Well, it's my last quarter, and I graduate in June! Woohoo! But, in the meantime, I'm gonna be reaallly busy with my last two classes and presenting a paper at the NW AAR conference in a couple weeks. Keep me in your prayers! Anyway, just thought I'd post a little blurb I recently wrote on the message board for my New Testament class:
I think our culture is struggling to live somewhere between "modernism" and "postmodernism." We're trying to have our cake and eat it too. We still want "proof" when it comes to believing what people tell us, but we want the individual freedom to pursue our own agendas in a manner that is very subjective and experiential. But the Gospel, I think, cuts against both: We will never have enough "proof", we must have faith, and that faith is never meant to be just an individual faith, but the faith of a community. In spite of our culture, I think that the Christian community must continue holding onto the pronouncement of Jesus as Lord, and trust that the transformative power of the Gospel is what really changes people, not "proof," whether rational or experiential. Of course, how that might look practically... I'm not entirely sure. The Gospel should clearly impact the way we live, and treat other people.
Thoughts?
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
new music I'm excited about...
So, haven't done this in a while... here are some new CDs I've been enjoying - and YES, I still buy CDs. I haven't gotten into the whole 'just download everything' phase yet. And, hopefully, if artists keep releasing cool packaging, I won't ever have to. But... the way the industry is going, it looks less and less likely. Anyway, here we go.
Punch Brothers - Punch (File Under: Experimental Bluegrass. Never was a big fan of Nickel Creek, but this new CD featuring former member Chris Thile is just phenomenal. It's like a classical composition for bluegrass instruments, and that doesn't even begin to capture the beauty and complexity of the music.)
Ministry - The Last Sucker (File Under: Industrial Metal. Al Jourgenson is one of the founding fathers of industrial rock, and this is the last official Ministry CD. It's been a long time since "Thieves" and "N.W.O.", and it's nice to see Ministry end on a good note... er... noise.)
Meshuggah - Obzen (File Under: Technical Death Metal. This band is just amazingly freaking heavy. And amazingly freaking talented. And in large doses, will probably damage your brain. Not for the faint of heart.)
Once - Music from the Motion Picture (File Under: Sad, Pretty Irish Indie Pop. Yeah, it's not brand new, and yeah, everybody and their brother loves the film and music now, but still... I can't get over how great these songs are. And sad. And pretty. I love me some melancholy.)
Next week... NEW PORTISHEAD!
Punch Brothers - Punch (File Under: Experimental Bluegrass. Never was a big fan of Nickel Creek, but this new CD featuring former member Chris Thile is just phenomenal. It's like a classical composition for bluegrass instruments, and that doesn't even begin to capture the beauty and complexity of the music.)
Ministry - The Last Sucker (File Under: Industrial Metal. Al Jourgenson is one of the founding fathers of industrial rock, and this is the last official Ministry CD. It's been a long time since "Thieves" and "N.W.O.", and it's nice to see Ministry end on a good note... er... noise.)
Meshuggah - Obzen (File Under: Technical Death Metal. This band is just amazingly freaking heavy. And amazingly freaking talented. And in large doses, will probably damage your brain. Not for the faint of heart.)
Once - Music from the Motion Picture (File Under: Sad, Pretty Irish Indie Pop. Yeah, it's not brand new, and yeah, everybody and their brother loves the film and music now, but still... I can't get over how great these songs are. And sad. And pretty. I love me some melancholy.)
Next week... NEW PORTISHEAD!
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