Edstone or millstone?

There’s a great big stone in the middle of St Albans. To some it’s an eyesore, to others a work of art. It’s a sculpture called “Leaf Field” by the distinguished sculptor Paul Mason, which was originally commissioned for the Alban Arena in 1985, but has been languishing in the weeds by the old Museum for years.   Art experts assure the public that they should treat it respectfully even if they don’t find it very beautiful, but some of the public comments show precious little respect.

In the past, if enough experts told us that something was true, or that something was worthwhile, we accepted it. We might have thought that the Emperor had no clothes or the music was discordant, but if the weight of expert opinion was against us, we stayed silent.

No longer. In a ground-breaking broadcast   http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07mz0hv aging wild child Will Self lambasts modern art, and says all they things we have longed to say, but didn’t dare. The experts had told us to like things we hated. But we no longer respect them

This new era of cynicism presents  a bracing challenge to traditional religion. People won’t take the clergy’s word for things anymore.  Christians have to demonstrate old fashioned virtues like truth and goodness.   As Jesus said, repeatedly, by your fruits shall you know them.

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