On Creativity and Spirituality
By Mary C. Daly, RSM
Posted on
Creativity and spirituality are intimately connected. We speak of God as creating or bringing being out of nothingness. Our creative endeavor is the search for the apt expression of being.
The poets tell us that art, music and poetry have to do with what is real, with expressing what is. The artist has a drive to plumb reality, to wrestle with its expression, to find a way to touch and reveal the inner nature of things. In the creative process one is challenged to become vulnerable, to express one's true self, and thus to know God's invitation to that self.
Spirituality also has to do with the real, with touching what is real in the depth of my being and in the being of my experience, expressing it in the presence of others and therefore touching, connecting with, relating to others.
I believe that in doing this, we also touch, connect with, relate to the Other who is Being, who is God. So, by nudging us, pushing us, attracting us to what is real, in ourselves and in life, God allures us into the very life of God's own Self. The Document on Divine Revelation from Vatican II makes this same point:
The invisible God out of the abundance of divine love speaks to us as friends and lives among us so that God may invite and take us into fellowship with God's own Self.
So creativity in any form has the potential to lead us more deeply into God.
Mary C. Daly, a Sister of Mercy for 67 years, resides at Emmanuel House on the grounds of Mercy by the Sea, a place for retreat and renewal in Madison, Connecticut. An artist and theologian, she is experienced in spiritual direction and retreat work. Now retired, Mary's background includes teaching on the elementary as well as undergraduate and graduate college levels. She also served in leadership positions for the Sisters of Mercy. Mary holds a doctoral degree in Religious Studies from Marquette University. The art gallery in the Center’s main building is named in her honor.
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