ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT 05 - Five Senses

with thoughts of D.J. Hamilton added

Basic thoughts

Affirmation of the physical world

  • God has created our bodies with five senses to pick up information about the physical world around us.
  • These five sense are five natural gateways between our outside world and us.
  • This is not to say that there can’t be other gateways, but we will focus on these five.
  • The five sense therefore are in principle an affirmation of the importance of the physical world: If it wasn’t real and if it wasn’t important, then why would God equip us with sophisticated equipment to detect it?

 

Affirmation of the sensory way to obtain information

  • Epistemology asks the questions: Is there anything to know? What can I know? How do I know?
  • The fact that God equips living beings with five senses is an affirmation that there is an objective reality out there, that there is in fact something to know.
  • It is also an affirmation that the five senses are a legitimate and effective way to learn about reality.
  • Empiricism is fine, though it would be wise to acknowledge that other ways of obtaining true information may exists, like revelation etc.

In summary, there is an objective truth out there, and one way to learn about it is through the five senses.

1 Jhn 1:1
“We declare to your what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with out eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life – 2 this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it.”

  • This verse attests to the validity and legitimacy of using the five senses.
  • Also the Biblical concept of the importance of eye witnesses and their accounts is in the same line:

1 Cor 15:3-8

“For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died…4 and was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve, 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of who are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then all the apostles. 8 Last of all he appeared also to me.”

Affirmation of deductions from info gained by the sensory way

  • In the broadest sense the Bible’s nearly 1600 “if…then” statements are an affirmation that humans can and should deduct certain things from information gained by the sensory way.
  • For example Lev 26 (or parallel Deu 28) are challenges to observe reality in an empirical manner and conclude from that whether it does not indeed happen as God said, and what that course of action should be taken.

The five sense revealing the Trinity

  • The five physical senses are designed by God and reflect something of the nature and character of God.
  • God is a tri-une God, a relational God, an involved God.
  • God in constant communication within the Trinity.
  • Especially the Gospel of John gives us insight into the interaction within the Trinity.
  • God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are constantly communicating, referring to one another, deferring to one another, representing and explaining one another, honoring and obeying one another.
  • It is to come into this circle of love and respect that God made humans in the first place.
  • God didn’t create humans out of love or relationship deficit but out of fullness, opening up his circle of love.
  • God also is in constant communication with creation around him, and made creation to communicate with each other.
  • No living being he created is an island, or a one-way street. There is interaction and ability to interact designed into all living things in one measure or another.
  • So the five senses allow for interaction and relationship, for information transfer and orientation. They also are the means through which love is expressed and community is made possible.

The five senses

Sense of taste

  • This is the only sense located completely inside of us. It is the internal sense, intimate, private, close to the heart.
  • Through tasty food and its sharing, a sense of community is created, a homeliness, an attachment, a sense of belonging.
  • The world over special foods are used to celebrate, to create a sense of identity, a sense of belonging. Eating those foods together creates community.

Sense of touch

  • This sense happens at the very edges of my being.
  • Touch means the edges of two beings come in contact.
  • Cultures define what touch is or is not appropriate.
  • If you touch people rightly in a culture they feel understood.
  • Touch creates a sense of understanding, of corporate identity, and so builds community.

Sense of smell

  • This sense is at a little distance from me, taking in the nearby air.
  • Smells communicate strongly, though in our language we barely have any descriptive words for smells.
  • Often we are not thinking about our sense of smell, our consciousness of smell may be lower than for the other senses, but it is perhaps the most formative of the senses.
  • We even have many expressions around smell, like ‘I can’t smell him’.
  • Movies with smell machines greatly enhance the experience.
  • Smells are strongly linked to memory.

Sense of hearing

This sense is telling me what is happening at a little distance, and at what distance.
Speaker and listener are sharing the same world and similar thought. Music and sound create community, whether in a concert hall, standing to sing the national hymn, humming along a tune or worshiping together. Music may come from different sources, other parts of the world or past centuries, but it creates a sense of togetherness, shared-ness, community, – an opportunity for relationships.

Sense of sight

  • This sense is the one projecting farthest out.
  • I can see things at far distances. Seeing give a common world, a common frame of reference, a common experience.
  • Have you seen the movie? Did anything look familiar? Is your life a little bit like mine? Seeing is a topic for communication and a chance at friendship.
  • In a world of brokenness, fragmentation, isolation and loneliness it is very important to create community and a sense of family, of togetherness.
  • If all five senses are involved, the impact is by far highest. Creative hospitality, whether fully aware of it or not, understands God’s design for the senses to create community.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT