Putting the “Happy” in your new year
Many misguided ideas about happiness keep us from having real joy.
But we can set our minds on the truth.
Dennis - 12.31.06 Read it- Listen - MP3
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Sad, sorry situation: Saddam Hussein
Last night, Saddam Hussein was executed in Iraq. No matter how you feel about capital punishment or the war in Iraq, it’s pretty obvious that he deserved it, and not just in a “wages of sin is death” kind of way. MSNBC has posted a video which shows Saddam, on the very first day of his reign in 1979, sitting in a crowded room reading off the names of his enemies who are then snatched out of the room and taken away. Many of these “traitors” to the Baath party were shot without trial. These were but the first of his crimes as president. Even the ones for which he was convicted and hanged (the 1982 slaughter of 148 Shi’ite villagers) were but a tiny part of his infernal legacy.
Should Saddam have died? I have problems with capital punishment as it is carried out in the U. S., but those problems stem not primarily from Scripture (I understand Romans 13:1-7 to allow for capital punishment, along with Genesis 9:4-6), but from our system’s inability to reliably find the guilty person. That wasn’t an issue with Saddam to say the least.
What if Saddam had been sentenced to life in prison instead? Could this have been a tiny step toward ending the eye-for-an-eye cycle of retribution in that region? I’d like to think so. It’s just as likely, however, that his continued presence would have have been seen as 1) a horrible injustice to the tens of thousands he tortured and killed, and 2) a rallying symbol for those on all sides who desire to stoke violence.
The major news sites have all posted footage of Saddam with the noose around his neck, along with stills of his corpse. I suppose it’s just a matter of time before the moment of his death is widely available too. A friend said to me yesterday that when we finally have that video, we’ll see a lost man stepping through the gates of hell. That’s that saddest thing that can be said of anyone.
Do you rent widescreen or fullscreen?
Up until a year ago, whenever we rented a DVD, I’d always grab the full screen version. I figured the wide screen image would be too small on our TV. Then one night, on the DVD extras for the movie The Interpreter, I saw a feature by director Sidney Pollack on why wide screen is better. He convinced me for life in about five minutes. I won’t even consider renting the full screen film anymore.
OK, so this isn’t the most important post I’ve ever written. Nevertheless, I consider myself a minor wide screen evangelist. Most movies are filmed and shown in theaters at a 16:9 width-to-height ratio. To fit on a standard 4:3 TV screen, the movie is edited by a process called pan and scan in which somebody chooses a 4:3 rectangle from each shot and crops the rest out. Since the director is responsible for laying out each shot, Pollack said that pan and scan is in effect redirecting the movie. He showed 4:3 cropped scenes from The Interpreter and said: “I didn’t direct that.”
Turner Classic Movies occasionally runs a short feature on wide screen vs. full screen. Check it out the next time you run across it, or just watch this short demo to see what I’m talking about.
The Nativity Story
Cindy and I finally saw The Nativity Story last night. What a perfect way to close out Christmas Eve. I was impressed.
The Nativity Story captures several themes that Christians have heard developed repeatedly in generations of sermons - the fact that Joseph and Mary belonged to the “working poor”, that the pregnancy probably caused something of a scandal, and that the Romans were oppressive rulers. And the film does a great job expanding on Matthew’s statement that Joseph was a righteous man. As the story progresses, Joseph shows himself to be a humble, strong, servant-like husband, willing to do everything he can to care for his wife and her child. Mary moves from an attitude of resignation over their arranged marriage to a state of genuine love for Joseph.
The Nativity Story plays essentially by The Book, a fact that some critics have found disappointing but which many Christians will appreciate. All the elements from the Gospel accounts are there, and the supernatural element is in no way downplayed or called into question. (The Magi arrive at the same time as the shepherds, which almost certainly did not happen, but have you ever seen a Nativity pageant played any other way?) Sam Van Hallgren at Filmspotting criticized the film for being no more than a professional version of the same kind of Nativity play one can see at any church this time of year. Actually, he’s right. But the difference the pros make is refreshing. Even Van Hallgren says that if you’re looking for a straight telling of the story from the Bible, this is it. I say “Amen” to that, and I mean it as a recommendation.
Someone with young children asked me if The Nativity Story (rated PG) was kid-friendly. It isn’t, not for young kids anyway. The brutality of Roman rule, Herod’s massacre of the innocents, and the realistic portrayals of the labor pains of Elizabeth and Mary may disturb those under 10. But for older folks, The Nativity Story is a realistic, well-crafted portrayal of the events leading to the Incarnation.
The King makes His move
The King makes His move - Dennis Mullen - 12.24.06
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Series: The World Through Christmas-Colored Glasses (part 3 of 3)
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Who deserves to suffer?
