Lizzie Kamp: January Series

This past Tuesday, I listened to the January Series by Immaculee Ilibagiza. She was a victim of the Rwandan Genocide, and had an amazing story to tell. For three months, she was hiding in a very small bathroom with 6 other women. If they were found, they would have been killed just because they were from a certain tribe. They could not talk, move, or flush the toilet. They were barely given food to eat, and all they could do was stand still and pray not to be found. She lost 60 pounds over the three months, and mentioned that the bathroom became roomier throughout the time because the bodies of the women were like skeletons. She shared with us her testimony about forgiveness.

This story shows the opposite of human purpose. We as humans are supposed to move around and interact with one another. We are supposed to form relationships and love one another. Immaculee was trapped for three months, in which she did not say a single word or move at all. Also, she was full of hatred for those who killed her family and were trying to kill her.

This story also shows a lot about evil and redemption. The Rwandan Genocide was full of evil. One tribe was out to kill another, with no mercy. Men, women, and children were murdered ruthlessly for no reason. However, Immaculee shared her story of redemption. After many struggles, she was able to forgive those who were against her. One verse that she remembered was “Forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Jesus said this when he was on the cross, and this verse changed her life.

This artifact shows that the empire can be extremely evil. The tribe that was out to kill had control of the government and the military. They ruled Rwanda and evil spread throughout the country. However, through the faith and forgiveness of Immaculee, the Kingdom of God was shown. As she spoke, she mentioned how much she was in prayer and how much she reflected on scripture. It struck me that in the end she was able to forgive and move on with her life. She is so happy to be alive and to be able to talk and interact with people. Her testimony is very powerful and it was inspiring to hear her speak.

Discussion Questions:

1. How has the forgiveness of Immaculee inspired you? Are you quicker to forgive others, just as Christ would?

2. If your family was killed, would you truly be able to forgive the murderers?

Ordinary activists

Great job on the ordinary activists presentations today! A lot of you mentioned web sites for folks, so I thought I'd gather all of the links in one place so you can explore more if you're interested.

Matt Flannery & Jessica Jackley

• Kiva - Microlending web site

Tala Strauss

• Brown Dress Project - Tala's inspiration for her own dress project
• The Dress Project - An article about Tala's project at Curator Magazine

Erin Tuttle

• Interview with Erin - Eat Well Food Tour
• Erin's blog

Bill Boerman-Cornell

• Bill's contributions to catapult magazine
• Bill's profile for Trinity Christian College

Shane Claiborne

• the simple way - Shane's community in Philly
• The Irresistible Revolution by Shane

Laryn & Janel Kragt Bakker

• Laryn and Janel's web site
• Clutching Dust and Stars by Laryn

Jennie Nichols

• Venture Imports - Fair Trade company

Jr Chiahanam Kanu

• Solving Africa - Building a new Africa

Check out these links for more information about all of these wonderful folks!

HIMYM - Cultural Artifact

How I Met Your Mother is a comedy about "a love story in reverse." The main character, Ted Mosby is determined to find his "the one" after his two best friends since college, Marshall Eriksen and Lily Aldrin, get engaged. Ted meets Robin Scherbatsky at McClaren's (the bar the TV show mainly takes place in - like the Central Perk of Friends) and believes her to be "the one" but destiny has something different in mind. Lastly, the womanizer character Barney Stinson, completely disagrees with Ted's goal of finding his perfect woman and wants to keep Ted single so that they could be each other's wingman and have many one night stands.

In the episode "Showdown", Barney fulfills his lifelong dream of appearing on The Price is Right to meet his father, Bob Barker. The reason he believed that all his life (and continues to believe) is because when he was a child and he asked his mother who his father was, his mother just point

ed at the TV and said "that guy." Barney practiced so that he would be able to get the exact price of every item correct and end up on the showcase showdown so that he could confront Bob Barker about being his son. However, at the end, Barney does not tell Bob Barker he is his son because he says, "If you've lived your whole life thinking one thing, it would be pretty devastating to find out that wasn't true." (He was actually referring to Bob Barker.)

Through this episode, it was obvious about how us humans choose to believe what we want to believe. Also, even though these five characters are the best of friends, the other four do not say anything about how Bob Barker could not be Barney's father, because they don't want to ruin anything for him. This reveals the blindness of the empire and how the empire blinds us.

