AESTHETICS

AESTHETICS. The philosophy of dealing with beauty and matters of taste, which may also describe the science of the arts and the wondrous experience of the worshiper. Although secular aesthetics may take the science of sensual knowledge as its point of departure, in the Christian experience aesthetics would not be strictly limited to the sensual. Generally speaking, there is an assumption that the true beauty of Orthodox worship comes from its co-participation in angelic worship and its manifestation of holiness. This does not mean that proportion, balance, and detail are neglected in music, architecture, iconography (qq.v.), etc., but rather the opposite is true. The aesthetics of the arts of the church are not valued for their own quiddity, but by how-in their ultimate expression-they are “transparent” to the Kingdom of God.