I couldn’t tell you the difference between the finest wine ever crafted and the “Two Buck Chuck'' found at Trader Joe’s. To me, they all taste like spoiled grape juice (and technically, that’s what they are). Not that my opinions on wine matter…. Firstly, I don’t really drink. Secondly, and much to my chagrin, I concede that my palate possesses the perceptive prowess of a starved raccoon in a Taco Bell dumpster. In fact, after a long period of self-reflection I concluded that my preferences in almost all artistic ventures are decisively and objectively “bad.” I listen to metal, and the poorer the production quality, the more I like it. My wife and I display paintings of a gentlemanly-dressed racoon and bear; between them hangs a faux lever action rifle. We love them. My tastes are not refined; thus, you would be correct to say I lack a certain level of discernment regarding the finer things in life. Discernment could be characterized as the ability to see the metaphorical man behind the curtain, or in the case of wine, the ability to understand the intricacies behind a craft. Notably, discernment does not come naturally, nor does it come easy. Sommeliers will train for years to develop their ability to appreciate wine. In my lack of taste, I miss out on some of the finer things in life and I’m okay with this. Lacking discernment in other areas of life can prove to be problematic. We can be taken advantage of or manipulated. We can make life-altering decisions based on false promises. Discernment serves to filter information. I have found myself getting upset by headlines only to be made a fool of later when it becomes apparent they are misleading. I’ve been duped by salesmen, and I’ve been manipulated. On the other hand, I’ve had my worldview challenged by news articles. I’ve found some excellent bargains from well-meaning salesmen, and I’ve been able to distance myself from people acting in bad faith. I’m sure that you have too. In the same way that the discerning tongue of a top-tier sommelier can differentiate between grapes grown in France or Italy, discernment in an everyday setting can allow us to parse through our conversations, interactions, and information exchanges.
God instilled in us the Imago Dei, and with that, we like our Creator, possess the unique ability to create. We use this gift to encourage and disparage, to build and to destroy. Creative works are an outpouring of our deepest desires, and emotions. It reflects that which is experienced by the creator, and ultimately serves to propagate something. Discernment reveals what that something is. The famous hymn, How Great Thou Art was written in 1885 by Swedish Pastor, Carl Boberg. Pastor Carl, after being moved by the beauty of an afternoon thunderstorm, was so overcome with emotion that he sat down and penned the timeless verses that are sung all over the world to this day. Conversely, in the spring of ’64, Malcolm X delivered his famous speech The Ballot or the Bullet in which he advocates for black nationalism with a cry for extreme and immediate change. Malcolm X, just like Carl Boberg, was fueled by emotion. On the surface, these two examples have nothing in common with each other. The former was a poem composed by a pastor in the middle of nowhere, while the latter is a dynamic call to action from a prolific civil rights leader. The discerning palette of a sommelier would understand that we are dealing with a red and a white wine. They are very different, yet at their core they share a lot in common. In the same way that red wine and white wine are twinned together by grapes, The Ballot or the Bullet and How Great Thou Art are tied together by the fundamental nature of communication and creativity. The means of the communication is very different, as well as the unique goals of the works, yet their foundational purpose is the same. They share this with every advertisement, movie, painting, song, sculpture, or comic book that you have ever seen, or will see. Creativity is communication, and communication is expressed through creativity. In our fine nation, all peoples can share their message, but not all messages are beneficial, nor are they obvious.
On a given evening after a long day at work, the average person might stop by the grocery store, scroll through social media, and watch a few shows before heading off to bed. In the limited hours that exist to find rest and reprieve from the day’s labor we are bombarded with messages from an ever-flowing stream of communication. These messages take the shape of colorful packaging, clever dialogue, or video snippets of Kamala Harris laughing. Each and everyone of the messages that we are exposed to want something from us, and they seek to creatively communicate their desires. At times, their desires are mostly innocuous - I don’t think that the BBC’s Downton Abbey is trying to buy brand loyalty or a vote, but rather build an appreciation for the complexities of the early 20th century British aristocracy. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for other forms of entertainment. Each advertisement that we see has been painstakingly crafted to touch our consumerist nerves. Every political ad wants to paint the opposition in the worst light possible, regardless of what is true. The worldviews of writers and show runners sneak into their creations, sometimes even unintentionally. We are constantly being communicated with and it is through discernment that we can clearly interpret the messages being sent.
Subtle assertions are smuggled into our consciousness in the bowls of a ship named S.S. Entertainment. This, my friends, is why discernment is necessary. The ship will dock with the intended passengers, but so will the illicit cargo. Discernment is required if we are to have a hope at navigating the inundation of information that floods our daily lives. It is through discernment that we are able to drown out the cacophonous roar of the masses and hear the voices that matter. This series will explore the defensive nature of discernment, and its ultimate goal of finding the truth. But first, in the next entry, I will be looking at ways that we can develop our discernment and listen to the communication behind the creative.