I can’t help but marvel at how Kintsugi, the ancient Japanese art form of pottery repair, mirrors Jesus and the redemptive power of the Cross. Peicing broken pottery back together with gold makes the final product even more beautiful than the original. Art that’s highly prized and desired…
Kintsugi mirrors the life of Christ and the Christian journey, offering profound insights into the meaning of faith, grace, and spiritual renewal
Related to the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi which states the importance of embracing imperfections in our lives, Kintsugi for me hits on two very deep levels. Both of which I write extensively on in my blog – Redemption and Addiction-Recovery.
In a world that often values perfection and flawlessness, the Japanese art of Kintsugi and the teachings of Jesus offer a profound perspective on the beauty of imperfection and the transformative power of healing. Kintsugi, the art of repairing broken pottery with gold, and the life and teachings of Jesus Christ both emphasise the idea that our brokenness can be a source of beauty and strength.
The fact that beauty can still be found in the broken and mended is something only someone who realises the true worth of second chances, like, say a recovering addict can truely understand – how our imperfections, much like these cracks in the pottery, make us truely thankful and uniquely beautiful. Blessed indeed.
Life on its own terms is unforgiving, some are hit harder than most when you throw addiction into the mix. Add a divorce, death of a near one, cancer, job loss or rejection to the mix and it can break the strongest of us. And, brokenness spares no one. How does Kintsugi help us understand that there is still life and a beautiful one at that after all this brokenness?
Kintsugi celebrates the beauty of imperfection
Instead of concealing or disguising the cracks in broken pottery, it accentuates them with precious metals, such as gold or silver. Similarly, Christianity teaches that we are all imperfect, marked by our sins and shortcomings. The acceptance of our brokenness is the first step in the Christian walk, recognising our need for redemption.
Dr. Daniel Passini says that over the years in ministry and coaching, he finds that many people tend to live in one of two extremes. Wallow in their brokenness, and never find healing for their pain or completely ignore or hide their brokenness, until it eventually destroys them from the inside out.
Let me tell you, I found the one way out
Jesus.
No one can do it alone. Come back from heartbreak. Come back from addiction relapses. Or most importantly come back from a near-death experience.
Kintsugi and the Christian walk may seem worlds apart, but upon closer examination, we find remarkable parallels between these two seemingly disparate concepts. Both Kintsugi and Jesus emphasise the beauty of imperfection, the power of redemption, and the transformation that can come from acknowledging our brokenness.
Jesus is the answer… He still restores. And He makes us whole again. Because of His death and resurrection, we can turn our brokeness into an inspirational story worth telling. The world is quick to judge and even quicker to reject or cast aside things that are broken. But not Jesus. He still waits and He still saves. I only say it because I hit rock bottom and that’s where I found Him.
Parallels Between Kintsugi and Jesus
The life and teachings of Jesus Christ, as documented in the Bible, carry a profound message of healing and redemption.
Jesus is often referred to as the “Great Physician” for his ability to heal physical and spiritual ailments. His ministry was marked by acts of compassion and love for the marginalised, the sick, and the broken. The most famous stories from the New Testament are the healing of the blind, the lame, and the lepers, symbolizing the transformative power of Jesus’s love and grace.
Embracing Imperfection: Both Kintsugi and Jesus encourage us to embrace our imperfections and brokenness. Kintsugi celebrates the cracks and flaws in pottery, making them a central part of the artwork. Similarly, Jesus’s teachings emphasize that it is through our brokenness that we can find spiritual healing and renewal.
Transformation through Healing: Kintsugi transforms broken pottery into something more beautiful and valuable than before. Similarly, Jesus offers spiritual healing and transformation, taking broken lives and making them whole through faith and grace.
Value in Vulnerability: Kintsugi teaches us that vulnerability can be a source of strength and beauty. By repairing broken pottery with gold, it not only restores its function but also adds a unique and exquisite element. Jesus’s teachings emphasise the value of humility and vulnerability, as it is through acknowledging our weaknesses that we can experience God’s grace and love.
