During the last two years I have read a number of books by Thomas Moore. Moore is a popular lecturer and writer in North America and Europe. At one time Moore lived as a monk in a Catholic religious order for twelve years and has degrees in theology, musicology, and philosophy. In the last decade or so he has written numerous books about the "soul" and it's need for care and it's relationship to religion, sex, marriage, and life in general. His most popular book, The Care of the Soul was on the New York Times bestseller list for forty-six weeks. I have always appreciated Moore's writings because he integrates religion, philosophy, the arts, psychology, mythology, and sociology in a way that make his writings and reflections unique and interesting. Over the years I have noticed that the social sciences are particularly prone to attempts to trump and compete with each other, philosophy against religion, psychology against sociology, religion against psychology, and so on. Moore makes no attempt to assert one discipline over another but rather to illustrate how they each are intertwined together and have something important to contribute to the human experience.
Yesterday while reading his book Care of the Soul I was intrigued by what Moore had to say about fundamentalism and spirituality and I would like to pass along for every one's consideration some of Moore's comments. Moore says this about what he means by fundamentalism, "There are many kinds of fundamentalism--Jungian-Freudian, Democrat-Republican, Rock Blues", etc...he goes on to add these critical comments about the "nature" of fundamentalism, spirituality, and religion in general. "Often, when spirituality loses its soul it takes on the shadow-form of fundamentalism..."The intellect wants a summary meaning--all well and good for the purposeful nature of the mind. But the soul craves depth of reflection, many layers of meaning, nuances without end, references and allusions and prefigurations. All these enrich the texture of a an image or story and please the soul by giving it much food for rumination. Rumination is one of the chief delights of the soul. Early Christians theologians discussed at length how a biblical text could be read at many levels at once. There were literal meanings and allegorical meanings and anagogical (concerned with death and afterlife) meanings. They typically explained the Exodus, for example, as allegory about freeing the soul from imprisonment in sin. But this was not the only meaning of the story. This practice suggests an "archetypal" reading of the Bible, regarding its stories not as simplistic moral lessons or statements of belief, but as subtle expressions of the mysteries that form the roots of human life...If we deprive sacred stories of their mystery, we are left with the brittle shell of fact, the literalism of a single meaning. But when we allow a story its soul, we can discover our own depths through it. Fundamentalism tends to idealize and romanticize a story, winnowing out the darker elements of doubt, hopelessness, and emptiness. It protects us from the hard work of finding our own participation in meaning and developing our won subtle moral values. The sacred teaching story, which has the potential of deepening the mystery of our own identity, instead is used defensively in fundamentalism, to spare us the anxiety of being an individual with choice, responsibility, and continually changing sense of self. The tragedy of fundamentalism in any context is its capacity to freeze life into a solid cube of meaning"....and finally he concludes with this comment: "When spirituality loses contact with soul and these values, it can become rigid, simplistic, moralistic, and authoritarian---qualities that betray a loss of soul".....I find these latter comments pregnant with hope and endless potential possibilities....Bilbo
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Saturday, April 14, 2007
In chapter seven McLaren talks about Jesus not only talking about the Kingdom of God but "demonstrating" it through signs and wonders. McLaren suggests that the signs and wonders of Jesus have fallen on hard times in the modern world because "Most of us in the modern West--religious or irreligious---have inherited a worldview that was formed largely in the seventeenth century. In this perspective, our world is best compared to a a machine. God, if God exists, created the universe like a huge clock: the complex mechanism was designed and wound up in the beginning, was set in motion, hand has been ticking ever since winding down through a process called entropy"....McLaren goes on to declare that Jesus, "worldview, his model of the universe, was very different--more organic, less mechanistic....God was connected to the universe, present with it, intimately involved with it...so for ancient Jews the universe was not a....mechanistic system. It was an...organic community with both limits and freedom, accountability and responsibility. It had room both for God and humanity. There were limits, and there were order--but there were also breathing room and real possibilities to choose and make a life. In this universe, God gives space and time to live our lives....it's a universe in interactive relationship with God....and....I have become convinced that Jesus worldview is better than ours"...I am sympathetic to McLaren's concern of a mechanistic worldview, particularly in regards to how we have applied this model to so many different aspects of our lives. Four steps to this, twelve steps to that, and the "supposedly" scientific mechanistic solutions to everything from teaching methods in the classroom to making love in the bedroom...It's not that there isn't something valuable to be gained from such mechanistic/systematic approaches but as McLaren's comments imply, the organic, freedom of choice, and "breathing room" aspects that are so important to daily life are ignored in the process....on the other hand....I am also skeptical if not cynical when it comes to "romanticizing" the past. I am not asserting that this is what McLaren's is doing, but one could conclude from his remarks that the worldview and thus the implications of that worldview are superior to our own...which...is problematic from my vantage point because I don't think the vast majority of people living in the time of Jesus lived their lives as if God was an interactive aspect of their daily lives as McLaren's comments seem to suggest. From my reading of the New Testament and history I get the feeling alot of people felt like God had abandoned them and questioned why they were living under the bondage of the religious and secular Roman authorities which dominated their lives...and...I question what "real possibilities to choose and make a life" the people had living under the authorities I previously mentioned. From what I can gather most people living in ancient times where destined to live a life of economic poverty and hardship with little or no hope for change or opportunity to better themselves or their families...I hope this doesn't come across as nitpicking what McLaren is trying to communicate because I do agree with his comments about adopting or creating a perspective on life which is more organic and open to the possibility that God lives amongst us in our daily lives and in our world but I am just questioning to what degree the reality matches the worldview of those who lived during the time of Jesus......At the end of the chapter McLaren says that, "Some scholars see the stories of signs and wonders as fiction--parables, if you will, composed by the early church"....and adds..."Although I respect their differing viewpoint, I am not among them. I believe that signs and wonders actually, factually, clustered around Jesus and his secret message of the Kingdom of God".....McLaren seems to suggest/imply that there is a correlation between the worldview of Jesus and the ancients and the belief in "factual" miracles/signs and wonders....Personally, I am not sure or convinced that one has to "accept as literal history" the signs and wonders, or miracle accounts in the Bible in order to feel or believe that God is present or intimately involved with our world. I am not asserting that miracles didn't or can't happen but I feel like I am surrounded by the miracles of God whenever I eat a good meal, go hiking in a ancient forest, talk on the phone with a friend, feel a cool breeze on my face, listen to the ocean waves or feel the pleasure of making love with a woman I deeply care about and love...
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Friday, April 06, 2007
Easter week is not as significant or as meaningful to my spiritual development as it once was in my life. Just trying to be honest. My life has changed a lot in the past ten years and I no longer belong to a Christian community that emphasizes the literal historical accuracy of the resurrection of Jesus. Also, I have spent a significant amount of time reading and thinking about the death and resurrection story of Jesus and currently feel content where I stand. It's not that I don't care or am totally indifferent to Easter and the meaning of the crucifixion/resurrection story. There are always potentially new ways of finding new meanings and significance in such great stories no matter how many times you hear the same story over and over again. I don't have anything profound to say about Easter this year but I do want to take the time, in the spirit of Good Friday, to share some thoughts from Crossan, N.T. Wright and myself regarding the Resurrection of Jesus. Last year I read The Crossan-Wright dialogue on the resurrection of Jesus and I'll pass along some of the things from the book along with my own commentary.
One thing that I remember most about the dialogue between Crossan and N.T. Wright is that "both" men believe the resurrection story whether one interprets it literally or metaphorically is important...because...both... "insist one must not stop at thinking about the actual historical accuracy of the resurrection...and...one must consider the "significance" of the resurrection for individuals, the church, and the world". As I ponder the potential significance of the resurrection story the word transformation comes to mind and transformation implies justice, equality, healing, and hope...and... We live in a world that so desperately needs transformation,personally and communally, and the Easter story is a critically important potential "reference point" for those who have ears to hear...
At this point in my life I don't particularly care whether the Resurrection story is literal history, history embellished, a myth, or an ancient "X File" encounter. Sorry Saint Paul, but I have to part ways with you on this one. Historically, I understand the heretical implications of my statements but this is what I believe and I really don't have any interest in undermining or changing the minds of my fellow brethren who insist on the historicity of the Easter story.Over the years, I have come to my current position, in large part, because I do believe in the "power of myth" and I believe it is unfortunate that a lot of modern people don't either understand or perhaps care to understand that myth and history are not "necessarily" mutually exclusive. I say, unfortunate, because according to the modern myth, they are polar opposites...and...in the process of waging war between myth and history I believe we have drifted away from the meaning of the story and the significance of transformation which is from my vantage point the heart of the myth/ history of the Easter story.
Now that I have laid my cards on the table regarding what I believe about the Easter story here is what Crossan, and N.T. Wright have to say about the Resurrection. These excerpts are taken from the book, The Resurrection of Jesus: John Dominic Crossan and N.T. Wright in Dialogue.
N.T. Wright: "only with the bodily resurrection of Jesus, demonstrating that his death dealt the decisive blow to evil, that we can find the proper ground for working to call the kingdoms of the earth to submit to the Kingdom of God...Not that science has disproved Easter, but that Easter challenges the social and political pretensions of modernism, both right and left wing, and modernism knows it. Perhaps the most important thing then about the resurrection is also the most deeply counter-cultural in our own day--that a deeply orthodox theology about the resurrection, and a good deal else besides, is the proper seedbed of radical politics."
Crossan: Why is it important for me speak of the metaphorical? Is it the Enlightment? No, it really isn't---because I am in a pre-Enlightment age when I am reading this. It really is this: if you look at the world in which Jesus and Paul lived, the world, in which Caesar, Caesar Augustus, was divine, was Son of God, was God, was God from God----at least in Egypt--was Lord, was savior of the world, was redeemer, was liberator, and you ask yourself, or make the mistake of asking a classicist, "Did those millions of people who say, who read those texts, those structures, did they all take it literally or metaphorically? The honest answer must be, I do not have the faintest idea, nor does anyone else. But I do know that they took it operationally, they took it functionally, they took it programmatically. To say I believe in the divinity of Caesar meant I am getting with the program, I'm supporting Roman imperialism.If I were certain that all of that was taken literally, no question, then I might be more certain about how to read Christian and anti-Caesarian theology. That is the issue for me. How do we know, know enough for to demand of our people in the name of faith, that everything must be taken literally as distinct from metaphorically?. What I am suggesting is that whether you take it literally or whether you take it metaphorically, you must take it programmatically. And that means you must be able to spell out in detail from the program of the divine Caesar. That is the first century question. The first-century question is not "Do you think Jesus is Lord? It is "Do you think Caesar or Jesus is Lord? And when you say Jesus is Lord you have just committed high treason... We can go on debating whether the resurrection is literal or metaphorical...It seems to me that we have been debating it for two hundred years, and we have reached an impasse: nobody is persuading anyone else about it that I can see...but there is something else: the question of meaning. I would like to ask anyone who says literally to spell out exactly what is the meaning of that? That is, what are the implications, how does it work out, how does ti change the world, how do we participate in a new creation?....
N.T. Wright: "The resurrection language...used by the early Christians literally and was meant to be taken denoting a concrete event--if you don't go that route, you're left with saying that whatever happened, whether you refer to it literally or metaphorically, was an abstract event, was a nonconcrete, nonbodily thing,which then leaves you without the groundwork for dealing with the bodily realities of martyrdom, Caesar's world, and all the rest of it. In other words, is not your political agenda going to push you ulitimately to saying that there really was an empty tomb on Easter?
Crossan: For me....A literal statement and a metaphorical statement can both apply to exactly the same concrete event....For example...Two people are talking in the last election. One says, Well, President Bush is my President. The other says, President Bush is my eagle. One's literal; The other's metaphorical. They both mean the same concrete thing. They both mean, we approve of the program, we approve of the politics...
One thing that I remember most about the dialogue between Crossan and N.T. Wright is that "both" men believe the resurrection story whether one interprets it literally or metaphorically is important...because...both... "insist one must not stop at thinking about the actual historical accuracy of the resurrection...and...one must consider the "significance" of the resurrection for individuals, the church, and the world". As I ponder the potential significance of the resurrection story the word transformation comes to mind and transformation implies justice, equality, healing, and hope...and... We live in a world that so desperately needs transformation,personally and communally, and the Easter story is a critically important potential "reference point" for those who have ears to hear...
At this point in my life I don't particularly care whether the Resurrection story is literal history, history embellished, a myth, or an ancient "X File" encounter. Sorry Saint Paul, but I have to part ways with you on this one. Historically, I understand the heretical implications of my statements but this is what I believe and I really don't have any interest in undermining or changing the minds of my fellow brethren who insist on the historicity of the Easter story.Over the years, I have come to my current position, in large part, because I do believe in the "power of myth" and I believe it is unfortunate that a lot of modern people don't either understand or perhaps care to understand that myth and history are not "necessarily" mutually exclusive. I say, unfortunate, because according to the modern myth, they are polar opposites...and...in the process of waging war between myth and history I believe we have drifted away from the meaning of the story and the significance of transformation which is from my vantage point the heart of the myth/ history of the Easter story.
Now that I have laid my cards on the table regarding what I believe about the Easter story here is what Crossan, and N.T. Wright have to say about the Resurrection. These excerpts are taken from the book, The Resurrection of Jesus: John Dominic Crossan and N.T. Wright in Dialogue.
N.T. Wright: "only with the bodily resurrection of Jesus, demonstrating that his death dealt the decisive blow to evil, that we can find the proper ground for working to call the kingdoms of the earth to submit to the Kingdom of God...Not that science has disproved Easter, but that Easter challenges the social and political pretensions of modernism, both right and left wing, and modernism knows it. Perhaps the most important thing then about the resurrection is also the most deeply counter-cultural in our own day--that a deeply orthodox theology about the resurrection, and a good deal else besides, is the proper seedbed of radical politics."
Crossan: Why is it important for me speak of the metaphorical? Is it the Enlightment? No, it really isn't---because I am in a pre-Enlightment age when I am reading this. It really is this: if you look at the world in which Jesus and Paul lived, the world, in which Caesar, Caesar Augustus, was divine, was Son of God, was God, was God from God----at least in Egypt--was Lord, was savior of the world, was redeemer, was liberator, and you ask yourself, or make the mistake of asking a classicist, "Did those millions of people who say, who read those texts, those structures, did they all take it literally or metaphorically? The honest answer must be, I do not have the faintest idea, nor does anyone else. But I do know that they took it operationally, they took it functionally, they took it programmatically. To say I believe in the divinity of Caesar meant I am getting with the program, I'm supporting Roman imperialism.If I were certain that all of that was taken literally, no question, then I might be more certain about how to read Christian and anti-Caesarian theology. That is the issue for me. How do we know, know enough for to demand of our people in the name of faith, that everything must be taken literally as distinct from metaphorically?. What I am suggesting is that whether you take it literally or whether you take it metaphorically, you must take it programmatically. And that means you must be able to spell out in detail from the program of the divine Caesar. That is the first century question. The first-century question is not "Do you think Jesus is Lord? It is "Do you think Caesar or Jesus is Lord? And when you say Jesus is Lord you have just committed high treason... We can go on debating whether the resurrection is literal or metaphorical...It seems to me that we have been debating it for two hundred years, and we have reached an impasse: nobody is persuading anyone else about it that I can see...but there is something else: the question of meaning. I would like to ask anyone who says literally to spell out exactly what is the meaning of that? That is, what are the implications, how does it work out, how does ti change the world, how do we participate in a new creation?....
N.T. Wright: "The resurrection language...used by the early Christians literally and was meant to be taken denoting a concrete event--if you don't go that route, you're left with saying that whatever happened, whether you refer to it literally or metaphorically, was an abstract event, was a nonconcrete, nonbodily thing,which then leaves you without the groundwork for dealing with the bodily realities of martyrdom, Caesar's world, and all the rest of it. In other words, is not your political agenda going to push you ulitimately to saying that there really was an empty tomb on Easter?
Crossan: For me....A literal statement and a metaphorical statement can both apply to exactly the same concrete event....For example...Two people are talking in the last election. One says, Well, President Bush is my President. The other says, President Bush is my eagle. One's literal; The other's metaphorical. They both mean the same concrete thing. They both mean, we approve of the program, we approve of the politics...
Thursday, April 05, 2007
For the first time, in a long time, I didn't travel during Easter week and decided to stay in town. I haven't written much lately because I have been busy doing domestic related chores and spending face to face time with family and friends. I was going to go up to the Bay Area to see my mom this week but she came down here for a couple of days. My mom is just amazing. She stills gets around at 92 years old... Most of this week I have been working on my patio and doing yard work. I bought some new patio furniture a couple of days ago and have done a fair amount of shopping for decorations to go with my patio furniture. Yesterday I bought some gnomes, frogs, turtles, and candle lanterns. The patio actually looks pretty good now if I may say so myself. I really enjoy decorating and generally become obsessed about it until I finish the job. My sons went to Mexico this week with their church and will be back later today. I will pick them up this evening from church and we will hang out together until tomorrow afternoon. They have gone to Mexico during Easter for four years in a row but I suspect this will be their last year because the newness and exotic aspects of traveling to a foreign country has worn off for the most part. They didn't sound particularly interested in going this year but didn't like the option of going camping with me or hang-in out with their mother for a whole week....I haven't given much thought to the meaning of Easter this week, so far, but am going to church on Easter Sunday with my "lady friend". This will be the first time I have attended an Easter service on Easter in six or seven years. I have attended Catholic mass for the last two years but that service was the night before Easter. I am looking forward to going to church on Sunday and am curious to see "how" a Congregational Church does Easter. They don't talk too much about the deity of Christ or the Resurrection so it will be interesting to hear how they find meaning in the Easter story. I'll try to blog something later about the Resurrection. Last year I read the The Resurrection of Jesus by Dominic Crossan and N.T. Wright and I'll try to post some of my thoughts about the dialogue between these two prominent scholars...
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
I am combining chapters four, five, and six, because I haven't had time to keep up with it all. In chapter four Mclaren talks about the revolutionary nature of Jesus message. Mclaren talks about how Jesus message is revolutionary because it addresses and is concerned about the poor, children, and the outcast. He also asserts that "Violent revolutions...aren't revolutionary. Noisy regime changes are utterly predictable--brought about by displays of power and hollow promises and indomitable wealth."...while the message of Jesus, by contrast may be called the most revolutionary.....because...."The radical revolutionary empire of God is here, advancing by reconciliation and peace, expanding by faith, hope, and love---beginning with the poorest, the weakest, the meekest, and the least"...While I am on board with the advancement of the kingdom via reconciliation and peace I am not sure to what degree the "radical revolutionary empire of God is here", now. As I look across the religious landscape in America today I am not particularly optimistic regarding how many folks "really" believe peace is the way of reconciliation and advancement of the Kingdom of God. Many, if not the majority of Christians might believe that reconciliation with God is achieved via peaceful means, by accepting Christ as Savior, but I am not convinced they believe reconciliation with each other or with our enemies can be achieved through peaceful means. And, it is important to remember that reconciliation with God was not achieved peacefully but rather through the death of Jesus by means of crucifixion which is one of the most violent and barbaric practices ever.
In chapter six Mclaren about Jesus use of parables. Mclaren states that "Parables
entice their hearers into new territory...and...they invite the listener to ask questions...and...have the power to transform the hearer into interactive, interdependent,humble,inquisitive, and persistent people"....Regarding why Jesus spoke in parables Mclaren says, "Because his message wasn't merely aimed at conveying information. It sought to precipitate something more important: the spiritual transformation of it's hearers."...and...according to Mclaren Jesus hid the "explicit" truth so that "we simply wouldn't hear with our ears or read with our eyes on a literal level: we must invest ourselves in an imaginative search for meaning---a meaning that will surprise us when we discover it for ourselves"....I think Mclaren is onto something regarding Jesus desire for us to explore the meaning of life
ourselves with an imaginative, inquisitive and persistent spirit. For many years I relied too much on the opinions, experiences, and authority of others regarding the meaning/purpose of life, morality, and how life "ought" to be lived in general. I don't mean to imply that one should not listen intently to the thoughts and experiences of others but at some point one needs to take ownership of his or her own life and embrace one's own thoughts, experiences, intuition, and the "spirit" that resides in us all....otherwise....one will be simply living out the hopes, dreams,values, and passions of others and I sincerely don't believe that is God's intention for anyone....Over the past six months I have also become more aware of the need for imagination in our lives. We tend to associate imagination with the arts but I believe imagination is something that can be applied to every aspect of our lives....politics, child rearing, our jobs, problem solving, and our love making...but...imagination is squelched or non existent whenever we simply defer to the authority and experiences of others....I also appreciated Mclaren's comment about hearing and reading beyond the literal. For some time now I have felt that the teachings and life of Jesus were intended to inspire his followers and future generations to live a life of faith to God as Jesus did. The Bible exhorts us to follow Jesus but we have to work out our own salvation with imagination in our own way in the context of the 21st century. To me, that means we have a responsibility to forge our own path with the gifts and callings we have which means my life won't look the same as others but that is O.K. because I don't think God ever intended us to be religious zombies who simply follow the marching orders of others no matter what titles or intelligence they may possess.....
In chapter six Mclaren about Jesus use of parables. Mclaren states that "Parables
entice their hearers into new territory...and...they invite the listener to ask questions...and...have the power to transform the hearer into interactive, interdependent,humble,inquisitive, and persistent people"....Regarding why Jesus spoke in parables Mclaren says, "Because his message wasn't merely aimed at conveying information. It sought to precipitate something more important: the spiritual transformation of it's hearers."...and...according to Mclaren Jesus hid the "explicit" truth so that "we simply wouldn't hear with our ears or read with our eyes on a literal level: we must invest ourselves in an imaginative search for meaning---a meaning that will surprise us when we discover it for ourselves"....I think Mclaren is onto something regarding Jesus desire for us to explore the meaning of life
ourselves with an imaginative, inquisitive and persistent spirit. For many years I relied too much on the opinions, experiences, and authority of others regarding the meaning/purpose of life, morality, and how life "ought" to be lived in general. I don't mean to imply that one should not listen intently to the thoughts and experiences of others but at some point one needs to take ownership of his or her own life and embrace one's own thoughts, experiences, intuition, and the "spirit" that resides in us all....otherwise....one will be simply living out the hopes, dreams,values, and passions of others and I sincerely don't believe that is God's intention for anyone....Over the past six months I have also become more aware of the need for imagination in our lives. We tend to associate imagination with the arts but I believe imagination is something that can be applied to every aspect of our lives....politics, child rearing, our jobs, problem solving, and our love making...but...imagination is squelched or non existent whenever we simply defer to the authority and experiences of others....I also appreciated Mclaren's comment about hearing and reading beyond the literal. For some time now I have felt that the teachings and life of Jesus were intended to inspire his followers and future generations to live a life of faith to God as Jesus did. The Bible exhorts us to follow Jesus but we have to work out our own salvation with imagination in our own way in the context of the 21st century. To me, that means we have a responsibility to forge our own path with the gifts and callings we have which means my life won't look the same as others but that is O.K. because I don't think God ever intended us to be religious zombies who simply follow the marching orders of others no matter what titles or intelligence they may possess.....
Saturday, March 17, 2007
I've put low priority on my blogging activities for the past month because I have devoted my time, energy, and emotions to face to face interactions with friends, my two sons, and let's just say a special relationship with "a daughter of Eve". Since I moved into my new house three months ago I have gotten a new lease on life and have been spending a lot of face to face time with friends. It's been great and good for my soul....My two sons now have their driving permits so I am trying to spend more time helping them learn how to drive. It's been a real challenge for them since my car has a manual transmission but their teenage cocky attitude, that I know how to drive dad, came to a crashing end as soon as they tried to shift from first to second gear and at this point they can barely go up and down the street let alone drive in traffic....I haven't kept up with the Mclaren series but I will try to post something in the next couple of days. I have been reading the book and haven't missed a single discussion group meeting in the last two months at the local Congregational Church. The discussion group time is limited to about twenty to thirty minutes, which is much less than what I would like but it has provided an opportunity for me to get to know some of the people at the church. During this time I have gotten to know the pastor and we seem to share a kindred spirit. She, like me, is devoted to a spirit of non-violence regarding public policy and interpersonal relationships. She also emphasizes an inclusive attitude and message in many of her sermons and the church reflects that attitude. There are a number of openly gay committed couples in the congregation and from what I can gather there is somewhat a mixture of political conservatives and liberals but the left leaning crowd does seem to be in the majority but they generally don't push their agenda from what I can gather...The pastor and I have read many of the same books and it is refreshing just to talk to someone who knows and understands where you are coming from. The other day I found out she is a big Ken Wilbur and Marcus Borg fan....Unfortunately, the pastor is retiring in July. I will hate to see her go....The weather has been way above normal here for two weeks running. It is supposed to get up to 90 degrees tomorrow which is twenty degrees above normal for this time of the year. Next week it supposed to get back down to normal but for now I am sitting around the house in shorts and no shirt....Well, I think I wrap this up for now and head over to my sons house for a driving lesson and on my way I'll say a quick prayer to Saint Patrick for safety as I put my life on the line driving around with my two sons. God have mercy on me....and....if I survive, I'll head off to a special Celtic service at All Saints Episcopal Church later this evening with "a daughter of Eve"....
Monday, March 05, 2007
I haven't posted anything on my blog now for over two weeks. It's not that I haven't had ample time or that something is wrong. To the contrary, everything, for the most part, is going very well...but...I confess I do have a "situation" that has been keeping me away from regular cyberspace activities. It all started about a month ago when I got hit by one of Cupid's arrows. At first I thought it might have been a stray arrow that hit me but I have since come to the conclusion that the chubby little cherub knew exactly what he was doing. Since my initial encounter Cupid has now appeared on numerous occasions and while I have dodged my fair share of his arrows I confess he has also hit me on more occasions than I expected...and...this past week-end I was unable to dodge the onslaught of arrows Cupid sent my way...So what do I do now?...I suppose I could go into hiding and try to keep out of sight or get some armor to protect myself but at this point I am afraid the deadly potion from his numerous hits have made their way into my bloodstream and since I don't have an antidote I guess I am just going to have to suck it up and ride this one out. Mind you, it's not that I am suffering or anything but when one gets hits as many times as I have over the past month a sort of madness sits in that makes doing the mundane chores of life difficult. Fortunately, the madness eventually goes away so it is generally best to just go with the flow which is what I am trying to do but in the meantime it's sucking up my time and keeping me away from my computer. I've fallen way behind now on my Mclaren reports and I there are a number of topics I did intend to write about but I am sure you all understand that when Cupid's arrows hit their target there ain't much a man can do about it except surrender to the fate of the god's and their chubby little messenger.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
I noticed it has been over a week now since I last posted anything on my blog...but...that's o.k., because I never want to become enslaved to feeling like I have to post something just to post something. It's not that I have working too hard or anything but I have been busy doing other things such as expanding my social network and spending time with some old and "new" friends. Last week I went out four different times which is very unusual for me, especially since I moved into my new house. The highlight of the week was Friday night and Saturday. Friday night I invited some new and old friends over to the house to watch the ten year anniversary best of Riverdance DVD. I've always been a huge fan of Riverdance since it arrived on the scene on PBS some ten years ago. Riverdance is so unique and I just love the way they integrate the music and the dance routines. It's magical and one of the best examples I can think of entertainment that truly captures the essence of enchantment. I also particularly liked how this new DVD version introduces each song with the story that inspired the song and dance routine. I didn't realize it, but am not surprised, that most of the songs and dance are rooted in Celtic mythology...Yesterday was a lot of fun also. A friend and I went out of town to Lake Isabella to the 52nd annual Whiskey Flat Days. I hadn't been out of town since Thanksgiving and it was just a great feeling to get out of the city and smell the clean air and feel the wind in my face. It was a beautiful day....slight breeze...and temperature in the 70's which is unusual for this time of the year. We had lunch along the river and it was very relaxing to just sit, talk, and watch the river meander it's way down stream...The Whiskey Flat Day celebration, for the most part, is made up red necks and bikers. I don't use those words pejoratively, but descriptively. While I don't consider myself either a biker of a redneck it is fun just to hang out with a crowd of people who seem to know how to have fun eating their kettle corn and hot dogs, while listening to loud honky tonk music blasting from the back of a pick up truck...All in all, it was a very good week just hang-in out with folks and spending time getting to know some new friends....I also spent some time this week thinking and pondering about the whole homosexual issue and reading Mclaren's book and I'll more to say about both of these in a later blog entry...
Friday, February 09, 2007
In chapter two Mclaren states "I've become convinced that although Jesus message was personal, it was not private. I've been convinced that it has everything to do with public matters in general and politics in particular---including economics and aid, personal empowerment and choice, foreign policy and war." It's one thing to suggest or assert Jesus message has political implications, it is, imo, another thing to know what Jesus may have thought about a number of politically related issues we face. I'm all for considering what Jesus said and attempting to integrate his message to the current political and economic challenges we face but I get nervous when Christian leaders, political pundits or armchair Christian political experts,in their own minds, assert they know God's will and the mind of Christ regarding public policy. While I concede one is on solid ground to suggest that Jesus cared about the poor, war, and human justice it is another thing to know whether Jesus would support particular policies. For example, would Jesus support an increase in the capital gains tax to help the poor and would he support welfare, universal health care for all, minimum wage increases, etc. etc.?...It's the "application" I get anxious about when it comes to Christians integrating their understanding of Jesus message to political challenges. I get nervous because, generally speaking, Jesus doesn't address how his message is to be applied or integrated...and...when we assume our application of Jesus message is the will of God than there leaves little or no room for compromise or counter proposals, which are important aspects to the political process of any democracy. I do believe God cares about politics and "is" interested in how we go about our political business but I am not sure God is as confident as we often appear to be in our political proposals...and...yet Christians on both sides of the political aisle seem, at times, much more confident that they are implementing God's kingdom on earth than I feel comfortable with.
Mclaren ends his chapter on the political message of Jesus by saying, "If you are part of this Kingdom, you won't be blindly patriotic...and...you will be willing to confront injustice...and...won't nestle snugly into the status quo but will seek to undermine the ways things are to welcome the ways things could and should be."...I can empathize with Mclaren's comments about not being "blindly patriotic", and not becoming too chummy with the status quo but also often ponder what it means to stand against injustice and "undermine the way things are"...In the past I have always interpreted taking a stand with being confrontational and letting everyone know what I was against but as I grow older I now see the value in being subversive by integrating imagination and creativity with the other tools at our disposal. Of course the powers that be and the status quo never like to relinquish power and they will often resist with everything they have but if the life of Jesus has taught us anything it is we can't fight fire with fire but rather we need to look for new ways to address old problems...and...that is one aspect of the political message of Jesus that I think we need to consider and take to heart....
Mclaren ends his chapter on the political message of Jesus by saying, "If you are part of this Kingdom, you won't be blindly patriotic...and...you will be willing to confront injustice...and...won't nestle snugly into the status quo but will seek to undermine the ways things are to welcome the ways things could and should be."...I can empathize with Mclaren's comments about not being "blindly patriotic", and not becoming too chummy with the status quo but also often ponder what it means to stand against injustice and "undermine the way things are"...In the past I have always interpreted taking a stand with being confrontational and letting everyone know what I was against but as I grow older I now see the value in being subversive by integrating imagination and creativity with the other tools at our disposal. Of course the powers that be and the status quo never like to relinquish power and they will often resist with everything they have but if the life of Jesus has taught us anything it is we can't fight fire with fire but rather we need to look for new ways to address old problems...and...that is one aspect of the political message of Jesus that I think we need to consider and take to heart....
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Last night the "Night visitors" who were mentioned in an earlier post took a break and allowed the day shift to take center stage. The day shift consists of those spirits who reside in our soul along with the night visitors. They are the ones who are hopeful, optimistic, wear the big smile, and carry the torchlight which illuminates the dark shadows of our souls...and... They are the ones responsible for awakening the longings, passions, and desires of our soul. While they have been somewhat in hiding on and off over the years they have been making frequent visits lately...and...last night they were extremely active...in fact...they were so active they keep me awake off and on during the night. Generally I like to get my beauty rest but from time to time I don't mind being kept awake by the sounds of the day shift doing their jobs...but...to my surprise they were still partying when they woke me up this morning around 4:30 a.m. I did notice that they took a break for about two or three hours this morning but they were back at it again by early afternoon....and...there still at it now as I write. I can hear them in the background wreaking havoc and making a lot of noise. Even though they have been partying for some time now I know that eventually they will run out of gas and slip back into the shadows so for now I welcome the day shift because they provide some of the sweet moments of life and help give balance to our weary souls....If all of this sounds a bit too weird or too esoteric for your tastes just pass on through. It's just my way of expressing that I had a great day, yesterday, and today and am looking forward to this week-end and some new opportunities that have come my way....
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Today was the day when high school football players from around the country signed their letters of intent. For the USC faithful it was another big day as USC ended up with the top recruiting class according to ESPN, once again. It was something like the fourth year in a row USC has been the number one or number two recruiting class in the country. While USC did not land the most players they did land the top recruits in the country. In fact, according to ESPN they landed the top three players in the country and eight of their recruits are ranked in the top five at their position. Normally I am not particular fond of the rich getting richer but when it comes to football I am willing to make an exception. USC is already the preseason favorite to win next year and today's signings will only solidify their top position. Two of their top recruits are running backs so USC's offense should be at the top of it's game for the next two or three years especially with quarterback John Booty returning and two of the top wide receivers in last years recruiting class waiting in the wings. USC is now so loaded that even if some of their top players go down they will be replaced by other great players who are just waiting for their opportunity. Talent alone doesn't win championships but it is pretty dog gone difficult to win a national championship these days without a stable of great athletes. Some other schools that ranked in the top five include Florida, Texas, South Carolina, and Tennessee. South Carolina was a big surprise but I guess Steve Spurrier is working his recruitment magic these days. Tennessee is also somewhat a surprise to me. I know Tennessee has a lot of tradition and an incredible stadium but they generally end up underachieving most years and why go to Tennessee when you can come to a place like sunny California where it is in the sixties and seventies much of the winter while much of the rest of the country is shoveling snow and trying to keep warm. Heck, around my neck of the woods it's time to break out the shorts. It's been in the seventies a couple of times this week....Back to football....Although football season is now over I can at least feel comforted by the fact that my team will enter next season with some very high hopes and expectations. Nothing is guaranteed and I suspect a bump in the road here and there but when you're team is as loaded as USC it makes watching football a lot of fun and fun is what sports is supposed to be all about. Nothing more, nothing less....
