I'm reading through a book that draws parallels between the art of the Netherlands and Italy during the Renaissance (roughly 1450 to 1550 or so). it seeks to draw a balance between "Flemish" artists and the "Floretine" artists which have gotten so much more publicity. without going into great detail--it's been an interesting read.
I'm reading a biography, art analysis of Matisse which took a fascinating detour which compared the self-portraits of Matisse in his 30s to the cognitive theory of Jacques Lacan--who theorized that infants and small children have a dim awareness of their body being a singular entity-- and something that they can control. that Matisse, as an artist, was still in his creative infancy-- and was coming into a full awareness of how to control his creative mind, and to get his body to reflexively respond to his creative will. or some such thing...
also looking into the works of Albrecht Duerer (who I've always found interesting) and Thomas Eakins.
and, on the side, I'm reading a book about the role of American journalists in WWI news coverage. it's funny to realize that some journalists were determined to purchase riding gear because up to that point a good journalist simply HAD to have a horse by which to travel quickly. but most American journalists were told "sell that junk, any respectable journalist that wants to cover the real news out here needs an automobile!" it's funny how technology changes things like that.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
(reading) Christians in the Great War
in these last few weeks--when I'm not working (which is most of the time)--I've been trying to read.
I've been reading up on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer because he interests me in several respects: he was one of the most influential theologians of the 20th Century, he grew up during WWI (an era which I'm writing a 'novel' about), and I believe that borrowing from both of these elements could help give me a useful frame work for the 'novel'.
I was hoping to see how a famous Christian and his family grappled with the Great War--and how it changed their outlook on both God and Life. it's not too surprising to learn that Bonhoeffer became a pacifist as a result of his childhood experiences during the war.
I'm also reading a book called 'the Cross and the Trenches' which details the role of military chaplains in the British and American armies during WWI. one of the more interesting details is that the British chaplains suffered less than half the casualties of their American counterparts. this is interesting because, relatively speaking, American chaplains were present for perhaps 20-25 percent of the time that British Anglican chaplains were... and it was the Anglican chaplains that were singled out by soldiers as being particularly loathesome in their avoidance of combat and 'shirking' soldierly duties.
I was reading about one especially popular chaplain in the English army named Evers--who's full name appears to have been Mervyn S Evers who served as chaplain for the 9th Service Battalion of the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. interestingly enough, this appears to have been the same regiment (different battalion, the 13th) that J. R. R. Tolkien served in.
unlike most chaplains he stayed with this battalion during the entirety of the war. the only time he was seperated was on account of injuries or being sent to HQ for special duties.
he was, in spite of his conservative upbringing, a very enthusiastic preacher who "threw my whole heart and soul into it". he apparently adhered/aspired to a 'clean manly' versin of Christianity and was a self-proclaimed "Evangelica" who felt that "any religion worth having must be personal and there must be a commitment to Jesus Christ as one's personal Lord, Saviour and Friend."
"if you're going to get your point across, you've got to establish a relationship of friendship and once you've done that then whatever your message may be it takes a line not 'holier than thou,' but rather, 'I've found this real hope to me, personally, spiritually, and I've passed it on to you.'"
the fact that he was able to get 200 troops to participate in Holy Communion at a given time was pretty remarkable. a battallion varies (depending on time and place) between 500-1,500 men.
another interesting quote
"well, of course, the Army Authority was completely stupid. They said that the proper place for chaplains was behind the line... I lived with the Regiment. I slept with the M.O in the dugout... and when it came to an offensiv eI went over the top with the men and helped evacuate the wounded."
in one instance he carried (but did not fire) a machine gun into the No Man's Land to help reinforce a position, and on many occassions carried back numerous wounded.
in a seperate, but similar perspective, one British chaplain said that in order to have a bigger impact on soldiers that 'sermons should be short, real, and practical' and there needed to be 'less starch and more brotherhood'. undoubtedly Evers adhered to those basic tenants already.
he appears to have been involved in an organization called "the Christian Union"--although I can't connect that organization to anything in the present day.
I've been trying to research the role of the church in the lives of German servicemen during the Great War, but there's precious little direct information on that in the English language.
I'll delve into the art books later.
I've been reading up on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer because he interests me in several respects: he was one of the most influential theologians of the 20th Century, he grew up during WWI (an era which I'm writing a 'novel' about), and I believe that borrowing from both of these elements could help give me a useful frame work for the 'novel'.
I was hoping to see how a famous Christian and his family grappled with the Great War--and how it changed their outlook on both God and Life. it's not too surprising to learn that Bonhoeffer became a pacifist as a result of his childhood experiences during the war.
I'm also reading a book called 'the Cross and the Trenches' which details the role of military chaplains in the British and American armies during WWI. one of the more interesting details is that the British chaplains suffered less than half the casualties of their American counterparts. this is interesting because, relatively speaking, American chaplains were present for perhaps 20-25 percent of the time that British Anglican chaplains were... and it was the Anglican chaplains that were singled out by soldiers as being particularly loathesome in their avoidance of combat and 'shirking' soldierly duties.
I was reading about one especially popular chaplain in the English army named Evers--who's full name appears to have been Mervyn S Evers who served as chaplain for the 9th Service Battalion of the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. interestingly enough, this appears to have been the same regiment (different battalion, the 13th) that J. R. R. Tolkien served in.
unlike most chaplains he stayed with this battalion during the entirety of the war. the only time he was seperated was on account of injuries or being sent to HQ for special duties.
he was, in spite of his conservative upbringing, a very enthusiastic preacher who "threw my whole heart and soul into it". he apparently adhered/aspired to a 'clean manly' versin of Christianity and was a self-proclaimed "Evangelica" who felt that "any religion worth having must be personal and there must be a commitment to Jesus Christ as one's personal Lord, Saviour and Friend."
