One Minute Review: Ponyo

Yes, I saw Ponyo. And yes, I reviewed it. Here it is.

How Long Should A Sermon Be?

I was just engaged in an on-line conversation with a fellow preacher who asked "how long should a sermon be." Obviously, the various Christian traditions answer this differently as the sermon is of more or less central importance in different forms of worship.

Here is the answer I gave. I would be interested in hearing from you all, whether you are a preacher or not, what you think. How long do you think you should preach? How long do you like to be preached to, if at all?

I've been preaching weekly for about seven years now, and was preaching every other week for three years before that. I know that my preaching has evolved over the years. The most important thing, to me, about that evolution has been that my subject has increasingly been on Christ and the Gospel.

As far as time, I'm all over the map. Preaching in a liturgical (Anglican) church lends itself to shorter sermons. On Sundays I've preached 13 minutes and I've preached 27. 18 is always my goal, and 20 is where I usually end up. Oddly enough, I never look at a clock or a watch while I preach.

I asked an experienced and excellent preacher many years ago what he thought of sermon length. He said something very freeing. He said that every preacher, in his estimation, was a certain "length" of preacher. He said that he was a 30-35 minute preacher. That's how long it took him to do what he needed to do, and he had accepted that about himself. He told me to just go and preach over and over again, and that I would figure out what kind of preacher I was. So, I say I'm a 20 minute preacher. I wouldn't want any further rule than that.

One Minute Review: Taking Woodstock

Behold, this week's One Minute Review. I beseech you, watch this review before deciding to see this film. You can watch the review below, or on the Rabbit Room, or on Vimeo right here: www.vimeo.com/6320834

One Minute Review: Taking Woodstock from Thomas McKenzie on Vimeo.

Technorati Tags Taking Woodstock Review

Does Plot Matter?

I'm sitting at lunch recently with a guy I've never met. I'll call him Jake.

Somehow we get on the topic of movies, and movie reviews. I tell him that I like to see movies on Friday (my day off) and then do these quick reviews for my blog (and now for the Rabbit Room, yay!) We are talking about the movies that came out this summer, and I mention that I hated Transformers 2.

The following conversation ensues. Well, not really exactly like this. But if I were writing a script of the conversation for a kind of self-conscious indie film, this is what it was like.

JAKE I liked Tranformers 2. It isn't a great film, of course, but it was good.

THOMAS It was garbage.

JAKE Most reviewers said so, but it's going to make hundreds of millions of dollars. I think it will end up with the highest profit of all very low ranked films.

THOMAS Making money doesn't make it good.

JAKE I think it shows the chasm between reviewers and the general public. It's not an artistic film, but it's just as good as Kill Bill.

THOMAS (pause) I'm sorry, what did you say?

JAKE They're the same movie. OK, Kill Bill gets more artistic at the end, but they are both just violence and explosions.

THOMAS I, I don't know what to say. OK, I'll say this. The reason I hated Transformers wasn't the explosions. It was that no one bothered to storyboard this movie. The plot made no sense at all. At all. (THOMAS then goes on to share his top five examples of the nonsense that happens in Transformers 2, but I am editing that out for the sake of your time and the point of this post) I mean, a story has to have some kind of internal logic.

JAKE Why? I think that stories like Transformers are creating a new mythology, they don't need to follow a straight narrative.

THOMAS I'm not saying that every film needs a straight narrative. There are many films that are abstract, post-modern, surrealist. Fine. But that is what they are, that's what they are meant to be. Transformers 2 wasn't trying to be an abstract film, it was trying to be a fun, over-the-top summer movie. And it failed because it had no internal consistency, no narrative form, no sense, not even the consistency and sense of a post-modern film. It was like a series of randomly arranged advertisements.

JAKE But why does it need sense, why can't it just be fun?

THOMAS Because plot matters, because something isn't fun if it isn't going somewhere. It's like a roller coaster. A roller coaster doesn't need to have any underlying meaning. But it does need to start in a place, end in a place, and go up and down in between. Transformers 2 was like riding a roller coaster that becomes a bumper car for a second, then a tilt a whirl, then "Its a small world."

JAKE Sounds fun to me.

THOMAS Yeah, that would be fun.

You Basterd, Why Are You Recommending That FIlm?

So my One Minute Review of Inglorious Basterds is up at the Rabbit Room, and lots of folks are talking about it. At least one person was disturbed that I would recommend a film from Quentin Tarantino, given the content of his other films.

I posted a lengthy reply to that challenge, as well as to a couple of questions. You can join the whole on-going discussion here. Or you can read this version of what I wrote, modified for this context.

First: I accept the challenge of making a one minute review that is literally one minute long. I just completed one for the Robert Rodriguez film "Shorts." You can find it here. I think of "One Minute" as more of a metaphor for frenetic brevity.

