the lurid, immodest images that are rampant in our society today. Marriage increases the importance and beauty of the body by raising it to a place of honor and value. Matrimony does not put limitations on beauty; rather, it frees a couple to love and celebrate each other the way Christ loves and celebrates His bride: the Church.