Church Art

Jesus painting 1, a photo by In Shaw on Flickr.

A few years ago I helped my aunt photograph an event at a Baptist church basement with the ugliest black Jesus I have ever set eyes on.
For a funeral I attended another black Baptist church. I noticed in the sanctuary and in the basement several art pieces by the same artist. Much better than ugly Jesus mural. As you can see above the artist uses contemporary Afr.Amer. faces and hair styles to portray 1st century jews. He does faces quite well. Hands, not so much. The Help (my husband) remarked in this painting the artist tried to show the waves of water.
This was some of the best, non mass made, African American religious art that I've seen inside a black chruch. The best was in a college Catholic Church (more Latino than anything), in the vestible of the St. Augustine Catholic church in Gainesville, FL. The piece was of St. Augustine, though dark skinned had northern African features.
Anyway it is good when churches are a place to experience the arts, besides music.

Weird dream stuff, probably about work

Without getting detailed, I had a dream last night and I think it was about a problem I have a work. My conclusion is that I should take on the theology of a bumper sticker, to let go and let G-d.

The dream I was the best man (person) of a crafty-diy lesbian wedding at a British Anglican Church. The couple was busy being giddy and I, was not too thrilled with my position, but I had a job and I was going to do it. I had to make a decision about whether or not to buy a bottle of wine for twenty pounds (that's how I know I was in Britian, though no one had an English accent) or forty, knowing that I'd have to eat the cost. And there were other issues in order to get the whole thing going that the couple were too busy to answer. But I had a job and I do care about doing a good job.

Same thing at work. There is a project about something I did't care about and whenever it is done I'll forget all about. However the organization and cataloguing, I thought I found a good solution to, but my boss doesn't like it and thinks it looks too complicated. I think the other system proposed creates more complication down the road. My idea isn't getting much traction with the decision makers, so after tomorrow I'm letting go of my idea. Take it, reject it, whatever I'm done giving any emotional and mental energy to something I honestly don't care about. But I care about doing a good job. And I'll just do as directed, once direction comes forth.

Until then I'm going to do self-directed projects on stuff I do give a d@mned about.

Psalms for 2012

In 2012 we are going to try to do more reading of psalms like it was done in the house that the Help left before joining me here in DC. After dinner the head of the house would read a chapter from the book of Psalms, if enough household (family and boarders) members were around. So far in 2011 we've been haphazard. When we do read, it is two readings. One from the New King James, read by the Help, and me following with a 'dramatic reading' of the same chapter from the Message.
To any who read this may the Lord bless and keep you in 2012 and beyond.

Christmas- Advent and humbug

The decor is all the Help's work.

But I did chose the color of the ribbon he used.
Help: Don't we have any red ribbon?
Me: Purple and pink are perfectly fine advent colors.
Help: Should I go out and buy some red ribbon?
Me: No. It's Advent dammit, use the purple and pink. When we hit Christmas season you can put up all the red you want. Besides the red ribbon I have isn't for the outdoors.

Commerically the Christmas season started sometime in October. That's when I started seeing x-mas crap in Home Depot and some stores. Prior to Thanksgiving, I'd scream at the TV when a commerical for "holiday" shopping came up, "Not even Halloween/Thanksgiving yet!" Now that we are in the commercial Christmas season, my nod has been to online stores. Spiritually, it's Advent. What do I do during Advent? I dunno. It didn't really stick that well when I was an Episcopalian, and as a Catholic, I sort of acknowledge the season, with the two colors that dominate my ribbon collection. And sing Christmas songs....