Next I'm going to make a statement about how I would like to relate to art. I would not criticize a film I have not seen. In order to speak intelligently about a specific film, book, painting, play, or any other piece of art, I feel I must engage it. One might say "I won't see that film because I hear it is terrible, or I don't like that kind of thing," and I think that is fine. For instance, I will not see "Halloween II" because I don't like horror movies as a general rule. They bother me, make me feel sick, and don't usually give me anything redemptive to think about. But I'm not going to launch into a specific criticism of that film unless I have seen it.

This goes to the characterization of Inglorious Basterds that I have seen here and other places, vis-a-vis "sex, drugs, foul language, and violence." This film has a single "sex moment" that has no nudity and lasts about one second. There are no drugs in this film, unless one is counting nicotine and alcohol. The language in this film is rated R, but foul language is not an issue I would hone in on for this one. After all, a great deal of this film isn't even in English. Is there violence in this film? Yes there is.

However, there is much less violence in this film than in, say, the book of Genesis. No wholesale slaughter of villages. No drowning of armies in the Red Sea. No butchering of recently circumcised men. No death of first born sons. Heck, no destruction of almost every living thing on the planet in a Great Flood even. If you don't like sex, violence, alcohol, or bad language I would recommend staying out of the Bible.

OK, "redemptive power of violence." I used that phrase in my review because this is the theme that the film is really bringing up. Can violence lead to healing? Does vengeance bring about positive change? Would it be better to have horrible violence inflected on our enemies and, therefore, bring a war to a swift conclusion?

The questions the film raises are similar to the ones raised in millions of other places. In many ways, this is like Dick Cheney's "we're going to the dark side" comments and the torture that followed. This is like the Karate Kid, in which vindication and redemption comes through kicking someone in the face really hard. This is like dropping the Bomb on Japan in 1945. This is like Israel's invasion of Gaza. If you have been wronged, is it morally good to "kill 'em all"?

The entire film asks these questions, but especially the climactic theater scene, as played against the scenes with the opposing leaders (no spoilers there, but those who have seen it know what I mean). Is that right? Is that good? Is that what we would rather have?

I think these are great questions for Christians to struggle with and discuss. And talking about these ideas as they appear in a film is less potentially destructive than talking about them in current politics or religion or in your family dynamic. This film gives us a point of conversation which allows us to look at our assumptions, our emotions, in a different way. And that is what art, at its best, does for us.

OK, those are some more of my thoughts. For some other thoughts from a good friend of mine and fellow pastor, let me recommend this link.

One Minute Review: Shorts

The One Minute Review of Robert Rodriguez' newest film Shorts is now available. And, for all you haters, it is literally one minute long.

One Minute Review: Shorts from Thomas McKenzie on Vimeo.

Technorati Tags shorts review

One Minute Review: Inglorious Basterds

OMR: Inglourious Basterds from Thomas McKenzie on Vimeo.

I'm in The Rabbit Room

Greetings all,

I am very excited to tell you all that I am the newest member of the Rabbit Room. Operated by my friend Andrew, the Rabbit Room is a place where music and art and literature come together in a sort of Inklings for the 21st century. The posts are always thoughtful, grounded, and lovely.

I have been asked to turn the One Minute Review into a weekly video for the Rabbit Room. Compared to all the other posts, I feel a bit like the Car Talk guys must feel on NPR. I do actually think about my reviews, but I'm afraid I'm going to be like a drunken sailor who just burst into The Eagle and Child (the Inklings' tavern).

No matter, I am pleased to join their fine group. Tally ho!

Go to www.RabbitRoom.com and see what you've been missing!

Mormons, Ho!

So I'm in my office today at 11:57 am, and my office manager opens the door.

"Uh, Thomas, I think that there are two Mormons here for your Bible Study."

I have a weekly Bible study at 12:10. I call it the Brown Bag Bible Study. We end before 1 pm, and folks can bring their lunch. It's open to the public, and on our website. We get visitors. But never like . . .

"How do you know they're Mormons?"
"Because they're dressed like Mormons."

Fair enough.

I go downstairs and there are two young guys, 20, in their white shirts and dark pants/tie combos. With name tags. Elder Joe and Elder Bob (or whatever), Church of JC of Latter Day Saints. I shake their hands, and greet others coming in.

I am so happy. So, so happy. Because today we are starting our discussion related to the Jesus Story Year (www.JesusStoryYear.com) and the topic is Christ at Creation. So I am leading a discussion centered on the Trinity and the Divinity of Christ. They couldn't have come on a more perfect day, from my perspective.

