Bad Artist

The Working Catholic: Bad Artists by Bill Droel

Sometimes a flawed individual creates captivating art—music, painting, a novel, a play. Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma by Claire Dederer (Knopf, 2023) is the latest consideration of how the public should ethically treat art that comes from a bad person. Her dilemma is more acute thanks to the courage of the Me Too movement.

The following analogy relies on a dated incident. In early 2022 Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix, now retired, outed a veteran pastor for baptizing people with the words, “We baptize you in the name of the Father…” Citing an August 2020 ruling from the Vatican, Olmsted said using the pronoun we instead of I baptize you makes the 100s of baptisms performed by that pastor “invalid.” The pastor apologized, pleaded ignorance and resigned from the parish. (He is now the pastor at another place.)

Back in the day everyone who took a graduate course in sacramental theology (admittedly a small crowd) learned the distinction between ex opera operantis and ex opera operato. Is it possible for a sacrament to take effect even though the conferring priest is a sinner or, in Dederer’s word, a monster? The Catholic answer is yes. The sacrament itself confers its own grace. There is a qualifying criterion for effectiveness: The celebrant and the recipient must have the right intention. Such seems to have been the case in Phoenix. The pastor admitted his error.

This blog does not intend to settle a technical/pastoral application of Catholic rules. Its purpose is to give guidance to those sensitive to the discrepancy between an artist’s moral character and the art. Generally, in my judgment, the work of art stands on its own merit (ex opera operato), presuming the artist and the viewer/listener/reader have the right intention.

Caution is advised when judging an artist’s intention. Did she or he state that their purpose in making the art was to spread their own sin? It’s possible, but unlikely. Did she or he repent from their sin subsequent to making the art? Being judgmental is not healthy.

There is another way to sort out the discrepancy between a bad person and his or her quality art. Some people use descriptions like Christian rock or Catholic novel. There is no such thing, really. All art that displays the truth (lower case t) is pleasing to God. The good morality of the artist is no guarantee that the art is worthy. In fact, so-called Christian music can be so insipid and a so-called Catholic novel can be so mediocre that neither qualifies as art. Try again, God will say. God wants art with all its teeth.

Droel serves the board of National Center for the Laity in Chicago.