Monday, February 05, 2007
The nights are so quiet. Sometimes filled with hope...longings...desires...and...
unfilled dreams. I used to fill my nights with distractions but now I just allow the visitors of the night to come and sit with me...and...I have learned that they really don't want to hurt me, they just want someone to listen. So I listen...and...sometimes I learn...but...more often than not I try to soothe and comfort them which is really what they want and need. I used to think that that if I gave them my undivided attention and a little food and drink that would satisfy them and perhaps they wouldn't come back, but they always come back...and...back...and back...They are never totally satisfied. Many people pretend the visitors of the night aren't there or they try to ignore them. One can ignore them but that never changes the fact that they are there. Sometimes the visitors of the night go away for awhile and leave me alone. I guess even they realize enough is enough from time to time. I used to be afraid of the visitors of the night so I would fill my house with noise...but not anymore...now I turn everything off and try to listen to them. Sometimes they talk to me...sometimes they do not...and...sometimes they say speak as if they know me because they tell me things I had forgotten and keep deep inside me...which...makes me wonder if the visitors of the night live within me during the day...and now I suspect some of the visitors have always been with me....The first time I saw the visitors of the night or more accurately, was conscious of their presence I thought they were hideous looking...but...now I realize that was only because I was taught by others to see them in that light. I see them differently now. I am not saying they are beautiful or anything. They often look sad and lonely and they almost always have the look of pain in their eyes. Turn them away if you must but you may do so at your peril because your I have learned that they have the power to heal. Some need healing more than others but we all need healing to one degree or another which is why we all need the visitors of the night. Things may be going well for you now and when things are going well we don't tend to see the visitors of the night but they are always hanging around and patiently waiting for their presence to be known. So the next time the visitors of the night appear don't try to banish them, ignore them, or tell yourself they are not real...but...rather sit quietly in the shadows and listen for the visitors of the night might just speak to you and bring you the healing words you need to hear....
unfilled dreams. I used to fill my nights with distractions but now I just allow the visitors of the night to come and sit with me...and...I have learned that they really don't want to hurt me, they just want someone to listen. So I listen...and...sometimes I learn...but...more often than not I try to soothe and comfort them which is really what they want and need. I used to think that that if I gave them my undivided attention and a little food and drink that would satisfy them and perhaps they wouldn't come back, but they always come back...and...back...and back...They are never totally satisfied. Many people pretend the visitors of the night aren't there or they try to ignore them. One can ignore them but that never changes the fact that they are there. Sometimes the visitors of the night go away for awhile and leave me alone. I guess even they realize enough is enough from time to time. I used to be afraid of the visitors of the night so I would fill my house with noise...but not anymore...now I turn everything off and try to listen to them. Sometimes they talk to me...sometimes they do not...and...sometimes they say speak as if they know me because they tell me things I had forgotten and keep deep inside me...which...makes me wonder if the visitors of the night live within me during the day...and now I suspect some of the visitors have always been with me....The first time I saw the visitors of the night or more accurately, was conscious of their presence I thought they were hideous looking...but...now I realize that was only because I was taught by others to see them in that light. I see them differently now. I am not saying they are beautiful or anything. They often look sad and lonely and they almost always have the look of pain in their eyes. Turn them away if you must but you may do so at your peril because your I have learned that they have the power to heal. Some need healing more than others but we all need healing to one degree or another which is why we all need the visitors of the night. Things may be going well for you now and when things are going well we don't tend to see the visitors of the night but they are always hanging around and patiently waiting for their presence to be known. So the next time the visitors of the night appear don't try to banish them, ignore them, or tell yourself they are not real...but...rather sit quietly in the shadows and listen for the visitors of the night might just speak to you and bring you the healing words you need to hear....
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Mclaren calls chapter one troubling questions about Jesus and early in the chapter he asks, "What if the core message of Jesus has been unintentionally misunderstood or intentionally distorted? What if many have sincerely valued some aspects of Jesus message while missing or even suppressing other, more important dimensions?"...Studying church history seems to answer Mclaren's question in the affirmative. Of course Christians have unintentionally and intentionally distorted the message of Jesus. Mclaren goes on to ask if we wouldn't want to know what Jesus secret message is particularly if "his secret message had practical implications for such issues as how to live your daily life, how you earn and spend money, how you treat people of other races and religions, and how the nations of the world conduct their foreign policies"...and if you aren't convinced how important these questions and answers are than Mclaren attempts to attempts to make his point clear when he says, "it is tragic for anyone, especially anyone affiliated with the religion named after Jesus, not to be clear about what Jesus' message actually was"...Christians have been thinking and writing about the essence of Jesus message and mission since the death of Jesus and throughout the centuries Christians have expressed their opinions in a variety of different ways. Some have expressed it in terms of Loving God and loving our neighbor....others in terms of the Kingdom of God...and some suggest it is all about living in right relationship with God which was made possible by faith in the death and resurrection in Jesus...I applaud Mclaren for asking the question and I do think he is correct to suggest that the church can be co-opted by such things as consumerism and nationalism...and...I would add moralism, political idealism, traditionalism, sentimentalism, and escapism. I am not sure whatever Mclaren identifies as the secret message of Jesus is something radically new and has not been said many times before but I suspect Mclaren probably already knows that to be the case. For me, figuring out the secret message or essence of Jesus teaching has never been the problem but I find the particulars of what that means to my life the real challenge because it most often requires imagination, creativity, willingness to adapt, discipline, and sacrifice, the kind of things that are not generally reinforced in many of our organizations and institutions......I also can help speculating what role experience plays in the matters of the heart. We can read about what Jesus said in this text or that but unless we experience and do what it is we are supposed to do than I can't help wondering if all our talking is a lot of "sound and fury signifying nothing"...I am looking forward to finding out what the "secret message of Jesus" is all about but in the meantime I'll try to follow where my heart leads me in regards to my own little sphere of influence I have in my life....
In the introduction of the Secret Message of Jesus Mclaren asks the following provocative question, "Why is the vision of Jesus hinted at in Dan Brown's book, the Da Vinci Code, more interesting, more attractive and more intriguing to these people than the standard version of Jesus they hear about from churches?" I am not sure it is Brown's "hinted vision of Jesus" that people find attractive in the Da Vinci Code but I do suspect it may have to do with the fact that Brown is a very good modern day myth maker/storyteller. I haven't read any of Brown's books but I did see the movie and while I didn't place it on my top 20 best films of the year list I did find the movie and the story imaginatively creative, full of mystery and entertaining...and perhaps...one may want to propose that some of these elements are missing in many of our churches today. Where is the mystery, imagination, and creativity? One of the aspects of the movie I enjoyed the most was the unpredictability of the story, yet when I look at the church today it seems to me that the leadership of many churches want to eliminate as much unpredictability as they can...and...while I understand the psychological attraction of certainty I can't help wondering if that is a good idea in the long run...because... if one eliminates uncertainty than I think we also eliminate anticipation, by default, and perhaps anticipation is an important element that is missing in our Sunday morning worship services..... People go to church for a lot of different reasons but I do think people want to be inspired but inspiration is connected to our imagination and creativity and perhaps a lot of folks feel more inspired listening to Brown's story than what they are likely to hear on Sunday morning. I am not suggesting or implying that the church evaluate itself according to popular myth makers like Brown, because that would be unfair, but I do believe a church can find "many ways" to integrate mystery, imagination and creativity in their services each week, which in turn might help to create a sense of inspiration and anticipation.
Mclaren goes on to ask, "Is it possible that even though Brown's fictional version misleads in many ways, it at least serves to open up the possibility that the church's conventional versions of Jesus may not do him justice?"....It seems from my vantage point that the history of institutional/organized Christianity involves creating Jesus in our own image according to our social economic status, personal preferences, and political ideology. I am not asserting this is altogether bad because I think this is what everyone does to one degree or another, in an attempt to make Jesus relevant to our lives, experience, and situation...The "potential" problem is that we often "limit" the potential implications/applications of Jesus message to our own personal or community experience thus missing the broader picture of the Kingdom of God on earth from a Christian perspective. Stepping outside of our own perspective is not easy to do because of the personal psychological discomfort associated with looking at the world and ourselves from someone else's point of view...or to put it another way...no one likes to hear that their view of themselves, community, or the world may have been distorted because of the potential "negative" implications associated with our confidence in ourselves and the communities we have placed our trust in...but...death or at least partial death to our way of seeing/interpreting ourselves and the world need not be interpreted exclusively in negative terms but rather as an opportunity of initiation to growth and maturity which will hopefully lead to a better relationship with the world, ones neighbors and oneself...
Finally, Mclaren says, "What if, properly understood, the canonical (or accepted" Gospel of Matthew is far more radical and robust than the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas, or the canonical Gospel of John is far more visionary and transformative than the Gospel of Peter---if only we "had ears to hear", as Jesus says?"....Personally, I don't see a need to compare the canonical Gospels with the apocryphal/Gnostic Gospels and texts, in terms of their potential transformational power. From my perspective, I am willing to live with the potential implications of both traditions because the historical context in which the texts were written had particular applications to the people of their times and I am not particularly interested nor see the value in pitting one tradition against another. Thus, since Mclaren's comments seem to imply the exclusion of the Gnostic texts in the discussion of discovering the Secret Message of Jesus let's move on to chapter one....
Mclaren goes on to ask, "Is it possible that even though Brown's fictional version misleads in many ways, it at least serves to open up the possibility that the church's conventional versions of Jesus may not do him justice?"....It seems from my vantage point that the history of institutional/organized Christianity involves creating Jesus in our own image according to our social economic status, personal preferences, and political ideology. I am not asserting this is altogether bad because I think this is what everyone does to one degree or another, in an attempt to make Jesus relevant to our lives, experience, and situation...The "potential" problem is that we often "limit" the potential implications/applications of Jesus message to our own personal or community experience thus missing the broader picture of the Kingdom of God on earth from a Christian perspective. Stepping outside of our own perspective is not easy to do because of the personal psychological discomfort associated with looking at the world and ourselves from someone else's point of view...or to put it another way...no one likes to hear that their view of themselves, community, or the world may have been distorted because of the potential "negative" implications associated with our confidence in ourselves and the communities we have placed our trust in...but...death or at least partial death to our way of seeing/interpreting ourselves and the world need not be interpreted exclusively in negative terms but rather as an opportunity of initiation to growth and maturity which will hopefully lead to a better relationship with the world, ones neighbors and oneself...
Finally, Mclaren says, "What if, properly understood, the canonical (or accepted" Gospel of Matthew is far more radical and robust than the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas, or the canonical Gospel of John is far more visionary and transformative than the Gospel of Peter---if only we "had ears to hear", as Jesus says?"....Personally, I don't see a need to compare the canonical Gospels with the apocryphal/Gnostic Gospels and texts, in terms of their potential transformational power. From my perspective, I am willing to live with the potential implications of both traditions because the historical context in which the texts were written had particular applications to the people of their times and I am not particularly interested nor see the value in pitting one tradition against another. Thus, since Mclaren's comments seem to imply the exclusion of the Gnostic texts in the discussion of discovering the Secret Message of Jesus let's move on to chapter one....
Friday, February 02, 2007
Tomorrow the church I am currently attending is beginning their series on Brian McLaren's book, The Secret Message of Jesus. The pastor has stated that this is "the most important and exciting book she has read in many years"...and...believes the message and the discussions which will follow each sermon/reflections will "transform the congregation, and clarify its ministry as it faces the challenges of the future"...I am excited about this unique opportunity. I have attended church for many years but this is the first time I can ever remember a pastor using a book outside of the Bible as a resource to preach from the pulpit for such an extended time. It will be interesting to see how this develops and evolves over the next four months but I admire the pastor's willingness to take the risk. Not too many pastors I have ever met would be willing to go out on this kind of a limb....I am particularly looking forward to the discussion group which will follow the sermon each week to discuss the book and the sermon. I love discussion groups and the most exhilarating discussion group I have ever been involved in was the one that discussed Mclaren's book A New Kind of Christian back in 2002. Last night I went back and read some of the discussions and exchanges that took place during that time. It was exhilarating and inspiring to read the various exchanges between lay people like myself, pastors,homemakers, and ministry leaders from around the country...and...as I now reflect on the various individuals and their contributions I can't help from feeling a bit sentimental and all warm and fuzzy inside. I not only loved the exchange of ideas that took place but many of these people have become long time cyberspace com padres who I continue to read and interact with from time to time...and...are dear to my heart... There is Dave, Mr. Pomoxian himself, Julie "Unplugged"...I still am not sure what why she goes by unplugged?...because.... she writes with such clarity, depth and passion I can't believe she isn't plugged into something, if not, an around the clock caffeine machine....Than there is Stratopastor Russ, from Texas...I forgive you Russ for being from Texas...and...Denny, and Chris, and Tim from Mississippi, and last but not least...Big Tony...from the Bay area....Tony and I actually met a couple of times and I really appreciated his brutal honestly and his unwavering commitment to tell it like he felt. Tony was a construction worker by trade who did not grow up in the Christian subculture and had no education beyond high school as far as I knew, but over the years he had educated himself to the point where he could hang in there with the best of them and his unorthodox style made for some great conversation. I don't know what Tony is up to these days...but...I miss him and the childlike attitude he had about his faith....In the weeks to come I am going to try to post some of my own thoughts on the various chapters for my blog and I'll try to keep up the best I can but I have a history of becoming distracted from time to time, just to let you know. I don't anticipate a repeat performance of the church discussion group because life doesn't work that way but I am excited to interact and get to know some new folks and I look forward to the opportunity to express my own ideas and feelings on God, Christianity, and what it means, at least to one person, to be a Christian in the early years of the 21st century....
