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Showing posts from June, 2006

Movie Review: Superman Returns

This week I went to see Superman Returns with one of my younger brothers. I enjoyed the Superman movies with Christopher Reeve when I was growing up, but I wasn't a huge fan or anything. My brother, however, has a passion for all movies superhero, and he'd been counting down the days til the opening, and was annoyed that other plans prevented him from going to see the midnight showing the night before. I wasn't sure what to expect. While not a huge fan, I still couldn't imagine not-Christopher-Reeve as Superman. I actually had a brief chance to meet Reeve and his wife Dana Reeve while working as a work-study student during seminary at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey . Dana Reeve acted in some productions while I was working in house management. Christopher came to see her perform. Very surreal. A little star-struck. Hey, it was Superman! I was very pleasantly surprised. Brandon Routh as Superman was excellent. His mannerisms, his similarities to Christopher Reeve

Two More Reviews: Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner and Angels and Demons by Dan Brown

Lorna wondered on my last post which review # I was on in my 52-books-this-year resolution. I, like my big brother , had figured I was never going to make 52, so I stopped posting which number I was on. But I didn't figure anyone else was paying attention. So, here are (short)reviews #12 and #13. You might remember me reviewing the movie In Her Shoes , which was first a novel by Jennifer Weiner. I eventually listened to the book on tape, enjoyed that even more, and so looked up one of her other novels - Little Earthquakes. This book follows three women who are pregnant and one who lost her son at 10 weeks old. The story follows the three women through a year - the month or two before delivery, and the first months of motherhood (all three are first time mothers) and how the fourth mother becomes part of their lives in her grieving for her son. Weiner does a great job of creating three different expecting mothers, who have different expectations about what motherhood should and wi

What is the Kingdom?

I just took this quiz, after Jay pointed it out in his blog: You scored as The Kingdom as Earthly Utopia . This utopianism is found in the extremes of Liberation Theology and some early radical Anabaptism. It recognises the importance of the social and political aspects of the Kingdom but perhaps doesn't take the reality of human sinfulness into account. The Kingdom as Earthly Utopia 83% Kingdom as a Christianised Society 67% The Kingdom is mystical communion 42% The Kingdom as a counter-system 42% The Kingdom as Institutional Church 33% The Kingdom as a political state 33% Inner spiritual experience 25% The Kingdom is a Future Hope 8% What is the Kingdom of God? created with QuizFarm.com Hmm. I'm not sure I'd agree with that assessment! I think most of my responses to the quiz were in the middle. Don't agree, don't disagree exactly. I'm not sure I think the Kingdom is only any of the viewpoints listed. What do you think?

Pointing to Profound

I haven't been in the writing mood lately. Too hot, too tired, too something. I have a book review waiting (Dan Brown's Angels and Demons ) and some other thoughts jostling around, but not coming out yet. Meanwhile, my big brother keeps churning out really awesome posts. Especially check out this one , and the couple before it.

Review: A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren

I just finished reading A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren. I know, I know, I'm way behind the buzz on this book, and Brian McLaren in general. It took me a while to get interested, and then a while to get to reading it. I wasn't sure what to think about the half-story, half-non-fiction approach to the book. I guess I liked it better than I might reading all of these ideas in a straight non-fiction book, but it was weird to read a not-novel masquerading as novel. I can't help investing in the characters when I'm reading a novel, and these weren't exactly regular characters. At the end of the book, I can't help but think: What happened to Neo? Also, Neo was a little "too cool" for me. A little too messiah-figure-esque. But, I guess when you are talking about systems and paradigms, modernism and post-modernism and beyond, if you actually talk to much about the thing, you miss the point, if that makes sense. So maybe the style of the book helps not

Annual Conference Reflections: Women in Ministry

As I mentioned in my last post , I had the privilege at Annual Conference this year of being part of a panel-discussion workshop with my own Bishop Fisher, conference preacher Bishop Judy Craig, and Rev. Betsye Mowry. Betsye, who is appointed to the other UMC in the town where I serve, Oneida. Betsye is the oldest female elder in our conference with the most years of service, and I am the youngest elder. We spent a couple of hours answering questions about women in ministry and what our experiences have been, how are experiences have changed. Bishop Craig talked about being accepted as the 'exception' - churches that would not accept female pastor "except her," as if somehow she didn't really fit into that category. A dear friend of mine, Rev. Carlton VanOrnum, pastor emeritus at the church where I grew up, was in attendance - he is in his eighties, and had been a DS at one point in his (retired-but-still-in-ministry) ministry. He was called on to give insights

Annual Conference Reflections: Bishop Judy Craig

I'm still recovery from Annual Conference last weekend, but I do have more I want to write about. I must say, even though Josh Tinley has pointed out that 50 years of clergy rights for women in the UMC is a somewhat muddled way of looking at our history, being a woman getting ordained when you are celebrating 50 years is nonetheless an ideal and fun time to be ordained. To celebrate, all clergy women elders were asked to turn in some biographical info, which was then turned into "clergy women trading cards." We each got a pack of 50 cards with our own info to trade with our clergy women friends. I haven't managed to get all 49 of the others yet, but I got a good start, and did make sure to get Bishop Fisher's, and Bishop Judy Craig's who was our guest preacher. Bishop Judith Craig is a retired bishop. When I went to Ohio Wesleyan (which, intriguingly, has part of campus in the East Ohio AC, and part in the West Ohio AC), she was the bishop in West Ohio. I go

from Bloglet to FeedBlitz

For those of you who subscribe to receive my blog posts by email, you'll notice that they will now come from FeedBlitz instead of bloglet - bloglet is closing down. Served me well, but has sort of outgrown itself. Just a heads up! The email should come into your box from Beth Quick with my email, but I'm not positive yet!

Annual Conference Reflections: Ordination

I'm still recovering from Annual Conference and ordination and everything. Wow. I was so wound up leading up to Friday, the day of my ordination. I knew I was excited, but I didn't realize how high my energy level was, the stress/anxiety that was tied up with it, the fatigue that would follow, the Spirit that would move, the everything. Wednesday was clergy session - the last vote. We were asked to share "something we'd like them to know about us." I was pacing outside as I was waiting for my turn to speak. The clergy session voted to elect the five of us who were there. I didn't have doubts about this, really, but still, nerves were shared as we waited. Thursday night was the rehearsal. Getting all the details worked out. Who sits where. Who processes when. Who gets what section of Hendricks Chapel to serve communion in. Friday, the big day. Following a day of Annual Conference session, of course. Everything was wonderful. As we processed in during the open

United Methodist Reporter article on blogging

I was recently interviewed for an article on blogging by Robin Russell of The United Methodist Reporter. You can check out the article here, which also features John of Locusts and Honey , Theresa Coleman , Wes Magruder , and mentions of some others in the Methoblogosphere. Sounds like those of us interviewed are in large part on the same page about the possible impacts, benefits, and implications of blogging. Cool.