Got to see a couple of movies in the last few days. Saw I Am Legend last Saturday and then watched Juno on Christmas night. Both were good, Juno flirts with great.
Legend was fun, exciting, another good performance by Will Smith, and had a surprising depth of emotion and thought. It's a relative thing certainly but they wrestle, for at least a few minutes, with some interesting issues. Themes of isolation, community, the morality of killing were cool and I thought they even dealt with the whole "God did this"/"God didn't do this"/"There is no God"/"God is still with us" debate very well. Interesting stuff around the idea of the nature of science and faith and how sacrifice may play a role in both.
Juno was excellent. Funnier than I had thought it would be but incredibly sweet and not really preachy. Ellen Page is really great in her title role and the rest of the cast orbits nicely around her. Michael Cera plays the same guy as most stuff he's in but he does it well. Jennifer Garner even does a nice job as the adoptive mom and though I didn't like seeing Jason Bateman play kind of a jerk, he's good as well. I was especially surprised by the parents of Juno, though shocked and obviously disappointed by the discovery of her pregnancy, they are not portrayed as stupid, out of touch, or mean, rather they are given ample opportunity to portray the love and wisdom they have for her. But ultimately good dialogue, a fun plot, and again Ellen Page's portrayal of Juno make this a very entertaining movie. I would see this again soon (if I could afford it).
Somehow I doubt Alien vs. Predator (Requiem) (should Requiem even be used in conjunction with this kind of movie? sounds too fancy) is going to be as well done but I'm still looking forward to seeing it with a few friends who are nerds like me and loved the Alien series and the Predator series (though I'm not sure I would put them on exactly the same level).
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Christians in the marketplace
Last night I was over at Starbucks enjoying my first Tuesday night not at school and the freedom to read anything I want. My wife had a Bible Study Christmas mini party at the house for her friends so it seemed a good time to step out, get some coffee, and read in a nice environment. I started reading The Kite Runner which has been on my reading list since last winter but I keep putting it off for seminary material and then this summer I read the whole Harry Potter series and let everything else slide. Finished about half of The Kite Runner and it is really good so far, sad but good.
Anyway, as I was reading and enjoying a nice Frap, I noticed four younger (I'd guess 18-20 years old) guys came in with Bibles and sat down at a table next to me. Being curious I eavesdropped a bit and I was impressed with the depth of their conversation and approach to Bible Study. Good stuff and I smiled thinking that it was cool that a group of guys could gather in a public place and have a deep and thoughtful discussion of Jesus, and perhaps that would be a good witness. Then one of the guys asked the others, "So is anyone going to buy anything?" They all kind of looked at each other and the guy whom I think is kind of the leader basically said he didn't feel like it. It was then I noticed that they had brought in a 2 liter bottle of coke and a bag of chips.
Not sure how this happened but aren't we all pretty much under the same impression that it is rude to go into a business that sells drinks and/or food and bring your own? And isn't it rude to utilize a place of business for your own purposes but not support that business by purchasing something?
Luckily these gentlemen decided to go ahead and get something and I was glad to see it. Here's a couple of points I'd like to make about that though:
1. No, Starbucks isn't going to lose money because 4 people didn't buy something and yes, Starbucks is kind of built around the idea of being a gathering place for people, but still, if you are going to meet there, at least half of your group should get something. It doesn't have to be coffee, there are plenty of other hot and cold options, most of which are very tasty, and several don't cost more than a couple of bucks.
2. I don't want to draw too many lines in the sand but as Christians we need to be very careful about stuff like this. It just makes us look bad if we have a rather public study and then bring our own food and drink in and do not support the business. It makes us look cheap. I think we, as Christians with generosity coursing through our veins :-), should be the big tippers, the people who go out of their way to support businesses that allow us to meet and discuss things, even if they let anyone do it. Let's be the types of people who are known for generosity and good manners.
That's it.
Oh yeah, one other thing. If I get another "let's teach the oil companies a lesson" facebook invite, email forward, etc. I'm going to have to choke someone. Until we realize that the only way to deal with rising prices is to drive down demand meaning mass transit, walking, or riding a bike, none of it makes a difference. If I and everyone else drive cars the same amount, it does not matter from whom I by gasoline or if we skip a day of the week. Demand is demand and supply will meet it with the appropriate cost. This is all demand driven. Sorry folks, it's how the economy works. We can't consume, consume, consume a product of which there is a limited supply and a lengthy process by which to get it to market and expect the price to drop. It's not a DVD player.
Merry Christmas everyone. Seriously, as mean or sarcastic as that last paragraph may be I hope that everyone experiences some form of the peace of Christ in their lives, in the lives of their families, and in their interactions with their worlds this season.
