A prefatory question has to be asked in order to assess the role that art has played in the history of Christian public worship: what is art? Or, more specifically, what is categorised as art in the context of the titled task above.

In his book ‘Introduction to Christian Worship’, White puts art into two broad categories: Religious and Liturgical. For his definitions of art, White draws on the work of Tillich. He surmises the term Religious art as ‘any art that had a dimension of depth, penetrating beneath superficial observation’. Considered a surmising and not a summary because it would be near impossible to definitively prove art as lacking in depth. In addition, this is partly due to a definition that implies the art under consideration …show more content…
The important conclusion however is that, in order to assess correctly the role of art in Christian public worship, from this point forward, all art discussed should be consciously considered as being liturgical art, even if the reader considers the subject to be otherwise. This conclusion allows us to consider the impact of the art within set parameters: ‘when we enter a church building we enter a symbolic world. There we find symbolic objects, and perhaps more importantly, those who participate in worship are caught up in intentionally symbolic actions’. While not all Christian public worship throughout history has taken place within the confines of a building, the impact of liturgical art must be examined within the understanding that for someone, in some place, the art being studied has played a role in a connection to God and expression of …show more content…
The different images within the catacombs must have played a role in any worship that took place on some level. With images of biblical stories containing themes of deliverance, salvation, sacrifice. Even if the only services were funerals or ones of remembrance, these images must have provoked some response, ‘the experience of worship is closely bound up with the ambience in which it takes place and the visual impact of its setting’. The images could be considered to bring hope and hint towards the life everlasting. ‘In the catacomb frescos of the Jonah cycle, the last scene generally shows Jonah lying nude under a vine. The unbiblical nudity of the figure would be inexplicable unless we recognized [sic.] it as a symbol of the resurrected body in paradise’. The catacombs contained various artistic renditions that when combined with burial of the dead may have encouraged Christians to reflect on the promises of God; the potential suffering or sacrifice of faith; the promise of eternal life. These reflections and the quantity of art surely point towards the conclusion that art played a significant role in the worship of the early church. This is a conclusion that is supported by Lowrie in his summary of catacomb/sepulchre art: ‘There it sprang up and developed as a spontaneous expression of the Christian faith and hope. If it had not gained so early a foothold in the cemeteries, the Church, we may