Pop Empire

The Wedding Crashers

noreply@blogger.com (Susan M) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 03:34:00 +0000

A few nights ago I watched the movie The Wedding Crashers. When me and my suitie(suit mate) were thinking about what kind of a movie we were in the mood for we both were thinking a sexual and funny movie. And that is just what this movie gave. This might come as a surprise to some but this is the first time that I have seen this movie but I wasn't disappointed. I am a big fan of, and for some reason I love comedies with sexual references.

The main summary of the movie begins with two best friends that live for wedding season. When it comes they try to hit up as many weddings as they can and while at these wedding their main thought its that the single ladies at these weddings are lonely and looking for someone and that is where these two come in. They take advantage of these women and at the end of the day all they are looking for is a hook up with these girls...and that's what they get.

Now everything is going as planned but then they have a big wedding for the secretary of state's daughter I think it is and this is when everything changes and one of the friends falls for the brides sister, and the other sister gets obsessed with the other. After certain circumstances they work their way into going with the family back to their cottage. Long story short they end up with both of the girls and all works out in the end just like every movie.

Now while thinking about this movie and trying to relate it to the empire and the kingdom it kinda makes you think and you have to look at it more that just a good sexual comedy. I think what you need to know and understand is that what the movie portrays is kinda what the world has become.... sex is meaningless and just for our own selfish pleasure. You do it with anyone when ever you want and our culture today accepts it. That is not how it was made and intended to be like.

Now it has these men just having random hookups but then here is were the kingdom kinda sorta comes into play. The love actually comes into the equation and its not just the sex. There are actual feelings and emotion in the relationship. Now that is the way it is intended to be!
So I see the the beginning of this movie as us in the fallen world sinning and all. But as the movie goes on wrongs are made right and love replaces sex. I really enjoyed this movie and the way you see the characters change for the better but of course still have their same crazy antics.
So in summery what I got from this movie was kinda just a reassurance in my believe in how sacred sex is and that love needs to be there and people are PEOPLE and not just little toys to play with. You need to remember why God made us the way we are and how he created sex and everything it stands for.

This movie is entertaining and great if you want a good laugh but I always think it is good to watch movies with you brain and not just your eyes. So yes I recommend this movie and will end up watching it again soon.

Inauguration

noreply@blogger.com (Kerry Aarnoutse) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:33:00 +0000

I attended the inauguration of President Obama, in Washington D.C.. The road trip there was a lot of fun, as road trips often are. I had the chance to do one of my favorite activities, create a themed playlist. The playlist for this occasion was called 'Inauglebration', the combination of inauguration and celebration. This playlist included classic road trip songs such as George Thorogood's One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer, there were also a few Obama specific songs including Will.i.am's Yes We Can, and of course we needed some tunes to pump us up. What song could better perform this task for a car full of single ladies, than Beyonce's Single Ladies!?

When we finally arrived in Washington, there was still a long, long walk ahead of us. While walking around the city, with a seemingly endless crowd of people, I felt like I was in the middle of a mass migration. If someone were filming it, the shots could easily be used for the next 28 Days Later type film. I have not experienced the kind of energy and excitement shared by such a large group since I attended a Stanley Cup finals game. As a proud Canadian, I am a little reluctant to say that the inauguration may have out done the hockey game.

A few things really stood out to me during the walk. Most of all, Pepsi did some very effective advertising. They had been giving out bags with the new logo, and words like 'HOPE', 'JOY', and 'YES YOU CAN' printed on them. Everywhere you looked, someone was wearing a bag. I can't remember a time when I craved Pepsi so badly. This experience reminded me of Gap's Red campaign, specifically when Bono was a guest on the Oprah show, to promote the campaign. After watching that episode of Oprah, I craved Gap. I felt like I had been brainwashed, but I suppose that is just remarkable advertising. I think these two examples of advertising were so effective because they strongly associated the product with emotions. 'HOPE' although and inspiring idea, is not very meaningful on its own. But, when you hear Obama say 'HOPE', it gives you goosebumps. Reading the word 'HOPE' on a Pepsi bag at the inauguration also resulted in goosebumps, and a very thirsty Kerry.

Is it unethical for corporations to use human emotions in these ways to sell their products? I would say not, it's just good strategy. However, I am very surprised that corporations do not do this more. I am surprised that companies that use television ads don't purchase airtime specifically to shows, and then imitate the television program in their advertisement. The only occasions I have noticed this is the airing of sporting events, especially the Olympics, and most obviously the Super Bowl. I think Cadbury Chocolate should advertise at the end of The Bachelor, to use the 'past break up' emotions. Monster.com should play their commercials during The Office, when people are reminded how much they hate their job, because of the 'Dwight' or 'Michael' that works there. And everyone/anyone should advertise after President Obama's addresses; because even a Canadian, more importantly, an Albertan (the most conservative province) gets excited when she hears him speak.

Beyond Interim

noreply@blogger.com (Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 22:31:00 +0000

Hi, folks. Just wanted to write one last post here regarding some volunteer opportunities to use your newfound awareness of the empire at Calvin in the coming years.

Student Activities Board: help plan and staff concerts. Weekly hour-long meetings. Contact Rob to be put on the e-mail list.
Cultural Discerners: continue to study the "spirits of our age" and how they emerge in popular culture...then coordinate events in your dorms and on campus.
Multicultural Student Development Office: Jacque Rhodes, who was on our panel, is the director of MSDO, which has a lot of opportunities to get involved in multicultural and anti-racism activities.
Fashion Advisory Board: Fashion shows and fashion magazines around the ideas Erin O'Connor-Garcia talked about in class. Contact Erin to be a part of it.
Service-Learning Center: Remember what our panelists said about connecting with people who are different from you? Use the SL-C web site to search for opportunities that fit your interests and skills (or keep the SL-C on your radar for student employment)
Barnabas Team: Organize dorm bible study and worship activities. Barnabas needs people who are passionate about "double immersion" in scripture and culture and have an expanded definition of discipline.

