Movement 112

eviews: books
myth (Christian or otherwise) to inspire
debate or explore the human
condition. Leaving the gallery, I
passed dozens of exquisite medieval
church ornaments, impressing on me
the power of a tradition that reigned
over all the people of Europe for
centuries. But that shared worldview is
now gone, shattered in part by events
in the last century. Art produced in and
for the church now is always at risk of
becoming insular, limited, or merely
self-congratulatory. One really
challenging work is worth any number
of colourful banners proclaiming
'hope', in my book. But at its best, art
can act to make religion's imagery and
messages more relevant to the culture
around it, helping religion to engage
more fully with the world.
Some of the work in 'Sacred
Century' did achieve this, and I know
of other exciting and challenging
work being done by artists within the
church, such as the female
crucifixion piece 'Christa'. But art
commissioned for churches should
not be afraid to confront the same
issues which secular artists tackle.
The language, stories and symbols of
religion will alwaYs have a unique
power to define and exPlore the
things which matter to us most as
people and as communities. I
Liam Purcell
seekin!, outcasts
meditations on homosexuality and the church
Ordinary Child
ueline Ley I Wild Goose
Resource Group | 98.99
No Ordinary Child is a book of
meditations written by a mother
grieving the loss of her one-time
hopes for her son.
When Jacqueline Ley's son told her
that he was gay, she had to undergo
a spiritual journey not unlike the
grieving process, coming to terms
with that inescapable feeling that
God's plans for you are not alwaYs
what you may have had in mind. This
is the key in understanding the
book's universality - it is ultimately
not a book about homosexuality,
rather it uses homosexuality as a
guide, a map of woe.
Although Ley never stoops to look
for sympathy through a sensationalistic
style, there is something deeply
moving in her raw sufferinel. She is
up front and honest with the
questions she asks God, describing
succinctly yet powerfully her
feelings:
'The fact that I am a Christian,
that lmy son] James too is a
committed Christian, only served
to compound my anguish.'
(pa$e 75)
We learn through Jacqueline's
experiences some of the meditations
she has used to surrender her
problem to God, to rely on his love
and, perhaps even more difficult in
times of spiritual crisis, to trust in the
decisions he makes for all of us. Her
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yet
astute biblical referencing provides
the reader with a very wide range of
passages from the Old and New
Testaments often overlooked in this
field. She makes her points clearly,
reassuring us and encouraging us to
think about our position in the Church
on similar issues with the same
maternal care she shows her son:
'God is in the business of seeking
outcasts. Mercifully, his agenda is
quite different from that element
of the church that bears his name
but continues to ostracise and
demonise gay people'.
(page 44)
Ley thankfully avoids the issue of
homosexual sex in her meditations,
unlike most other literature on the
subject. This absence is significant,
and serves to reinforce the major
point of the book - compassion for
victims of the Church's oppression;
suffering with them in our own way
and not addressing specific issues
that are best left to those victims
themselves.
One of the major failings of the
book, however, is the lack of a
further reading list - the endless
debates and discussions within the
church about homosexuality have
been accompanied by a vast number
of books on the subject, including
the controversial recent worship
anthology Courage To Love,
compiled by Geoffrey Duncan, and
Aliens in the Household of God,
edited by Steve de Gruchy and Paul
Germond. Organisations of relevance
include the Lesbian and Gay
Christian Movement (Oxford House,
Derbyshire Street, LONDON E2 6HG
- www.lgcm.orE.uk) and Called to Be
One (for Catholic parents of lesbians
and gay men - PO BOX 24632,
LONDON E9 6XF, tel OL642
465020).
Ley's experiences of trying to
surrender her worship of the graven
image of 'normality' for her family
will strike a chord with many, not just
parents of a child with an alternative
sexuality. She recognises that there
are often no answers - much as she
would like to reassure both herself
and her son, the overwhelming
feeling of the book is that we must
trust in God and his decisions. This
collection of meditations provides an
excellent focus for all in similar
situations. I
Ethan Brack is an Arts
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28 | movement