Worship wars have been around for at least forty years. I take that back. According to this article, they may have been around at least 700 AD! My experience inspired me to draw this praise and worship cartoon.
I hear the term “blended worship” batted around a lot and I like that approach. While I love to hear a pianist play older hymns, I a modern band playing a current praise and worship tune. And I can even welcome the bare-footed, punk rock worshipper as well. I guess that’s how I roll… all over the place.
I first posted this cartoon in 2010. In 2013, a ministry in the Netherlands contacted me about using it in their church bulletin. I thought for one, that it was interesting that these same discussions were happening in Europe.
As a result, I wondered how different the worship styles across the world would be different from what I was accustomed to. Would my music preferences be considered too progressive or too American?
Music and Visual Arts
A few years after I posted this, I was confronted with the fact it wasn’t just praise and worship music that irked the faithful. I was working for a Christian publisher. As you can see from my cartoons, I am not a traditional Bible illustrator. I always loved humorous illustration and leaned towards that style.
So it came as a surprise to me when I began receiving criticism because my style was “too cartoony.” That was my whole point. My style was heavily influenced by past cartoon masters. To me, that was like criticizing a jazz pianist for being too jazzy.
While our customers wanted more traditional illustrations, they weren’t willing to pay for them. They had no idea how much it cost to hire a modern, traditional illustrator. First of all, they are rare because “modern traditional” is an oxymoron. Second of all, the amount of time it takes to illustrate in this style makes the cost too prohibitive for a nonprofit publisher.
However, I get why our customers felt that way. They weren’t keen on seeing cartoon Jesuses. Some felt it was being disrespectful to the subject. That wasn’t my intention at all. I intended to use my visual style to honor the subject. I wondered if that is how many praise and worship artists felt.
At any rate. Enjoy this praise and worship cartoon. It may not be your style, but that’s okay. Let the visual artists and musicians express themselves!
Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog on October 6, 2015. I revamped and updated it for timeliness and comprehensiveness.