This list is certainly not exhaustive and whether you take advantage of these activities or not, we encourage you to put ideas into practice (that's true knowledge, remember?). In addition to considering these activities, seek out mentors and models in person and in books and other media who can help you continue to learn about the goodness of God's Kingdom. And if you get a chance, stop by our office and say 'hi' sometime. Thanks for a great experience!

Good food

noreply@blogger.com (Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 13:20:00 +0000

Someone asked for more details about the snacks we had in class yesterday, so here's a listing in case any of you wants to learn more. Everything came from The Green Life Market or the Family Fare two blocks from where Rob and I live:

El Matador corn chips (made in Grand Rapids)
Herdez salsa (made in Mexico without preservatives or additives)
Raisin bread from Little Rooster Bread Company (here in Grand Rapids)
Organic apple butter and natural peanut butter from The Green Life Market
Cookies from Back to Nature and Newman's Own
Apple Cider from Aseltine's Cider Mill in Comstock Park, Michigan
Milk from Moo-ville dairy (regular 2% and non-homogenized whole)

We went to the places that were closest to our house, but here are some other sources where we could have found local and/or organic foods:

Horrock's Market
The Fulton Street Farmer's Market (open May-December)
Harvest Health Foods
Trillium Haven Farm (where Rob and I participate in CSA--they take summer interns! :)
Mud Lake Farm (we get greens delivered from them on a regular basis--a greens-only CSA)
Global Infusion (fair trade coffee, chocolate, chocolate chips, hot cocoa, baking cocoa and very unique looseleaf teas that combine Michigan fruits and flowers with fair trade green and black teas)

If you want to try restaurants that incorporate local and organic foods, here are a few (certainly not exhaustive):

Marie Catrib's
The Green Well
Restaurant Bloom
Electric Cheetah (opening soon--the owner has been taking his time finding as many local sources as possible for his ingredients)

Let me know if you have any other questions about locally grown (or other kinds of) foods. I love a good food mystery and would be happy to help you find answers!

Heaven is not my home

noreply@blogger.com (Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 14:22:00 +0000

Several of you seemed surprised and intrigued yesterday by the idea that heaven is coming to earth some day and that the Kingdom of God will be embodied here, in this tangible place. I'm going to try to put together a bible study time on this idea for those who are interested. Until then (and beyond that), here are some books you might like to check out if you want to learn more:

Heaven is Not My Home:Living in the Now of God's Creation by Paul Marshall--Doesn't go into the theological ideas very deeply or academically, but explores examples of how God is redeeming specific areas of life, such as rest, play, work, imagination, learning and more.
Heaven is a Place on Earth: Why Everything You Do Matters to God by Michael E. Wittmer--A good introduction with well-explained theological ideas, lots of scripture references and pop culture examples. Includes a discussion guide with questions.
Bringing Heaven Down to Earth: Connecting This Life to the Next by Nathan Bierma--Author works at Calvin in the Worship Institute and has taught a DCM course on his book. Check out the slide shows his students put together illustrating ideas from the book.
Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, The Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church by N.T. Wright: Wright is a friend of Walsh & Keesmaat's and there's definitely a congruity and influence in their ideas. This relatively new book has been getting rave reviews. Check out the author on Stephen Colbert.

Heaven has in some ways been hijacked by ideas that have little merit when held up against the arc of scripture. For myself, understanding that the eternal Kingdom of God will have something to do with the earthly creatures we are now makes it a much more exciting reality. It also helps balance my sense of urgency ("I need to change the world and experience everything it has to offer NOW! Before I die!") with a sense of trust and rest ("I can honor my limitations and the call to Sabbath in the hope of eternity on a renewed, restored earth").

GQ Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (Jacob P.) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 05:05:00 +0000

GQ Magazine is a magazine made for men who want to better themselves in their appearance. In the magazine there are pictures to show off new trends in clothing and accessories. They also have articles explaining why people should wear certain clothing. Some articles are just random and talk about a certain issue or event that has happened. Appearance is key when giving a first impression. Clothing is one of the first things that people look at when they see you. What you wear is key to show who you are and what you stand for. GQ magazine also shows men how to dress themselves for professional occupations, as well as just wearing something causually. What you wear with your clothing such as watches, belts, hats, shoes, is also explained in some of GQ's articles. Most of the clothing in this magazine are particularly expensive, and directed toward people with high income. There are many pictures of models showing off clothing, as well as just random advertisements of different products.

What you wear, or fashion, is important because it expresses who we are and how we present ourselves to other people. Not only for ourselves or for other people, but how we present ourselves in Gods eyes. I don't think that spending alot of money on clothing is a bad thing because if you work really hard and receive alot of money, why not spend it on what we want? However if you are greedy and only care about money and status, and spend tons of money on clothing one week, and throw away clothing the next week to buy other clothes, then to me that is wrong. This would not bring any glory to God and is very selfish. However having alot of money and spending it on useful things to me, isn't a bad thing. People should spend money on what they want as well as what they need because they have worked hard to get all that money, and some people might have inherited alot of money, however the way you percieve money is a big part of determining whether money could be evil.

The Guide by Borne

noreply@blogger.com (Emily H) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 04:51:00 +0000

For once in my life I seePure love staring right backRight back at meAt meI played you a sweet song and you sang,You sang along.In your heart, your eyes and soul,Soul.You are my angel.You are my diamond.You are my guiding light,Yeah.I've seen the future.I've been to the bottom,But you keep my head above,Above.You are my Jesus,You are my savior,You are all that is love,Yeah.You're all that is loveYou're all that is loveYou're all that is loveYou are my diamond.You are my angel.You are my guiding light,Yeah.You're my guiding light

One of my favorite things about music is that every once in a while you stumble across a really amazing song that speaks to you on so many levels. “The Guide” by the Australian band, Borne, became one of those songs for me. This song became part of my music selection completely by coincidence. About two years ago I was on a trip with my youth group and my friend played this song for the whole car. I was immediately struck by the beautiful opening of the song and the unique voice of the lead singer. I didn’t really analyze the lyrics until about a week later when iTunes was offering it as a free download. The lyrics spoke to me even more than the music itself had and it has been a favorite of mine ever since.