This headline caught my eye: “Rabbi claims holocaust dead ‘deserved it’”. Read the article and you’ll see that the headline is only slightly sensationalized. The rabbi is Ahron Cohen, an Orthodox Jew from England who recently spoke at the controversial holocaust conference in Iran. Cohen isn’t a holocaust denier, but he holds a point of view that is at least as old as Job’s comforters - that those who suffer deserve it, and those who inflict suffering could not otherwise succeed. Cohen’s beliefs about suffering shape his view on Israel (and this is what makes him so controversial): He believes that the modern nation of Israel was formed as an act of rebellion against God, who wills that Jews live peacefully in exile.
Laying aside Cohen’s anti-Zionist doctrine, it strikes me that Christians inhabit an entirely different universe of ideas about suffering. On one hand, we all deserve it “in one way or another” as Cohen so loosely puts it. “The wages of sin is death” says Paul in Romans 6:23. Jesus talked about people who died in a much smaller incident of anti-Semitism in Luke 13, and then he said: “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (Luke 13:2-3, NIV)
On the other hand, at the center of our faith is the one true innocent man suffering without deserving it. The “punishment that brought us peace was upon him,” Isaiah says.
Grace is a wild, unlikely thing, isn’t it?
An artist who isn’t evil
I’m currently listening to one of Sufjan Stevens’ recently-released Christmas CDs. Stevens is a popular musician among the college set and seems to enjoy moderate financial success. I hold him up as an example of someone who isn’t “evil”. That may sound like faint praise, but “evil” has lately come to refer to businesses and individuals who market themselves in such a way as to take undue advantage of their customers.
Sufjan Stevens and his record company, Asthmatic Kitty (which he apparently seems to own) are wonderful examples of marketing in fair and sensible ways. Stevens’ Christmas set costs $15.99 at ITunes (which I believe is $3 than when it debuted a few weeks ago). If you buy the hard copy, there is tremendous added value - extensive liner notes, Christmas art, a comic-book, a fictional story and even some Christmas stickers. Amazon sells it for $24.99 (which is $5 more than when I bought a copy at the end of November). The cheapest place to get the CDs themselves is at Sufjan’s own web site, where it sells for $19. His other CDs sell for $14.99 at Amazon and $10 at Asthmatic Kitty (the same as the ITunes download price).
We went to a Sufjan Stevens concert in Nashville on September 11. Most artists really stick it to their fans at concerts with high-priced shirts and CDs, but Sufjan’s products were exactly the same price at the show as on his site.
Sufjan Stevens has found a time-honored way to win loyal fans - produce great music, sell it at a fair price, and add value for those who buy the hard copies. May his numbers increase.
The difference these glasses make
The Difference These Glasses Make - Dennis Mullen - 12.10.06
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Series: The World Through Christmas-Colored Glasses (part 2 of 3)
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Older than me
Each day the Internet Movie Database posts the names and photos of four celebrities who were “born today”. I don’t know when I started doing this, but I always click through that list hoping that today all the stars listed will be older than me. There aren’t many such days anymore. Yesterday it almost happened. Only Teri Hatcher from Desperate Housewives was younger than me. (We were born in the same year. Too bad she isn’t holding up as well as I am). 
Today, though, everyone IS older than me, thanks to Judi Dench (72), Kirk Douglas (90), John Malkovich (53) and Felicity Huffman (also a Desperate Housewife, 44).
Why do I care? I can’t say for sure. I guess I find comfort in knowing that there are people well ahead of me in the age race who are valued by society. The IMDb list gives balance to an interview I heard last night with two guys in their early-20s who just sold their internet start-up company, presumably for millions.
This particular neurosis hit me early. I remember, when I was 21, writing a letter to a girl I liked about how strange it felt that Dwight Gooden (then 20) was making a big splash pitching for the Mets. I think I was basically trying to sound deep to impress the girl, but Gooden’s early success did make me think about how quickly life passes. Doc Gooden’s recent life also makes me think - about how the full story of a life takes years to write. Gooden spent most of this year in prison.
In Searching For God Knows What, Donald Miller writes at length about this need we have to validate ourselves in contrast to others. He says that an alien visiting our world would see clearly that it drives nearly everything we do. Age makes a handy comparison. So does weight, looks, athletic ability, success and the accumulation of possessions. Miller traces this back to The Fall when Adam and Eve sinned and cut us off from the One who tells us that we are valuable.
Christ means to bridge this gap back to God, to reconnect us with the Source of our identity. The more I abide in Him, the less I need to compare.
And the less need I have to point out that Brad Pitt is older than me.
I always have a choice
Every once in awhile, NPR’s “This I Believe” series features a profound and moving piece. This morning I heard this one, I Always Have a Choice, on the way in to work. was a dancer and an artist before she was stricken with ALS. Her perspective is worth hearing.
