Harrison Scott Key says, “I’m just not convinced that the Protestant Evangelical Church can do art.” He lists several problems.

On this subject, I came across this passage in Les Miserables last night, which I believe gets to the heart of the matter.

We must say, by the way, that the hatred of luxury is not an intelligent hatred. It implies a hatred of the arts. Nevertheless, among churchmen, beyond their rites and ceremonies, luxury is a crime. It seems to disclose habits which are not truly charitable. A wealthy priest is a contradiction. He ought to keep himself near the poor. But, who can be in contact continually, by night as well as day, with all distresses, all misfortunes, all privations, without taking upon himself a little of that holy poverty, like the dust of a journey? Can you imagine a man near a fire, who does not feel warm? . . . The first proof of charity in a priest, and especially a bishop, is poverty.

I did some painting on the garage over the weekend, and in between caught a few movies on DVD, and one actually in a theater.

You’ll marvel, I am sure, to learn that I was the only person in the country who hadn’t yet seen Pirates of the Caribbean. I’ve remedied that omission now.

There were some sword fights, which is (it goes without saying) always good. Having been watching Douglas Fairbanks movies recently, it was interesting to note that movie sword fights are basically what they were back then, except that Fairbanks’ old tricks are passé now, so that the choreographers have to come up with increasingly improbable new tricks.

Someday somebody may want to try a realistic fight. Just for the novelty of the thing.

Nah, that’ll never happen. Continue reading Weekend movies →

The story of the appalling shooting incident at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church seems extremely strange, judging from early reports.

The shooter is described as hating liberals and homosexuals. But he’s also described as hating the Bible and all churches.

He appears to have been a deranged man with a wide range of resentments.

In any case, his actions were evil.

I was composing a funny blog entry in my mind today. The premise was that I’d pretend to come clean with you, and admit that I’m not Lars Walker, Norwegian Avoidant has-been author, but Dwight Krupinsky, an insurance adjustor from Spokane with a wife and kids, who’s created this false identity for some reason I never entirely worked out.

It came to nothing, but I had identity on my mind.

Then I stopped for groceries after work, and used my credit card at checkout. I have an old credit card from a certain issuing bank, and it features a picture of me. The bank came up with the picture-on-the card gimmick on the theory that a card with the owner’s picture would be harder to use fraudulently (this was when a lot fewer people had internet access). I don’t think they’ve pushed the program for years, but every time they replace my card, it still has the picture.

It’s actually become counterproductive. Continue reading I’m not the man I used to be →

Here’s a picture of three members of the Declaration Committee, working hard on incorporating the 600th revision requested by the Continental Congress, in wool suits and without benefit of a word processor. You can tell by the look on Jefferson’s face that he’s about ready to knock those bifocals off Franklin’s puss and tell him, “If you know a better way to put it than ‘Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes…’ then why don’t you just do the next draft yourself, you old gout-sack?”

But they soldiered on, and did one another no recorded violence. Such were the sacrifices that bought us our liberty.

Some pertinent quotations from each of the three:

“Let me add that only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” (Benjamin Franklin, 1789.)

“(R)eligion and virtue are the only foundations, not only of republicanism and of all free government, but of social felicity under all governments and in all combinations of human society.” (John Adams in a letter to Benjamin Rush, Aug. 28, 1811.)

“God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed their only sure basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that those liberties are the gift of God?” (Thomas Jefferson. One of the quotations inscribed in the Jefferson Memorial, Washington D.C.)

(The quotations above are all found in Christianity and the Constitution, by John Eidsmoe.)