Borne is an Australian band. The lead singer, Cam, writes all of the lyrics. “The Guide” is from an album entitled Loss of Signal. Cam explains that many of the songs were written “after a breakdown of a close relationship, the intense feelings of loss were a microcosm of the state of the world he found himself in, both personally but also on a global, environmental and socio-economic scale”. The song “The Guide” mentions a “pure love” the artist has who is his “diamond … guiding light …savior”. From what I can gather, they are not a Christian band. Given what the previous quote from the artist I think it is fair to infer that the artist is voicing his feelings for a specific person on this earth.

Though I can find the beauty in the fact that the song is about another person, the song speaks to me, personally, on a more spiritual level. I might even describe it as a song of worship for me. The artist finds his “guiding light” in this certain person. I find my “guiding light” to be Jesus himself. For me, Jesus is “my angel … my diamond … my savior”. For me, Jesus is “all that is love”. It creates a longing in me to know more about Jesus and experience his pure love. I think this song exquisitely illustrates the fact that even those who don’t know Jesus on a personal level, like the artist, have a desire, a longing, for a savior. It is just a shame that sometimes people look for a savior in other people rather than the one, true savior.

Pop Empire & Empire Remixed

noreply@blogger.com (Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:51:00 +0000

Hey, folks. There's a link to our class blog from the official Empire Remixed blog within a post about a question I e-mailed to Sylvia Keesmaat a while back. Check it out.

Extreme Makeover

noreply@blogger.com (Ellyn Z) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:32:00 +0000

Over the weekend I watched the TV show "Extreme Makeover," which I personally find incredibly boring and repetitive, but to some it's fairly polarizing and promotes self-improvement. This show, hosted originally by ABC, involves individuals who volunteer to receive a full body makeover. This includes major plastic surgery, workouts sessions, new hair and make-up, as well as a whole new wardrobe. Basically if chosen for this show, you come out a completely different person. People love this type of television because they see it as motivating and inspiring, and often overlook the negative and superficial values that it reinforces. At the end of the show their "new self" is presented to their spouses, families, and friends and the joy of the participants seems quite apparent. But what goes on off air is all of the negative side effects there so called makeovers have on not only the candidate, but their family and friends as well. I did some research after watching this show and a research group following similar television programs show that complete makeovers such as this result in 1 in 2 casual dating relationships end as well as 1 in 4 married couples get a divorce, because of jealousy issues of not feeling like an adequate spouse to their newly transformed partner. Not only do shows like this have negative effects on the candidate's family, but it can also affect anyone who takes part in watching these shows. This show may boost someone's self-esteem but it is a disgrace to the Kingdom of God by portraying that the appearance of the average American is not good enough, as well as it has devastating results for the families involved. If maybe shows like this started to show the after effects to such extreme transformations then maybe the amount of Americans getting plastic surgery would decrease.

Swiss Family Robinson

noreply@blogger.com (jay gabbard) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:18:00 +0000

This past weekend, some of my buddies and I watched the 1960 Disney classic, Swiss Family Robinson. We had all seen it in our childhoods but thought it was time to see it once again. The premise revolves around a family who is traveling to New Guinea with their captain and crew but is stranded on an island after being caught in a storm while being chased by pirates. The family settles on an island where they soon call home and create a beautiful tree house that I myself dream to build some day. After a girl and her grandfather are captured by the pirates near where the family is living, Fritz and Ernst, the two eldest sons grab the girl, Roberta, and bring her back to their home. After several days pass, the family decides to have a race with some of their captured animals. The mother fires a gun to signal the start of the race and the pirates hear the gunshot and encircle the family. The pirate’s attack, but being prepared, the family set up booby-traps to fend them off. Finally, a ship comes to the rescue captained by Roberta’s grandfather. Ernst decides to leave with him to pursue an education, and the rest of the family including Roberta stay on the island to call it home.

Now one might wonder how any of this could connect to our discussions in class. Well, we’ve recently been discussing how we can follow the path in the Kingdom of God. Things such as buying your produce from farmers markets, or subscribing to a farm where you support local farmers and receive fresher produce. Or perhaps shopping at thrift shops where you are in support for breaking down the vicious cycle of child labor. If we look at the story of Swiss Family Robinson, even though they lived in a time with much less innovation and technology, they still had to make a living on an island in the middle of nowhere. They received water through a mill, eliminating the need for electricity. They got their whole food supply directly from the Earth. They even wrapped their Christmas gifts in huge leaves rather than paper! And as you find out in the end, they are satisfied with these conditions and choose to stay on the island. In a way, I think the pirates symbolize the empire. They try and keep them from living this new life and try to kill the happiness they have found. This film also portrays a lot about human character and purpose. With everything they create like the tree house, booby traps, and coconut bombs, we can see how creative we are and the imagination that resides in us. With what the family did on this uncivilized island tells us the creativity and imagination we can use to worship the Kingdom of God and release ourselves from the wrath of the empire!

I personally grew up with this film, and have yet to meet anyone that doesn’t like it. This of course means I recommend seeing it and urge you to give it a watch!

