Conclusion

This class has been an interesting experience for me, and through some of the dialogues and readings, I really feel like I’m approaching Pop Culture with a mind that is more open that before. But I still feel like I’m pulling back on the reigns sometimes. Maybe that is good. I think back to the first day of class and how we were talking about balance.

Balance is still a tricky thing for me. At times it seems that pop culture is inescapable. To an extent, I am pop culture. But I also need to understand that I can control how I let it effect me. I can control how much and what kind I am taking in. More importantly, I can discern what to dwell on, what has good in it, and what is mostly just fluff/filth (because there is a lot out there).

Sometimes I feel like we can get too caught up trying to find the virtue in things. I remember someone in class saying that Eminem is a good role model because he’s a loyal, loving father. Well… that’s where I’d say I’m “pulling back on the reigns a bit”. Eminem, despite fatherhood, and despite some valuable social commentary, says a lot of severely hateful things. I’m not going to preach that he’s evil. I listen to some of his music. But I’m not about to pretend he’s a good role model. People like him for precisely the opposite reason. I guess I just feel like sometimes, we go through painstaking to find this “diamond in the rough” in pop culture… but really all that’s there is a nickel in some shit. And all of a sudden we’re waist deep. I think with certain things, it’s okay to walk up to it and say “yeah… that’s probably not edifying” and walk away.

With that being said, I’m doing that less, and exploring more (getting my shoes dirty at least, to use my previous analogy). But, even more than actively “exploring” I feel like I’m seeing a lot of the same stuff, but with a new perspective, and that is where I think the value of this class lies—my perspective on pop culture. Ultimately it’s been a good exercise in finding God in places I wouldn’t have otherwise expected.

Art

I recently went to see the Body Worlds exhibit at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. It was unreal. If you don’t know much about this exhibit, it’s basically human bodies on display that have been “plasticized”.

Read more about it here: http://www.bodyworlds.com/en/pages/home.asp

The exhibit is truly remarkable. I thought it was going to be gross, but really it’s a testament to how unbelievably complex the human body really is.

Something that struck me, though, as I walked around the exhibit were some of the quotes (mostly hanging form banners). They had one from Descartes which I forget (wish I had brought a notepad or something) and one from Nietzsche that essentially talked about the relationship between body and soul. Both quotes were frightfully modern (not surprising given the time frame of the two philosophers). The whole half of the first exhibit was very modern. Very scientific. “Science replaces God.”

The second half was much different. The bodies started taking on other poses. Everything was “out of the box”. There is a man, all muscle, holding his own skin. And another man, with no skin who is “running out of his muscles” (they seem to be tearing away from him due to his speed). You really need to see the exhibit to understand what I mean. (there are sample photos in the link above). They had a quote from a Catholic monk that essentially said “the wondrous complexity of the human body points to a Creator”. The exhibit had taken a paradigm shift, and ended on the note of “Science points to God.” (and creatively so)

Fashion

I won’t lie. I’m not into fashion. To be fair, it’s partly my own disinterest, but it’s hard to me to find the value in it. I also see it as a dangerous line between “ok beautification” and “vanity”. I’m not sure where that line is for me personally, so I just stick well to the other side most of the time.

But, like it or not, I’m confronted with fashion every day. High school kids, television shows, advertisements, even in my own Young Life office. Probably my most memorable “fashion moment” of the summer was on a Young Life trip to Georgia. It was “banquet night” so all the kids were dressed up, and everyone was taking pictures out in the front lawn. I have a pretty nice camera and I’m into photography and take lots of pictures, so it had become natural for kids to ask me to take their picture (knowing it will be on the slideshow later). So I’m happily snapping away when I heard a sophomore girl, say “Ooo, Dan! Take a picture of my skirt twirling!” and she just started to spin around, giggling. It was a precious moment, and I snapped a quick shot. She wasn’t concerned about who was looking, how her makeup was, or what matched and what didn’t. She just knew that having her skirt twirl out made her feel special, and was essentially by asking me to take her picture, asking me if I saw it too. As I showed her the image playback, I said (trying to be reserved as possible while talking to high school girls) “cool shot, huh?”, but what I really meant was “yes, I see it too”.

Sports

One of my Young Life guys took me a Red Sox vs White Sox game. I enjoy sports. Thoroughly. I played in high school and even college. I would say that I’m emotionally tied to teams and suffer actual pain when the Michigan State basketball team loses a game.

But, I’m not sure how much Jesus cares about sports. I think “coming through in the clutch” (stealing a bit from Wild at Heart here) is definitely something that resonates with him. And I love seeing people do what God created them to do, like we talked about in class. But oftentimes, despite my love for sports, I’m left questioning their real meaning and worth sometimes weighed against some of the downfalls of them within our society.

There’s so much shame in sports today. As much as you hear about a winning team or player you hear just as much about the team or player that “blew it”.

At this White Sox game, Curt Schilling took the mound in the 9th as a closer, and a guy behind me yelled “Hey Schilling! You suck! You’re a washed up BUM! A Has-Been!!! I hate you!!!” Now, I don’t want to read too much into this, because this guy was probably drunk and at the very least a stupid White Sox fan (coming as a loving joke from a Cubs fan). But, what other arena would you talk like this to another human being (especially one you don’t know)? I mean… first of all the guy is a great pitcher. He led the Red Sox to a World Series last year (oh, by the way, their first in 89 years) and he’s still pitching despite major injuries late in his career. He’s a class act. And this guy hates him? Why? Because he plays for the other team?