"if you're going to get your point across, you've got to establish a relationship of friendship and once you've done that then whatever your message may be it takes a line not 'holier than thou,' but rather, 'I've found this real hope to me, personally, spiritually, and I've passed it on to you.'"
the fact that he was able to get 200 troops to participate in Holy Communion at a given time was pretty remarkable. a battallion varies (depending on time and place) between 500-1,500 men.
another interesting quote
"well, of course, the Army Authority was completely stupid. They said that the proper place for chaplains was behind the line... I lived with the Regiment. I slept with the M.O in the dugout... and when it came to an offensiv eI went over the top with the men and helped evacuate the wounded."
in one instance he carried (but did not fire) a machine gun into the No Man's Land to help reinforce a position, and on many occassions carried back numerous wounded.
in a seperate, but similar perspective, one British chaplain said that in order to have a bigger impact on soldiers that 'sermons should be short, real, and practical' and there needed to be 'less starch and more brotherhood'. undoubtedly Evers adhered to those basic tenants already.
he appears to have been involved in an organization called "the Christian Union"--although I can't connect that organization to anything in the present day.
I've been trying to research the role of the church in the lives of German servicemen during the Great War, but there's precious little direct information on that in the English language.
I'll delve into the art books later.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
the Game of Life
Tim, Shalome, and the girls are playing "the Game of Life". y'know, that 'Bored Game' published by Hasbro for 2 - 6 players ages 9 and up.
I've always hated that board game. even when I was a wee lad... I always felt like the game was frustrating and dull, that there were lots of annoying rules and that every obnoxious random factor. and, of course, there was the undeniable sub-text that more money, children, material resources were the key to living a worthy life.
that's it!!! the Game of Life promotes avarice and materialism! this hateful game encourages us to worship Mammon! Jesus said that you can't serve God AND money! you can only have one master... renounce the satanic and coal black heart that is created by playing this hateful Hasbro game!
Get behind me Satan! ;)
(for those of you who don't know, I'm just kidding. although I DO hate the game I don't think it's ACTUALLY from the fiery depths of Hell)
I've always hated that board game. even when I was a wee lad... I always felt like the game was frustrating and dull, that there were lots of annoying rules and that every obnoxious random factor. and, of course, there was the undeniable sub-text that more money, children, material resources were the key to living a worthy life.
that's it!!! the Game of Life promotes avarice and materialism! this hateful game encourages us to worship Mammon! Jesus said that you can't serve God AND money! you can only have one master... renounce the satanic and coal black heart that is created by playing this hateful Hasbro game!
Get behind me Satan! ;)
(for those of you who don't know, I'm just kidding. although I DO hate the game I don't think it's ACTUALLY from the fiery depths of Hell)
my first Orthodox service
for reasons that defy my comprehension I've decided to create a blogger.
I attended my first Orthodox service yesterday morning. I was generally impressed. I liked the fact that congregational worship was integrated into every aspect of the service. I liked the fact that the music was fairly easy to sing and comprehend. the Biblical text was intoned, and although a little jarring at first, didn't take THAT long to get used to. there was a nice variety of texts (from Scripture, from old prayers, and the like).
the two aspects I didn't particularly care for go as follows:
it was exceedingly long. in fact, I'd wager they picked the longest possible way to do everything in that service.
my second complaint was the utter lack of a 'sermon' or 'lecture'. perhaps this reflects my profoundy Protestant upbringing, but the lack of a sermon means that these services are not for new converts or the unitiated Christian. from what little I've seen and heard from the congregation most of these people have been life-long Christians as, to put it quite plainly, Orthodoxy is not exactly a hospitable environment for new converts of the Modern persuasion!
I would have enjoyed the service more if I had been able to look over the specific texts and music being used in that service (kinda like reading a musical score along with a live-performance or audio recording)
all in all, I enjoyed myself. I did make the effort to stand through nearly the whole thing (there was a portion where we kneeled, which was the only real exception).
the people in the congregation were friendly and gracious as I rather expected them to be. the priest(s) had a good (and dry) sense of humor that displayed itself throughout the service.
[I suppose I should have mentioned this earlier, but I had family members getting baptized at the service, so this particular occassion was probably significantly longer than usual. and, oh yes, it happened yesterday--on Saturday morning]
I attended my first Orthodox service yesterday morning. I was generally impressed. I liked the fact that congregational worship was integrated into every aspect of the service. I liked the fact that the music was fairly easy to sing and comprehend. the Biblical text was intoned, and although a little jarring at first, didn't take THAT long to get used to. there was a nice variety of texts (from Scripture, from old prayers, and the like).
the two aspects I didn't particularly care for go as follows:
it was exceedingly long. in fact, I'd wager they picked the longest possible way to do everything in that service.
my second complaint was the utter lack of a 'sermon' or 'lecture'. perhaps this reflects my profoundy Protestant upbringing, but the lack of a sermon means that these services are not for new converts or the unitiated Christian. from what little I've seen and heard from the congregation most of these people have been life-long Christians as, to put it quite plainly, Orthodoxy is not exactly a hospitable environment for new converts of the Modern persuasion!
I would have enjoyed the service more if I had been able to look over the specific texts and music being used in that service (kinda like reading a musical score along with a live-performance or audio recording)
all in all, I enjoyed myself. I did make the effort to stand through nearly the whole thing (there was a portion where we kneeled, which was the only real exception).
the people in the congregation were friendly and gracious as I rather expected them to be. the priest(s) had a good (and dry) sense of humor that displayed itself throughout the service.
[I suppose I should have mentioned this earlier, but I had family members getting baptized at the service, so this particular occassion was probably significantly longer than usual. and, oh yes, it happened yesterday--on Saturday morning]
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