The Great American Past Time-Channel Surfing

noreply@blogger.com (Evan Buikema) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 18:59:00 +0000

On Sunday night, I decided to surf channels on TV and take notes on the many different advertisements and commercials that I saw. I was amazed by what I found. The sheer volume of commercials that viewers are exposed to is incredible, and this became clear to me when I sought out the commercials rather than just waiting for them to pass. With my new knowledge and insight gained from The Persuaders, I was able to take the commercials at face value rather than remaining in my usual consumer mindset. As wave upon wave of ads poured over me, I started to write down the slogans or techniques that commercials so often use. A few different techniques began to emerge as commonplace and I saw many similar patterns for the advertisements. Commercials will often try to personally try to appeal to their audiences with word or phrases like: “Your choice”, ”How you need it”, “freedom”, “discover for yourself” and many, many others. This technique of personally appealing to potential consumers is a great method, as people want things that will help them, that are meant for them, rather than the general public. When you step back, however, it becomes clear that these “personal ads” are just ploys to get people to buy products and are quite impersonal. The next technique that I saw was the use of superlatives to compare a product to those from different companies. Words like “better”, “faster”, “(superlative) than the next leading brand” and endless others. This technique is very interesting to me because it does not necessarily give its viewers an accurate description of the product, but rather compares to another company. If both companies are selling unadulterated crap, what difference is there if one is slightly lighter, faster, sleeker etc. Still another technique is to fool consumers into thinking that there is no risk at all to the consumer to buy the product/s. This almost always is deceptive and there are often hidden costs or fees for returns or exchanges. While this is disturbing, it is not that unexpected after viewing The Persuaders. Companies will appeal to almost whatever they can to sell products and often delve into the nature of the empire to do so. Empty promises, deceit, and embellishments are all obvious elements of an imperial society rather than one that follows the guidelines of a truly good life in the Kingdom. I would strongly encourage anyone who reads this post to take a little time out of your day and simply view commercials as you flip through the channels on television. In the right mindset, you will be amazed by the advertisements that you see.

Pink

noreply@blogger.com (Kara Mulvihill) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:57:00 +0000

I recently read an interview in the Seventeen Magazine with Pink discussing her relationship and divorce from her husband Carey as well as her music. After just two years of marriage, they mutually decided to end it. As the daughter of recently divorced parents, I immediately became interested in what Pink had to say about this topic. Following their separation, Pink started writing a new album about the breakup. Strangely enough, Pink’s first number one song came out of this situation. When asked how she feels about that, she said “It’s a testament to how often people break up, because everyone can relate to what I’m saying.” As I continued reading the article I was surprised at some of Pink’s comments although I suppose that it should be expected. It seems that her view of marriage is much different than that of the Kingdom. When asked if she thought they would be “together forever,” she replied “No. I don’t know if I ever really believed in the institution of marriage.” She went on to explain how their childhood homes were full of conflict and that neither of them had positive examples of marriage. Pink adds “Our idea of marriage…was more like, ‘We really like each other—we should just try, see what happens.’” Reading that last sentence was disappointing—just to see this widely shared empire view of marriage spelled out in one of the most popular teenage girl magazines. In a way, it degrades the sacred value of marriage as seen in the Kingdom. For me, it was really heartbreaking to read about yet another relationship broken and to read about the warped ideas that surround it. Pink goes on to say “I don’t regret a minute of it…I’ll do it a thousand more times, even though I don’t really think marriage is necessary.” This really illuminates the empire view that if things are not going as expected, it is okay to get out of the situation and resort to other options. It is more about happiness than holiness. It’s just overwhelming to think that in the empire today, people get married all the time, making vows till death do us part, even though they know that they do not plan on staying together forever. In the United States today, there is a 50% divorce rate and it is devastating to realize that it is becoming expected and not a big deal. It is particularly unfortunate to consider the lack of successful marriages for people to look to as examples, especially those of college age. It upsets me that this is now so common and being portrayed to young women, and our society as a whole, in this way.

Television Show "Lie To Me"

noreply@blogger.com (Stryker) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:35:00 +0000

This past Wednesday Fox's season premiere of the new show "Lie to Me" was on. I had seen the previews to it and it seemed like it would be a kind of fun show to watch. The season premiere was about a teacher that was killed in a high school and the problem was that they didn't know who killed her. Throughout the episode the main character was interviewing people and trying to pick up hints on whether they were lying to him or not. As the show went on, he continued to pick up hints on who was lying to him and who was being straight and honest. Finally in the end they figured out who was guilty for the murder of the teacher.

The stories that I believe that this television series is trying to get across to its viewers is that many people lie to others and they don't even realize it. People like to lie if it is easier for them or if they know that they will benefit from it. I think that this show will show people a glimpse at how much people lie in their lifetime. I also think that it will stir up thoughts in peoples minds that will make them think twice about lying as much as they do. I think that this show is good because it will affect people in different ways and will get on people's conscious'. Obviously this show is pointing out how lying is causing evil and chaos in the world.

This artifact is showing us what the empire is doing to us and how it is influencing our decisions. The empire has caused us to want to lie more because lying allows us to feel more comfortable and lets us benefit out of what we are telling people. In order to live more for the Kingdom of God we have to stop telling lies and be straight up and honest with everyone we come in contact with. Hopefully this television show gets on peoples nerves and causes them to do what is right.

Posted by Brett Ellens

Seasons of Love from the musical Rent

noreply@blogger.com (Dan G) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:16:00 +0000

Rent is a musical about a group of friends both artist and musicians who struggle to live and create in New York City’s Lower East side in the days of The Bohemian Alphabet City under the shadow of AIDS. The music and lyrics for Rent were written by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La Bohème. Rent is a Tony award winning musical and is the seventh longest running Broadway show.

I am going to focus on one of the songs the musical, Seasons of Love. This is one of my favorite songs from this musical because it is challenging the audience to think about how they measure a year. They offer suggestions of daylights, sunsets, midnights, cups of coffee, inches, miles, laughter or strife then they suggest, “How about love? Measure Your Life in Love.” They call us to measure in love, “Let's Celebrate, Remember a year in the life of friends; Oh you got to you got to remember the love, you know that love is a gift from up above, share love, give love, spread love; Measure, measure your life in love.” I think this song is crying out for the Kingdom. Calling us all to measure a year in our life not by the things we accomplished that year but by love. We need to remember the love; did we share love with those who need it, did we give love to those who needed it, did we spread love through our actions, did we even stop to remember that love is a gift from God. God’s first two commandments are about love; love the Lord your God with all your heart, body, and mind; and second is to love your neighbor as you love yourself.