MST3K for the Christian Movies

This weekend the Help and I snuggled up with some Netflix movies that have been sitting on top of the DVD player, one being a film, No Greater Love. It's one of those Christian faith-based, faith inspired movies with seriously uneven acting and poor character development. This is one of three point five Christian films we've seen in the past year. Two I had seen before but wanted to share with my new husband. Being home, I and sometimes we, like to loudly add our own commentary to the films, regardless if they are big budget Hollywood, mid budget Bollywood, or I'm not sure what the heck your budget was movies. Christian movies, that strongly wish to spread the gospel about our lord and savior, get the same critical treatment.
What really bugged us for No Greater Love were the male Christians. When the main character, an agnostic man trying to get his long lost now-Christian wife back, was arguing with the pastor of her church, the pastor kept smiling. It just seemed weird. The old friend of the main character, who attended the same church as the long lost wife and the pastor, had this goofy look on his face most of the time. Except for one scene where the guy bothered acting. We know the look was to show how happy and wonderful it was having Christ in his life, but really, REALLY? Don't get me started on the character development of the women in these films. One word, doormat.
The exception to the woman as doormat was in Faith Like Potatoes. Slightly uneven acting there too, but let's say the non-actor types weren't pushed 10 miles before their abilities as the American Christian films were. Faith Like Potatoes, is based on a real life South African white farmer, who comes to Christ after failing on one farm and starting up another. His wife expresses her fears and doubts and just doesn't let things just happen to her.
Third film starred Kirk Cameron, in Fireproof. Acting talent ranged from good (Cameron), to regional theater not bad, to answered the announcement at church for parts in the production. I'm sorry poor acting bugs me and is distracting. The story is good and the development for Mr. Cameron's character was good and showed beliveable transformation, but everyone else, a little flat.
The .5 movie in the bunch we watched this year was a short film, produced by some church out west about the story of Hosea. I can't remember the name of the film but it stars a woman, who used to be in the adult film industry before she found Christ. Loosely based on the Bible about the prophet Hosea, it is about a preacher who marries a former stripper. Seriously uneven acting, but unlike the other films the main actor isn't the best actor.
Maybe it is a rule somewhere that religious movie productions must have uneven acting. I once came across a Hindi movie/ tv show (in hindi without English subtitles) and immediately could tell it was a religious themed production as it seemed they grabbed Sanj from the back of the temple to play the monkey god.
The best Christian movies that I can think of off the top of my head is the Lord of the Ring trilogy, followed by the eight film series of Harry Potter.

Infallability- Cooking

The Help and I had a disagreement last night. It was his night to cook and he made shepherd's pie. The mash potato crust was very watery. He couldn't understand it. He followed the recipie. Well not exactly he didn't weigh the potatoes. I said maybe next time eyeball the liquid ingredients like the butter and the chicken stock. Then he got a little upset that he should have to veer away from the written word.
In our house I am the Eyeball Queen. How much salt goes in there? Idunno, I eyeball and taste. The Help wants exact measurements. Please note I don't bake, baking is not eyeball friendly.
Back to the written word.... I mentioned how on Epicurious.com people in the reviews make suggestions on tweaking the recipie presented. He did not like this at all! He wanted to know wasn't the recipie written by professionals, and if so why would it need changing? I got annoyed that he would take what was written as gospel and not bring ones own experience to the recipie as written.

Come thy fount

'Come Thy Fount of Every Blessing' was one of our wedding hymns since it means so much to me. Despite being misspelled in the wedding program.
There are the lines

Let thy goodness, like a fetter,

bind my wandering heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,

Prone to leave the God I love;
Here's my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it for Thy courts above.

I do catch myself wandering in thought and I need the Lord to reel me back in. The world is like an endless sea or the boundless space above the Earth. I am not a fish nor a space creature that can live in the vaccum of space and the thought of floating adrift in the world saddens me. I am very aware that others may find the fetters constraining and limiting if not choking. I've been adrift, with my fetters unhinged, free to sin, and the reward was pitiful. There is another part of the hymn:

Jesus sought me when a stranger,

Wandering from the fold of G-d;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

I have wandered and Jesus reeled me back in. I love my Lord, and like my relationship with my husband it has its highs and lows but regardless of its current state, I value my relationship with him.