What Does Chinese Art Have to Do with Christian Faith? 中国艺术和信仰有什么关系？
Tertullian once famously asked, “What does Athens have to do with Jerusalem?” The USCCA community considers a similar question today: What does Chinese art have to do with Christian faith? On Thursday, October 29, 2026, the USCCA Friendship Happy Hour will explore the relationship between traditional Chinese art and Christian spirituality.
The 7th chapter of the Analects describes Confucius’s pedagogical vision for his students: 志于道 据于德 依于仁 游于艺 (《论语》7.6). In translation: Aspire to the Dao, build upon Virtue, depend on human-heartedness, and wander freely in the arts. In this vision, the arts are intimately interwoven with the pursuit of Dao and the life of virtue.
How does this vision apply in the context of Christian faith? Traditional Chinese art forms such as Tai Chi and landscape painting are no longer strange fixtures in the West. Many American Christians have taken an interest in them and cultivated a personal practice. Some have even integrated their experience of Chinese arts with a formal reflection on their Christian faith.
Take, for example, Dr. Bede Benjamin Bidlack, a systematic theologian at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, who practices Tai Chi and gave a talk at the 2026 USCCA conference about the interesting points of contact between Tai Chi and the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises. Dr. Bidlack engages deeply with the theological relationship between body, soul, and spirit, and finds his knowledge and practice of Tai Chi a helpful inspiration.
Or Fr. Henri Capdeville, an Episcopalian priest serving at St. Michael and All Angels church in Tucson, Arizona, who spent 43 years as a Benedictine monk and priest. He has practiced Tai Chi as a meaningful part of his monastic life since 1978. He has found that Tai Chi fits quite well with Christian monastic spirituality.
Or Ms. Terri McNichol, an award-winning artist and former museum director residing in New Jersey. Ms. McNichol is now President of Ren Associates, a consulting business for transformational leadership that applies Asian Wisdom traditions. In her published articles, she has shared profound thoughts about how Chinese landscape art can inspire a different way of being and acting, with positive ramifications for inner development, leadership, and sustainability.
Join us on Thursday, October 29, 2026, at 7 pm ET to hear directly from these three experts. To register, click the link below:
The USCCA Friendship Happy Hour is a round-table virtual conversation designed for mutual learning and fellowship within the USCCA community. It is not an academic lecture but a semi-structured conversation that allows specialists, clergy, religious, and laity to exchange their minds and hearts. We will discuss important topics of faith and culture in the spirit of friendship and dialogue. Join us!
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