February 2009 Archives

Every year, in addition to searching for books to help me reflect on Advent, I also look for thoughtful books to read during Lent.  I hunted on Amazon.com and stumbled upon some worthy new selections to add to my collection.

Here are three choices that will inspire and help you focus on the meaning of this season.

Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter - An anthology that includes the essays and poetry of theological heavyweights such as C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, and Frederich Buechner.  There are also literary surprises from Dylan Thomas and John Updike.

Christians at the Cross by N.T. Wright - A collection of Holy Week sermons given to a community that is suffering through hard economic times. Could this be more timely? Plus, it's a short, easy read.

The Voice: The Book of Matthew by Lauren Winner - A new translation of the Gospels that features commentary by one of my favorite authors, Lauren Winner. She gives some great historical insights from a Jewish perspective that really enhance the narrative of the Gospel itself.

For complete Lent features, visit Beliefnet's Lent Page.

So it's Sunday night around 10 p.m. and you're looking for something to watch because Dexter" and "True Blood" are on hiatus. I suggest you turn to the Travel Channel and check out "Mark & Olly: Living with the Machigenga."

I first fell in love with Mark and Olly during the first season of the "Living With the Tribe" series.  The series showed former British army captain/professional adventurer, Mark Anstice, and award-winning journalist, Oliver "Olly" Steeds, living with the Kombai of West Papua, a tribe so remote that it was discovered less than 30 years ago.

Watching the men ingratiate themselves into the community and learn about the ways of a community that hasn't changed much in 15,000 years was absolutely fascinating.  The show was full of drama as the duo tried to navigate tricky customs and it was also full of comedy as Olly's adoptive family labeled him "lazy" compared to Mark.

Admit it: after you saw "Star Wars," you tried to use the Force. I'm happy to admit it--I tried to move things across my room, using only my mind. "Heroes" makes me feel special abilities are more possible, but "Star Wars" initially put the idea in my head.  Oh, those Jedi mind tricks.

If moving objects with your mind didn't work as a health strategy for you, and if you view the local gym as a "wretched hive of scum and villainy," there is now a workout that even a scruffy-looking nerfherder will enjoy in a galaxy far, far away....

Meet "Master Flynn," 38, who started teaching a lightsaber battling class in New York in early 2006.  "I had the idea to do a fight scene [with lightsabers] with my friends on the [New York's Greenwich Village] parade route. People were so impressed when they saw what we were doing, and they wanted to know where they could learn to move the way we did," said New York's resident Yoda.

You may not have heard of British reality TV star Jade Goody, best known for her appearances on the UK Big Brother series, but she is now inspiring writers from Time Magazine to the New York Times to pick up their pens. The former dental assistant with a big mouth--and even bigger ambition--is dying and doing it rather publicly.

A poor man's Paris Hilton, someone who is famous for merely being famous, the 27-year-old daughter of drug addicts has been the beloved object of the UK media's derision and the British public's fascination.  Initially, the tabloids ridiculed her for having astounding gaps in her basic knowledge of Britain and its history, but then they took her to task for using racially offensive language while harassing Indian actress Shilpa Shetty, a fellow housemate on Celebrity Big Brother.

Hoping to shed her reputation of being a racist, Goody appeared on India's version of Big Brother, only to be told three days after filming that she had late-stage cervical cancer. Since then, Goody has continued to film a series of reality shows with Living TV.  Even though the shows began filming prior to her diagnosis, the shows now follow the progress of her cancer treatment.  Sadly, the self-made star was told the day before Valentine's Day that she had only weeks to live the day.

Bring on March Madness--we need it!

For a competitive guy like me--and Paul the Apostle competed so I know it's a good trait--this is a lousy time of the year to watch television. There's not a lot of drama. There's not a lot that's compelling. There's not much televised competition. It's just boring.

Think about it. Football is over. Baseball hasn't started yet. The NBA playoffs don't heat up until May. At least Tiger's back on the tour, but the Masters' doesn't happen for two months. NASCAR has started, but these early season races don't count for as much, do they?

Earlier this week, the Oscar competition ended. "American Idol" has too far to go. Jack Bauer's only halfway through his afternoon in "24." Gosh, we've got to wait long enough to see if our economy comes back--can't we get some excitement or conclusion or competition to liven things up?