If you read my prediction on the San Diego, New England game in an earlier blog entry you may question why anyone in their right mind would take me seriously this time around. If you give me, "another chance" I'll explain why. Last time I made my prediction based on reason, logic, and some significant and impressive statistics to back up my prediction...but this time around...I am going to abandon all reason and embrace what I think my subconscious is trying to tell me. Two nights ago I had as vivid a dream as I can ever reminder and I believe it was a prophetic voice speaking from my subconscious telling me which team was going to win the Super Bowl. Dreams predicting the future are extremely rare but they have been documented and chronicled in prestigious journals such as the Harvard Psychiatry Review. The dream went something like this....I saw myself sitting at the top of a tree in a dark forest. As I sat rubbing my hands together in the bitter cold I heard the sound of a large beast running through the forest, panting, weaving, and acting as if it's life were in extreme danger. Running behind the beast was the sound of a much smaller creature apparently in hot pursuit. As the beast made it's way near the trunk of the tree where I was now huddled to keep warm the identity of the large beast became clear...It was a huge black bear...and...the creature chasing the bear was a man holding what looked like a double barrel shotgun. When the bear was within what I estimate to have been about 100 yards a shot went off...and then another...and the powerful beast fell to the ground right below the tree where I was now trying to keep out of sight from the hunter. Now that the beast had gasped it's last breathe the hunter slowly walked towards his trophy kill. Both of the hunters shots hit their intended marks. As the hunter turned the now dead bear over one could make out the buckshot pattern created by the first shot. It read Colts 30....and...than when the hunter turned the bear over again another buckshot pattern appeared....Bears 13....and than, ever so slowly, the hunter raised his head and arms towards the sky as if to give credit to the gods for his trophy kill that now laid at his feet...and...although it was dark, I caught a glance of his face...It was..... Peyton Manning...Throughout history dreams have played an important role in the imagination and day to day affairs of our ancestors...and...although modern men and women rarely pay attention to their dreams, dreams continue to exist despite all our attempts to ignore them. Perhaps it is now time we resurrect the meaning of our dreams because if we did than we wouldn't have to spend so much time and money trying to predict or figure out who was going to win this game or that. We could just go to bed each night, like I did two nights ago, and wake up with a prediction without any effort, rhyme or reason.....
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Someone Saved My Life Tonight
During my Elton John years back in the seventies the song Someone Saved my Life Tonight was one of my favorite Elton John songs. I am not sure why. I don't remember being rescued from anything in particularly, but perhaps I wanted to be rescued from something that is now buried deep in my subconscious... or... maybe I just liked the beat and the rhythm...Who knows?...On a more serious note...As I look back on my life I can think about numerous occasions where I felt like someone saved my life in the sense that they contributed to my life in a meaningful way and I would like to acknowledge some of the people and briefly describe some of the "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" moments.
1. Summers at my aunt's house: When I was young my mom would ship me off to spend a month or so with my aunt who had two sons my age. The summers spent with my aunt and her family were some of my fondest memories of my childhood. I remember my aunt hauling my cousins and I all over the place. She took us to the beach, the Egyptian Museum in San Jose, and to Happy Hollow children's park where my cousin's and I would ride the Happy Hollow train around the park. I also remember trips to the Planetarium and our trips to Candlestick Park where I once, "almost" caught a Henry Aaron home run in extra innings while sitting in left field freezing my buns off. The ball actually ricocheted off one of the seats in the row in front of me and bounced over my head where a gang of kids fought over the ball. Spending summers with my aunt and her family exposed me to a lot of things I would have never been exposed. My own family didn't have much money to spend on entertainment and Bakersfield is not exactly a travel destination hot spot.
2. My best friends mom and family: When my father died during seventh grade our family went through some really, really, tough times and my best friend's family kind of took me under their wing and helped me in a lot of different ways. My friend's dad helped me join the boy scouts and took me to all the meetings and camp-outs and they also paid for me to go to Boy Scout camp during the summer. But, one of the things I remember most was my friend's dad attempt to tell me about the birds and the bees. I guess he figured since I didn't have a father someone needed to teach me about one of the most exhilarating but tempting experiences in life. The whole event which probably didn't last more than fifteen minutes was hilarious. As I sat quietly in his late 1950 pick-up truck I can remember him admonishing me to never let a girl touch my family jewels because if I ever did there was no turning back. At the time I wasn't exactly sure what he meant but apparently it had a profound effect on me because I never did let a woman touch the family jewels until I was married. My friends mom also helped me tremendously during my high school years. She worked at the same high school I attended and she helped me get a job working at the student store during the school year and during the summer I worked full time as a janitor's assistant. I can't tell you how much this helped me and my family. After my father died our family lived on government assistance and we didn't own a car but by my senior year I had saved enough money to buy a car and I don't remember feeling particularly deprived during high school because I always had some money. My jobs during high school also helped to develop a work ethic at a young age and it kept me from getting into the kind of trouble a lot of friends seemed to get into on a regular basis.
3. Bible College Mentor: While attending Bible College back in the early eighties I was assigned a mentor professor. We would meet once a week and talk about anything and everything. During this time I felt comfortable and safe to open up and share some things about my life that I had felt deeply ashamed about and had kept secret for years. While his advise wasn't particularly helpful at times his patience, acceptance, and willingness to not be judgmental was critical in helping lay the groundwork for me to accept myself in the following years. And, it taught me the value of intimacy and allowing oneself to be vulnerable to another human being.
4. Numerous teachers and authors: During the first ten years after my conversion to Christianity I became entrenched in the pietistic/ fundamentalist subculture. I was very legalistic, dogmatic, and as one of my non Christian friends put it, I was so heavenly minded that I was no earthly good. But thank God, that all turned around in the late eighties and nineties as I became exposed to a series of Christian and non Christian profs and authors who taught me that all of life is spiritual... and... inspired me to learn about culture, the arts, philosophy, theology, psychology, mythology, and a host of other ologies...and...because I had been exposed to so little as a child I was like a sponge at a time in life when I think most people my age were just interested in finishing college and getting a job.
To this day I still enjoy listening to Elton John's song Someone Saved my Life Tonight and when I hear the song I think of all the people who helped contribute to the rich life I feel I have lived...
1. Summers at my aunt's house: When I was young my mom would ship me off to spend a month or so with my aunt who had two sons my age. The summers spent with my aunt and her family were some of my fondest memories of my childhood. I remember my aunt hauling my cousins and I all over the place. She took us to the beach, the Egyptian Museum in San Jose, and to Happy Hollow children's park where my cousin's and I would ride the Happy Hollow train around the park. I also remember trips to the Planetarium and our trips to Candlestick Park where I once, "almost" caught a Henry Aaron home run in extra innings while sitting in left field freezing my buns off. The ball actually ricocheted off one of the seats in the row in front of me and bounced over my head where a gang of kids fought over the ball. Spending summers with my aunt and her family exposed me to a lot of things I would have never been exposed. My own family didn't have much money to spend on entertainment and Bakersfield is not exactly a travel destination hot spot.
2. My best friends mom and family: When my father died during seventh grade our family went through some really, really, tough times and my best friend's family kind of took me under their wing and helped me in a lot of different ways. My friend's dad helped me join the boy scouts and took me to all the meetings and camp-outs and they also paid for me to go to Boy Scout camp during the summer. But, one of the things I remember most was my friend's dad attempt to tell me about the birds and the bees. I guess he figured since I didn't have a father someone needed to teach me about one of the most exhilarating but tempting experiences in life. The whole event which probably didn't last more than fifteen minutes was hilarious. As I sat quietly in his late 1950 pick-up truck I can remember him admonishing me to never let a girl touch my family jewels because if I ever did there was no turning back. At the time I wasn't exactly sure what he meant but apparently it had a profound effect on me because I never did let a woman touch the family jewels until I was married. My friends mom also helped me tremendously during my high school years. She worked at the same high school I attended and she helped me get a job working at the student store during the school year and during the summer I worked full time as a janitor's assistant. I can't tell you how much this helped me and my family. After my father died our family lived on government assistance and we didn't own a car but by my senior year I had saved enough money to buy a car and I don't remember feeling particularly deprived during high school because I always had some money. My jobs during high school also helped to develop a work ethic at a young age and it kept me from getting into the kind of trouble a lot of friends seemed to get into on a regular basis.
3. Bible College Mentor: While attending Bible College back in the early eighties I was assigned a mentor professor. We would meet once a week and talk about anything and everything. During this time I felt comfortable and safe to open up and share some things about my life that I had felt deeply ashamed about and had kept secret for years. While his advise wasn't particularly helpful at times his patience, acceptance, and willingness to not be judgmental was critical in helping lay the groundwork for me to accept myself in the following years. And, it taught me the value of intimacy and allowing oneself to be vulnerable to another human being.
4. Numerous teachers and authors: During the first ten years after my conversion to Christianity I became entrenched in the pietistic/ fundamentalist subculture. I was very legalistic, dogmatic, and as one of my non Christian friends put it, I was so heavenly minded that I was no earthly good. But thank God, that all turned around in the late eighties and nineties as I became exposed to a series of Christian and non Christian profs and authors who taught me that all of life is spiritual... and... inspired me to learn about culture, the arts, philosophy, theology, psychology, mythology, and a host of other ologies...and...because I had been exposed to so little as a child I was like a sponge at a time in life when I think most people my age were just interested in finishing college and getting a job.
To this day I still enjoy listening to Elton John's song Someone Saved my Life Tonight and when I hear the song I think of all the people who helped contribute to the rich life I feel I have lived...
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Friday, January 26, 2007
Awakenings
I've been working on this blog idea for about four days now...in my head...and...hopefully this time around I can get it past my head onto my blog....so here goes...During the course of our lives we fluctuate between feeling stuck in a rut and feeling invigorated by the sights of sounds of nature, a movie, music, a stimulating conversation, or the whispers of a lover enticing our carnal nature. These invigoration's are what some refer to as "awakenings" of the soul. This past week I have experienced such awakenings in a way I have not felt in a long, long time and for the past four days I have pondered what is going on and why. For the past seven or eight years I have repressed many of my thoughts/ideas about religion, politics, and culture on the home front and my neck of the woods, and have limited my comments and ponderings to cyberspace. No one told me I had to go this route but it became increasingly difficult and frustrating to carry on conversations of such nature with people who weren't interested, didn't know what the hell I was talking about, or let's just say they didn't share my passion or point of view on such matters...so...I took my ponderings, questions, and passionate concerns to the world of cyberspace where bloggers and discussion groups abound with many people who share similar interests, passions, and reference points.
Over the past couple of weeks I have engaged in a number of conversations with four different people that have been extremely satisfying in ways I have not felt for a long, long, time. Sunday I talked to the pastor about her upcoming series on Brian Mclaren's new book and later I went out to lunch with some people at my son's church and we talked about film and it's potential relevancy in the field of education...and...the previous week I met a lady at church and we briefly talked about her own self imposed exile from the conservative religious sub-culture and I found out we used to attend to same church and I hope to hear more about her faith journey in the weeks to come.
Thomas Moore says that good conversation is sex to the soul. I had never thought it that way but I think Moore is onto to something because when I have an interesting conversation where I am engaged with another person I feel an exhilaration as I feel the blood rushing through my body from my head to my heart. I don't want to extend this analogy too far, but I think you get my point. I have also learned something about myself, my soul, as well. My soul needs and greatly values intimacy that involves face to face, engaging conversations with people where I feel safe to share what I think and feel about those things I am passionate about.
Sometimes we can go so long without food for our soul that we forget what good food tastes like. Now that I have gotten a little taste of some more substantial food for my soul I hope to indulge myself while the refriderator door is open and hopefully the next time around the door won't stayed closed as long....
Over the past couple of weeks I have engaged in a number of conversations with four different people that have been extremely satisfying in ways I have not felt for a long, long, time. Sunday I talked to the pastor about her upcoming series on Brian Mclaren's new book and later I went out to lunch with some people at my son's church and we talked about film and it's potential relevancy in the field of education...and...the previous week I met a lady at church and we briefly talked about her own self imposed exile from the conservative religious sub-culture and I found out we used to attend to same church and I hope to hear more about her faith journey in the weeks to come.
