Thursday, April 10, 2008
I was researching retreat sites for this fall’s church retreat when I came across this bizarre image:
Now, apart from the obvious violation of copyright law, what is going on here? Am I supposed to be attracted to attending the conference which will make me more manly? The movie 300, as much as I like it for its entertainment value, is not exactly congruent with the goal of Christian conferences. It is a movie filled with graphic violence, sex, and primal definitions of manhood.
The line from the movie, “Tonight we dine in hell,” is referenced in the image. But it is altered to state “the cafeteria” instead of “hell.” As adept as I may be at identifying Christian symbols and allegories, I fail to see the cleverness of this reference. Are they referring to dining with God the King at the wedding banquet at the end of time? Is the speaker going to speak in a cafeteria? Is “cafeteria” a euphemism for “hell”?
At the bottom, the title of the movie is altered to “Gideon’s 300.” Ah, so this is the bibically correct reference. It alludes to Judges 7 where God chose 300 men to accompany Gideon to defeat the oppressive Midianites. Still, if you read the story, apart from the number of the soldiers, there are no other similarities. The men were chosen by God because they lapped the water scooped in their hands rather than bending down to drink. They did not actually kill anyone. They surrounded the enemy camp, blew trumpets, broke jars, and shouted “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” Then the Midianites killed each other. No kicking people into round pits of death. No decapitations and dismemberments. Clothing (implied).
I don’t see anything about dining or eating in the passage.
Conclusion: This advertisement attracts attention with its shock value but is otherwise useless. I wouldn't want to be distracted by thinking about the movie 300 while I sit there listening to a sermon. I don’t really want to associate a bloody movie with one of the triumphant moments in the Bible. Then again, the Bible sometimes is bloody and violent. Maybe the gore of 300 contrasts usefully with Gideon’s bloodless victory. Maybe Larry Walkemeyer is a really good speaker. Maybe I wasn’t supposed to think this deeply about this ad at all.
| Tags: church, random
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Thanks, Blinkdagger, for introducing me to this interesting activity. It caused me to look up the word meme on Wikipedia. Very interesting.
So, here is the list –
- I am an avid gamer. I like playing even more than my husband. I am two star-levels away from beating Super Mario Galaxy on the Wii. I’ve beaten Kameo: Elements of Power twice and recently downloaded the power pack so I can play harder levels. I love Gears of War.
- I am deathly afraid of bugs. Unless they’re really tiny, I will not kill them. I get Dave to do it.
- I grew up in Maryland. I’ve even been told I have a Maryland accent, whatever that means. It doesn’t feel like my home anymore, now that I’ve lived in California the last 10 years.
- I don’t like shopping. Let me qualify that. I don’t like shopping for clothes, shoes, jewelry, makeup…basically anything that will go on my face or body. It stresses me out to no end. On the other hand, I like shopping for food, household items, furniture, tech items, books, CD’s, and gifts.
- I will watch certain movies or movie scenes over and over. I find the weirdest things really funny and will rewind and watch them a few times until Dave says “OK, enough!” (always in Mandarin, for some reason). Some examples are: in Fellowship of the Ring when Bilbo lunges at Frodo’s ring and his face turns Gollum-like as he hisses loudly; in Bourne Identity when Jason Bourne falls down the atrium between the stairs in a tall building and breaks his fall by pulling a bad guy under himself at the last moment; in Deadwood when Al Swearengen snaps “Don’t repeat back to me what I just said in different words!”; in 24 when Jack Bauer barges up to an innocent guy opening the door to his SUV, flings him to the ground, barks “Don’t get up!” and drives off while rock music blares in the background. Movies I’ve watched 5 times or more: The Incredibles, Mean Girls, Kill Bill Vol. 2, Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind, Laputa: Castle in the Sky.
- I am a compulsive organizer, but I’m also lazy. This results in a strange state of chaos at home, mainly in the closet upstairs where I never put away the short sleeves and now I don’t need to because it’s spring again, and the dining-table-turned-work-table strewn with mail, books, magazines, and receipts. On the other hand, the kitchen cabinets, pantry, and drawers are immaculate. And every few weeks, I’ll change around the configuration of things, e.g. switch lamps or move corner tables, and I never have to consult Dave who has conceded that I am far more superior at organizing.
- I have filled over 20 journals since elementary school. From age 15 to 20, I wrote in my journal every single day before I went to sleep. Lately it’s dropped down to one entry every month or two. It used to be my main source of catharsis. Now it’s TV. (Sad.)
So there you have it. I now tag Angel, Batman, Eugenia, Joyce, Kevin and Linda, Jess, Dina, Jeremy and Sam. I re-tag Katy who was previously tagged by Blinkdagger.
| Tags: random
Friday, January 12, 2007
I always stay with my car when I gas up my car, or else lock the doors if I have to go into the store to pay. Still, this is good to be aware of:
Video of a driver getting her purse stolen while stopped at a gas station
| Tags: random