Imagine a church where an original oil painting, a musical lament or a basket of colorful fruit can help launch a spiritual discussion and facilitate a meaningful worship experience.
That is part of the vision an International Mission Board (IMB) couple with Alabama ties has for a church aimed at the arts community in Montreal, Canada’s second-largest city and the largest city in the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec.
“The arts community is a large group that no one is reaching,” said David Brazzeal, IMB strategy coordinator for the Montreal urban arts community. “It’s a group that evangelical Christians haven’t understood and which all too often has had trouble fitting into the average church.”
Brazzeal, a Georgia native, and his wife, Sanan, are both Samford University graduates. Sanan grew up in Birmingham as a member of South Roebuck Baptist Church.
Two years ago, the Brazzeals changed gears in their ministry. They moved from the quiet suburb of Laval to downtown Montreal. “The Montreal arts community is concentrated in and around downtown,” Brazzeal said. “We felt we needed to be close to the people we’re trying to reach.”
Still without a name and a permanent home, the infant group in its first year of existence has attracted 30 to 40 people connected by a passion for the arts and a desire to know God better through artistic expression. Participants include various artists and musicians who find that the arts help them connect to God.
Venue of expression
“We want to create a venue where artists can express themselves,” Brazzeal said. “Worship is very self-expressive, and we want to allow artists to communicate what God is teaching them through their experiences.”
Instead of lectures or sermons, meetings tend to emphasize the visual, experiential and participatory. One member noted that starting with a visible image and pulling in the scriptural truths that it connotes is an interesting switch from hearing a passage read and then trying to imagine a corresponding image.
For the Brazzeals, organizing the arts church has been a natural outgrowth of their own longtime love for the arts. A composer, Brazzeal served for 10 years on the music faculty at the Brazilian Baptist seminary and in music publishing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
As for their relaxed, wait-and-see-what-happens-next method of church planting, Brazzeal said, “We aren’t going to come forward with a fancy name and an extensive vision statement. Postmoderns are looking for authenticity, and they see right through pre-packaged ideas.”
Instead, the Brazzeals intend to allow the Holy Spirit to shape the church’s identity and vision as God works through it’s creative members.
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