Maybe the fan doesn’t even really hate him. Maybe he’s just yelling. I yell lots of things during basketball games, and still would have to think about it if given the option to break Teddy Dupay’s legs. But, what makes me think that way? For all the intrinsic good in sports (the team aspect, camaraderie, staying out of trouble, building character, etc) there are some evils and dark places that if aren’t handled well can really become nasty.

TV

Television has always been a strange thing for me, and is at the same time one of the hardest things and one of the easiest for me to “warm up to” in regards to “listening for God in the midst of…”

I see TV as a very good thing in many ways. I love Seinfeld, and am prepared to challenge (and beat) anyone I know in trivia. I think the Simpson’s is the best social commentary of my generation. And I’m convinced a bowl of cereal just tastes better while I’m watching Sportscenter. Even growing up, my family used to watch “Wild America” on PBS and learn about… well… Wild America (animals and stuff.)

But with that being said, I’ve always seen TV as somehow evil. Or at the best, something to be taken in very intentional moderation. I’ve not always succeeded in doing this… hence the Seinfeld Trivia Challenge. I’m not saying it is evil. But… I’m not saying it’s not. Certainly, aspects of shows and general “tv media” are degenerative and unhealthy. But I think the line is tricky here.

I recently read about an article/report (yes, I read “about” it… not even the report itself, but anyway) that was done by a Catholic publication called “How the Talking Box Changed a Village”. Basically, the report talked about this remote Alaskan village that mainly went Caribou hunting. Storytelling was at the heart of their culture, and their traditions/beliefs ran deep. Well someone brought a TV (I was unclear about who. A distant relative returning? A friend? A missionary?). Anyway, two decades later, the Caribou hunts were a rare traditional formality, every single house had a TV, and storytelling was essentially dead.

I don’t care how good you think television is. That is scary.

I thought about this because I recently went to Young Life camp and then on a family vacation to our lake house back-to-back weeks. Neither locations have a TV. And here’s the thing… I didn’t miss it. I wasn’t even aware that I was without! I’m not sure exactly where I’m going with this, but it’s been a while since I’ve gone two weeks without a TV and not noticed.

Movies

I love movies. Plain and simple. I love stories, and I love movies.

I recently used The Shawshank Redemption in a campaigner (bible study) lesson. There’s just so much there. The lesson took a lot from this class and was unofficially titled (i.e. in my notes) “Finding God in the Ordinary”. Shawshank was my personal example, designed to draw kids in, and hopefully allow them to open up.

Shawshank, for me, has always been about hope. And I always thought it was interesting the main character of the movie, Andy, is a static character. He never loses hope. The dynamic character in the movie… the one who really changes… is the narrator, Red. This movie speaks to me on so many levels. I’m pretty sure I could plan a semester of Bible studies for Young Life based solely around The Shawshank Redemption.

Anyway, the clip that I played for “campaigners” was where Andy gets the library supplies from the state, and he plays the Mozart record over the loud speakers at his own expense, and “every last man in Shawshank felt free that day”. I love this clip because it combines my love of music with cinema. I still get goosebumps when I hear that song. I started thing about Andy’s position in this scene, and what I would do if I were in it. Would I listen to the record at all? I’d like to think so. Would I try to talk the “nice guard” into letting me play it so low that no one else could hear? Probably. Would I dare to play it over the loud speaker? To instill hope and make my fellow prisoners feel free… if only for a while? Almost certainly not. Andy’s self-sacrifice here is not only humbling; it’s convicting.

Music

I recently got to see Coldplay in concert. They’ve been on my list for a while. The wasn’t U2 (and at times, I cringe at this comparison), but it was damn good. The venue was decent (outdoor), and the showmanship was top notch (well again... a notch or two beneath U2... but who's comparing?).

One of the “lowlights” of the show was the crowd. At the risk of sounding like a music snob, there were a lot of late teen/early twenties girls who had driven their Jettas there to hear the “in” band. (Coldplay is so mainstream fringe right now). The guys following these girls were often worse. That’s not to say many of the crowd thoroughly enjoyed the show, some moreso than me, and I’m sure there were “bigger fans” out there than myself. But we had a large group of people around us, that Bob and I were just kind of making fun of in a light-hearted way… until they played “Yellow” (a move I was a little surprised with). Oh to hear the uproar. “Yellow” and “Clocks”, everyone singing every word. But then you hit the very singable “Swallowed by the Sea”, with lines like:

Oh what good is it to live

With nothing left to give

Forget but not forgive

Not loving all you see?

…and not a peep from the group of 20 on our right (who were screaming “oohhhh!!! My favorite song!!!” when yellow came on). They were literally talking amongst themselves.

Anyway, without trying to disparage or defame any particular “group” of people, it just got me thinking. The more I hear God in music (as I do in the words above), the more I wonder how much society as a whole is really listening. I’m sure it’s a different answer for different individuals. And undoubtedly, some are listening. And quite arguably, more than before “the napster age”. But, there seems to be such a large demographic that just likes whatever is popular. Whatever billboard/TRL says is good… that’s what’s good. If music can be spiritual food, how much are we, as a culture, feeding ourselves and how much is being shoved down our throats?

Celebrity

I think I'd like to start with an apology in regards to some of the fanaticism in the post that follows. Welp... on we go.