Seasons of Love is a simple song with only a piano, drums, guitar and an organ but I think is has a very powerful message to think about a year in terms of love not what the empire to tell you measure in.

Grand Torino

benbeezhold@gmail.com (Ben Beezhold) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:09:00 +0000

I saw the movie Grand Torino a few weeks ago and thought it was a great drama flick. Starring Clint Eastwood, the movie centers around Walt Kowalski (Eastwood) living in his Michigan suburb home. As a retired Korea War Veteran, he is a tough character often using racial slurs when speaking to his Vietnamese neighbors. In a brief encounter with a Hispanic gang, the teenage neighbor boy, Thao, is saved by his Vietnamese cousin’s gang and is expected to join them. As initiation, they ask that he prove himself by stealing Walt’s 1972 Grand Torino (a hot classic car). He is then caught in the act by Walt holding his M-1 Grande rifle and is ordered by the epic line “Get off my lawn.” Tensions rise between the gang and Thao, who decides he doesn’t want to get tangled up in the mess of gang fights. The relationship with Walt and his neighbors moves from uncomfortable to bearable to friendly interaction. Thao learns skills from Walt as he pays in restitution by doing yard work and other household chores. The climax of the movie is when Thao’s sister Sue is raped and beaten by the gang. The enraged Walt decides there’s nothing left to do but pay in blood.

I feel this movie cries out for the kingdom in a few ways. Walt acts as a good role model for Thao and teaches him to be a man. With more trust comes more responsibility; at one point, Walt even agrees to allowing Thao drive the Grand Torino on a date (of which Walt also played a crucial part in setting up). He also becomes less callous to his Vietnamese neighbors and increases the sense of community between the two households. Probably the most prominent Christian aspect in this movie is the ending. When Walt seeks to avenge Sue’s blood, you see him in his home cleaning his gun and preparing for a sort of battle. The viewer is led to believe he is loading up and packing heat. Tensions reach a maximum when Walt stands outside of the gang’s apartment with a dozen rifles and pistols being aimed at him. He reaches in his pocket to light a cigarette when the gang open fires on him—the picture then becomes clear: he played a Christ figure, paying with his own blood and not coming to kill them but to be killed.

This movie clearly shows there is evil present in our world. The gang fights, Walt’s history in the war, the horrendous rape—all evidence of our fallen world. In my opinion, the storyteller told the viewer that Walt’s death redeemed him of his brutal killings in the Korea War; that “there was peace in the world” after he died and had “made amend” with his enemies.

All in all, great movie, great acting…if you haven’t seen it yet, I certainly recommend it!

All the single ladies: A few words on being women in the empire

noreply@blogger.com (Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 15:48:00 +0000

Wouldn’t it have been just like “the talk” in fifth grade if we had separated our interim class by gender to talk about boys’ and girls’ bodies? I only remember three things about that experience: I asked an astute question about what happens when you swim, we made jokes about “sticky side down” for months and the boys on the other side of the hall finished early, a dozen faces peering in the window of our sacred room.

[This seems like a good time to address the men whose faces are peering into the window of this blog post right now: read on. Don’t be embarrassed. Especially when it comes to sex and birth control, you and your partner should be collaborators in bodily faithfulness. But you should also consider what it means specifically to be a man in the empire, as there are plenty of messages being directed toward you as well. To learn more, check out this retreat, which will take place February 13-14.]

As goofy as they may seem, these rites of passage are important. Too often, however, discussion about bodies and what it means to be a faithful woman stop at that awkward fifth grade ritual—after that, we’re sort of left to infer who we should be and what we should look like from the women around us and from the powerful images presented to us in popular culture.

I suspect most of you who caught the footnote in Colossians Remixed on page 197 about menstrual pads were a little disgusted, especially if you’ve never considered anything beyond the usual ways of addressing the “monthly visitor.” Even such polite (or other more crass) euphemisms for menstruation speak to how stubbornly we separate ourselves from our bodies, especially this particular aspect of the female experience. We strive to gain as much sanitary, disposable distance as possible.

And yet, in our interim class we’ve emphasized over and over again, both through Engaging God’s World and Colossians Remixed, that God cares about ALL things, that there’s not a speck of human experience in which we’re not called to faithfulness. It may sound strange, but yes, this includes periods (another polite euphemism). For more of my thoughts on this and for information on another alternative besides washable pads, check out the article “On becoming a Diva for Jesus.”

Certainly our call to be radically Kingdom-oriented as women goes beyond menstruation:

Before you jump on the oral contraceptive bandwagon with birth control (or even if you have already), read a book like Taking Charge of your Fertility. Even if you’re not sexually active, it’s never too early to start learning about the amazing rhythms of your body. You may decide to go with oral contraceptives, but don’t let someone impose them on you like the consumer product they are without being informed about your options.
If you wear makeup, choose products that are healthy for your body, not just the least expensive or most readily available products, many of which contain harmful ingredients and perpetuate the same “linear model” problems as other consumer items. Better products may be more expensive, but if wearing makeup is important to you, consider it an investment in your health. Aveda, Arbonne, The Body Shop and Anti-Body (check out the related film) are all companies that seek to honor people and the earth with cosmetic products.
Choose products that are not tested on animals. Animal testing for cosmetics is not excusable for a people who recognize their God-given creational calling as stewards of the earth and all of its creatures. If we need to use shampoo, lotion, hairspray, eye shadow and other personal care products, we should be willing to test them on ourselves, especially if we know they don’t contain toxic ingredients to begin with. Not sure if something is tested on animals? Read labels. Do research (National Anti-Vivisection Society is a great resource.
Cultivate an approach to hair and makeup that is based on joyful creativity, not necessity. If “the language of inevitability is the language of the empire,” we should be asking critical questions when we feel we have to wear makeup or when we fall into a rut of putting it on the same way every day so that it becomes a part of who we are to those around us. Likewise, we should question our assumption that we need to shower and wash our hair every single day. We in the U.S. consume a larger portion of the world’s resources per capita than any other country in the world.
Care for your body by eating well and exercising—and take these things beyond the market solutions that are advertised to you. Research how good nutrition is tied into good earth keeping by eating locally-produced and organic foods. Discover how walking and riding your bike to get around can contribute to a healthy body and fewer resources being consumed in travel. Experience how yoga, running and other forms of exercise can be meditative practices.

