One of the most important parts of my job is the constant exploration of vulnerability. I happen to be good at really two things while dancing: leading and keeping time. This makes me fun to dance with, though not necessarily that fun to watch. Of course a BIG part of why I'm good at these things is my instructor Karina helped me develop a good frame. I set that as a goal when I first met her and with her help achieved it. But additional to that, is the fact that to some degree lead/follow in dance is a practice in something I spend a lot of time exploring in my job: vulnerability.
Faith is vulnerability. It is letting go of the need to know and control and an acceptance of one's incompleteness. I have said before many times that I cannot stand up to those who claim religion is a crutch by claiming they are wrong. Religion IS a crutch, God is a crutch, but I am a one-legged man, metaphorically speaking. What am I supposed to do? Hop around on one leg? Without accepting one's incompleteness, one cannot find faith. For faith is born of need and desire. And unless one is honest about one's needs and desires, which is a very vulnerable place to be, one cannot find faith.
This is particularly true of the Christian faith. I think it is impossible to truly explore the Gospels without exploring the reality of vulnerability, for the Gospels reveal God vulnerable to the world. Unity with Christ is found by self-emptying, according to Philippians 2, and that also is all about being vulnerable. Finally, love is comfortable vulnerability. The most beautiful exploration of love found anywhere is, I think, in 1 Corinthians 13. And what do we find there? A massive running down of all the ways in which love makes you vulnerable.
And in everything I do, this is an important theme. When I help others, I do so first and foremost by helping them to see their shared vulnerability with God. Second I help by making myself vulnerable through honest and a giving over of myself. Finally, I try to help them see their vulnerability as something to be celebrated or at least accepted, rather than run away from.
One of the reasons I am a Christian, rather than a Buddhist or a Hindu or a Muslim or a Jew, is that Christianity suggests that one of the keys to God, humanity, the universe, and everything else, is vulnerable love. This makes a lot of sense to me, and seems to jive with everything else I know. It also seems to make me a better dancer.
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Saturday, February 14, 2015
Friday, February 13, 2015
Not Really Off-Topic: Extended Review of THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #14
The SPIDER-VERSE storyline concludes with a book that stunned both visually and thematically. There are some amazingly powerful moments throughout this, and I was impressed by how they tie it all together here. The book does suffer from some pacing problems, and that is due to the fact that this crossover has been so freaking big, that it had too many loose ends to tie up in a manner that felt both timely and not rushed.
The project here was not as big as DC's MULTIVERSITY, but it does feel like it is at least an attempt to work on that scale. I think, underneath it all, that is what the writers and artists were trying to do here, create an almost metaphysical event through the mythos of Spider-Man. We explored so many worlds, with so many versions of Peter Parker, and his particular story. At the heart of the vast majority of them all, was the simple conviction that 'with great power comes great responsibility'. The Spideys were acting as incarnations of that principle, fighting against beings who reveled in power as privilege and who feasted on the power of those who sought to be responsible.
It was a cosmic battle, which at the same time explored the life and lives of one man (men/women). This juxtaposition of the cosmic and the human was brilliant, and it allowed the writers and artists to, at the same time, explore their own imaginations, their own cosmic visions and visions of what Spidey could possibly be. It was a fun ride, and it attempted to say something profound, and on a cosmic scale.
Did it succeed? Not totally. There is profundity here, but it doesn't end up feeling like a cosmic scale in the way, say, MULTIVERSITY does. It feels, instead, like a very special, very fun, and thematically-driven Spider-Man story. And that is okay. In the end the very attempt is worth nodding to, and the book works on the level of entertainment. And at least it does succeed in saying something. I liked this crossover event, though I was sad to see a favorite character of mine die. All-in-all, this was a good ending to a good crossover event, better than most in fact. Good, very good even, but not great.
Storyline: 4 Stars
Dialogue: 4 Stars
Pacing: 3 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars
The project here was not as big as DC's MULTIVERSITY, but it does feel like it is at least an attempt to work on that scale. I think, underneath it all, that is what the writers and artists were trying to do here, create an almost metaphysical event through the mythos of Spider-Man. We explored so many worlds, with so many versions of Peter Parker, and his particular story. At the heart of the vast majority of them all, was the simple conviction that 'with great power comes great responsibility'. The Spideys were acting as incarnations of that principle, fighting against beings who reveled in power as privilege and who feasted on the power of those who sought to be responsible.