I know this is cliché at this point, but can we just start calling Bono “the apostle Bono” or "Bono the apostle"? I just saw this article: http://www.worldmag.com/subscriber/displayarticle.cfm?id=10892.

That is a fantastic article. I’ve heard Bono talk about AIDS in Africa. He said that he sees his celebrity as “currency”. He knows it’s ridiculous so many people like him just because he sings, and he knows many of those people will listen to what he has to say, simply because he is a rock & roll singer. That is his currency, and he says “I mean to spend it wisely”. That’s essentially how he began his speech. Unapologetically (paraphrased), “I know you think I’m great. Well, whether you’re right or not, I’m going to talk, and you’re going to listen because I’m Bono. Well, it seems like I can talk about whatever I want. Tonight, I’m going to pick one of the most important topics I can imagine: AIDS in Africa”.

I think Bono has one of the healthiest outlooks on his own celebrity than any other big name star. At a recent U2 show, he brought a young boy up on stage and walked him around during a song. After the song, he asked the boys name. Upon receiving an answer he said “It’s good to meet you, Gavin. I’m Paul, but I call myself Bono. Thanks for helping me sing.” He didn’t say “I’m the great Bono” or “everyone calls me bono”. It’s almost as if he fessed up to it, sheepishly implying “I know it’s silly… but I have this name for myself… you don’t have to call me if you don’t want… but… it’s Bono”.

I love that. I love his outlook. I love his message. I love his voice in our culture. I love that some of my Young Life kids actually listen to and like U2. I love that I can discuss lyrics to them, and even forward them articles where one of the greatest frontmen in rock & roll history is discussing theology.

Yes, sir, grace not karma. Thank you, “Bono the apostle”.

Advertising

I just saw Minority Report. I know it’s a movie not “advertising” but bear with me. The personalized advertising in it freaked me out. Probably because I can see that actually happening. Advertisers already “target” us… if they could personalize it (as some do with junk e-mail, etc)… then why not?

As annoying as advertising is, and as filthy as it is at times, I think ultimately it points to our need as humans. The crux of most advertisements is “you need this product to be happy”. While that statement is false, one that rings true for everyone is “you need something”.

In the Young Life talk sequence, it’s my firm belief that the “need” talk is the easiest to give. That is, it’s the easiest to give and have kids respond. People are aware that they are without. They see it all around them. Advertising only increases the contrast of that need (sometimes unhealthily so). But, what often doesn’t get told is The Answer. I’m not looking for McDonald’s to say “hey, hungry? Have a big mac. Spiritually hungry? Try St. Marks’ Episcopal this Sunday. Services at 9:30 and 11:00.” But it seems that we as Christians could address the needs of people better, talking about out own, and also talking about the fulfillment that comes from a relationship with Jesus.

Harry Potter VBS

Talk about getting criticized - did you see the latest Leadership magazine's article (might have been a web edition only) on the church who wanted to reach the kids in their community - they used Harry Potter as their backdrop for VBS. They said it was a great experience. The only criticism they got was from outside Christian groups. What do we do with that?

Hope y'all are having a great summer.

Bono on Grace

If any of you follow U2 and/or Bono's latest ventures, you know he is driving the fight against aids. I read most anything printed about the band and it continually amazes me that many conservantive Christians criticize Bono for various antics (language, rock star status, ego, etc...) Though we are watching him drive the fight against aids and poverty in Africa (that he bases on Christ's example), he still gets questioned about if his faith is actually legit.

This is the most blatent response I've seen yet (an excerpt from a new book):
http://www.worldmag.com/subscriber/displayarticle.cfm?id=10892

Enjoy.
Bob

Best Still to Come...(a request)

Okay, so here's a thought for any of you that is actually reading this after the so-called "June 11 deadline" (I'm laughing at whoever is reading this and is unaware of this date):

I think it would be wonderful to continue the ongoing conversation about Theology & Pop Culture and the reality is there is no better way to do it that be living in the midst of it. Reading thoughts, hearing stories, expressing frustrations are personally valuable to me. The reason is that the more I am disciplined to be aware- the more I'm in the "shift" (post/trans-everything).

I don't want to watch the "shift" go by- I want to be a part of it- help navigate, and of course... "Experience" it. I believe the best observations, thoughts, and experiences will happen when it doesn't "have" to happen. I'll agree to keep the site maintained and useful if a handful of people agree to keep adding to it (might even change it up a bit).

My non-concluding thoughts are the very reason I don't want to become complaisantly unaware of this culture and Christianity's place in it. Finishing up an intensive Church History course, I feel I could sum up Christianity's history in one word: Pathetic.

It's generally been horrific and nothing I would ever want to associate with- however God's unbelievable and incomprehensible Grace has done miracles in the midst of chaos. For the first time in my short spiritual life, I actually have hope that the old-Christianity will pass- and a new paradigm of Christ and God's grace will be formed in this culture. I pray that "old-Christians" will let go of old-damaging stigmas and new Christians begin to embrace what Christ embodies. I pray that the spirituality going on in the southern hemisphere penetrates western civilization. And maybe most of all, I pray that Christians lead the way caring for the poor (Africa).

Well, I think I've officially made it to my goal: 11.59 (L.A. time). Until next time...

Bob

24 Period

24. Best drama on television.

If the end game is that you (in this case I) are watching it- then this one wins the prize. Just ask your friends, co-workers, pastors, whoever- if you've started watching 24- you can't stop. It's like Doritos for television.

