Page - 96 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 05/02

INTRODUCTION Time is a culture-dependent concept. Throughout the various periods of West- ern civilization, different concepts of time – some contradictory, some comple- mentary – have been in competition. Westerners today, at least those inhab- iting secular cultures, I shall argue, live generally along two axes of time. The first of these is a linear historical and cultural timeline which strives towards the “end of days”, a timeline that is based on a foundational religious narrative that has been transformed by the culture. The second is a personal and authentic timeline which characterizes capitalism and the culture of individualism. This cultural perception of time manifests itself in the cultural discourse, as well as in literature and in the arts. In this article, we will look at these two axes of cultural time and examine their religious roots. Religion is an explicit marker of culture. The religious doc- trines of any given culture reflect its thought systems and cultural values. The Christian religion and culture of the West were based on the Jewish scriptures that were transmitted throughout the different regions of the Roman Empire. Christianity preserved and diffused the books of the Old Testament canon.1 Both religions view the Old Testament as a holy text, as the absolute truth, the product of divine revelation. While the Catholic Church mitigated the authority of the text with the authority of tradition, the Lutheran Reformation magnified the importance of the written word. Luther rejected the authority of tradition and established the doctrine of “Sola Scriptura” – one had to read the scrip- tures. By doing so, the Reformation placed the Jewish holy books at the heart of European identity.2 Therefore I will look for the roots of the Western cul- tural perception of apocalyptic time in the texts of the Bible and the Christian scriptures, all while examining the development of personal, authentic time. I will also analyse artistic concepts of time that do not necessarily represent the dominant perceptions presented in culture, as will be explained in the article, and even criticize present conventional concepts of time. I will demonstrate and analyse such approaches in the paintings of Chaya Agur.3 My explanations will be based on a personal interview with the painter in which she explained her paintings. 1 Malkin 2003, 44. 2 Hacohen 2006, 23; Eliav-Feldon 1997, 30. 3 The painter Chaya Agur, who was born in Israel and has lived in the Netherlands for 35 years, has since 1978 exhibited her paintings regularly in the Netherlands (Amsterdam, The Hague and Rosendale) and throughout Europe (Paris: The World Center for Contemporary Art, Nancy: Galerie Poirel, Barcelona: Marlborough Art Gallery). In Israel, Agur exhibited in 2009 at the Municipal Gallery in Afula and in 2010 at the Jerusalem Theater for the Performing Arts. Between 2002 and 2007, she ran a private gallery in central Amsterdam, “The Crane”. Agur uses mixed techniques, oil paints, watercolours and drawing. Her art is influenced by Dali and Chagall and her style can be called surrealist-symbolic. 96 | Bina Nir www.jrfm.eu 2019, 5/2, 95–116