http://www.oddee.com/item_96543.aspx
Sometimes the signs outside of churches have sayings on them and I found this website with a few funny ones. The sayings are very creative and it's interesting what people can come up with and most of them make a lot of sense. The sayings are relevant to modern society so anyone can understand them and I think it makes anyone feel a sense of belonging when they can relate to a church in any way, particularly if they are left with a good feeling after viewing one of these signs.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Popular Belief in God
http://christiananswers.net/spotlight/movies/discernment/hollywoodandgod.html
Whoever said Jesus and God were diminishing values in America were far off. I just read this brief commentary about Ray Comfort's book, "What Hollywood Believes". It seems like the media (broadcast news channels or magazines like Times and Newsweek) have been promoting this upcoming belief that God should be taken out of the Pledge of Allegiance. But according to Comfort's book, 87% of Americans want to keep God in the Allegiance. That is a very high percentage so it seems obvious that the 13% who are against God in the Allegiance are the ones writing these articles for the magazines and news channels. Because the daily American watches the news or reads these magazines, it's starting to seem like this rejection of God is a popular belief when really it's only because we are getting our news from that 13%!!!
What Comfort's book is mainly about is how Hollywood's views on God/Jesus make it seem like the whole country feels the same way because 45% of Hollywood does not have religious affiliation but that is nothing compared to the 4% of the entire American population. 45% may be a weighty percentage for one city but compared to the percentage of the whole country, it's minuscule. Perhaps that 4% comes from Hollywood. But Comfort explains that most of the country has religious affiliation, and the three biggest religions in America (Christianity, Judaism, and Islam) all believe in the same God. Perhaps 96% of the population does not feel the requirement of removing God from the Allegiance since they all believe in God. Does that 4% really feel so strongly about removing God from the Allegiance or do particular people writing in the media blow it out of proportion and start brainwashing people into thinking this is the popular belief just to stir up controversy?
Whoever said Jesus and God were diminishing values in America were far off. I just read this brief commentary about Ray Comfort's book, "What Hollywood Believes". It seems like the media (broadcast news channels or magazines like Times and Newsweek) have been promoting this upcoming belief that God should be taken out of the Pledge of Allegiance. But according to Comfort's book, 87% of Americans want to keep God in the Allegiance. That is a very high percentage so it seems obvious that the 13% who are against God in the Allegiance are the ones writing these articles for the magazines and news channels. Because the daily American watches the news or reads these magazines, it's starting to seem like this rejection of God is a popular belief when really it's only because we are getting our news from that 13%!!!
What Comfort's book is mainly about is how Hollywood's views on God/Jesus make it seem like the whole country feels the same way because 45% of Hollywood does not have religious affiliation but that is nothing compared to the 4% of the entire American population. 45% may be a weighty percentage for one city but compared to the percentage of the whole country, it's minuscule. Perhaps that 4% comes from Hollywood. But Comfort explains that most of the country has religious affiliation, and the three biggest religions in America (Christianity, Judaism, and Islam) all believe in the same God. Perhaps 96% of the population does not feel the requirement of removing God from the Allegiance since they all believe in God. Does that 4% really feel so strongly about removing God from the Allegiance or do particular people writing in the media blow it out of proportion and start brainwashing people into thinking this is the popular belief just to stir up controversy?
Christian movie reviewer
http://www.christiananswers.net/spotlight/movies/pre2000/i-fearloathing.html
Okay I just had to laugh. I didn't mean to but it just happened after I read this review from a Christian perspective (whoever reviewed this movie was a hard-core Christian), and I think it was a guy who did the reviewing. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is one of my favourite movies and I'm a Christian who has gone to Catholic school my whole life. For this reviewer, he pretty much damned this movie to hell by complaining that it promoted drug culture, has sexually-explicit material (fyi there are NO sex scenes in this movie only small amount of dialogue that could MAYbe be alluded to sex). This reviewer waited this whole movie to witness something moral or redeeming. Hello, Fear & Loathing is pretty much a documentary on the drug culture of the 60s & 70s and the whole movie should be interpreted as "look how awful drugs affect you" because both Dr. Gonzo (Benecio Del Toro) and Raoul Duke (Johnny Depp) are so badly beat and burned by drugs by the end of the movie. That should be moral and redeeming enough?!
Maybe this is the problem with strict Christians and their views on what they see in the media, be it movies, music, headlines in the news. Sometimes die-hard Christians, like the one I'm complaining about, are too close-minded to think for themselves. What happened in the 60s & 70s is a part of American culture and we cannot reject it, we have to learn from it. Also, we cannot be searching for morality and Jesus-related material in a movie about DRUGS! I don't even know what this Christian person was expecting! Maybe they should remember that at the same time that scenes like Fear & Loathing were happening, there were also hippies promoting Jesus. Perhaps this Christian should have watched Godspell instead of Fear & Loathing in order to get a better feel for the culture in the late 60s.