Discussion Questions:

1. In what ways are we blinded by the contents of the empire?

2. Do we ever refrain from promoting the Kingdom of God to prevent hurting friendships/relationships?

There Will Be Blood (2007)

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

There Will Be Blood explores the ambitions and methods of a 1900’s Oil Man, Daniel Plainview. Formerly a mineral prospector, Plainview comes into contact with a whole “ocean of oil under [his] feet” after a young man, Paul Sunday, convinces him that Little Boston has oil sitting on top of the soil. The dream becomes a reality and Plainview promises Paul’s twin brother Eli a new church in exchange for the land rights of the town and surrounding areas. Within the frame work of the film, Plainview is baptized in order to create a pipe-line, H.W., Plainview’s only ‘son’, looses all hearing, and Eli commands the hearts and minds of Little Boston.


The two main characters (Eli and Plainview) of There Will Be Blood seem to be unredeemable. Through his cynicism and, even, hatred towards humanity, Daniel Plainview becomes the poster boy for Darwinism and The Empire. Eli Sunday, the pastor of an unconditionally devoted church uses properties of the Apocalypse to enthrall and build a congregation whose behaviors scream ‘cult’.


To Daniel Plainview, money is power and the means to gain wealth overpower family and religion. The oil man lies and bargains his way into the land of the unsuspecting people only to take all the resources and abandon his promises. Even the young son of a deceased worker becomes a way to show his ‘family side’ to future prospects. That son, H.W., a young boy, who he truly cares for, yet cannot let himself love because: “I have a competition in me, I want no one else to succeed.” (His son grows up and builds a rival oil business in Mexico) Plainview tears down his son and lives alone in his old age with all the wealth he has accumulated.


Eli Sunday, while using the Apocalyptic concept talked about in class, sought to destroy the will and ‘sucker punch’ people who he believes are a threat. This can be seen during the Baptism of Daniel Plainview. While the oil man only agreed to join the church to expand his wealth, Eli physically and mentally breaks his down in a grand show. Plainview is ordered to shout to the heavens the he is a Sinner and the He has abandoned his son. While both to varying extents were true, the show only gave the congregation more fuel to live burn a religious fire and brimstone.


There is so much in this Film...watch it ^.^


1. What other examples of oil can be found in today’s current society? Oil for certain is still highly prized but what has taken its place as an idol.

2. How can religious fervor become a ‘feel good drug’? Has it?

3. In the film, the pastor uses the oil money to create a new church. Does the means out way the outcome?

Mall Post

My visit to woodland mall was extremely fascinating, especially after seeing the film “The persuaders” last class session. I saw numerous advertisements throughout the mall in the windows of shops, on numerous bulletins, and on the sides of a variety of kiosks. In some stores, I noticed how colorful certain advertisements were and how eye-catching they could be to the average person. Other advertisements were larger and not easily missed. Others appeared to be geared towards particular groups such as women or young children. I was especially drawn towards stores that had sporting related items displayed outside of them. Since the items were so easily accessible in that I could see them up close and touch/hold them, I discovered that a variety of stores do the same thing and that people were more likely to shop at stores where they could easily access the items that they were potentially going to by. One of example of this was the Lids outlet store, where they sell hats that had a variety of professional sports teams logos on them. They had hats in the display cases on and behind the counters, but they also had them in racks outside of the store for the average person to come up and try them on. Overall, I was very impressed with the creativity of the advertisements and ads throughout the mall. I became more attentive to the diversity in the kinds of ads one encounters in a typical trip to the mall, and that it’s obvious why people are drawn more easily than they actually realize

