Bulletin Board of the Brain

my friend kj is sharp. she is well-versed in the realms of psychology, theology and the arts. this makes her a great reviewer of books, films and theater as far as i'm concerned. i've enjoyed her recent reviews of the twilight books-turned-movies [which i havn't read or seen but whose rabbid-rappid rise to POPularity i've been intreagued by- the phenomenon of it and what that may indicate in regards to understanding ourselves as a media-consuming-culture].
part I, part II, part III.

when the same event means different things to each party involved

i don't follow sports much at all. but i always pay attention when these two countries play soccer together. the event means such different things to each side. yesterday, mexico won 2 to 1 on home turf in mexico city. the event sold-out el estadio azteca with 105,000 in the stands and many more spilling out into the streets. on the north side of things it was barely a blip on the radar. for mexico, it is honor, identity, culture and so much more. i'm not sure what it means for the states. regardless, i was happy to hear that mexico won, continuing to this day to never allow the us team to beat them in a south-of-the-boarder match.

Chris Hedges

My first introduction to Chris Hedges was in a 2008 interview in Sun Magazine. I was intreagued by his thoughts and found his insights to be both provocative and intellectual as well as spiritual and prophetic. Recently, my friend Peter lent me Hedges' popular book, War is a Force that Gives us Meaning- it's been a good, thought-provoking read. Mr. Hedges spoke at Seattle Town Hall last week on the topics of consumerism, celebrity worship and the cult of the self in America [topics I get particularly fired up by]. You can listen to it here if you like. Good stuff.

Confirmation Hearings and Hermeneutics

I have enjoyed listening to snippets of the discussion around the confirmation hearings of Sonia Sotomayor this week. One of the primary issues that has garnished a great deal of media attention has been the speculation in regards to how her personal background affects [or doesn't] her reading of the law. I find this fascinating in that it is clearly a question of hermeneutics, one that apparently affects government as much as it does the church. While obvious differences exist, they are similar struggles to interpret historical texts for current contexts. Both assume that the document is bears relevance and can speak into our context. But both often fail to keep in mind how it is that the interpreter brings context with her and thus has a lens through which the text is read. Her most famous and controversial statement was made in 2001- "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life" [source/context]. While this may or may not be true (in regards to the conclusion being "better"), Sotomayor highlights that interpretation does not occur in a vacuum: it requires wisdom, and wisdom is always acquired through experience- thus, our experience clearly shapes our wisdom. Hermeneutics is by definition a contextual art. We all have lenses, even if we fail to or are unwilling to acknowledge them.
Later, however, Sotomayor was forced to clarify/qualify that statement with the acknowledgment that while life experience shapes who one is, "ultimately and completely" a judge follows the law regardless of personal background [source/context]. Ok, sure. I can appreciate that response, because it indicates a degree of interpretive elasticity inherent in the law. But it must be noted that it is the anxiety around the loss of absolutes that drives the need for said qualifier to be offered. The same is true for the Biblical text- while meaning and truth can be found with the guidance of the Spirit in an interpretive community, the text is alive enough to speak to any context, through each of our unique lenses. This interpretation "from below" sends absolutism packing and opens theology up for contextual readings of the text.

the view from here (and there)

this is an interesting article in the economist about a study connecting one's creativity to one's having lived abroad. the research method and and testing used in the study lacks credibility but it does get the conversation going and is something i've had a hunch about for some time. in particular is the ability to see the world in more than one way, to percieve it from varying locations and be immersed in divergent perspectives (obviously, this is something that can be achieved intentionally in most cases without even leaving one's hometown). monocultural contexts often lend themselves to concrete ways of seeing things, resulting in "either/or" and dichotomistic views of the world. but the "third way" is the way of creativity and comes from being able to envision something other than the two options that have always been present. you name it, wether it's the visual arts (paul gauguin, etc), literary arts (ernest hemingway, etc) or leadership (barack obama, etc)- creativity seems to flourish in people that are able to view the world from more than one angle.

[lent]

if you are observing lent, please read todd's fantastic post on what it has been for him and his wife to enter the lenten journey under the orthodox church. todd's writting is always personaly engaging and theologically stimulating. thanks for blogging todd.

"Anticipation: There Will Be No Miracles Here"

it started off with an idea to do a series on the sabbath with the idea that we need to get out of our little boxes and into more natural rhythms. i've always been intrigued by the phenomenon of adult male dissociation, particularly as it is encouraged by our working lives, driven and exhausted. it is the expression of anti-anticipation or despair. i can't claim credit for the nifty subtitle, i got that from nathan coley's brilliant piece that came out sometime last year. anyhow, it's a simple yet disturbing series of four that i don't think i'll be adding to any time soon. it's currently on display at folktown counseling, where the therapist wisely opted to hang it in the hallway, as opposed to the room where he sits with clients. you can see individual close up's at my art website.

"Anticipation: There Will Be No Miracles Here"
India Ink Illustration on Walnut Ink Wash
Copyright: Phil Nellis, 2008