Okay I just had to laugh. I didn't mean to but it just happened after I read this review from a Christian perspective (whoever reviewed this movie was a hard-core Christian), and I think it was a guy who did the reviewing. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is one of my favourite movies and I'm a Christian who has gone to Catholic school my whole life. For this reviewer, he pretty much damned this movie to hell by complaining that it promoted drug culture, has sexually-explicit material (fyi there are NO sex scenes in this movie only small amount of dialogue that could MAYbe be alluded to sex). This reviewer waited this whole movie to witness something moral or redeeming. Hello, Fear & Loathing is pretty much a documentary on the drug culture of the 60s & 70s and the whole movie should be interpreted as "look how awful drugs affect you" because both Dr. Gonzo (Benecio Del Toro) and Raoul Duke (Johnny Depp) are so badly beat and burned by drugs by the end of the movie. That should be moral and redeeming enough?!
Maybe this is the problem with strict Christians and their views on what they see in the media, be it movies, music, headlines in the news. Sometimes die-hard Christians, like the one I'm complaining about, are too close-minded to think for themselves. What happened in the 60s & 70s is a part of American culture and we cannot reject it, we have to learn from it. Also, we cannot be searching for morality and Jesus-related material in a movie about DRUGS! I don't even know what this Christian person was expecting! Maybe they should remember that at the same time that scenes like Fear & Loathing were happening, there were also hippies promoting Jesus. Perhaps this Christian should have watched Godspell instead of Fear & Loathing in order to get a better feel for the culture in the late 60s.
Jesus freaks
After reading the Prothero book and the section on "Jesus freaks" I looked for an excerpt from the movie Godspell that showed how the hippies of the late 60s to early 70s tried to make following Jesus the in-thing to be doing. What is interesting about the Jesus movement was that the Jesus freaks were trying to turn the acid frenzy of the late 60s, being high on drugs, into being high on Jesus as the cool thing. The movie Godspell shows kids dressed sort of how hippies would dress, the average look of that time, and instead of promoting the acid, heroin, and marijuana they wanted to show how following Jesus Christ would be more rewarding than drugs.
In the clip I have from the movie Godspell, the song is about following Jesus and the actors are shown throwing off their shoes, throwing out their material possessions and having fun in a fountain with an angel statue. Now I'm not 100% sure because I wasn't around in the 60s-70s but I believe what hippies were about at that time was being mellow and carefree, some wouldn't wear shoes, they wore loose clothing and their hair was often long and unkempt. Well similarly, Jesus was mellow and carefree set on living simply and just spreading the Word in a calm way. I wonder if Godspell and other Jesus freaks of the time were trying to show this connection between the drug hippies and the Jesus freaks (hippies). Maybe they weren't so different after all, only with what they were using to get high on. That's just an idea.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9viyJB8a7GQ
In the clip I have from the movie Godspell, the song is about following Jesus and the actors are shown throwing off their shoes, throwing out their material possessions and having fun in a fountain with an angel statue. Now I'm not 100% sure because I wasn't around in the 60s-70s but I believe what hippies were about at that time was being mellow and carefree, some wouldn't wear shoes, they wore loose clothing and their hair was often long and unkempt. Well similarly, Jesus was mellow and carefree set on living simply and just spreading the Word in a calm way. I wonder if Godspell and other Jesus freaks of the time were trying to show this connection between the drug hippies and the Jesus freaks (hippies). Maybe they weren't so different after all, only with what they were using to get high on. That's just an idea.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9viyJB8a7GQ
Monday, June 15, 2009
Buddy Christ
I really love this picture. It has an appearance in the film Dogma, which is a parody on the Catholic Church. I've only read a brief synopsis on Dogma but it apparently provoked protests and was considered controversial because of its content. I'm pretty open on seeing what other people come up with when trying to be satirical about Jesus Christ or the Church's teachings so I am interested in the movie, doesn't mean I have to agree with it.
I like this interpretation of Jesus Christ in the picture here. The goal the creators of this Jesus were trying to do was show Jesus as your friend or buddy, someone to relate to at least. I think the creators did a good job with this Jesus Christ and I like the way Jesus is represented. With the picture in the post before this one, the creators interpreted Jesus in a mobster or hit man kind of look, but this Buddy Christ looks cool, friendly and modern. Some people are all in heat over "changes" or "modifications" about Jesus Christ since the time of the Bible, but I think modernizing Jesus Christ makes it easier for new believers, ESPECIALLY children and teenagers. I believe that was actually a goal for the prior pope John Paul II. I think making Jesus a friendly appearing guy can bring better feelings about him. Even though his biblical fashions were friendly enough, I think making this Buddy Christ can really reach a broader clientele.