Anyway, as I was reading and enjoying a nice Frap, I noticed four younger (I'd guess 18-20 years old) guys came in with Bibles and sat down at a table next to me. Being curious I eavesdropped a bit and I was impressed with the depth of their conversation and approach to Bible Study. Good stuff and I smiled thinking that it was cool that a group of guys could gather in a public place and have a deep and thoughtful discussion of Jesus, and perhaps that would be a good witness. Then one of the guys asked the others, "So is anyone going to buy anything?" They all kind of looked at each other and the guy whom I think is kind of the leader basically said he didn't feel like it. It was then I noticed that they had brought in a 2 liter bottle of coke and a bag of chips.
Not sure how this happened but aren't we all pretty much under the same impression that it is rude to go into a business that sells drinks and/or food and bring your own? And isn't it rude to utilize a place of business for your own purposes but not support that business by purchasing something?
Luckily these gentlemen decided to go ahead and get something and I was glad to see it. Here's a couple of points I'd like to make about that though:
1. No, Starbucks isn't going to lose money because 4 people didn't buy something and yes, Starbucks is kind of built around the idea of being a gathering place for people, but still, if you are going to meet there, at least half of your group should get something. It doesn't have to be coffee, there are plenty of other hot and cold options, most of which are very tasty, and several don't cost more than a couple of bucks.
2. I don't want to draw too many lines in the sand but as Christians we need to be very careful about stuff like this. It just makes us look bad if we have a rather public study and then bring our own food and drink in and do not support the business. It makes us look cheap. I think we, as Christians with generosity coursing through our veins :-), should be the big tippers, the people who go out of their way to support businesses that allow us to meet and discuss things, even if they let anyone do it. Let's be the types of people who are known for generosity and good manners.
That's it.
Oh yeah, one other thing. If I get another "let's teach the oil companies a lesson" facebook invite, email forward, etc. I'm going to have to choke someone. Until we realize that the only way to deal with rising prices is to drive down demand meaning mass transit, walking, or riding a bike, none of it makes a difference. If I and everyone else drive cars the same amount, it does not matter from whom I by gasoline or if we skip a day of the week. Demand is demand and supply will meet it with the appropriate cost. This is all demand driven. Sorry folks, it's how the economy works. We can't consume, consume, consume a product of which there is a limited supply and a lengthy process by which to get it to market and expect the price to drop. It's not a DVD player.
Merry Christmas everyone. Seriously, as mean or sarcastic as that last paragraph may be I hope that everyone experiences some form of the peace of Christ in their lives, in the lives of their families, and in their interactions with their worlds this season.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
the golden compass...my two cents
Never short of opinions, I figured I'd weigh in on this Golden Compass thing. Just a few thoughts and no doubt, I could very well be wrong on some or all of them so take what makes sense and dump the rest.
1. I don't think we, Christians that is or if we need clarification, followers of Jesus Christ, need to be too concerned about this movie and here's why.
a) The guy who wrote this (Philip Pullman) is not exactly the most avid atheist or even really literate of atheist positions. I have not read these books but from what I have gathered via various reviews and talking with those who have read them, Pullman seems to have more hangups with organized religion than with God.
b) Anyone remember The Da Vinci Code? Neither do I. :-) Let's face it, our tendency is to overreact to these things and give them too much credit. Ten minutes of research on ole Dan Brown's book discredits almost every claim.
c) The last time I looked we are following, serving, submitting to, and worshipping a God who came as a man who said that he was "the way, the truth, and the life". If I really believe that, and I'd like to think that I do most of the time, there is little in this world I need to fear which of course doesn't excuse stupidity (just watching anything and everything and filtering nothing, there are plenty of things that are destructive and immoral and we don't need to place ourselves in those things) but does give me some confidence when reading, watching, and/or experiencing something that may not be "Christian" or is possibly even "anti-Christian". I don't think Pullman is more influential or powerful than God. And I really don't mean to sound sarcastic there. Sometimes I find myself concerned about things like this book and giving them more credit than I would God.
2. Protesting this movie and/or book seems kind of absurd. I mean, certainly we have the right to do so (but so did a lot of groups with The Passion of the Christ but we weren't exactly listening to them were we?), but is that really how we want to be seen and known primarily. I realize that as Protestants, we protest at our core but maybe it's time to dump that and start swimming upstream in culture to affect it creatively rather than always criticizing it and yelling.
3. This movie, like The Da Vinci Code, affords us a great opportunity to become more well versed in what we believe and why we believe it. Though the world may not always perceive this, we aren't a dumb bunch of people. Jesus, the Bible, church, etc. actually make a lot of sense and we can engage challenges intelligently, creatively, and mercifully without resorting to hysteria (which is not where things are, but they can quickly go there).
