In "Anonymous Are the Peacemakers" [Dec. 4], Gerald Shenk rightly calls attention not only to the benefits of reconciliation, but recognizes the dangers and behind-the-scenes nature of the work as well. I was reminded of the article in leadership journal almost 20 years ago entitled "Why Peacemakers Aren't Popular."
Conflicted people have a vested interest in the conflict and are usually much more interested in "winning" than in finding common ground or sharing mutual responsibility. The mediator sometimes gets caught in the line of fire.
When Jesus says, "Blessed are the peacemakers … " he does promise joy and fulfillment in the process but also recognizes inherent difficulties, as peacemaking goes against the philosophy of society in general. We're humbled and blessed to be part of this process for dozens of clients in our little corner of the country. WILLIAM HENDRICKS Executive Director Conciliation Ministries of Colorado
Aurora, Colorado Crusading Critics
I read with interest Randall Balmer's article on Thomas Kinkade ["The Kinkade Crusade," Dec. 4] and CT's related editorial, but not because I'm a Kinkade fan. While I will admit to being mildly fascinated by the lighting effects on my visit to a Kinkade mall gallery (yes, I too have played with the lighting dial), I cannot share Kinkade's artistic/moral crusade.
My own experience at a gallery, coupled with Balmer's description of Kinkade's "art factory," left me thinking of Kinkade as an evangelical Mr. Joyboy, Evelyn Waugh's memorable mortician from The Loved One. Both paint a pretty face but an unreal one.
In "portray[ing] a world without the Fall," Kinkade strips away the power of Christ's redemptive death and resurrection. A world without the Fall would have no need for the Cross, making his "Sunrise" and Christ's sacrifice a trifle at best.
We live in a decidedly fallen world. I was so glad this was stressed in both Balmer's article and in "The Artist as Prophet" editorial. The Christian artist must embrace the reality of a fallen world and love her fallen characters, just as Flannery O'Connor loves the Misfit and Katherine Paterson loves Gilly Hopkins. Perhaps it's easier not to give the characters faces or not include them at all. DAWN COMER East Lansing, Michigan
Randall Balmer's article tells us the artist Thomas Kinkade thinks of himself as a "painter of light." Kinkade apparently hasn't learned much from Claude Monet, the master of changing sunlight on objects he painted in nature. Kinkade has made no attempt to do this but paints from "memory and a daydream." He uses a rheostat and track lighting to do what Monet did by actually painting under different natural light conditions.
The comparison of Kinkade with Norman Rockwell is certainly a very long reach. While Rockwell painted a pre-McDonald's America, his stress was on humor, ordinary folk, and a patriotism best illustrated in the faces in Four Freedoms. In stark contrast, Kinkade's people are blank and lifeless creatures. One can only wonder why he feels the need to dehumanize people, who are made in God's image, in favor of a romantic, vacuous sentimentalism. FRANK C. NELSEN Brookfield, Wisconsin
Iam appalled at the attention given in the recent issue of CT to the "Christian" kitsch of Thomas Kinkade. His targeting of Christian evangelicals in the name of art is deserving of contempt. The entire procedure of tricking out prints (by whatever means) to suggest that they are authentic oil paintings is deceptive and false at its heart. If that weren't enough, the subject matter and style of the paintings themselves are surely matters for ridicule.
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