Is the reason because it has mastered the art of plot? The art of suspense? Some unbelievable passionate message about love, evil, and salvation.... No. The reason is because we are fascinated America's greatest hero: I watch 24 because I want to be Jack Baur. I want to save the world. I want to exude "cool". He's got it. I don't.

You would think there would be more to write- but there isn't: 24 period.

Bob
P.S. If you don't have a TiVo- it's the best invention since television itself. Email me (bob@ylchicago.com) if you are considering- I'll make certain you choose wisely.

Grace and Meatballs

Concluding Thoughts

As I engage each of these mediums, my brain hurts. It’s a good mind stretch, similar to working out muscles that have been left to atrophy. But with any paradigm shift of thinking, I find myself wondering how I can utilize this information in a valuable, meaningful and significant manner. But then I realize that part of this process of Pop Culture and Theology is simply that – a process. “You figure out a puzzle, you solve a problem, but you kneel in a mystery.” (Leonard Sweet) In the week of this class, I found myself kneeling quite a bit.

While struggling through how to listen and decode pop culture, I also found myself more energized than any class I’ve taken in seminary to discuss this topic, with anyone who would be willing to stay engaged. In fact, one of our class days, I nearly stopped on my run to ask a guy about the name of the band on the back of his shirt. I realized I had a place to dialogue. The good news of Jesus Christ has become truly good news because I see how we are all asking for the kind of relationship that he offers. The entry points make sense now.

When I’m reading a book for seminary, I usually read a lighter fare alongside. Interestingly, I was reading Anne Lamott’s “Plan B:Further Thoughts on Faith” alongside “Matrix of Meanings.” The two thoughts processes coincided often. As closure for what I gained from this class, Anne’s statement about grace hit the mark:
“Maybe this is what grace is, the unseen sounds that make you look up. I think it’s why we are here, to see as many chips of blue sky as we can bear. To find the diamond hearts within one another’s meatballs. To notice flickers of the divine, like dust motes on sunbeams in your dusty kitchen. Without all the shade and shadows, you’d miss the beauty of the veil.” P. 162

A Soul Resonates

Art

Madeline L’Engle was the first person who taught me what our faith means when we realize the value of art. Her book,Walking on Water, equates Christianity and art. For this chapter in Matrix of Meanings, art becomes a soulful revelation of God’s work. Of all the pop culture mediums, art becomes the easiest for me to see its significance in understanding culture.

Moving away from a sterile Protestant environment to recognizing the creativity God has given us, we now have a place to express God in entirety. The process by which to understand art is similar to our journey of faith – it doesn’t always make sense, but the standing still and reflecting can bring about more understanding.

When my first husband was in a coma in the hospital, I couldn’t watch TV, go to movies, or read the paper. But walking down the street from Harborview Hospital, I found a museum that brought the same kind of solace and comfort that an old church brings to me. Walking the corridors, pausing before paintings, I could process life because of the silence and grace that the beauty of that art brings. Art can resonate with the pieces of our soul that we can’t explain.

Inner Calling

Sports

“When we’re given an arena where we can push the envelope of human performance, speed and endurance, we flourish – whether or not we finish near the front of the pack. It’s in the ‘doing’ that what looks like ‘insanity’ from the outside is revealed as ‘drive’ from a perspective on the inside of the sport…you don’t need to run through a desert or enter a transcontinental race to join the fold. Heed you own inner calling and push your personal limits by trying an event that you might have deemed ‘crazy’ in the past.” Greg Pressler Presspass, NW City Sports magazine, July 2005

The focus of America’s four sports – Baseball, Football, Basketball and Hockey – brings to mind the religion that they have become. But curiously, this relatively new focus on the extreme and personal sports/activities appears to have more religious language that connects to spirituality. The “head your own inner calling” connects what we all know about ourselves – we want a spirituality, and what better way than in an element that pushes us?

For myself, I can’t relate to the organized “four” sports, but I find a place to dialogue with others when we push ourselves with these “inner callings.” I find great hope in this arena of sports that provides a place for us to connect in a new way.

Lived Theology

Fashion

Through each of these pop culture mediums, the purpose is to decode the clues to understand what lies beneath the surface. Fashion appears to be the most personal when it comes to displaying the values believed about oneself. And when juxtaposed with theology, the clarity that fashion brings reveals a “lived theology.” It serves as a platform for great dialogue when I engage my step-daughter about her eyebrow piercing or my son-in-law’s tattoo, as long as I ask with a spirit of curious inquiry and not judgment.

But because of it’s personal nature, I find it difficult to separate out how it affects me in order to communicate with others about what it says of our culture. Once I start talking about what to wear, how to look, I find myself becoming very defensive. Does it matter? Why should it matter? What’s more important, the heart or the way I look? I don’t want to have to worry about those things, there is already too much with which to concern myself.

Yet as one who wants to listen to Jesus’ concern for the whole body/soul/mind, I realize I can use fashion as a means by which to engage in deeper conversations. Just the other day, I was convicted by my daughter’s belief that clothes made by sweatshops are no longer an option for her (even J.Crew, her favorite). Maybe if I step away from the overexposure of fashion that dictates an unrealistic view of the body, I can focus on the value of wearing a statement of how to care

Common Language

Television

Of all the pop culture mediums, TV appeals the least to me. I understand the draw of community in shows like Friends and find myself intrigued by the drama of my friend’s favorite show West Wing. But I’d rather spend my time reading (which is not on the list of pop culture mediums, much to my dismay L) or going on a bike ride. It may have to do with the frustration I have with an elementary school daughter who loves to watch cartoons over doing anything else. Or maybe, because my husband loves the golf channel, I don’t get to watch much more than that.