Here is the scene in Dogma with Buddy Christ. It is also interesting what the "cardinal" says too. Now I'm not sure how much I agree with him on "retiring the crucifix" but he makes some good points.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BEZaPN8gUY
Jesus picture
I wanted to comment on this picture because I think it expresses a personal representation of Jesus Christ. I found this while surfing the web. I will not judge anyone who wants to interpret Jesus Christ in their own way because I think it's interesting to see different views about how others think Jesus is or was or would be if he were here on Earth.
This artist is conveying Jesus as first of all, a fighter of some sort. I'm not sure if this representation was supposed to be derogatory, like perhaps the artist thinks of Jesus as a killer but on the other hand maybe they think Jesus is a protector. The cigar and sunglasses make Jesus look more like a mobster or a hit man. I google'd more about the words written on either side of Jesus' head and it seems to be a popular religious phrase, although I am unsure because I could not find a source to the phrase. This is actually not the original painting. The original is the one above the gun one and obviously the artist photocopied in the gun, cigar, and sunglasses. I chose this picture because it displays how someone sees Jesus, in whatever sense this picture is showing whether it is bad or good.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kax-zAJxi-U
I found this video while searching on youtube. The man, I will call him by his username: Shockofgod, is a Christian and I saw a few of his youtube videos discussing his views on Jesus Christ regarding atheists and the gospels. He does not bash atheists but rather questions their beliefs and views in a constructively criticizing way. After posting his videos Shockofgod receives very vicious hate mail from anti-Christians, which he makes note of in this video. I think this is a good example of the media and Jesus Christ. Not necessarily in a sense that the media is misconstruing the image of Jesus Christ, I am trying to show how someone retaliates to someone else's beliefs, through the use of the media, or videos posted on the internet for public view. Shockofgod says he receives hate mail that calls Jesus Christ derogatory names, and he is obviously hurt by it. What's more is that Shockofgod does not hurtfully criticize other beliefs he simply questions them because he wants to understand. Doesn't everyone question people's beliefs all the time? Are they always so incredibly hurtful and personally attacking? Or is it because of our subject: Jesus Christ and the Bible.
It seems non-believers are quick to attack Shockofgod for his beliefs of Jesus Christ and his questions of other faiths. I think perhaps the media assumes Jesus Christ is a figure for open deragatory and careless discussion. Obviously non-believers would not care but if they want respect for their own beliefs they cannot be viciously criticizing others' beliefs. The world would be a whole lot more peaceful if we would accept our differences. Shockofgod made this video I chose to put on here in response to the hate mail he received for his videos. What was interesting that Shockofgod added were some lines from The Beatitudes. The lines he chose were directly reflecting his own problem with non-believers (or just mean people) persecuting him for his thoughts and/or beliefs. Even with the hate mail, Shockofgod sticks by his beliefs and that is how Jesus Christ lived, and died for that matter, died for what he believed in and passively tried to get the world to believe in.
I found this video while searching on youtube. The man, I will call him by his username: Shockofgod, is a Christian and I saw a few of his youtube videos discussing his views on Jesus Christ regarding atheists and the gospels. He does not bash atheists but rather questions their beliefs and views in a constructively criticizing way. After posting his videos Shockofgod receives very vicious hate mail from anti-Christians, which he makes note of in this video. I think this is a good example of the media and Jesus Christ. Not necessarily in a sense that the media is misconstruing the image of Jesus Christ, I am trying to show how someone retaliates to someone else's beliefs, through the use of the media, or videos posted on the internet for public view. Shockofgod says he receives hate mail that calls Jesus Christ derogatory names, and he is obviously hurt by it. What's more is that Shockofgod does not hurtfully criticize other beliefs he simply questions them because he wants to understand. Doesn't everyone question people's beliefs all the time? Are they always so incredibly hurtful and personally attacking? Or is it because of our subject: Jesus Christ and the Bible.
It seems non-believers are quick to attack Shockofgod for his beliefs of Jesus Christ and his questions of other faiths. I think perhaps the media assumes Jesus Christ is a figure for open deragatory and careless discussion. Obviously non-believers would not care but if they want respect for their own beliefs they cannot be viciously criticizing others' beliefs. The world would be a whole lot more peaceful if we would accept our differences. Shockofgod made this video I chose to put on here in response to the hate mail he received for his videos. What was interesting that Shockofgod added were some lines from The Beatitudes. The lines he chose were directly reflecting his own problem with non-believers (or just mean people) persecuting him for his thoughts and/or beliefs. Even with the hate mail, Shockofgod sticks by his beliefs and that is how Jesus Christ lived, and died for that matter, died for what he believed in and passively tried to get the world to believe in.
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