Thomas Moore says that good conversation is sex to the soul. I had never thought it that way but I think Moore is onto to something because when I have an interesting conversation where I am engaged with another person I feel an exhilaration as I feel the blood rushing through my body from my head to my heart. I don't want to extend this analogy too far, but I think you get my point. I have also learned something about myself, my soul, as well. My soul needs and greatly values intimacy that involves face to face, engaging conversations with people where I feel safe to share what I think and feel about those things I am passionate about.
Sometimes we can go so long without food for our soul that we forget what good food tastes like. Now that I have gotten a little taste of some more substantial food for my soul I hope to indulge myself while the refriderator door is open and hopefully the next time around the door won't stayed closed as long....
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Free Flowing Thoughts for the Day
Every once in a while I go through a period in my life where I have a lot on my mind and the thoughts are free flowing in and out of my brain and consciousness at almost light speed. This is one of those times. Over the past couple of days I have been working on a potential blog entry entitled "The Many Faces of Death" but it takes so much energy for me to put into words what I want to say sometimes. So, for now I am putting my thoughts on death aside and will just pass along some of my ponderings on a number of other things I have been thinking about this week....
President Bush's Speech: I was glad to see Bush in a more somber mood this time around and was glad to hear him, at least mention, some things that he and his party generally ignore like looking for alternative energy sources and Global Warming...but I can't help feeling that much of what he had to say and propose, especially regarding Iraq is too late...I hope I am wrong...but...sometimes so much damage is done you can't go back and fix that which has been obliterated.
Reading: I don't just read through books to gather information anymore. I read slowly, underline as I go, journal a bit, and try to allow the words to interact and engage my soul. I know this probably sounds a bit esoteric but it seems to be working. I can at times almost feel the energy flow through me as I am pondering this or that. If this all sounds too New Agy for you, please disregard and move on....
Relationships: Difficult, exhilarating at times, painful, beautiful, generally worth the time and effort, mysterious, unpredictable, sacred, blissful, and a unique aspect of the human condition that touches the deepest essence of our souls....
Music: Pearl Jam in concert rocks....especially Daughter and Given to Fly....and long live U-2's Vertigo DVD...God, I love the opening number, City of Blinding Lights...
Movies: I love movies. I love the storytelling aspect and the wonderful sights and sounds...and... I don't think enough people appreciate the craftsmanship and passion that goes into this incredible art form...and...in the next life I hope God makes me a film director...I could dig it...
Jung: I love reading the writers who have been influenced by the Swiss giant who brought us archetypes, ponderings of the soul, and the emphasis on imagination, which are the things lacking in our high tech, overly analytical, supposedly efficient, mean and lean, society run by bureaucrats and power brokers who have, imho, lost touch with themselves and what really matters in this world....
Church: As I stated in an earlier blog entry I had all but given up on organized, institutional religion. It had become too painful, boring, and to be blunt, largely irrelevant to me and I had stopped feeling guilty about my attitude towards church and the fact that I had stopped going a long time ago...For the past three weeks I have been attending a local Congregational Church and am more excited about going to church than I have been since I can't remember when???....I find the pastor inspiring, intelligent, humorous, and a good story teller. Next week she is going to start a new sermon series on Brian Mclaren's book, The Secret Message of Jesus. This series will last for four months and the congregation will be discussing the book each week after the sermon....and...the pastor is offering a free book for anyone who promises to read the book and participate in the discussions. I am really, really, excited about this opportunity. This is right up my alley and I am looking forward to entering into the discussion and getting to know some people along the way and we'll see where this all leads in the months to come.....
President Bush's Speech: I was glad to see Bush in a more somber mood this time around and was glad to hear him, at least mention, some things that he and his party generally ignore like looking for alternative energy sources and Global Warming...but I can't help feeling that much of what he had to say and propose, especially regarding Iraq is too late...I hope I am wrong...but...sometimes so much damage is done you can't go back and fix that which has been obliterated.
Reading: I don't just read through books to gather information anymore. I read slowly, underline as I go, journal a bit, and try to allow the words to interact and engage my soul. I know this probably sounds a bit esoteric but it seems to be working. I can at times almost feel the energy flow through me as I am pondering this or that. If this all sounds too New Agy for you, please disregard and move on....
Relationships: Difficult, exhilarating at times, painful, beautiful, generally worth the time and effort, mysterious, unpredictable, sacred, blissful, and a unique aspect of the human condition that touches the deepest essence of our souls....
Music: Pearl Jam in concert rocks....especially Daughter and Given to Fly....and long live U-2's Vertigo DVD...God, I love the opening number, City of Blinding Lights...
Movies: I love movies. I love the storytelling aspect and the wonderful sights and sounds...and... I don't think enough people appreciate the craftsmanship and passion that goes into this incredible art form...and...in the next life I hope God makes me a film director...I could dig it...
Jung: I love reading the writers who have been influenced by the Swiss giant who brought us archetypes, ponderings of the soul, and the emphasis on imagination, which are the things lacking in our high tech, overly analytical, supposedly efficient, mean and lean, society run by bureaucrats and power brokers who have, imho, lost touch with themselves and what really matters in this world....
Church: As I stated in an earlier blog entry I had all but given up on organized, institutional religion. It had become too painful, boring, and to be blunt, largely irrelevant to me and I had stopped feeling guilty about my attitude towards church and the fact that I had stopped going a long time ago...For the past three weeks I have been attending a local Congregational Church and am more excited about going to church than I have been since I can't remember when???....I find the pastor inspiring, intelligent, humorous, and a good story teller. Next week she is going to start a new sermon series on Brian Mclaren's book, The Secret Message of Jesus. This series will last for four months and the congregation will be discussing the book each week after the sermon....and...the pastor is offering a free book for anyone who promises to read the book and participate in the discussions. I am really, really, excited about this opportunity. This is right up my alley and I am looking forward to entering into the discussion and getting to know some people along the way and we'll see where this all leads in the months to come.....
Monday, January 22, 2007
Yesterday while the vast majority of Americans were watching America's favorite past time, football, I went to see the film Pan's Labyrinth. Pan' Labyrinth is an intriguing story which operates on multiple levels which include history, religion, ethics, and psychology. Over the years I have seen my fair share of fantasy flicks but Pan's Labyrinth is as unique as they come, for a variety of different of reasons. On one level, the film doesn't really seem like a fantasy film because the historical aspect of the film is so intertwined with the fantasy, to the point, where one feels like one is watching two separate films. On another level, this is not you're typical enchanting fantasy film, ala, Chronicles of Narnia, Legend, Harry Potter, etc. Pan's Labyrinth is truly unique in that it mixes historical drama, with fantasy and horror and I really can't think of any comparisons. It's kind of like a hybrid between Schindler's List and A Never Ending Story...which....will probably create a bit of cognitive dissonance for the average American movie goer who is used to Hollywood formulas and predictability. The film also earns it's R rating and should not be seen by anyone sensitive to violence and out and out brutality....Overall, I really liked this film, not because I found it particularly entertaining or charming, because it is neither but I did appreciate the complexity,religious symbolism, and the strong moral undertones, which I think are relevant to our times and our lives....
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Week-End Spectator Extravaganzas
Normally I try not to sit around and watch too much television particularly on the week-ends...and...during football season I seldom watch a game live so I generally tivo the games and watch them commercial free and in fast forward mode when it is convenient for me to do so. Over the years I have discovered that the body loves motion and too much butt time is detrimental to both my psyche and both my back and knees which is why I generally hike/bike at least four days a week...but...this week-end is now shaping up to some serious butt time with three movies and two football games in the hopper. The week-end serious butt time/spectator extraganza kicks off tonight with the movie Duma. I don't know too much about Duma but it did recieve a 93 per cent approval rating over at Rottentomatoes which is good enough for me to drop four bucks to hobnob with the more serious movie going elite crowd who congregate at the restored historical Fox theatre twice a month....Spectator Extravaganza event number two...Pan's Labyrinth...Originally I was going to travel to L.A. to see this film but the film is coming to Bakersfield this week-end so I won't have to spend twenty bucks in gas and travel four to five hours round trip to see this film. I have been eagerly anticipating this film for two weeks now. This film recently won the National Society of Film critics best film award and it recieved a twenty two minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film festival last year. Over the past two weeks I have read a significant number of reviews and I have yet to encounter a single negative review of this film which is very unusual since there is always someone out there with an axe to grind or a desire to just go against a tidal wave to get attention. Negative attention is generally better than no attention in the minds of some.If you missed his comments in an earlier blog entry, here is what Preacher Russ had to say about this film..."SEE THIS FILM...It'll blow you away. I saw it this afternoon and, although I was a little leary about the subtitles, it didn't take away anything from the overall effect...It was just a really COOOOOOOOOL film...dynamite effects...great storytelling...solid acting...excellent characters...it's got it all."...Extravaganza Event number three...Championship football...I am really looking forward to both games this Sunday and like most I am rooting for Indy and the Saints. Go Reggie Bush...Show em some razzle/dazzle moves you learned at USC. I am not going to make any predictions about either one of these games because I honestly believe they are all evenly matched and I don't want any more egg on my face after my bold, "wrong" prediction last week. Even, I, have a reputation to maintain....Extravanza Event number Four....I want to take my two sons on Monday to see the movie The Children of Men. I really wanted to take them to see Pan's Labyrinth but they shot down the idea of sitting through a foreign film with subtitles. I have tried to coax them past this obstacle for a number of days now but they are insistent they don't want to see the film so I'll wait until it comes out on DVD and they can watch it in English. Besides, I have heard really great things about The Children of Men and I have learned to not push my sons to far to accept something I want them to see, read or hear....Well, that's it for the upcoming week-end. Lot's of sitting on my butt but I suspect I'll find some time to get out and get a bit of exercise before I go back and forth between the movie theatre and my reclining chair which is where I go to watch football...
Monday, January 15, 2007
A couple of months ago I mentioned I was going to visit a few churches. I have been kind of looking for a church, half heartedly I admit, but I have visited a local Congregational Church about four times during the last nine weeks. Most of the time I just sat in the back, listened to the sermon, and generally left at soon as the service was over. Yesterday, for the first time since my self imposed exile of almost six years I feel like I have made a connection with a local church. The connection occured after the service when I was approached by a woman who took the initiative to talk to me before I bolted for the parking lot. We talked for almost an hour and would have probably talked much longer but I had to pick up my two sons. It turns we that we used to attend the same Evangelical Church years ago and her spiritual journey and departure from the Conservative religious subculture sounded very similar to my own. I also learned alot about the church from her during the hour and discovered that the pastor and the congregation is very open to people, like myself, who are either ambiguous, nuanced, or unwilling to take stands on many of the dogmatic aspects of traditional Christianity. I can't tell you how refreshing it was to talk to someone, face to face, outside of cyberspace who was willing to accept and not judge the journey and place I am in life regarding my understanding of my faith. I don't know where this will lead in the weeks or months to come but for the first time, since I can't remember, I am actually looking forward to going to church next week. The church is also very active in the community on numerous fronts and is looking for ways to actively engage the community on the war in Iraq. I realize no church is perfect because people have flaws and limitations but it is very encouraging to know that there are some churches and people out there that share my passion and perspective on the relationship between culture and religion...Honestly, I had all but given up on finding a local church where I felt I could worship and be a part of but yesterday my hope was renewed and for that I am grateful....and....thanks to the lady, for taking the time to care and share with a wandering soul who has been in the desert for a long, long, time....
Friday, January 12, 2007
I can understand why alot of folks, including many football pundits, are picking the Patriots to upset the Chargers. Belichik and Brady verses Rivers and Marty ball. Looks like a big mismatch no matter how you slice it.While I understand why it makes alot of sense to pick the Patriots to upend the Chargers this week-end here are some reasons why I think the Chargers are going to beat the Patriots.
1. The Chargers have three of the best players in the league at their position including the most valuable player in the league. While Tomlinson gets the majority of the press Antonio Gates and Shawn Merrimann are two great players in their own right. Merriman is a beast who is going to raise havoc with the Patriots and Gates has the potential to help slow down the pass rush I expect from the Patriots and keep the chains moving.