Whatever the reason for my distaste, I still appreciate the spirit of finding relevance in pop culture through TV. As TV accurately reflects our culture, I realize that if I do not have at least an awareness of what is offered, I will not be listening to some key clues to what people are thinking, doing and saying. As well, it does provide a common language of communication – through commercial ads and popular shows. If I’m going to be heard, it will have to be like Paul’s “being all to all people.”

Walking the Journey

Music

I’m a neophyte when it comes to pop culture music. I usually trust my high school daughter to interpret the words for me, especially rap. She helps me decide whether we can listen to it in the car with her 5 year old sister present. Although I grew up in Santa Monica/Venice in the 60s, I was relatively sheltered from the hippie movement which provided the fertile ground for rock music. I didn’t even listen to the Beatles (I say this with a bit of shame) So when we took time in class to express the accolades of Eminem, my comfortable world of “turn that off” came crashing down. Can I honestly believe in a common grace that draws from the general revelation of God, even in an artist such as Eminem? Honestly, I still turn off the radio when Eminem plays; however, my appreciation for the way that he and other musicians connect to and reflect our culture causes my hand to pause before the channel changes.

While I may be ignorant of most pop culture music, I do know the power of music, from the emotion that changes a heart to the memories recalled of significant realities. Resonating with the journey Nick Cave traveled, I found myself wanting to sit down with the guy to ask the question, “how did this happen to you?” In an entirely unorthodox way, he found the Jesus who transforms us. By Cave’s freedom in creativity with music, he discovers a route that brings him from cynicism to an exhortation to remember Jesus Christ’s call to “fly.” The power of music crosses all boundaries. Isn’t that what God does in his own surprising and mysterious way? I guess that’s where common grace comes in.

Okay, so I’m letting “common grace” settle in. But what about this statement, “Followers of Jesus must embrace those who are searching and seeking. We must honor their search, misguided though it may be at times, and join them as co-pilgrims, walking and dancing beside them” p. 151 Is the kind of patience that Cave needed to figure out his journey? For someone to step in during the middle of his search by describing what kind of relationship he needed with Jesus, all would have been lost.

A New Language

Movies

Over the last four years I’ve discovered a new language. It’s acquired through watching movies. Developing relationships with my step-daughters (18, 21, 23), we communicate in a far deeper way when I take time to watch a movie with them. They screen the movie for their dad (he doesn’t like anything with violence or sad endings), but for me, they know we have an opportunity to connect. Moulin Rouge is a favorite of all three of them. When our class closed with Christian and Satine’s duet, the message became clear – I need to continue to connect through this medium with them.

As I develop what Adult Ministry looks like at our church, this language of movies is needed for more than my step-daughters and me. Movies elicit more emotions in one to two hours than a normal week’s worth of ministry. The platform of this type of communication about what we like, dislike, agree, disagree provides the kind of honest dialogue that most bible studies do not.

But my obstacle in ministering to adults pertains to the phrase used over and over again in the book, moving from the “sacred to the profane.” Can an audience, an evangelical Christian one at that, ever consider movies that cross the lines of the R-rated arena? Would condemnation happen before the dialogue even started? I believe it would.

But I still have hope. We have a theatre relatively close to our community, popular with a number of folks. The Grand Cinema in Tacoma shows independent films – I love the people who go there. They are “cool” in the definition of professor Craig Detweiler. They come in all kinds of shapes, ages and sizes – old and young, geeks and well-dressed. The answer probably doesn’t start in the church. I think I start at the Grand Cinema first. And I watch my daughters, realizing that “[i]t is more likely that the next generation of filmgoers will be forced to educate the previous generation of filmgoers on how to watch a film.” P.181

The End. Now please fasten your seatbelts.

I am not sure what to think now/still. I am thankful for the new perspective and eyes as I encounter life. I guess I am challenged to stop, look, and listen to what is going on around me and not get sucked into a tunnel-vision kind of living.
I just wanted to say, Thanks for the challenges.

Art

I think I like art even though I don’t always understand it. There is some amazing stuff out there. There is also some really weird stuff. Okay, great. But come one, there are the examples of art in the book that shouldn’t be called art. Hell, I can crinkle up a piece of paper, even two if you’d like, and place it on a piece of glass. How is this art? If you want to give me money, I’ll call it art, sure.

I like to be artistic. I can barely draw a stick figure; thankfully art is more than just drawing. The church needs to stop fearing art and begin to reincorporate it back into its liturgy, its whole way it communicates itself and its message. Art can access a part of our brains that mere words can not. Isn’t that why they say a picture is worth a thousand words? Art can illuminate, develop and help discover new ways of thinking. We need this.

Fashion: Self-definition

I hate to be defined. Last night I told my husband I couldn’t finish my tea. He responded, “I know.” That pissed me off. I drained the cup in two large gulps, put my cup down by the sink, said something not-so-nice and walked away. (Possibly a little emotional instability popping up.) Somehow, this made me think about how fashion is so defining. Maybe I should say it the other way: we are stereotyped based on our fashion decisions. This is what I hate about fashion.

