SoCal Theologica: Musings from the West Coast

Trevin Wax

Trevin Wax: You make a distinction between cultivation and creation of culture. You define cultivation as “conservation.”

What are some cultural aspects of our world today that you believe we should work to conserve for future generations?

Andy Crouch: Ah, I have a long list.

Words—words well chosen and well spoken.

Languages—especially languages of minority cultures that are in danger of dying out because they are not economically advantageous.

Heirloom apples and tomatoes—cultivated by previous generations and until recently in great danger of being eclipsed by tasteless products designed for easy transport.

Music making—the skill of creating one’s own music, however amateur in form, rather than simply becoming dependent on professionals to fill my iPod with tunes. Specifically, singing—when I was a boy in the 1970s, the entire crowd sang the national anthem at baseball games. Our country has forgotten how to sing. God help us if the Christians forget how to sing as well, but I fear that is happening.

Silence and darkness—those are not cultural artifacts, exactly, but they are parts of the created world that allow us to experience our smallness and see the stars.

Painting—the skill with brush and palette that goes deeper than photography ever can in representing, but also transcending, the visual world.

Improv comedy—the best kind, the kind that doesn’t go for cheap laughs with dirty jokes but depends on trust and creativity among the performers and can create moments of side-splitting joy.

Bulgogi, tamales, India pale ale, viognier, falafel, garlic butter naan. Baseball with no designated hitter.

Trevin Wax: Tomorrow, Andy will tell us why we should beware of “world-changers.” We’ll also discuss the cultural power of Christ’s resurrection.