Those are just a few of my ideas. Anything to add? Objections? Questions? Comment or send me an e-mail.

Girl Talk

noreply@blogger.com (Cassie B) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 08:21:00 +0000

So, I'm a huge fan of Girl Talk.
No, not gossip or talking about shopping or shoes- the man, the myth, the somewhat notorious Gregg Gillis. He is Girl Talk, the genius behind mash-up that goes beyond the common term. Mash-up music is when a D.J. remixes elements of different songs and fuses them together to make another song. However, Girl Talk takes elements of songs from every decade, genre, and Billboard chart spot and forms an entirely unique original seamless track.

Well, the term "original" is being used abstractly here because Girl Talk has been getting into a little bit of legal trouble over his use of samples and copyright laws. After causing a stir via Myspace by letting his fans choose how much they'd like to pay for his latest album, "Feed The Animals", Girl Talk had to explain how he was barely crossing the line. The snippets he uses are the equivalent of sampling a track from iTunes or any online media player. Seriously, the amount of time the samples are used go from 15 seconds to less than one. The small samples are legal through the "Fair use" section of copyright law.

Girl Talk succeeds in distracting the media from copyright laws through his flawless skills and his back story to how he got his gig. Gregg Gillis, pre-Girl Talk was a biomedical engineer. After going through all the schooling required to get to his profession, he quit it all in May of 2007 to pursue his passion of creating music.

I see this as kind of fighting the Empire in a way. Pursuing your passion instead of continuing down the same path that's expected of you.
And it's kind of a kick in the face to the Empire as well. Just look what he can create without being penalized for his creativity. It might sound like a creative cop out- but just listen for yourself, you'll know what I mean.

I think that's what we're all called to do, it's part of our human purpose. Being part of the Kingdom calls for us to pursue what we can bring to the table, doing what we love. Girl Talk may not be specifically pursuing his passion for the glory of God, but I think he can be a good example of staying out of the Empire's "rut", if you will.

Girl Talk is one big lawsuit waiting to happen, but can throw one real good dance party.

Interview with Girl Talk a.k.a. Gregg Gillis

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

noreply@blogger.com (Tyler Grimm) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:59:00 +0000

I watched Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This is a story written by Charlie Kaufman that tells about two people who were in love but then broke apart and had each other erased from their memories. The story follows Joel (Jim Carrey), for the most part, during his erasure of Clementine (Kate Winslet) from his mind. As the procedure is being done, Joel becomes aware that he still loves Clementine and he tries to halt the process.

This story addresses the issues of suffering, love, and redemption. The movie basically asked the question of if painful memories of relationships are better to be forgotten or not. The inventor of the memory erasing procedure believes that he is saving people from being unhappy and giving them a chance to live a new life free from the thing that was dragging them down. The story tries to show that it isn’t right to just erase all the problems that come up in life. Part of life is dealing with the difficult things. The empire wants us to believe that we should always be comfortable and never have to be discomfort. That way the empire can sell us more products. This film cries out for us to realize that even when bad things happen there are a lot of great things that come along with it. This movie encourages the audience to settle differences and have hope that people can get along.

Looking at the other characters in the movie that were working on the erasing of Joel’s memory of Clementine, the audience can see another depressing state of human nature. During the procedure the characters get drunk, smoke pot and have sex. I think that the movie is trying to show the sad shape that their lives are in because of their hopelessness. Two of the characters, Mary and Dr. Mierzwiak, get into an awkward situation that Dr. Mierzwiak’s wife catches them in. Mary learns that she has had her memory erased to forget about her love affair with Mierzwiak. Mary decided that the procedure was unethical and tried to redeem herself and everyone who was affected by the procedure by sending them information about the procedure and telling them what they did.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’s title comes from a quote that suggests that forgetting painful situations is a good thing. The movie goes against this belief of the empire by showing that everything in life helps people grow and that there is sometimes a lot of good with the bad.

Mad Hot Ballroom

noreply@blogger.com (Anna V) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:16:00 +0000

Mad Hot Ballroom is a documentary film about a nonprofit organization (American Ballroom Theatre’s Dancing Classrooms) that teaches children to dance. For 10-weeks, children in grade 5 at 60 different New York City public schools, learn various dances (tango, meringue, rumba, foxtrot and swing). Six couples from each school are chosen to complete in the competition. Over the course of the movie we follow three schools in particular, as they try to make it through quarterfinals, semifinals and the finals. The story is told from the students perspective (interestingly enough, the camera guy actually held the camera to his stomach to keep it at the children’s faces.) They are transformed from children who were hesitant to dance and boys who couldn’t make eye contact with the girls, to “little ladies and gentlemen” (as one teacher put it.) This movie shows the diversity in New York City schools, and demonstrates how much a 10 week program can make a difference to inner city children.

One teacher talked about how it was good for the children, who don’t normally have an opportunity to dance, (because the children in the movie were almost all of minority races and lived in low income families) now have an equal opportunity to learn. It can be a life long lesson that teaches them how to respect others, how to believe in themselves and how to learn something totally new. I think this points to the kingdom because these children can learn something they would not normally be given the opportunity to learn. This also is a good demonstration of how the idea of two people (Pierre Dulaine & Yvonne Marceau) can snowball into a great organization that reaches thousands of kids. It teaches these urban kids life long lessons in respect, it gives the children social skills and confidence. It reaches these vulnerable kids a young ages, and teaches them lessons that have the ability to change their life. But more than that it reaches out and draws the community in too. The competition is a great way for the parents and community to support these kids, and make the kids feel good. So I think this movie and this organization are examples of how people can cry out for the kingdom because it is showing how two people reached out “for the least of these,” and have given hope to communities, children and schools by just a simple 10-week program in dancing.