2. Although Philip Rivers is in his first year he really doesn't need to do much except give the ball to Tomlinson and hit a few short passes to Gates and Tomlinson. And, once the Patriot defense is softened up a bit they should get some big plays down field....and....don't turn the ball over!
3. Marty is not the same coach who has failed time and time again. He "has" loosened up quite a bit and I think he will come out with a more aggressive offensive game plan than the past. Call it a hunch...
4. The San Diego players are highly motivated...They have been sitting around all week listening to the pundits and the media give New England a lot of love... and...if you want to know how far motivation can take a team just take a look at what happened with the Boise State Broncos and Florida Gators over the past couple of weeks...
5. Home field advantage...Charger fans are underated...They are not like their laid back Southern California cousins from L.A. They are much more like the crazy passionate fans in Oakland
6. The Charger team is underrated. Because Tomlinson gets so much attention a lot of people aren't aware of how many good players the Chargers have on both defense and offense. They have a lot of big tough working class guys who are going to go toe to toe with the big bad New England players.
7. New England is not as good as the past and while Tom Brady is a great player I don't think he will be able to overcome the Chargers advantage at all of the other skill positions. New England may come up with a game plan to slow down Tomlinson which may work in the early part of the game but keep an eye on what happens in the third and fourth quarters when those big guys in the trenches start to run out of gas....and....Merriman is a terror with a non stop motor which won't stop until after the Super Bowl...and... If and when San Diego gets a lead watch out for the beast who is going to make life uncomfortable for Brady and the rest of the offense....Final score....San Diego 24 New England 13....
1. The Chargers have three of the best players in the league at their position including the most valuable player in the league. While Tomlinson gets the majority of the press Antonio Gates and Shawn Merrimann are two great players in their own right. Merriman is a beast who is going to raise havoc with the Patriots and Gates has the potential to help slow down the pass rush I expect from the Patriots and keep the chains moving.
2. Although Philip Rivers is in his first year he really doesn't need to do much except give the ball to Tomlinson and hit a few short passes to Gates and Tomlinson. And, once the Patriot defense is softened up a bit they should get some big plays down field....and....don't turn the ball over!
3. Marty is not the same coach who has failed time and time again. He "has" loosened up quite a bit and I think he will come out with a more aggressive offensive game plan than the past. Call it a hunch...
4. The San Diego players are highly motivated...They have been sitting around all week listening to the pundits and the media give New England a lot of love... and...if you want to know how far motivation can take a team just take a look at what happened with the Boise State Broncos and Florida Gators over the past couple of weeks...
5. Home field advantage...Charger fans are underated...They are not like their laid back Southern California cousins from L.A. They are much more like the crazy passionate fans in Oakland
6. The Charger team is underrated. Because Tomlinson gets so much attention a lot of people aren't aware of how many good players the Chargers have on both defense and offense. They have a lot of big tough working class guys who are going to go toe to toe with the big bad New England players.
7. New England is not as good as the past and while Tom Brady is a great player I don't think he will be able to overcome the Chargers advantage at all of the other skill positions. New England may come up with a game plan to slow down Tomlinson which may work in the early part of the game but keep an eye on what happens in the third and fourth quarters when those big guys in the trenches start to run out of gas....and....Merriman is a terror with a non stop motor which won't stop until after the Super Bowl...and... If and when San Diego gets a lead watch out for the beast who is going to make life uncomfortable for Brady and the rest of the offense....Final score....San Diego 24 New England 13....
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Tomorrow morning there is a chance of snow as an arctic cold front moves into the area and drops the temperature into the 20 degree range early in the morning. I have lived in Bakersfield for 45 years and it has only snowed twice. Once in high school it snowed two inches but had completed melted by noon and the other time was about six years ago when it snowed somewhere between five to six inches. The chance for snow is only about 30 per cent but it would be super even if we only get a few snow flurries. Because we never get snow in my neck of the woods everyone goes nuts when it does snow. When it snowed six years ago everyone in the neighborhood was outside running around like a bunch of wackos by six a.m. and we had one grand snow block party for most of the day. It was magical. I am not getting my hopes up because the snow gods are rare in my neck of the woods but, just maybe, we'll luck out and get enough snow to throw a few snowballs or at least get enough to blanket the lawn and work a bit of magic for the folks here in the Bake where the sun shines and torches us to a crisp for most of the year. The weather has been rather strange for the past twelve months around here so maybe we'll get a break long enough for Jack Frost and Frosty the Snowman to make quick visit.
Monday, January 08, 2007
I love the Lord of the Rings films...no big surprise...Since the last chapter of the Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, my movie going experience has waxed and waned. Oh, there have been some good movies since the LOTR's, like Big Fish,Batman Begins, The Harry Potter movies,Princess Mononoke,the Revenge of the Sith, and most recently Little Miss Sunshine...but...no movie has captured my imagination, heart,and soul like the Lord of the Rings. Over the years I have written a few movie reviews and plugged this film or that but I generally don't recommend films I haven't seen. The last film I plugged prior to actually having seen the film was the Lord of the Rings but I did so only after doing my homework by reading numerous early reviews and following closely the process of the production from my various website and media sources. I mention all of this to say that I again want to go out on a limb and recommend a film I haven't seen.The film is called Pan's Labyrinth. Pan's Labyrinth is a fantasy film which is set during the rise of fascism in Spain during WWII. The film is directed by Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro which also directed Hell Boy, Mimic, The Devils Backbone, and Cronos. This film came to my attention a couple of weeks ago after reading a review by a movie critic on one of the websites I frequently visit. Over the past two weeks I have been following this film very closely reading anything I could find on the film and the consensus is that this is an astounding film.Here are what some of the critics are saying about this film....Richard Roeper says...Best fantasy film since LOTR...Christianity Today... It would probably have delighted Tolkien and Lewis, who believed that fairy tales help us apprehend the reality of grace as it glimmers through a screen, darkly...and...Roger Ebert...Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth is that rarest of cinematic rarities, a fully and flawlessly realized fantasy film
And, here are some more rants and raves from other critics across the country...
The horrors of both the realistic and surrealistic worlds are woven into the beautifully aligned narrative structure of del Toro's story. This is fabulous filmmaking in every sense of the word.
Pan's Labyrinth artfully fuses a war film with a family melodrama and a fairy tale. The result is visually stunning and emotionally shattering. Though graphically violent in parts, it still manages to be enchanting.
Rarely in film history has such elaborate fantasy been put in the service of such a profound and serious treatment of reality. But Pan's Labyrinth is an extraordinary film made by an exceptional visionary.
This magnificent and moving horror-fantasy for adults has already been raking in nearly unanimous acclaim... I'm not only on the bandwagon, I'm proudly riding shotgun for one of the richest films of 200
Best picture of 2006: This vividly aesthetic, poignantly haunting, densely rich fable for adults represents the maturation of del Toro as a director of the first rank, raising the bar of the fantasy genre; the most visionary film in Cannes Fest this year.
By juxtaposing inhuman military brutality with the idealism and imagery of a fairy tale, del Toro integrates the two, creating a credible tension between both.
And, finally Harry Knowles of Aint it Cool News had this to say about the film he picked as his favorite film of 2006..."it engaged me as a waking dream and nightmare. One that I never wanted to wake from. When the end credits came, I wept, wept because I was so proud of Guillermo, wept because I didn’t want it to end and wept because I knew it’d be months before I’d see it again. The film is set in the agony of reality and the dream of fantasy – and the care taken in the telling of both is that of the finest craftsman. It is an immaculate conception. Brilliant from beginning to end. Guillermo has made his first MASTERPIECE"
Pan's Labyrinth is not for everyone. It is not a pop culture, sentimental, good verses evil fantasy film. The film is apparently dark, violent, disturbing which warrants a R rating. Many have compared the film to the dark tradition of the fairy tales found in the Brother Grimm stories. Also,the film is not in English which will no doubt scare away more than a few movie goers...but... for fantasy nuts like myself or anyone that loves the art of great filmaking this film sounds like a must see. Unfortunately, because the film is foreign it may not come to Bakersfield but if it doesn't I am planning to travel to L.A. to see the film while also checking out the new Icon exhibit at the Getty Museum and when I do I'll write up a review of my impressions of what sounds like a great film...If you want to know more about the plot and basic storyline I would suggest visiting rottentomatoes where you can find more reviews and a more detailed description of the film which is being hailed as a masterpiece by many of the critics of the movie industry.
And, here are some more rants and raves from other critics across the country...
The horrors of both the realistic and surrealistic worlds are woven into the beautifully aligned narrative structure of del Toro's story. This is fabulous filmmaking in every sense of the word.
Pan's Labyrinth artfully fuses a war film with a family melodrama and a fairy tale. The result is visually stunning and emotionally shattering. Though graphically violent in parts, it still manages to be enchanting.
Rarely in film history has such elaborate fantasy been put in the service of such a profound and serious treatment of reality. But Pan's Labyrinth is an extraordinary film made by an exceptional visionary.
This magnificent and moving horror-fantasy for adults has already been raking in nearly unanimous acclaim... I'm not only on the bandwagon, I'm proudly riding shotgun for one of the richest films of 200
Best picture of 2006: This vividly aesthetic, poignantly haunting, densely rich fable for adults represents the maturation of del Toro as a director of the first rank, raising the bar of the fantasy genre; the most visionary film in Cannes Fest this year.
By juxtaposing inhuman military brutality with the idealism and imagery of a fairy tale, del Toro integrates the two, creating a credible tension between both.
And, finally Harry Knowles of Aint it Cool News had this to say about the film he picked as his favorite film of 2006..."it engaged me as a waking dream and nightmare. One that I never wanted to wake from. When the end credits came, I wept, wept because I was so proud of Guillermo, wept because I didn’t want it to end and wept because I knew it’d be months before I’d see it again. The film is set in the agony of reality and the dream of fantasy – and the care taken in the telling of both is that of the finest craftsman. It is an immaculate conception. Brilliant from beginning to end. Guillermo has made his first MASTERPIECE"
Pan's Labyrinth is not for everyone. It is not a pop culture, sentimental, good verses evil fantasy film. The film is apparently dark, violent, disturbing which warrants a R rating. Many have compared the film to the dark tradition of the fairy tales found in the Brother Grimm stories. Also,the film is not in English which will no doubt scare away more than a few movie goers...but... for fantasy nuts like myself or anyone that loves the art of great filmaking this film sounds like a must see. Unfortunately, because the film is foreign it may not come to Bakersfield but if it doesn't I am planning to travel to L.A. to see the film while also checking out the new Icon exhibit at the Getty Museum and when I do I'll write up a review of my impressions of what sounds like a great film...If you want to know more about the plot and basic storyline I would suggest visiting rottentomatoes where you can find more reviews and a more detailed description of the film which is being hailed as a masterpiece by many of the critics of the movie industry.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
When I was about eight or nine years old I spent the night with my best friend and a couple of other kids and we stayed up until the wee hours of the night playing poker. I lost all of my money that night except for a quarter and I remember making a vow to God that if I could win my money back I would quit and never gamble or bet again. I did win all my money back and I kept my vow to never gamble for 41 years.... until.... two weeks ago...when...my cyberspace blogging comrade Dave initiated a friendly wager on the Rose Bowl game. The winner would buy the other a C.D. of their choice. Since my team, USC won Dave had to pay up by sending me a copy of Grand Funk Railroad's greatest hits. I'm not really a Grand Funk Railroad fan but the song I'm You're Captain is one of my favorite songs from my early childhood along with Nights in White Satin, Stairway to Heaven, and Riders in the Storm. I used to love listening to these songs on the FM dial late at night growing up as a kid. Just something haunting and transcendent sounding about these songs....back to the breaking of my vow....There are several ways of looking at the breaking of my vow...I kept the vow for 41 years. How many people can say that about keeping any kind of promise or vow?...Vows are meant to be broken...Friendly wagers between friends is really not gambling...or...I really didn't break my vow since wagering on USC against Michigan in a Rose Bowl game is really not gambling since gambling involves chance...and...we all know what happens to Michigan every time they venture out to Pasadena to play USC in the Rose Bowl... ....seriously....I appreciate Dave's promptness in sending the C.D., thanks Dave. It arrived yesterday and after I ripped off the plastic I sat down and listened to I'm Your Captain and was flooded with many fond memories as Grand Funk ended their classic hit with the famous line, I'm getting closer to my home, over and over which fits well with where I am at in life these days....and....if it is any consolation, Dave...I really didn't think USC would win the game....and...I wasn't particularly looking forward to trying to find some of the C.D. choices you had listed....so....thank God USC beat Michigan and thank God nothing has apparently changed with the Michigan football program....