The Matrix

The Matrix-Blog Response
The film The Matrix focuses on the journey of the main character Thomas Anderson, also known under the alias as Neo (played by Keanu Reeves). Neo’s occupation is a software programmer for a respectable computer company in the year 1999. However, he works as a computer hacker in his spare time and is obsessed with researching and understanding a phenomenon known as “the matrix”.
In the film, Laurence Fishburne (Morpheus) explains the matrix to Neo as “…the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth…that you are a slave Neo. Like everyone else, you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell, taste, or touch; A prison for your mind.” He further explains the matrix by calling it a “computer-generated dream world” where everyone is living under a singular consciousness designed to “keep us under control”.
In regards to material in the class, a special emphasis can be placed on the idea that the matrix is a world that has been pulled over our conscious minds to blind us from true reality. True reality according to the bible emphasizes the falleness of mankind and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross to redeem mankind from their fallen sinful nature and to save them from suffering an eternal punishment: Permanent, eternal separation from God. Humans often focus on material objects of the world such as monetary wealth, success, or prestige. All material things of the world can be categorized as objects of a “Matrix” type realty. According to God’s word, everything on earth is of temporary value and eventually worthless compared to the salvation that saves mankind from eternal punishment and suffering. Both examples reveal mankind’s obsession with materialistic and hedonistic lifestyles/tendencies that bring about the “Matrix” type reality.
In another scene, Morpheus has journeyed into the Matrix with Neo for the first time and they visit the “real world”. This “real world” has been virtually destroyed as a result of technology, or the “machines”. The “machines” became fully functional and independent of human control as a result of A-I, or artificial intelligence. A few concepts from class exist in this scene: Elements of Modernism. 1) Belief that technology can overcome creation-humans apparently developed technology to the point where it overcame humanity, rather than just the elements of the Earth. 2) Belief in progress- that the gradual development of technology leads to well being, instead of mankind’s demise as the film suggests.

Mall Visit

After taking a visit to the mall and really observing things, I noticed how much advertising really affects us. As I walked through the store Kohls, I saw how almost everything said “sale” and was marked down in price. Was it really marked down in price? Or were they just saying that to get us to think its a good deal? I overheard a kid asking his mother if they could get an object of clothing. At first the mother said no, but the kid said, “Look at how much the original price is and how much we would be saving!” This shows how advertising can affect us, it has the power of persuasion. We believe almost everything we see and submit to it. After watching The Persuaders, this trip to the mall was much different for me because i noticed really how much advertising affects us.

Lizzie Kamp: Mall Visit

This weekend I went to Orland Square Mall. It was interesting to go and observe, instead of just shopping and walking around. It was an eye-opening experience to see how each store not only advertised, but sent a message to consumers. In each store, the lighting, music, scent, layout, etc. was unique. Hollister, for example, was dark with loud music and big pictures on the walls. They advertised through the decorations and the atmosphere of the store. JC Penny’s on the other hand, was well-lit with nice music and plenty of employees around to help. One thing that struck me was that it seemed like everything was on sale! There were many posters and signs hanging from the ceiling with a big “sale” or “clearance” written on them. After watching The Persuaders, I really noticed how much advertising is prevalent in the mall. After observing this and watching the video, I now pay more attention to advertising and realize more how much it affects my life.

Bike magazine is a magazine about, bikes. Each month a new issue comes to my door step and includes product reviews, pictures, interviews with pro riders, trail building tips, and trail reviews. The magazine is filled with advertisements of all types of bike related companies. This particular issue was the "Photoannual 2009"; it was mostly made up of pictures and the story behind each photo. There were phenomenal pictures of mountain bikers in the most remote locations. This artifact photographers use their skill to capture beautiful pictures of the riders and the nature surrounding the riders. One particular photo by a photographer named Sterling Lorence stood out to me. It was a black and white photo of a rider named Matt Hunter jumping through what looks to be a very thick partch of birch trees. The birch trees frame the rider perfectly, and the picture is intriguing because the takeoff and landing of the jump are hidden, so it leaves you guessing as to how rider got airborne. The riders are able to show their talent through the magnitude of jumps and style of the riding. There was a picture of what was called an “X” wall (shown above) in which riders did a wall ride that crossed paths, meaning the riders had to time and gauge their speed perfectly to avoid collision. Even the editors contribute through their poetic and intriguing words. The magazine is full of evidence of people using the gifts that God has given to them, through riding, photography and writing. However there is a downside to this magazine. The pages are littered with advertisers trying to prove that their product is better than the competitors. Many of the photos are of riders who are sponsored by specific brands, so each rider that shown influences to readers what is “cool” or what will make you ride better. The magazine constantly influences you feed into the idea of consumerism.

Trip to the Mall

In the first picture from American Eagle, it goes along with what we talked about, everything is about ME. It says to choose YOUR path. You are the center of attention and YOU are most important. YOU are in control of your life. It is all about YOU. Don't worry about anything else.

The second picture is from Bakers, a shoe store. Basically, don't think twice. There is a big sale here... so basically you have to buy it if it fits. That is the only criteria they are saying matters. If it fits- buy it. Don't let this deal pass you by!