You might think that this is one of the best parts of fashion, right? I mean, one gets to make the decision how to present him or herself to the world. But I don’t want people to think they know me based on the material, styles, colors with which I choose to cover my body. And yet, many people do want to be known by their sense of style, their fashion. They like this sense of self-definition, power to proclaim who they are to anyone looking. For me, it feels claustrophobic.

We’re told not to judge a book by its cover. Do we judge a person by their cover? In one sense people’s fashion are announcing who they are and what they value. But are people more than this? This is my struggle with fashion: how to recognize the cultural signs and yet hating to be defined by something so material (or immaterial).

Sports

My dad used to have season tickets to the Seahawks. A few times I got to go with him. It was cool. I loved doing the Wave with the fans. And I knew when TV watchers had commercials because the guy with the orange gloves had his hands raised. Really, it was just a time to hang out with my dad. Now, I tend to only watch sports during the last few games of a playoff or championship game. Watching sports continues to be a social event for me. Playing sports is also a social thing.

Sports provides our heroes and role models. Extreme sports is just our newest way to test our personal limits and my cynical self feels it is just the newest plaything of those who want to skirt death.

Maybe sports is a form of pop culture that I understand least. I think I’ll leave that to other people. As I write this, I realize that I don’t think I care.

Television: Beware Recovering Addict Ahead

When my twin sister I are were growing up in Gig Harbor, Washington, we didn’t live in a neighborhood and there were no other kids to play with. We had television. My parents decided we were watching too much and decided to put a lock on the door. Damn! We tried just about everything to jimmy that lock.

In our family, TV has always been our primary form of entertainment and relaxation. We had cable with HBO and the Disney Channel before having 99 channels was popular. Our TV room was essentially the dining room as well. And if we could get away with it, where my sister and I did our homework. And you did not even attempt to try to communicate with my mom on Sunday from 8-9 p.m. when Murder She Wrote was on. And like so many other families, we would spend 15 minutes looking for the remote instead of walking the 8 feet to turn the TV channel ourselves.

Now, my husband and I, with all 8 and ½ channels from which to choose between, chose to pay for Netflix instead of cable. We don’t want to become TV addicts. The book rightly points out that we “hate ourselves while we watch it” (p.185). Why? If this is a mirror of our culture, why do I often feel like I just wasted hours of my life watching TV. Commercials for one. What a waste. Though I love to see the connection of who TV execs think are watching a show and what is being advertised. Have you ever noticed how many pharmaceutical ads there are while watching Jeopardy?

I think TV producers are trying to make the a closer connection to the viewer. With all the reality shows, you too could be here. And then, who knows what could be next, maybe you could meet your celebrity hero or walk the red carpet yourself.

conclusion--am i post-christian? journal 9

I think the conclusion for me is becoming a rather sobering look at myself. I struggled with so many of the post-modern shift, saying in the back of my head not me, not us. But as I time has gone on I am beginning to see some of them, in me and in the world around us. I struggled with the idea of being “Post-Christian” only to discover that I think I am there. I want everything to with Jesus and little to do with the Church. I see the message of “Jesus hates” in the world around me. I think this would be rather non-concerning if it was limited to Jesus hating my SUV, but its not. I see it in the message the church is broadcasting to world outside its doors and how in some places there is this expectation that people change before they enter the church. The church instead of becoming a place of refuge for the "sick" has become a bunker for those who are "healthy." It pains me to write this, but I see it in the way the church treats those who have had abortions, homosexuals, those with mental illness, those with sin. The church instead of being a place of love has become a breeding ground for hate.

The book talks of the response being love. Agreed, however I think our love needs to be less selective, less exclusive. As I am writing I am listening to a Jason Mraz song called I’m Yours. The songs talks of our “God Forsaken right to be Loved, Loved, Loved” About not hesitating and surrendering to this idea of Love, and how it cannot wait. Like the optimism of Christian in Moulin Rouge to change the world. Love has the ability to be the lived theology of Christ. If we moved from loving people on an individual level as so many Christians do on there own and love people on a corporate level I think the shift away from the church and the labels attached to it, would diminish and the church wouldn’t need to feel so threatened by the shift away from Christianity.

I wish I wasn’t so cynical, but somehow my experience with the church has led me to this point. I pray for healing from my distain for church. This divorce of Jesus from his church is dangerous, and needs to be resolved. Maybe pop culture has something to teach us. In the end I think we need to leave our bunkers, enter the world, and be light.

Growing up when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always said an artist or some version of that. However, as time went on and I began to realize what it took to make a living as an artist, I somehow abandoned that idea. I have always liked art, but that isn't to say that I have always understood art. Some art is easy to like, other art is easy to hate, I think that is beauty of art--there isn't just one response.

In recent years art has become a part of my worship experience. I often will bring a sketchpad and some pastels to worship and just sit there drawing my response to God. It is made my art more then I could have ever had made it. It is easy for my see that God can speak through art, whether it is the private moment of creating or the public display like a gallery. Art for me has had the ability to provide a visual expression for Theology or the nature of God, which words cannot fully explain. I think it is a helpful tool in gaining understanding of God and the church.

Fashion did not save me...Journal 7

I have always been somewhat interested in fashion. Growing up overweight what I wore often took the attention away from my weight. Clothes in my youthful mind appeared to be the great equalizer. If I bought that brand then I would be accepted. But it was never the clothes that made me. All that I had hoped fashion would bring me, it never did. Fashion did not save me—God did.