It was a cosmic battle, which at the same time explored the life and lives of one man (men/women). This juxtaposition of the cosmic and the human was brilliant, and it allowed the writers and artists to, at the same time, explore their own imaginations, their own cosmic visions and visions of what Spidey could possibly be. It was a fun ride, and it attempted to say something profound, and on a cosmic scale.
Did it succeed? Not totally. There is profundity here, but it doesn't end up feeling like a cosmic scale in the way, say, MULTIVERSITY does. It feels, instead, like a very special, very fun, and thematically-driven Spider-Man story. And that is okay. In the end the very attempt is worth nodding to, and the book works on the level of entertainment. And at least it does succeed in saying something. I liked this crossover event, though I was sad to see a favorite character of mine die. All-in-all, this was a good ending to a good crossover event, better than most in fact. Good, very good even, but not great.
Storyline: 4 Stars
Dialogue: 4 Stars
Pacing: 3 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars
Off-Topic: Comic Book Review For 2-11-2015
Marvel's THANOS VS HULK #3
As Annihilus' experiment stealing Hulk's power reaches its completion, Annihilus' partner Blastaar tries to take down the Hulk himself, along with some of the most powerful sentinels in the Negative Zone army. It quickly becomes clear this is going to take more than Blastaar thought it would. This book was a pure fight-comic, pitching two of the most powerful beings in the Marvel universe against each other. The imagery is fantastic, but the entire book is almost painfully predictable. This book was fun, a lot of fun, but what it lacked was the depth provided by Thanos' presence. Isn't this book called Hulk vs THANOS???
Storyline: 3 Stars
Dialogue: 3.5 Stars
Pacing: 3.5 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 3.5 Stars
Marvel's GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #24
This is the second part of the BLACK VORTEX saga, with our heroes fighting over what to do now that they have vast power in their possession. Some of the heroes want to destroy the device, while others wish to use it against their now more-powerful adversaries. The beginning of the book was dynamite as a now-empowered Gamora was set loose on a small army. It was simply a lot of fun. There are other scenes in the book that are also pretty dynamite, but there are other parts that drag. The dialogue has its ups and downs too. Overall, though, it works.
Storyline: 3.5 Stars
Dialogue: 3.5 Stars
Pacing: 3 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 3.5 Stars
As Annihilus' experiment stealing Hulk's power reaches its completion, Annihilus' partner Blastaar tries to take down the Hulk himself, along with some of the most powerful sentinels in the Negative Zone army. It quickly becomes clear this is going to take more than Blastaar thought it would. This book was a pure fight-comic, pitching two of the most powerful beings in the Marvel universe against each other. The imagery is fantastic, but the entire book is almost painfully predictable. This book was fun, a lot of fun, but what it lacked was the depth provided by Thanos' presence. Isn't this book called Hulk vs THANOS???
Storyline: 3 Stars
Dialogue: 3.5 Stars
Pacing: 3.5 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 3.5 Stars
Marvel's GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #24
This is the second part of the BLACK VORTEX saga, with our heroes fighting over what to do now that they have vast power in their possession. Some of the heroes want to destroy the device, while others wish to use it against their now more-powerful adversaries. The beginning of the book was dynamite as a now-empowered Gamora was set loose on a small army. It was simply a lot of fun. There are other scenes in the book that are also pretty dynamite, but there are other parts that drag. The dialogue has its ups and downs too. Overall, though, it works.
Storyline: 3.5 Stars
Dialogue: 3.5 Stars
Pacing: 3 Stars
Art: 4 Stars
Overall: 3.5 Stars
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Hate Crimes
I rarely enter into politics here, and this is only tangentially political but it is an interesting thing to think about. There was a triple homicide recently, where a guy killed (this is just terrible and sad, and heartbreaking) these three Muslim students over a parking spot. Because the guy was a rabid anti-theist who constantly posted violent anti-religious messages, people are investing the crime as a hate crime. Let's assume he killed them because of his ideological hatred of religion. IF that is the case, would this count as a hate crime? Is killing them because they were religious enough? Or does it have to be due to an adherence to a specific religion?
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Worth A Shot
Contrary to some positive-thinker gurus, love does not always elicit a response of love. People sometimes respond to love with hate. But I've learned over the years, that love CAN change a situation. No people do not always respond to love with love, but love is always worth a shot.
The Bible Summed Up
Someone asked me yesterday what I would say is the summary of the entire Bible, I said, "your sin hurts God, but God loves you in spite of it, and because He loves and hurts, you are free."
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