Theology through flamenco

My friend Constance Chan danced her Master's thesis at Regent recently, "Nails in the Soles of My Shoes." This gives me hope for the church.

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More than words

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I remember this image and the Benetton ad. But as the commentary suggests, the rest of the photos got lost in the controversy. The whole photo essay is worth getting through. (Have some tissues handy)

I think part of the reason these images are so powerful is Bill Kirby's everyman-ness. Just by looking at him I can guess how he grew up, what he valued, his manner of speech. And then I can imagine how all of that is either burned away or caught up in the flame of human caring, a father's love for his son.

Slide 14. If that isn't an image of simple frail humanity being the hands and feet of Jesus I don't know what is. Two men who shouldn't even know each other, let alone love each other. What can it be other than love? Father and adopted son.

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Narthex Warz

///// Okay, this started as a comment on the last post and then just became a whole new post. Here goes, it's a long one with geeky medieval architecture stuff, but its good geeky /////

Yes, Paule, that's why I was wondering about this particular narthex. Just to clarify, I wasn't out of hand dissing this narthex. I'm sure the architects thought about why things are the way they are and there's good reasons for all of those things being the way they are. What I'm wondering is what connection does it have to gothic architecture, or should? or could it?

In gothic cathedrals EVERYTHING meant something. Cathedrals existed in a preliterate culture, so the whole building was a reminder of faith and community and was usually literally at the center of the community. They were usually surrounded (like right up against the walls) by shop stalls, just a whole jumble of commerce and business and life going on. To enter the church, to cross the threshold of the church, was to leave one world and enter heaven on earth. At least that was the intent of the architects, especially high gothic. It's all about creating transcendent space. Which kind of makes sense when for your average surf life was mostly mud and dirt and physical labour. The church was a physical reminder of a reality that was pretty hard for your average surf to remember really existed. 

So a narthex, as you pointed out, is at the end of the nave. It was the threshold, the transition from the cares and hard labour of life into the cares and concerns of heaven. The narthex was the first step in conscious intentional movement. Congregants entered the cathedral from the west and moved toward the east, the direction of hope, the direction from which the sun rises. The west doors usually had intricate stone sculptures depicting various biblical stories, often with Jesus at the centre. Sort of a non-textual lesson on the tenets of the faith. They moved through the narthex to the nave, through the whole length of the nave, usually emblazoned with stained glass depictions of biblical stories, more preliterate non-textual lessons, kind of the first graphic novels ever.  Then finally to the far east of the building to the alter, where holy communion was partaken of. The church may have observed regular mass, but for the live blood of the church was a parish model. The church was always open, always a open part of life at any time for this kind of pilgrimage from west to east, out of the cares of the world and into holy communion, from the desperation to the hope of communion at the table with Jesus. 

The nave takes its basic shape from the basilicas of Rome. Basilicas are basically big rectangular buildings and the basic model for most Roman public buildings. (This was the Roman Catholic Church building these things.) But the great ecclesiastical invention was the introduction of the "transept." Basically that cross piece that runs perpendicular to the nave. The transept opens up this amazing space just before the alter and ambulatory. And the transept gives the floor plan of the cathedral a cruciform shape. So if you look at the building from the air it looks like a giant cross.

All of this stuff was incredibly important and symbolic and thought out and developed over centuries. 

Back to the Church of the Resurrection narthex. It obviously doesn't serve the same transitional function as a medieval narthex. But it does serve some kind of transitional function. Oddly, I haven't yet entered Church of the Resurrection via the "main" doors that lead into the church. (Hmmm... maybe that's a good metaphor for people stepping into God's kingdom from places we might not expect.) So, what function does this narthex serve? What does it say about us and our culture, good and bad. (Don't get me wrong, I have no illusions about medieval times and there was a whole lot of bad in with the neat good stuff.) So, good and bad, what does this narthex say about how we do church here and now? (Not pointing fingers at Church of the Resurrection, by "we" I mean we in the Western tradition engaged in church-as-we-know-it.