4. Perhaps we can learn something from these books, namely what are the big issues that Pullman is criticizing and are some of them legitimate? Can we ask that question and seek an answer and still be Christians? I think we can. And perhaps understanding why these books resonate with some people can give us a better insight into how we, the church, may be misrepresenting God and missing the point.
5. On the other side of this I'm seeing people who are Christians that mock or make fun of those who have concerns about this book/movie. To that I say, "Be careful." At the end of the day Pullman is a professed atheist who admits to taking ideas from Lord of the Rings and Narnia to develop an atheistic approach to epic storytelling. There is an agenda, though at times Pullman will downplay it, and namely it is to destroy God, or at least an idea of God. That is dangerous and marketing it to children is not exactly good stuff in my opinion (which is why it is good for us parents to know what we believe and why we believe it and to ask hard questions so that we can help our children wrestle when appropriate). I think atheism is empty and dangerous and though I don't want us to become hysterical, I don't have a problem with churches and clergy addressing this movie/book and helping people to see through the lies.
At the end of the day I just hope we have some perspective. I plan on reading The Golden Compass soon if only to have a better idea of what is in it to better address questions my youth may have. I don't wish to become hysterical but I do think we should draw attention to the negative aspects of such art. Hopefully, from our end at least, grace, mercy, and listening will rule the day.
That's it. For anyone who stumbles across this post, I would love to hear your point of view.
1. I don't think we, Christians that is or if we need clarification, followers of Jesus Christ, need to be too concerned about this movie and here's why.
a) The guy who wrote this (Philip Pullman) is not exactly the most avid atheist or even really literate of atheist positions. I have not read these books but from what I have gathered via various reviews and talking with those who have read them, Pullman seems to have more hangups with organized religion than with God.
b) Anyone remember The Da Vinci Code? Neither do I. :-) Let's face it, our tendency is to overreact to these things and give them too much credit. Ten minutes of research on ole Dan Brown's book discredits almost every claim.
c) The last time I looked we are following, serving, submitting to, and worshipping a God who came as a man who said that he was "the way, the truth, and the life". If I really believe that, and I'd like to think that I do most of the time, there is little in this world I need to fear which of course doesn't excuse stupidity (just watching anything and everything and filtering nothing, there are plenty of things that are destructive and immoral and we don't need to place ourselves in those things) but does give me some confidence when reading, watching, and/or experiencing something that may not be "Christian" or is possibly even "anti-Christian". I don't think Pullman is more influential or powerful than God. And I really don't mean to sound sarcastic there. Sometimes I find myself concerned about things like this book and giving them more credit than I would God.
2. Protesting this movie and/or book seems kind of absurd. I mean, certainly we have the right to do so (but so did a lot of groups with The Passion of the Christ but we weren't exactly listening to them were we?), but is that really how we want to be seen and known primarily. I realize that as Protestants, we protest at our core but maybe it's time to dump that and start swimming upstream in culture to affect it creatively rather than always criticizing it and yelling.
3. This movie, like The Da Vinci Code, affords us a great opportunity to become more well versed in what we believe and why we believe it. Though the world may not always perceive this, we aren't a dumb bunch of people. Jesus, the Bible, church, etc. actually make a lot of sense and we can engage challenges intelligently, creatively, and mercifully without resorting to hysteria (which is not where things are, but they can quickly go there).
4. Perhaps we can learn something from these books, namely what are the big issues that Pullman is criticizing and are some of them legitimate? Can we ask that question and seek an answer and still be Christians? I think we can. And perhaps understanding why these books resonate with some people can give us a better insight into how we, the church, may be misrepresenting God and missing the point.
5. On the other side of this I'm seeing people who are Christians that mock or make fun of those who have concerns about this book/movie. To that I say, "Be careful." At the end of the day Pullman is a professed atheist who admits to taking ideas from Lord of the Rings and Narnia to develop an atheistic approach to epic storytelling. There is an agenda, though at times Pullman will downplay it, and namely it is to destroy God, or at least an idea of God. That is dangerous and marketing it to children is not exactly good stuff in my opinion (which is why it is good for us parents to know what we believe and why we believe it and to ask hard questions so that we can help our children wrestle when appropriate). I think atheism is empty and dangerous and though I don't want us to become hysterical, I don't have a problem with churches and clergy addressing this movie/book and helping people to see through the lies.
At the end of the day I just hope we have some perspective. I plan on reading The Golden Compass soon if only to have a better idea of what is in it to better address questions my youth may have. I don't wish to become hysterical but I do think we should draw attention to the negative aspects of such art. Hopefully, from our end at least, grace, mercy, and listening will rule the day.
That's it. For anyone who stumbles across this post, I would love to hear your point of view.
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