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Friday, January 05, 2007
Over the years I have heard it asserted on numerous occasions that modern men and women reject Christianity and it's truth claims because of science,logic,and allegiance to human reason. While I am willing to concede some truth to this particular assertion I would like to suggest/propose that it is human experience in the end that makes it difficult for many folks to align and commit themselves to the various Christian institutions and it's numerous subcultures. Let me try to explain. Orthodox, mainstream Christianity in it's various forms asserts in it's creeds, doctrinal statements, dogmas, and it's teachings from the pulpit numerous things on a regular basis that has no relevancy or connection to reality or the experiences of the vast majority of modern day people. Stories of animals talking, virgin births, walking on water, people being swallowed by whales and living to tell the tale, and people coming back from the dead are what I am referring to. I am not suggesting that these stories do not have tremendous value, because I believe they do, but when these accounts are taken literally and dogmatically, as they are by the religious powers that be and a vast majority of it's followers than it creates a stumbling block for most folks who did not grow up in the subculture where they would have been indoctrinated from birth. Many Christian's assert that it is pride that prevent people from accepting these proposed self evident truths but, imo, these stories taken literally are a stumbling block because we have no personal experiences in which to compare them with. Some Christians might suggest that miracles still happen today and while I don't want to rule out the possibility that God can and does do miracles there appears from my vantage point a qualitative difference between the miracles and miraculous stories found in the Bible and what people report to experience in the modern world...and...that is one of the reasons why people who did not grow up in a Christian subculture have a difficult time committing themselves to a religious institution that I suspect seems out of date and out of step with reality and the experience of many folks in the modern world...
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
When was the last time you heard the sound of birds chirping, the rush of the wind, or the sound of a creaking door in your house? We live in a society that generally no longer pays homage to Saturn the patron god of silence. Silence is rare in the modern world and it is generally not something we consider a gift but rather, more often than not, we feel threatened by the sound of silence. Why is that? Do we fear what we may hear from the deep reaches of our soul/intuition if we took the time to listen to the still quiet voice that seeks so desparately to be heard from time to time?....Don't get me wrong, I love noise as much as the next person. I love the sound of a loud concert, the roar of a crowd during a sporting event, and the scream of a fanatic fan when his or her football team scores a touchdown...but...I also can't help wondering and pondering to myself if we don't lose something critically valuable to the human experience by filling our lives with constant noise. I have become increasingly aware of the potential value of silence over the past few days because for the first time, since I don't know when, my house is not filled with the constant noise of television or the sound of people. At first it felt kind of weird and out of place but I feel like I am now adjusting and seeing for the first time the potential value in living with a daily dose of silence. Silence is not easy to obtain in the modern world for a variety of different reasons. Most people live in family arrangments with others while we are all subjected to the daily sounds of cars, planes, lawnmowers, television, radio, and the general hustle and bustle of daily life. But,I think it would benefit us all if from time to time, as our situation allows it, we find ways to pay homage to Saturn by turning off the T.V., and finding some place to just sit and listen to what our inner soul/spirit wants to say to us because I suspect our inner soul has some words of encouragement, healing, and other gifts to share with those who are willing to take the time to listen....
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
It's that time again to make some New Years resolutions. Actually, I stopped making New Years resolutions years ago because I generally either lost the motivation after a couple of weeks or I most often made resolutions that I realistically couldn't keep. Either way, it was an exercise of futility. Although I don't do New Years resolutions here is my list of things I would like to see happen in the weeks and months to come.
1. Take more intiative to develop new friendships. I have a number of great friends in my neck of the woods but most of my friends I have known for ten years or longer and I haven't really made any new friends for years. It's great to have loyal friends who you have known for years but I think it is time to go out on a limb and make an attempt to make some new connections...Making new friends at my age and stage of life will be challenging because most folks are married and have extensive family related responsibilities but I do need to take more of an initiative to develop friendships with others.
2. Explore and expand my social network. I've been in a rut for some time now regarding my involvement or rather lack of involvement in some kind of social network. For years my social network was the local church but since my self imposed exile a couple of years ago I have yet to fill the vacuum created by my departure. I do intend to continue visiting a couple of local churches in the weeks and months to come but I also want to expand my search beyond religious institutions. I intend to attend some meditation workshops in the near future and tomorrow night I am hoping to attend some kind of "therapeutic/meditative" drum session at the local Metropolitan Community Church. I feel kind of awkward trying new things but I do feel I need to make the effort.
3. Get involved in some kind of local community service project. Right now I am looking at some local environmental related activities of peace projects. Bakersfield is an ultra conservative city but there are some small enclaves of folks who also care about the environment and are concerned about our foreign policy. It may take some effort to find these folks but I do hope to get involved in something this year.
4. Take advantage of my current situation. I am in a unique situation in my life right now...being single...with lots of time on my hands and I hope to not waste this opportunity by wasting my time on meaningless activities. I am not exactly sure what this all means, at this time in my life, but I see this as a year to take more risks and explore the numerous possibilities before me.
5. Explore past relationships...Although I am currently single I would like to be in a "meaningful/healthy" relationship again, some day...but...first I think I need to explore my past because my past relationships have been rather dysfunctional. I don't intend to beat myself up over my past but I think it would be helpful to explore and give some thoughtful consideration to why my marriage and other recent relationships came to an end.
6. And finally, I want to travel to some "new" places this upcoming year. I have gotten into a rut regarding where I spend my vacation time over the past six or seven years and this summer I hope to travel to some places I have yet to visit...like...Sante Fe, New Mexico...Colorado...and maybe go back to Sedona Arizona....
1. Take more intiative to develop new friendships. I have a number of great friends in my neck of the woods but most of my friends I have known for ten years or longer and I haven't really made any new friends for years. It's great to have loyal friends who you have known for years but I think it is time to go out on a limb and make an attempt to make some new connections...Making new friends at my age and stage of life will be challenging because most folks are married and have extensive family related responsibilities but I do need to take more of an initiative to develop friendships with others.
2. Explore and expand my social network. I've been in a rut for some time now regarding my involvement or rather lack of involvement in some kind of social network. For years my social network was the local church but since my self imposed exile a couple of years ago I have yet to fill the vacuum created by my departure. I do intend to continue visiting a couple of local churches in the weeks and months to come but I also want to expand my search beyond religious institutions. I intend to attend some meditation workshops in the near future and tomorrow night I am hoping to attend some kind of "therapeutic/meditative" drum session at the local Metropolitan Community Church. I feel kind of awkward trying new things but I do feel I need to make the effort.
3. Get involved in some kind of local community service project. Right now I am looking at some local environmental related activities of peace projects. Bakersfield is an ultra conservative city but there are some small enclaves of folks who also care about the environment and are concerned about our foreign policy. It may take some effort to find these folks but I do hope to get involved in something this year.
4. Take advantage of my current situation. I am in a unique situation in my life right now...being single...with lots of time on my hands and I hope to not waste this opportunity by wasting my time on meaningless activities. I am not exactly sure what this all means, at this time in my life, but I see this as a year to take more risks and explore the numerous possibilities before me.
5. Explore past relationships...Although I am currently single I would like to be in a "meaningful/healthy" relationship again, some day...but...first I think I need to explore my past because my past relationships have been rather dysfunctional. I don't intend to beat myself up over my past but I think it would be helpful to explore and give some thoughtful consideration to why my marriage and other recent relationships came to an end.
6. And finally, I want to travel to some "new" places this upcoming year. I have gotten into a rut regarding where I spend my vacation time over the past six or seven years and this summer I hope to travel to some places I have yet to visit...like...Sante Fe, New Mexico...Colorado...and maybe go back to Sedona Arizona....
Monday, January 01, 2007
In all honesty I am surprised as anyone regarding USC's dominance of Michigan in the Rose Bowl. Although I predicted USC would beat Michigan, by the slimest of margins, I thought it would take a near perfect game by the men of Troy to pull off the upset...but, USC didn't just beat Michigan, they crushed them, particularly in the second half, which, proves what many have been saying for some time now, USC is the best college program in the nation and Pete Carroll is the best college football coach in the country. One just has to love Carroll's enthusiasm, his agressive style on both sides of the ball, and his ability to adjust during halftime. During Carroll's tenure at USC they have now outscored their opponents in the second half by a whopping 700 points which is an amazing statistic!....I could gloat about USC's dominance over Michigan but it is enough to just say that USC has better athletes and a better head coach...What surprised me the most....Although I predicted USC's defense and team speed would surprise Michigan I didn't suspect they we be so dominant, particularly shutting down Michigan's running game...but Michigan, imo, contributed to the problem by lacking creativity on offense in the first half which played into the hands of the USC defense. My biggest surprise, though, was on how well John Booty and the passing game performed. No one, particularly me, would have thought that USC's offense could dominate by being so one dimensional, which I guess just goes to prove that if you do something well enough, balance is just not that important....bottom line....Speed kills and USC just has too much team speed and too many great athletes who, when motivated, can and will most often dominate their opponents.... Carroll's Trojan's are now 5-1 in bowl games and in the last five years USC has either dominated or lost by only the slimest of margins most of their big games which qualifies them as a juggernaut on the college football landscape...and...the only hope for the future foes of USC is that Carroll gets bored and heads to the NFL. Rumors have recently surfaced that Arizona wants Carroll, "real bad" and is willing to shell out 30 million to lure him to the desert but I hope and pray that Carroll will again resist the various temptations from Mount Olympus and resume his post in the Kingdom of Troy where his fans and players revere him as a legend and a demigod in the world of college football....so, I leave this blog entry with this request...Please don't leave us Pete for the black hole called the NFL... and... please promise us you will never leave the Shire. The shire is your home...it is where you belong...and as long as you continue to reside here with us we will support and give our loyalty to you and the juggernaut you have established here on the west coast...and...finally...We salute you and the men of Troy which have given us so many great moments over the past six years...
I've been up to my eyeballs getting my house in order since Christmas and thus have neglected my duty to say anything about the big game between Michigan and USC. I don't have much time to say much now either because I am getting the house ready for some friends who are coming over to watch the game in about four hours...so...I will have to limit my comments to some general impressions...I honestly don't know much about Michigan and have only seen them play once which was against Ohio State. I wasn't all that impressed with their defense which gave up alot of points and I don't think the game was as close as the final score. On paper Michigan should win the game. Statistically they have the numbers...great run defense...very good offense...and only one loss to a great Ohio State team...they also have motivation...and...more experience...USC...USC's offense has been up and down but their defense has been consistently good all season and I think their speed and big time hitters at linebacker and safety will surprise Michigan. You can move the ball against their defense but their stable of big time boppers will have Michigan's skill players looking over their shoulder's after they knock you silly a few times...Offesively, Booty has been good but not great...It is their running game which I believe will be the key to this game. None of their backs have great numbers but as a unit they have amassed alot of yards and Chauncy Washington is one of the best backs in the country no one has heard about. Before academic problems and injuries he was rated ahead of Bush and White on the depth chart. They both have one common opponent in Notre Dame and both teams manhandled the Irish which leads me to believe it will be a close game and will probably come down to a turnover or big play on special teams...Pomoxian Dave has predicted that the "mean and lean wolverines" will crush the men of Troy later today but I just have to yawn when I hear such nonsense. Been there, heard that before, from the folks in the Midwest who apparently have too much time on their hands during the cold winter months with nothing better to do than watch football and run around with sweatshirts bearing the logo of their favorite Midwest team. Out on the westcoast we have better things to do, in the land of fun and sun, than sit around and hope our favorite football team does well. And, if, USC loses today it will not be the end of the world because we still have the mountains, beaches, deserts, and beautiful forests to romp around in but God help the poor folks out in the Midwest who don't have much to look forward to if their team loses....Final prediction.....USC 21 Michigan 20....A real sqeaker...
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