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That's not a narthex...

...this is a narthex. Yes, I used the word narthex because that's the term they use here at the United Methodist Church of the Ressurection where the National Worship Leaders Conference is being held. So what does this space have to do with gothic cathedrals, cruciform basilicas and the historical notion of narthex? And, discuss.

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Yep, that's a sunrise

Off to Kansas City for the National Worship Leaders Conference where I'm doing a couple of workshops. Up at 3:30 and sitting at the gate by 5:45. Had a great customs and immigration officer this time, which, for me, is something. I usually get the feeling they just don't believe me but let in anyway. The officer and I chatted about books, which was awesome. Then to top off what, for a travel day, had turned out to be a pretty good morning, I saw this glorious sun rise. There's something about that first sliver of sun peeking over the mountains. Even if you aren't in particular need of some it's still hope. Morning's here.

Sent from my iPhone

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Immeasurably More

with Mako Fujimura. Yes, that Mako Fujimura, the artist from New York who totally rocks. (google him) Just found out about this and scurried over. Todd Fadel is here, looking forward to some conversation after. Right now Dal Schindel is talking about Chartres cathedral. I'm art geek heaven.

Sent from my iPhone

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Pan-Asian Awesomeness

Dinner last night reminded me of how fortunate I am. I made Japanese yakisoba, Chinese pot stickers and topped it off with Thai spring roll sauce. It was pan-Asian awesomeness.

Choji, the guy who's teaching me Japanese and who speaks 4 languages, was saying he likes learning new languages because it gives him a chance to discover a different version of himself. What a great way to look at things. By learning another language I get a fuller rounder version of myself. 

And maybe literally rounder (at least my waistline) because one of the tangible ways I expand my life is by tasting from the cultural cornucopia of food of offer, especially in a diverse city like Vancouver. 

Even better though, my expanding life isn't limited to internal initiative, the things I learn or try, like languages or food. I'm not just myself, I am, in a real sense, the friends around me. So I am expanded externally as my friends share their lives with me.  

So my friend Ed told me (gave me, offered to me, it's giving language) his mother's secret for making perfect pot stickers. Now that part of Ed is part of me. My life is expanded because of Ed's gift. I can do the same for him. I can share my recipe for yakisoba, which is a part of me because it is a part of my Japanese friends. It's the opposite of a zero sum game. By giving away we all get more. 

It's a tangible visible sign of an invisible truth. My life is expanded in all kinds of invisible ways through my friendship with Ed. Just like the post stickers, some of those things happen to come from his Chinese heritage. So, fortunate for me that Ed's heritage is different from mine. 

As my life is expanded by my friends around me, I realize I am so blessed to have so many friends from such diverse backgrounds. The more difference there is among us the more we all get from each other. And my yakisoba reminded me of that. 

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Love My New Skillet

No this isn't a metaphor, I just love my new skillet. Lindi and Ben gave me a new 13" stainless steel French skillet for my birthday a while back. I just want to say it rocks. That is all. 

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Canada Unhinged

Okay, this video is really long, but we're a big country. Non-Canadians, I invite you into our joy.

Things I love about this video: the guy in the foreground wearing a white turban with a red maple leaf dancing like a crazy person at a hockey goal; the little toddler standing in the middle of the shot wondering what's going on; that whether it's two people or 20,000 it's all pretty much the same; that Canadians actually became unhinged.

Well, okay, now we're burning police cars in the streets of Toronto so clearly, now that we've unlocked our inner crazy, we need some kind of throttle on our unhingedness. But still, we became unhinged, isn't that a mildly encouraging sign?

And what is it about this video that strikes at something deep in me? Not as a Canadian, but as a human being. There's something powerful in collective joy. Watch the video again, but this time imagine it's the global celebration that will happen when we all finally realize love wins.

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