The roots of guilt

I've been feeling a little guilty about thinking my paintings could have worth even though I've begun so late in life.  But this morning I read in a book on abstract paintings that there are four types of painting skills: technical skill (knowledge of materials and techniques), painterly skill (understanding of perspective, shading, color theory etc.), artistic skill (having a feeling for color, shape, composition etc.) and skill of expression, which is the ability to give expression to your own ideas and feelings... This has helped me to understand that, as a professional photographer who has taken lots of art courses over the years, I'm not all that new to this; it's mostly the technical skill that still needs work.

But that guilty feeling doesn't necessarily submit to rationality.  I mean, I feel a little guilty airing this photo, as well -- because the zebra in the picture is stuffed, not live.  So what drives guilt?  For me it seems to be deeply entangled with a fear of lying.  But is it a lie to publish a photo of a dead zebra? Is it a lie to assign monetary value to a painting when I've only just begun to paint?  I suspect the root of much unnecessary guilt has less to do with lying and more to do with a feeling of unworthiness:  I don't deserve appreciation because I didn't work hard enough to earn it.

... which translates perfectly into the arena of spirituality, or at least, into Christian spirituality.  No matter how much I tell myself God loves all created beings, that old protestant faith vs. works thing kicks in, the whole original sin thing, the whole (to quote the Anglican Prayerbook) "we are not worthy to so as much gather up the crumbs under thy table" thing.  I may be moving beyond that understanding at an intellectual level.  But the heart still has a long way to go...