July 2010

  • Your Cross May Be in Vain

    By sarajean on 7/29/10 6:10am
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    What if I told you that the cross that many Christians like to wear around their necks—as well as bumper stickers, tattoos, wall art, and whatnot—may have nothing to do with Christ’s death? A scholar has controversially declared just that.

    Gunnar Samuelsson, of Gothensburg University, says that there’s no evidence to support that Romans crucified anyone on a cross—and instead of being based on fact, the story of Jesus dying on a cross came from Christian traditions instead, as well as historical illustrations. The Bible itself, he maintains, makes no reference to a cross, either, but only to a “staurus,” which could also mean “pole.” None of the bloody nails or other equipment we learned to sing about so gruesomely in Sunday school are mentioned, either.

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  • The Song of Songs (part seven)

    By msarko on 7/26/10 4:01pm
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    Sometimes it seems powerfully geeky to get excited about the clever intellectual flourishes of biblical texts, but when a particularly stunning turn of phrase or layered reference pops up in a reading it's just too interesting to ignore. In chapter six of the Song of Songs there is an amazing reference. It's impressive not just because it has a many-layered implication for the poem and the time in which it was written, but also because it's remarkably easy to miss.



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  • The Song of Songs (part six)

    By msarko on 7/20/10 1:33am
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    After The Song of Songs passes its halfway point, it takes on a certain air of melancholy. The language which began the poem as luxurious and exuberant slowly becomes desperate and oppressive. The most shocking turn happens in Chapter 5 when the narrative strays from the disconnected dialogue between the two lovers and starts to include an entreaty to outsiders for help, sympathy and understanding. Most tragically, the story's protagonists, especially Rayati, find none of those things.



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  • The Song of Songs (part five)

    By msarko on 7/13/10 3:45am
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    In Chapter 4 of The Song of Songs we learn a lot more about Rayati, specifically that she lives in Lebanon. We must remember the era in which The Song was written before we can understand the implications of this. Modern scholars have dated the text to approximately 900 BCE, though its exact date would determine much of its influence. If it was written prior to 875 BCE, The Song would have come from the height of the Phoenician Empire when the region known as Lebanon was a cultural powerhouse. If it came after 875, it would have been born in a highly contentious period when Assyrian Greeks conquered much of the region and began oppressing the local population considerably. The city of Tyre, then a major sea port and the most important economic city in southern Lebanon, was one of two to rebel against the Assyrians and would have been the closest major city to Rayati's home, provided she didn't live in Tyre itself (or possibly the city of Dor which was nearest to the Israeli border).



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  • TWOFR: The Welcome Wagon x Tunng

    By cobwebsandstrange on 7/9/10 7:34am
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    The Welcome Wagon

    Welcome to the Welcome Wagon

    (Asthamtic Kitty, 2008)

    Made up primarily of Reverend Thomas Vito Aiuto and his wife Monique amongst various collaborators like Sufjan Stevens, The Welcome Wagon differs greatly from what might be expected from a short glance at the album cover.

    All those initially expecting simple country and folk tinged songs of salvation are going to be surprised – not necessarily disappointed, but judging from the Reverends attire, a horn section was not to be presupposed. Even including those horn players, this slab is really just a solid indie outing with overt religious connotations.

    First appearing on the Asthamtic Kitty compilation To Spirit Back the Mews in 2001, W.W. continued writing simplistic songs, mostly based upon its devotion, but tossing in a few covers sporadically. The music on Welcome to the Welcome Wagon can be considered folk based, but with a vastly expanded orchestration and a cache of musicians to assist the duo. Sufjan Stevens arranged a great deal of music to help W.W. perfectly express its bright and optimistic music.

    Variety might be a bit lacking – a great many of the songs are in a similar tempo and utilize choirs to get the chorus across. That isn’t meant to disparage the album’s tact and push to remain cohesive, but when “Jesus” kicks into the chorus, the album moves from a pretty album, to an almost transcendental clutch of worship music. The Velvet Underground cover amidst an disc specifically designed to pay respect to G-d takes on a greater overall meaning.

    Lou Reed and the Velvets were known for their associations and personal proclivities as much as their music. Alotta stories that get passed around about substance intake and the like is hyperbole to an extent, but the cultural import of the band is stuck to those rumors. The inclusion of “Jesus,” should remove doubt by you secular music fans about the quality and the intent of this disc. Music should make you feel something – good or bad, it’s there to provoke emotions. And this group of Brooklyn Presbyterians does that.

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  • The Song of Songs (part four)

    By msarko on 7/6/10 1:37am
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    The third chapter of The Song of Songs is perhaps the strangest of the entire book. It has two distinct parts divided by the quasi-chorus ("do not stir up love until it pleases") that appears in some form or another throughout the entire poem. The first half details Rayati's search for Dodi, or perhaps a dream of her search for him, while the second half pulls away from the lovers entirely to describe a procession of King Solomon. These two segments at first seem entirely disconnected, but there is a tenuous narrative strand between the two.



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  • A Brief Look at Women's Roles in the Bible and What it Means for Women Today- Part II

    By Niki Fears on 7/2/10 5:58pm
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    In part one of this article we looked at several examples of women in the Bible to see that women were often given positions of authority and considered prophets just as their male counterparts were. Of course, many in the church today will argue that that was merely the “Old Testament” and that everything changed in the “New Testament” which many know that this is not exactly the case; however, let us examine the argument all the same.

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  • A Brief Look at Women's Roles in the Bible and What it Means for Women Today- Part I

    By Niki Fears on 7/2/10 5:19pm
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    One of the questions that often arise for the church in the modern age is that of a woman's role in the church. In some societies women were given virtually no roles at all, where as in others the matriarchs were powerful symbols of their culture. Today, as we still tackle the extremes of sexism and the failures and successes of feminism, we are often left with a bit of puzzle to untangle. How much of a woman's role in the church has been defined by societal norms instead of Biblical guidelines? And what role did women actually play in the Bible?

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