January 23, 2008 • 10:50 pm
Nina and I just arrived on Sunday evening from San Francisco. We were visiting my parents after our honeymoon in Seattle and Vancouver. We learned there is a reason couples tend to vacation in sunny places. Most people dream of white Christmases not white honeymoons. But it was nonetheless wonderful and restful. Seattle had its many charms. I didn’t realize how urban it was. We had a chance to visit Mars Hill Church last Sunday. It’s one of the fastest growing churches in the country. Pastor Mark Driscoll is packing it in during his many Sunday services. His appeal is obvious: he’s hilarious (often crass) and smart. His sermon can get long (it was almost an hour!) but his humor makes it go down easy. They are definitely doing some innovative things to minister to the city of Seattle.
Vancouver was also quite cold. I wanted to wear a ski mask during our entire honeymoon, but I didn’t think Nina would appreciate that too much. It’s a really dense, diverse and urban city. It’s also beautiful with a lot of great places to eat. We also drove up to Whistler which is only an hour and a half away. It definitely made this trip. One of the most scenic places I’ve visited. Too bad we couldn’t enjoy it for very long. Nina got sick (as most brides) during the honeymoon, but overall it was a wonderful escape.
This last month has been one of the craziest times of my life. In the span of a few weeks me and my wife bought a home, hosted a new year’s party, planned a wedding, moved twice, got married in midst of a power outage, honeymooned, met with family on both sides and have finally come back to a new home filled with boxes. Our condo looked like a war-zone early this morning. But by evening’s end things seemed a lot more settled. We’ve been really grateful for the outpouring of support as we have begin our new lives together. We’ve been even more thankful for how God has wonderfully weaved everything together for our good. I’m excited to begin a new chapter with a most wonderful partner. Here’s to new beginnings…
Filed under: personal
January 21, 2008 • 4:30 pm
I recent watched two critically acclaimed movies that I’ve anticipated for the last couple months. They both revolve around similar themes and end in unconventional ways (Don’t worry I won’t spoil them). For this entry I’ll just be looking at There Will Be Blood.
There Will Be Blood was written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. I’ve loved his earlier works Boogie Nights and Punch Drunk Love. There Will Be Blood follows a similar vein from his previous work. His movies generally explore the various disillusionments of life. P.T. Anderson loves to subvert conventional narrative themes; There Will Be Blood is much of the same. It’s from one perspective about the classic American tale of religion and capitalism. It’s a sticky story about how they often clash, intermingle and ultimately reflect each other. The young “pastor” Elie is fittingly named as he’s all lies. He masquerades his greed by posing as a spirit-inspired prophet. Anderson is unabashedly critiquing the hypocrisy of spirituality that is often more carnal than spiritual.
Daniel Day Lewis plays a character named “Daniel Planeview.” He’s also fittingly named as his greed can be plainly seen. He reflects and contrasts Elie. He shares with Elie a greed and egocentric spirit. But where Elie masks his greed, Daniel wears it on his sleeve. In one sense Daniel is the more ethical of the two as he never seeks to portray himself as someone else. But the two are inextricably bound throughout the movie and will find similary destinies. Together they give us an ugly revised history of the great American pursuit.
There Will Be Blood is the kind of movie that critics love and audiences find disappointing. As with many of P.T. Anderson’s movies, there isn’t any redemption or satisfying resolution. Anderson’s movies portray the postmodern mindset that is uncomfortable with any neat endings. It revises history to include the dark underbelly of the greed within capitlaism and the hypocrisy of spirituality.
One of the problems with the movie is that it is without nuances. Both protagonists have no good qualities. Rarely will you find real people without any glimpse of sincerity. Surely there is some grace within evil and some semblance of evil within those found in grace. Anderson does understand the postmodern dilemma of seeing through the hypocrisy of spirituality and the evil of capitalism but he ultimately has no answer for it. We are left with sin exposed but not with sin redeemed.
Although the movie does disappoint on some levels it comes with some wonderful performances and some thoughtful analysis of the role of the dark sides of religion and capitalism in America.
Filed under: Movies
January 16, 2008 • 6:20 pm
For those of you who don’t know, Nina and I got married last Saturday! The marriage ceremony wasn’t without it’s hitches though. Let me recount the top three:
1. The Light Went Out
Thirty minutes before the marriage ceremony all the lights on the entire block went out. A transformer erupted in flames and firetrucks were on our block putting it out. That meant the entire ceremony was without lights and the organ. Redeeming quality: It provided a wonderful mood as we got married under the glow of candlelight.
2. I Dropped Nina’s Ring
During this ceremony I was so nervous that my hands were drenched with sweat. So when the time came to place the ring on Nina’s finger, the ring slipped out of my hand and fell on the floor! I usually have sure hands but its hard to hold something with watery hands. Redeeming quality: It provided some comic relief as Pastor James told me that I should place the ring on her finger not her toe.
3. My Crazy Uncle
I had a crazy unknown uncle who went to the front of the sanctuary to take pictures with his little digital camera. He practically disrupted the whole service and made it entirely akward. Did I also say I didn’t know this uncle too well? Redeeming quality: None.
But through all the drama the wedding service went really well. The banquet afterward was also a delight. The power came on just in time for the special song and slide show which absolutely required power. It was a beautiful, memorable wedding and banquet. Thanks for all those who made this day so special.
Nina and I are currently vacationing in beautiful Vancouver Canada. Despite the cold weather, it’s been beautiful. We’re excited to begin our lives together. We’re also eager to get home and begin our new ministry to our church and Downtown Los Angeles. See you all shortly!
Filed under: personal
January 10, 2008 • 7:54 am
A few weeks ago the City Ministry team visited the Murakami exhibit at MOCA in Little Tokyo. It was the first time I’ve been to this art space. It’s a wonderful museum with spacious gallery areas. The Murakami exhibit was really fascinating. It was a sensory overload of colors and images. Murakami characteristically blends high art with pop art. I like this aspect of modern art which blurs the lines between what is considered high and low art. Ten years ago you would never imagine comic book images in a contemporary art gallery let alone as a featured presentation. But Murakami manages to expose our subjectivity when it comes to art. He uses traditional Japanese artistry while painting non-traditional subjects. Much of his work seem to provoke reaction from the observer. He challenges our assumption that high art has to be relegated to certain subject matters as nature or people.
I think a lot of his work provides commentary on a culture of excess. His exhibit brims with a shallow happiness. One room was filled with happy faces that were in different colors and variations. You feel at once overwhelmed and crowded. The effect of this “happiness” is the opposite of its outward intent. The irony of modern life is that the media inundates us with “happy images” when we are by and large depressed. Murakami also has a lot to say about consumer culture. He actually had a room selling his famous Louis V. handbags. The genius of Murakami is that he can commentate on excess while cashing in on it himself.
The limitations of Murakami is that he can commentate on specific aspects of culture without giving us an alternative to it. This is in many ways the weakness of many postmodern artists. They can show you the shallowness of society but have a hard time pointing to that which is transcendent. The transcendent aspects of art are best exemplified by classic artists. I think Christian artists can fill the void in this postmodern landscape by showing forth artistry that shows the brokenness of society but the beauty of grace.
Filed under: Art
