civilized ku # 346 ~ a Papal art update
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 09:38AM 
Yesterday's news • click to embiggenHot on the heels of Pope Benedict XVI's meeting with and appeal to contemporary artists to seek out visions of beauty, the Vatican - through its newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, and its Vatican Radio - has warned against "absolutizing nature" or "considering it more important than the human person." It also warned against turning nature into a "new divinity" which would "open the way to a new pantheism tinged with neo-paganism, which would see the source of man's salvation in nature alone, understood in purely naturalistic terms ...."
These warnings / admonitions are part of the Vatican's review - in its newspaper and on its radio - of the movie Avatar.
A Vatican spokesperson was quick to point out that the movie reviews are just that - film criticism, not theological pronouncements - but that they do reflect the Popes views on the dangers of "absolutizing nature". It should be noted that Pope Benedict XVI has earned the nickname of "the green pope" as the result of his frequent references about the need to protect the environment.
That said, I thought I would pass this information / warning along to all of those fantasizing dreamers out there who are "absolutizing nature" in their picture making endeavors. Just remember - the next time you reach for that GND and the Saturation slider in PS (aka, the Devil's workshop), you are guilty-as-charged in contributing to the world's descent into a new pantheism tinged with neo-paganism.
And, FYI, I take great delight in having both the Vatican's and the Pope's backing and support in my long ongoing crusade against the excesses of the color-screamist purveyors of eco-porn, Nature Picture Division.
Reader Comments (2)
Avatar, to me, was more about people living with nature, not neccesarily 'absolutising nature.'
I suppose speaking in absolute terms makes for better sound bites though.
Ah, the Vatican and its teachings. As a young catholic boy I was taught that the worst devils on earth were Luther, the Nazis and those who crucified Christ. (Hint: For the Vatican, it wasn't the Romans)
"God created man in his own image and put him in the center of the universe"
That little phrase, heavy with meaning, has tainted Vatican politics from the time of Galileo and before to today's stance on science, homosexesuality/contraception/abortion, and the exclusion of women from the priesthood,
As I can see, the Vatican still see itself as the guide of civil society.