I never thought I would see a connection between God and fashion but I think I am beginning to see something. Fashion allows people to create a new being, similar to how when we begin a relationship with Christ with become a new person. Fashion's ability to redefine us is powerful. It is sad to think that many people, myself included, run to such a temporal thing like clothes to change what we don’t like about ourselves. People use fashion for so many things, but I think the idea of acceptance and fitting in is one that stands out greatly. In high school I tried to dress a certain way in order to fit in, but I never worked. I had always hoped that my clothes would help me gain acceptance. However, it wasn’t until I was introduced to Christ that this began to change.

As I write this journal entry, I realize how silly fashion is, and how much power it has. Fashion, like God, can change a person—for better or for worse. I think my initial thought of fashion being sculpted bodies and ridiculous price, is shifting towards fashion being a powerful beast, which to some degree feeds on peoples insecurities. In many ways I think fashion acts in ways opposite of God’s character—yet I am stuck to wonder why did I, why do others, see it as something that has the power to change them. It's strange.

Sports...Journal 6

Sports have never really been of interest to me. Through out my life they have been a source of boredom for me. This may be that I grew with my mom and she was never interested in sports. Or whenever I did play sports I was always chosen last when picking teams. Somehow over time it just never kept its hold on my life. So movies about sports, sports analogies, and sporting events—they all lose my attention really quick.

I do not think God has ever spoken to me through sports. I can think of many sermons in which the pastor related a passage or something to sports and lost me. Finding God in televised sports is difficult for me. I know the First Corinthians passage of running a race, so I am not completely unwilling to believe God will speak through sports.

However, I don’t really know what God is speaking to me now about sports. Others may be getting something, but not me. I am trying to remain open to God showing me something through sports, but it this is one of the hard areas for me to see it.

What the $%**#?

I'm not just saying this to swear- it's actually the movie I watched tonight- What the "bleep"? Some of you will have seen it I assume. I have been meaning to watch it for sometime- and was delighted to know that my non-independent-film-carrying BlockBuster had it.

The most interesting thing about the movie was not the movie itself- it was the reasoning behind seeing the movie. I was around 3 conversations regarding the movie before seeing it and on 2 occasions "overheard" conversations about it and only involved in 1 conversation myself. All 3 viewers of the film were fascinated by the "things that didn't make sense" in the movie. All 3 viewers were "curious" about God as it relates to the movie. Thus, I was curious.

Personally, I liked many aspects of the movie- but struggled with the supposedly objective direction of the film- it seemed quite non-objective in the end: start from a blank slate and reason your way to a conclusion- but the conclusion is already there, but we'll make it seem like- we are open to whatever.

There were 2 things in the movie I appreciated: 1. I think Christians often shy away from anything that might appear "new agey"- a quality this film definitely possesses (actually I'm assuming Christian Scientist), however, often science, exploration of science, and understanding of science so compliment God's unbelievable creativity. The sad thing is when beneficial understandings are never learned in fear of "new age". (It was one of the best visuals of understand co-dependency I've ever seen).

2. EVERY SINGLE COMMENTATOR (there were lots- and lots in the "secular sense") was making a response to God. A response that came in wonder, doubt, longing, and faith. It was definitely a throwback to rationalism- an attempt to reason our way in or out of God. However, the conclusions seemed to be this: God exists. It's impossible to reason. We're making choices based on faith. You can't fully reason- faith must exist: "God, please show up and make me certain that it is you."

My Week Away from TV... Journal 5

Growing up, the TV in my house was always on. It was a central part of my childhood for better or worse. I can remember what time the Muppets were on, and how my life stood still for that half hour. I really have never had cable, so over time the appeal of TV has lessen. I now really only have it in the morning as I listen to the news before work. However, I think I’d watch more if I had the time. That being said, this past week I have been staying with a friend who doesn’t have a TV and I have really enjoyed it—I wonder if when I return if I will be able to go without TV with it sitting in almost every room in our house.

This is one of those areas I am not sure if God speaks to me through. I think He does. Like I said, I watch a lot of news and I think this medium helps to show things I need to see. It exposes me to world around me, and really helps me to see mankind’s struggle and how I should pray. Occasionally a TV show will move me, but really I currently don’t get to watch that much. I think it is interesting to see where TV is going. It seems to create the trends that society follows. It is a medium that is accessible to most people, regardless of where one's place is in the world. Almost every hotel I have stayed in the world, whether in Asia or Europe or here in America, has had some sort of TV. Almost all showing some form of the BBC too.

This is another area in which I am not sure how God is communicating to me with. I think I am gaining so much more from my time away from TV, that it’s hard at this very moment to think that there is something to learn from it. But right now I really am not able to see it--I know there is something hidden within that appliance but its just that, hidden, or at least for the time being.

Fascination with Celebrity

Sitting in the vet’s office waiting for my dog's checkup, I find a PEOPLE magazine to pass the time. I’m immediately drawn into the Paris and Paris story, the never-ending Brad and Angelina story, and the beginnings of the Tom and Katie story (it’s last month’s magazine). Why the intrigue? Why do I find these stories tantalizing and interesting when I have no connection at all with any of these people?

Until our class conversation and the reinforcement from the chapter on celebrities, I never considered my fascination with celebrity news worth anything spiritual. But in further analysis, I realize my allure resonates with the statement that “our endless fascination with celebrity could also demonstrate the depth of our spiritual hunger.” We want a picture of the heros, of the imago Dei, a person of worship.

