WHAT IT MEANS TO BECOME A...
The word ‘tekton’ to describes a kind of man who has discerned a particular lay vocation (within marriage or the secular state), to serve God through professional creative work ordered to the renewal of culture.
TO BE A TEKTON, YOU MUST…
- Be a Baptised Christian Man
- Have Received the Sacrament of Confirmation (if Catholic)
- Gone Through a Process of Discernment and Determined that God is Calling You to Serve Him Through Professional Creative Work Ordered to the Renewal of Culture.
DISCLAIMER: The concept of a tekton is not an official church term and has not been recognized by the Magisterium in any way. Also, it is NOT a legal vocational state such as marriage or the priesthood.
Being a tekton does not mean being a member of a particular organization. It’s means God has given you the talents and called you to a specific kind of work: Renewing the culture through public-facing creativity. For comparison, many lay Catholics have vocations to be warriors, teachers, scholars, or missionaries. All of these are true vocations that serve humanity in essential ways from within the lay vocational state.
WHAT’S THE POINT OF USING THE TERM TEKTON?
The primary reasons for promoting this term are:
- It encourages men with creative interests to actively discern their vocation, thus bringing them closer to Christ and allowing them the certitude of knowing their vocation.
- It establishes and affirms creative professions as important to the Church and society as a whole.
- It creates the potential for brotherhood and shared meaning between creative men of all specialties, apart from secular society’s imposed image of who a creative person ought to be, thus aiding creative men in living as witnesses to Christ in the world without being of the world.
I've Discerned That I Am Called to Be a Tekton. What's Next?
Step 1: KEEP DISCERNING
God never stops calling you and you must continue to discern his voice as he guides you along your unique creative mission. The call to be a tekton comes with its own responsibilities, but it is first and foremost a call to deeper intimacy with your Creator through the act of creating. There is no point in taking on the title of tekton if you do not intend to respond to that call through daily prayer and prayerful work.
JOIN A BROTHERHOOD
Aindriu (a Tekton) is the founder of The Tekton Project, a group whose mission it is to connect with and serve fellow tektons, as well as collaborate on projects in order to further our mission of renewing the culture.
Members of the Tekton Project make four promises that are intended to strengthen and aid us on our path.
We promise to…
- Live sacramental lives by receiving the Eucharist often and frequenting the sacrament of reconciliation.
- Pursue loving, in-person relationships with other professionally creative Christian men to strengthen one another and collaborate on creative projects.
- Strive constantly for professional excellence in our chosen disciplines.
- Give generously of our talents, time, and resources to address cultural poverty.
If you’re interested in becoming a member of the Tekton Project, contact Aindriu at creatives@tektoncatholic.com or press the button below.
TEKTONS ARE…
Writers (all kinds)
Filmmakers
Musicians
Entrepreneurs
Public Speakers
Social Media Evangelists
Painters
Animators
Comic Artists
Motion Capture Artists
Composers
Dancers
Performance Artists
Web Designers
Clothing designers
Journalists
Video Editors
Poets
Lyricists
Sculptors
Potters
Illustrators
Photographers
Printmakers
Game Designers
Jewelry Designers
Floral Designers
Choreographers
Illusionists
Comedians
Singers
Sound Designers
Special Effects Artists
Producers
3D Artists
VFX Artists
Motion Graphics Designers
Application Designers
Furniture Makers
Textile Artists
Hair Stylists
Set Designers
Architects
Storyboard Artists
Content Creators
Landscapers
Glassblowers
Leatherworkers
Calligraphers
Storytellers
Engineers
Product Designers
Coders
Social Media
Head to the contact page if you think something should be added to this list!
AI?
Tektōns do not use artificial intelligence for any creative decision making. Nor do we ever present AI generated imagery or other content as our own product.
Generative AI systematically copies information from other artist’s work. While useful as a technical tool, it is dishonest to present AI as original artwork. It may be permissible for tektons to utilize AI when searching for reference images and inspiration. However, reliance on AI is a weakness that must be overcome by discipline and mastery.