Finally Saw "Serenity"

My husband got me the DVD of Serenity for Christmas, and now i can finally see the conclusion to the "Firefly" saga. It was a lot of fun and made me think. But, as usual, the thinking got complicated. If you've seen it, did you notice the theological undertones? The villian, a ruthless bounty hunter and agent of the government, believes that he is working to help create "a world without sin." By extension, we are led to believe that the government he represents also believes in, and is trying to create, a world without sin. Noble, but look at how the movie presents that effort:We finally discover that the race of unimaginably barbaric space raiders, known as Reavers, were the accidental by-product of the government's attempt at scientifically creating this world without sin. They had put something in the air at this one colony that was supposed to stop agression. To their horror, most of the people lost all motivation for everything, stopped working, talking, eating, and essentially just laid down and died. The rest of the colonists had the opposite reaction, turning into a band of cannibalistic, self-mutilating, brutal and unrestrained marauders - the reavers.

The antagonist/Governement agent's task is to stop the crew of the Serenity before they discover this fact. The movie implies that attempts to create a perfect world can only result in more harm, and that some level of agression is necessary for a healthy life/society. The hero of the film is Serenity's captain, who openly admits that he favors "all 7" sins and states, "I mean to misbehave." All of this is within the context of fighting for truth and self-preservation, and i am sympathetic to his battles against a corrupt government. But what does this say about the nature of good and evil? Must doing the higher good always be accomplished through sin and lawlessness? Must the pursuit of a better society always be futile? Can a "world without sin" only be achieved through totalitarian governments, the destruction of all who stand in the way, and biological experimentation?

It is as if we are truly ignorant of the possibility that the world could be changed by our self-sacrifice rather than our violence.

Cut my hair!!!!

Ok, let me say up front that simple everyday things have a tendency to take on huge significance for me. I got my hair cut today, and yes, it is a big deal.

For those who know me, you already know why. I've had long hair for a decade now and never done much with it. It's been straight and as plain as a blank canvas. And, like a blank canvas, everyone keeps wanting to do things with it :) But today i finally decided to have it cut and layered.

Normally, that's just a huge adjustment for a girl. For me, it's also an opportunity to wonder about the meaning of hair. Why did God give us hair? I remember thinking as a kid that it was really cool of God to give us a part of our body that is so easily customizable. Nearly everyone sees their hair as an opportunity to express themselves or create a certain aesthetic style.

But we're really never told this. What if we're really supposed to leave it alone? What if we're not supposed to alter it (just like some people think you shouldn't alter your skin with tatoos and probably most people think you shouldn't cut off appendages for the fun of it)? I'm pretty sure messing with your hair is ok, but i do wonder a little sometimes.

So anyway, i've done it. I've gone from an extremely plain style that was actually quite unique, to more "updated" style that i fear is just like everyone else. Of course, walking around the mall afterwards, i found very few people with hair similar to mine. I don't think i've just conformed, but I have wondered today.

At the very least, it really stays out of the way better now. So maybe in one decision i've managed to become more feminine and more practical all at once :)

Saw Narnia . . .

Just today we finally got to see the Chronicles of Narnia movie. It was really good. Not quite Lord of the Rings, but still really encouraging. I am so thrilled the movie industry is cranking out more of these good epics.

Recently i was reading something about Feminist Bible interpretation and this lady was saying she always loved the Chronicles of Narnia books until a friend pointed out to her that the girls didn't get to fight. Ever since then, she's felt kind of disenfranchised by the novels. It's like she feels like, as a woman, she's not able to be a full citizen of Narnia, or something like that.

But after watching the movie, i really don't feel the same way. The girls didn't really fight (Susan does shoot someone), but they get to see. The girls were the ones who spent time with Aslan before he was killed, and the only ones who witnessed his resurrection. Little lucy is given the power to heal, and is a flawless model of virtue throughought the story. I don't remember enough about the books to swear that these aspects of the film existed in the books themselves. But Susan and Lucy are just as much citizens and royalty of Narnia as the boys. Their role is different, but just as vital and visible. If anyone recieved less honor, it would have been Edmund. All that to say - i didn't notice any real patriarchalism in the film. And it is worth going to see, if only to encourage the movie industry to put out more films like these.

P. S. Happy Honda Days????

Continuing my thoughts about the emptiness of Christmas, does it shock anyone else that we have carolers singing "We wish you a happy Honda Day" on TV? I suppose this isn't really that bad. Advertisers make a career out of taking something we already have and re-shaping it to serve their product. RRRGh! there it is again!! (the tv is on in another room)

It's just amazing that "holy days" went to "holidays" to "Honda days." We went from sacred, to sentimental, to purely material.

I'm not really trying to get on to Honda. It's not really that bad that they should run a sale over Christmas and call it Honda days. But it just drives me nuts to see something so holy so emptied of its holiness and forced into the service of business.

Christmas without Jesus isn't just bad - it's boring!

One thing i've noticed this christmas season is that there are only so many different ways you can sing "there's no place like home for the holidays" and "jingle bells." I've heard some of these songs over and over again, almost to the point of being sick of them, and a remarkable dearth of the tradititional Christmas carols. Our church's play practice has kept me out of morning worship this month, too, so i haven't even been able to hear them much in Church. I know it sounds like a cliche' but Christmas without Jesus really feels empty. I pulled out some hymnals the other day and just started reading through the Christmas carols. There is some rich theology and beautiful imagery in them that i've really missed.

When we can't talk about Jesus, everyone knows that Christmas is supposed to be special, but it's like there's this huge black hole where the "why" ought to be. Why do we take a whole month to celebrate love and giving? Umm, because we need to sometime? No wonder people are starting to wonder if Christmas is worth all the effort.