Live Your Life by T.I. featuring Rihanna

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan VB) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 03:03:00 +0000

One of the most popular rap songs today is “Live Your Life” by T. I. which features Rihanna. The first time I heard this song I thought it was just one more rap songs talking about doing drugs, having sex or committing crimes. However, once I looked up the lyrics I was pleasantly surprised to find that it is one of the few songs that don’t promote a very empirical lifestyle. After looking even further into this song to determine its meaning, I discovered that when T.I. speaks at the beginning of the song, he is dedicating the song to soldiers in Iraq.

Like almost every industry, music is greatly influenced by the empire, and the majority of musical groups are in it only for the money and fame. Most musicians don’t play so that they can send a message or so that they can make a person’s life better. T.I. might be a part of the industry for the wrong reasons, but if it he is, this song does not reflect that. As someone who has been a part of the empire, he can see what’s wrong and his second verse really hits on the problems of the rap industry; he says

I got love for the game but ay I'm not in love with all of it
I do without the fame and the rappers nowadays are comedy
The hootin' and the hollerin', back and forth with the arguing
Where you from, who you know, what you make and what kind of car you in
Seems as though you lost sight of what's important when depositin those
Checks into your bank account, and you up out of poverty
Your values is a disarrayed, prioritizing horribly
Unhappy with the riches cause you’re piss-poor morally
Ignoring all prior advice and forewarnin
And we mighty full of ourselves all of a sudden aren't we?

Several qualities of the empire are illuminated such as instant gratification, driven by money, conformity to cool, and consumerism. He criticizes the empire saying that money, possessions and who you know are not what’s important in life. People don’t realize how good they have things because they forget what their lives used to be like when they lived in rough neighborhoods and in bad home situations.

In this song, T.I. and Rihanna encourage people to “just live your life.” They recognize we need to be content with what God has given us and stop trying to get things which we don’t have. I’m pretty sure that they didn’t have the kingdom of God in mind when they thought of the values they were implying, but listening to their song I know it speaks directly to everyone who is busy chasing money and possessions without end. Hopefully the influence of these musical artists will convince people to change from a lifestyle that does exactly what the empire wants to a lifestyle that reflects qualities of God’s kingdom.

The Blind Boys of Alabama

noreply@blogger.com (the Misfit) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:31:00 +0000

I know this is a couple days after the concert but what the heck? I attended the concert, at the FAC, for The Blind Boys of Alabama. When the group came out, they were lined up one in front of the other. They led each other while someone led the whole group to the front of the stage. The man at the front of the group could be an example of how God guides us. God guides us because we are spiritually blind from sin. The Blind Boys have already won four Grammy Awards and the lead singer would not let any of us forget it. He also told us not to feel bad if they didn't win one this year because they already had four. Those who were actually blind in the group showed that it was not a burden for them. All of the songs that were sung were amazing. There was a great amount of soul and energy in their voices and body language. Two of the men in the group would stand up from their chairs and start dancing before they started singing. It was so exciting because I didn't expect so much enthusiasm from them. The message from the group was clear: God is in control and we should trust Him. The main singer, in the middle, even came into the audience. He went around touching peoples' hands and holding the microphone up for cheering.

I won't forget to mention that there was a lot of clapping. The energy from the members of the group transferred over to everyone in the FAC. Some qualities of the kingdom that were prevalent in the concert were community with purpose, following God's will, God being on our side, and God suffering with us. It was a very positive experience. It is so inspiring to see how grateful these men are to be alive and doing what they love to do. They inspired me to be what I want to be and to follow my dreams.

Lord of the Rings

noreply@blogger.com (Jefferson Berryman) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:44:00 +0000

Last weekend I watched the entire trilogy of The Lord of the Rings in one day along with a couple of my friends. These movies are based on the novels by J.R.R. Tolkein, and tell the story of Middle Earth, a fantasy world that contains creatures such as wizards, dragons, orcs, talking trees, hobbits, and much more. The films tell the story of a hobbit named Frodo and his quest to destroy the ring of power, thereby saving Middle Earth from evil. A character named Sauron created this ring and the world can only be at peace again once it is ruined. While Frodo attempts to complete this enormous task, numerous battles between the two opposing armies take place and the struggle between good and evil is constantly shown.

Qualities of the Empire are very evident throughout each of the three films. The characters of Sauron and Sauromon are generally used to represent evil, along with the armies that each of them controls. Even though the story takes place in a setting other than our world, and seems to have happened many years ago, we can still see concepts that apply to the Empire that we face today. Issues such as power and oppression are frequent in the movies. The ring represents power, and everybody who comes across it is greatly tempted and lured in by the strength of it. Sauron never stops looking for the ring and thirsting for this power. In addition, this power leads to oppression. The evil characters in the story oppress numerous people in an effort to gain the ring. Other qualities of the Empire that can be seen are violence and individualism. Violence is frequent in these films. There are numerous battles in each of the three movies and countless people and creatures are killed. Individualism exists primarily on the evil side of things. Betrayal is common and there is almost no sense of selflessness among these people.

Although there are many Imperial issues in The Lord of the Rings, we can also find quite a few Kingdom issues to combat these. One of the primary qualities of the Kingdom that shows up is imagination. It undoubtedly took an incredible imagination to create these elaborate stories, and the fact that J.R.R. Tokein was able to do so has allowed countless people to take joy and delight in them. Another encouraging theme is hope. Often times in the story, the good army, consisting of humans, dwarves, and elves, seem outnumbered and defeat looks inevitable. Even in these circumstances, however, there is a sense of hope. At one point, a young boy tells the character Aragorn that the men have said that a battle is hopeless and they cannot win. Aragorn responds by telling the child, “There is always hope.” Two other important Kingdom qualities are community and love. The group of people sent to destroy the ring is referred to as the Fellowship of the Ring. This fellowship is a great example of community. Each person in it looks out for the others and a couple of them even sacrifice their own lives for the greater good. This closely relates to the theme of love, as can be seen in the friendships of people like Sam and Frodo and even the romantic relationship between Arwen and Aragorn.