Addicts
Kintsugi shows us the power of creation, death, and resurrection in Christ and if you go a little deeper, it addresses aspects of our humaness like loneliness, sadness, psychological scarring that we usually cover up pretty well. Something that comes in the way of our healing and recovery.
Addiction is a relentless force that tears lives apart. It can lead to strained relationships, lost opportunities, and profound suffering. Yet, like the shattered pieces of pottery mended with Kintsugi, individuals struggling with addiction have the potential for healing and transformation.
Parallels Between Kintsugi and Addiction Recovery
Jesus is often referred to as the Redeemer or the Savior. His life and teachings emphasise the transformative power of love, forgiveness, and redemption. He reached out to the marginalised, the sinners, and the lost, offering them a path to spiritual healing and salvation. In many ways, Jesus embodies the essence of Kintsugi, turning broken lives into something beautiful and whole.
Embracing Imperfection: Both Kintsugi and addiction recovery encourage individuals to embrace their imperfections and acknowledge their brokenness. Kintsugi finds beauty in the cracks, while recovery begins with recognising and accepting the struggles and vulnerabilities associated with addiction.
Transformation through Healing: Just as Kintsugi transforms broken pottery into something more valuable and beautiful, addiction recovery can transform individuals into healthier, happier, and more resilient versions of themselves. It is a process of healing and growth that allows people to rebuild their lives.
Value in Vulnerability: Kintsugi teaches us that vulnerability can be a source of strength and beauty. Similarly, addiction recovery often begins with acknowledging one’s vulnerability and seeking help. Sharing one’s struggles with others can foster connection and support, leading to a stronger recovery journey.
It doesn’t matter what you’ve done. Your past, or how unworthy you feel. You can choose to let God pick up those broken peices and make you whole again. our lives are that much more beautiful for having been broken.
Jesus will take your pain and create something more beautiful with it by filling the cracks with His healing and grace if you will just let him.
This process of ‘letting go and letting God’ is similar to Kintsugi in that it highlights the cracks rather than hide them and teaches that there is purpose in this breaking. It highlights the history of a piece of pottery rather than seeking to restore it to something it is not. The process makes the piece worth much more than it was before. Rather than simply restoring what once was, kintsugi creates something new and far more valuable.
Trust God to do the rest.
You don’t have to walk around with the broken pieces of your life, nor do you have to sweep them under the rug in shame or stoicism. In Christ, you can have scars, instead of open wounds; and he doesn’t just bind you up. He binds you together with the gold that is His life.
Until we choose to allow Christ to heal the wound, our brokenness will be of no use. A broken bowl holds nothing, but a kintsugi vessel has value and beauty. And because of who Christ is, and because of His power in our lives, we get to tell a greater story. Because of what we have gone through, because of what we have endured, because of brokenness, pain, and being dropped and shattered in life we are now restored because of the gold that is Jesus Christ.
We get to tell the story of Jesus in a way that is compelling and convincing, because we were broken and He has restored us. Just because you’ve been broken, doesn’t mean you’re worthless. There is artistry to be unveiled in the fragments and ashes. When people ask about a scar we can tell them the story of how God redeemed the brokenness. We can show the beauty of his redemptive and restorative power from those shattered parts of our lives. We can point people to a healer, and an artist. We can point them to Kinstugi Jesus.
Just as the shimmery gold binds the broken pottery giving it beauty and giving it new worth, Christ binds our brokenness and redeems our lives with His blood. His strength and his beauty shine through our cracks. When I stop being ashamed of my past, my failures, my hurts, and I start showing how the cross on Calvary has redeemed me, well, that’s where the beauty and power of Jesus is revealed.
Conclusion
In a world that often seeks perfection and shuns brokenness, Kintsugi and Jesus offer us more — a life that celebrates imperfection, values vulnerability, and embraces the healing power of love and grace. Kintsugi teaches us that there is beauty in our brokenness, and Jesus reminds us that our wounds can be a source of strength. Together, they inspire us to accept our flaws, seek healing, and find hope and redemption in the midst of our brokenness.
Apostle Paul says it best in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Derek J. Wheeler 