Dare We Observe? : The Importance of Art Works for Consciousness of Diakonia in (post-)modern Church

Like Jesus and the other faithful in Israel and the church in history, Christians in our experience society will not only take pleasure in God and enjoying life as much as possible (leitourgia), but also, helped by the Holy Spirit, act as God would act if God were a human being (diakonia). In this study I will suggest that they can learn much about diakonia and the corresponding attitude from postmodern art. The keyword is aisthesis, 'observing': Do we dare to really open our eyes - as artists do - and look around us at the world? If we do, if we have the courage to observe, we will see what 'being looked after' by God can mean for our own lives. We will have an eye for those who are suffering because of injustice and hatred in our world; we will see in a different light what is going on in our sociaty. Dare we open our eyes and mind? Dare we observe?