As a whole, I think that The Lord of the Rings does much more to build up the Kingdom of God than it does to support the Empire. A few years ago I read J.R.R. Tolkein’s biography and was able to see some of his motivations for creating this trilogy. Although violence is frequent throughout the books and films, Tolkein explains that he is really trying to symbolically portray a struggle between good and evil. In the end, good wins out triumphantly. Because Tolkein was a devoted Christian, many people even speculate that this trilogy was an allegory and each thing in it symbolized something Biblical. For example, the ring could represent sin and the character Frodo is each of us. Some people even saw Aragorn as a Christ figure since he became a king at the end of the story, or possibly even Gandalf since he died and was able to come back to life. Nevertheless, I think that these movies embody many of the important aspects of the Kingdom. The qualities of the Empire that we can see in them are used to portray evil more than anything else. This evil is destroyed at the end of the story when Frodo successfully destroys the ring and redemption is brought to Middle Earth.

Sports Illustrated

noreply@blogger.com (Brett C.) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 22:31:00 +0000

I always enjoy hearing about sports and the top stories that are currently happening in professional and college athletics. Sports Illustrated is a good magazine to keep updated on what is happening. It provides stories, stats, gamcaps, etc. It is a monthly issued magazine and features a honored individual or team on the cover each time it is issued.
Sports Illustrated tends to show how athletes are just created better than we are. They can do unbelievable things, and their bodies were just created more powerful than ours. Human purpose is to perform and be honored in their magazine for the achievements in their game/match. They are to be money-making machines that provide entertainment to people who can't play as well as they can. The empire can effect them athletes and this magazine in this way so it portrays how "successful" these people are in the empire's terms.
It shows both the kingdom and the empire in its contents. Like I said before, it provides many examples of the empire and how to fit into it by being successful and powerful through athletics. It portrays sports as a God and to be honored you have to be able to participate at a high level in these sports. It also has many advertisements that are postioned in the magazine to get our attention in a sneaky way. They have a bacardi advertisement that shows the "fun" about it, but I find it interesting that the drink responsibly message is so small. It also had many cigerete advertisements which can become an addiction and a god over us. These advertisements control us and are a huge part of our empire. However, it also shows the kingdom as well. There are a few stories that provide examples of athletes that are attempting to subvert the empire. In this issue, Julius Earving (Dr. J) shared his story about his poor relationship with his daughter who throughout her life denied him as her father. He recently called her and he has begun to try to form a relationship with her and become a better dad. This shows a amazing athlete just trying to become the father God is giving the chance to be.
Sometimes I feel while reading Sports Illustrated that athletes can do whatever they want and "sin" is not even present in their lives. Even though is completely false, it is the approach that the magazine takes to portray the athletes. They are super-beings that don't need anything or anybody to be successful. There are exceptions within the magazine but the majority of it portrays a message of empire.
I enjoy reading Sports Illustrated but after reading it through the mindset of the kingdom, I am going to be more careful not to be fooled by the messages of the empire within the pictures and words of the magazine. It's amazing how much empire is packed into one artifact, but obviously there is good that can come out as well, and we have to be able to discern the good out of the bad.

Rolling Stone

noreply@blogger.com (Ben Hollemans) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:47:00 +0000

Today I read one of my favorite magazines Rolling Stone; it was the newest issue with Bruce Springsteen on the cover. I find it very interesting to read about a variety of artists and entertainments and then how the public responds to them and what reviewers have to say about their work. The magazine covers politics and other issues as well. The magazine like many others has many advertisements everywhere and the artists featured in the magazine also gain publicity too. One article I read that went with what we talked about in class one day was an article dealing with the price of online music lowering in response to piracy. This tied into class well and reminded me of what Ken Heffner said about the music industry needing to change with the problem of piracy.

The magazine shows quite a bit of the empire. It glorifies artists and sets them up to easily become idols. It is not a bad thing to learn about the people that make your favorite music but this magazine provides a lot of information that we really do not need to know. It glorifies people and makes them seem greater than “normal” people. It also shares the experiences of artists and their involvement in drugs and heavy partying, which also seems glorified even if the magazine does not intend to do this. The whole magazine also tries to sell you things in the straightforward advertisements but also in the articles as well. The artists in these articles are either being praised for their work or their work is being called a little “under par.” In either case the magazine tries to make readers buy Artist’s music and see the movies that are out to see if the reviews in the magazine are accurate. The magazine also had an article about a dangerous Schizophrenia drug was marketed towards misbehaving kids and made sixteen billion dollars as well as a lot of problems for the kids taking the pill. So the magazine addresses some tough issues dealing with the evil of the empire as well.

Joyful blindness

noreply@blogger.com (Sandra Chang) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:33:00 +0000

On Tuesday 20th, I went to see the Blind Boys of Alabama. I have to admit that two days before the presentations I had no idea who this Southern Gospel group was. But I knew they had won a Grammy so I went to youtube.com and listened to some of their music. I loved it! I decided to buy my ticket and go. The concert was beautiful. The Blind Boys of Alabama definitely know hot to put into music their emotions and feelings, and what is more meaningful: they know how to transmit the message and capture the audience.

While I was sitting (the first half of the concert), the first thing that assailed my mind was that the Blind Boys of Alabama are certainly blind. But in their blindness appear to be the most joyful people I have ever seen. I could actually feel that joy running all through my body. The second feeling that came into my mind was that there are thousands of things to be happy about, but most of the times we don’t see them. And yet the Blind Boys see them, and perhaps more clearly than we do. And third, this thought stuck into my mind: How are we affecting the lives of other surrounding us? What things are we doing to create an atmosphere of freedom?

I have to admit that while watching them singing I was feeling completely useless. God has given me everything I need and yet I am not even close to show the joy the Blind Boys embodied.