Bingo - It is at this point that I can start a conversation with someone who would otherwise not find Jesus Christ of interest. Don’t we all want a hero, someone who holds the highest ideals by which we hope life functions? And if it is true that the “cool” element intrigues us most, then Jesus exhibits the true essence of “cool.” He demonstrated a subversive rebellion against the established order while simultaneously acknowledging the desire to fulfill what everyone has always wanted – a life abundant. What more could you ask of someone?

That’s the first launching point of conversation. I could continue with our need to connect with someone else’s fallenness and fallibility, acknowledging that Jesus understands our “humanness” by facing it himself. Or articulating our desire to find saints in our culture, look at our fascination with Bono’s mission. We want individuals who can face the evil of our world. Jesus’ initial encounter in the beginning of the gospel of Mark is with an evil spirit. From the center of our pop culture, there are entry points of conversation.

I was struck by an insight by Brian McLaren: “Jesus was short on sermons and long on conversations; short on answers, long on questions…He was a great conversationalist!” More Ready than You Think

Isn’t that what our culture provides? The opportunities for conversation to dialogue about the greatest celebrity there ever was, is and will be.

A Way of Life

Advertising – Journal #1

When I was in Middle School in the 70s, we all had to choose a bumper sticker to explain a philosophy of life. I chose “Eat Beans, the More You Eat, the More You Toot, the More You Toot, the Better You Feel, so eat Beans.” In the mind of an early adolescent, I figured it sent a sensible, albeit crude and silly, message. All in a few short words, I communicated far more than an endorsement of beans.

After reading A Matrix of Meanings, I can see now that my form of advertising wasn’t much different than the direction of advertising today. The product is only part of the picture; the communication of a way of life is far more important to determine the viability of the product. It is the intersection of advertisement in the 21^st century and religion that we, followers of Jesus Christ, can begin to communicate with our culture. The viability of our “product,” the relationship of God, Jesus and Holy Spirit with us, becomes meaningful when we appeal to the way of life that it offers, not simply the self-identified product.

Seeking to use the various “commandments” of advertising, we know that each one of them appeal to the deepest needs of our present culture: be real and authentic; self-improvement applies to all aspects of an embodied life; listen to the dialogue around us; we are diverse yet inclusive; connection and purpose are valuable assets to a meaningful life. Does not the message of the good news of the gospel address each one of these deep needs?

I can agree with all of that.

Where I struggle is in the last part of the chapter. It’s the third option offered “to expand our view of the nature of religion itself, broadening the uniqueness of the Christian faith…passed beyond tolerance of other religions to a positive appreciation of the religious traditions they contain.” My heart leaps when I think about the growing appreciation that realizes all truth is God’s truth (does anyone know who actually is credited with saying this? I can’t find it). But where I grapple is the reality that somehow I still need to communicate that Jesus Christ provides the avenue by which to understand God in entirety. Was it Justin Martyr, or another patristic father, who said truth is like a broken mirror of whom only Jesus reflects the complete picture? How do I communicate that in a way of life that looks different than a life that follows after Buddha’s teachings? That’s my struggle.

One more thought – I wonder if writing my thoughts for an entire class on a blog counts as part of pop culture. I wrestle with sharing my thoughts for an entire group. When I write to an audience of one, I try to think of how that one person will hear and receive my thoughts. However, with a whole group reading, I have to be comfortable in my own skin to speak honestly and authentically, no matter what the audience may think. Is this part of the post-modern world in which I also need to adjust?

Movies...Journal 4

I love movies…I just wish I could actually afford to go to the theater to see one. However, living overseas for a year movies were one of the few American influences I encountered in mass quantity. I think I like movies because they're like books except that they take only a few hours to consume where as books take me a lot longer. For me the movies I love most often feel like sitting down with a good book, for example “A River Runs Through It." I think I love movies because it is essentially storytelling for our fast paced lives and I love a good story. Sometimes the stories are told well and other times they aren’t, but that seems to be the same as books, and really it is in the eye of the beholder.

Movies like music, have been a way in which God has spoken to me. Movies like “The Motorcycle Diaries” have helped me to make sense to what God is teaching me. In recent months as I’ve watched the news and read the newspapers I kept seeing Christians saying absolutely hateful things on T.V. directed at homosexuals in the Seattle area. The firestorm it started in my heart led me to question Sin. How do we deal with sin? How to love and accept someone who we know is sinning? How do we love someone without saying your sin is okay? As I struggled with these questions I focus shifted quickly from homosexuality to all sin. My sin, my friend’s sin, and my neighbor’s sin—how do I respond to world around me? It was during this time of internal conflict that I saw “The Motorcycle Diaries.” There was a scene at the end of the movie in which one of the two men asked the question of why they needed a river to separate the healthy from the sick. After asking that question, either out frustration or love or both, he left the world of the healthy and swam across river to be with the sick. That moment of grace and beauty gave a visual of what Christ did for us, and what maybe we as the so called “healthy” need to do reach out to the “sick.” That scene spoke volumes into the conflicts of my heart.

As for what now, I am not really sure. In the weeks between now and class I have watched a few of the movies talked about. Some I really don’t get, and I think may need second viewing to better understand. In some of the talks I have had with friends since the class I have discovered that movies are a huge part of my life. Movies provide me with quotes or clips that do a better job of explaining ideas then sometimes I do. I think movies will continue to capture my attention, give me needed words, and tell me stories worth my time.