I'm assuming that my Mormon visitors will chime in. Then I'm hoping they will chime in. But they sit silently. So I throw them softballs about the Trinity, about the claims of Christ, about creation. I even throw them some about the Church. I keep asking "any questions or comments?" Other folks have stuff to say, but not the Mormon boys.

"Come on," I'm thinking. "Tell us what you are thinking. Share your ideas, your insights. Give me some greek word use, some difficult passage, something to talk about." But, nothing. Aren't these guys supposed to talk constantly until you throw them out of your house?

After it's over, they greet folks. They tell someone that they will come again. Then they speak to me. I tell them I hope that it was helpful, though I know that their theology is radically different from ours. (Want to bite on that statement? No?) They nod and smile faintly and leave on foot.

As soon as they get out the door, the place erupts with good-natured speculation about our guests. Why were they here, how did they know we were having this, why didn't they speak?

I hope they do come again. At least they will hear what Christians believe, which will be educational. At best they will experience the love of God in Christ through His Church.


And now I post this, prepared for the inevitable Mormon guys who scour the internet waiting to post their cut and paste arguments on blogs like this one that dare to use the word "Mormon." I will delete you. =:o

OMR: District 9

The One Minute Review of District 9 is now available. But now, it is in video as well as audio. Scary, I know. So you can see it on my youtube channel or listen to it on my podcast or just see it right here:



Technorati Tags District 9

D.C. Trip, Episode Four (Final)

Behold, the final episode of our family vacation to Washington D.C. Enjoy.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQb4ih7yxkU

My Newspaper Sermon

Yesterday, I got an e-mail from the Religion Editor at the Tennessean (our local newspaper). He told me that each Saturday they print a message from a local religious leader, a sort of 500 word sermon. It seems that their planned message for this week fell through, and he needed something in a few hours. He asked me if I could write the message.

I have known Bob for a while now, and I really like him and respect his work. I told him I would be happy to do it. After praying, I decided to write a short version of a sermon I preached a couple of weeks ago.

So, here is a link to the message on the Tennessean's website: http://tinyurl.com/l6fgkf


And here is the text I wrote.

Message of the Week

Misusing power for personal satisfaction is among the most odious things a leader can do. We are rightly disgusted when we hear the stories. The executive who uses company funds to cheat on his wife or the minister who drives a church-bought luxury car for "ministry reasons" or the politician who gives lucrative government contracts to friends and family members.
Advertisement

Such stories are not new.

In the Bible, in 2 Samuel chapters 11 and 12, we find God's chosen King David misusing his power to please himself. When it comes time to make war, David sends someone else to do his dirty work (11:1). Then one day he sees a beautiful married woman named Bathsheba and has her brought to him. He objectifies and then sleeps with another man's wife (11:4). David then murders the woman's husband, Uriah (11:15). Even when David is confronted and repents, his sorrow lasts only long enough to see if he can get God to do something for him (12:22-23).

David is a terrible example of humanity. However, if we are honest, we can see ourselves in him. We sometimes use our power to get what we want from people instead of looking after their interests.

We take advantage of others; we manipulate family members and friends and co-workers. We objectify people; we send others to do our dirty work.

I had a professor who once told us that if he hadn't committed a sin it was because he hadn't had the opportunity. I wonder how we would fare with King David's kind of power.

What can God do with a terrible person like David? In Matthew's Gospel, we find a list of Jesus' ancestors. In that list we find these words: "David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been Uriah's wife." (1:6)

David had acquired Bathsheba and murdered Uriah through a despicable misuse of power. And God used the coming together of David and Bathsheba to bring forth the Savior of the world. Centuries after David died, Jesus Christ would be called by the honorary title "Son of David." (Matthew 9:7, etc.) Even though David and Bathsheba deeply sinned, God redeemed their union to offer salvation to us all.

Consider the ways you have misused your power. Consider your sins, your regrets, your misdeeds. The things you are ashamed of, the things you would like to forget. If God can bring salvation out of David's sins, what can he do with your sins?

The Good News is that through Jesus' death and resurrection, you can be forgiven of all your sins.

And there is more. Christ is the Redeemer as well as the Forgiver. He can bring forth great good, healing and wholeness even from your darkest moments.

Call out to him and ask him to do this. Then find a church community where you can know him and his great love for you even better.

D.C. Trip, Episode Three

The third in the four part series of videos of my family's trip to DC is now on You Tube and on my blog at www.iHajj.net. Check it out.

The Jesus Story Year

Our congregation, Church of the Redeemer, is about to start a really cool project. It's called the "Jesus Story Year."

The idea is to tell the story of Christ from before Creation to after his Return, from Genesis to Revelation. It will take a full academic year to do this. Each Sunday at our church, we will be focused on Christ's person and work in a major story from the Bible. So, August 16th we're going to talk about Jesus as the agent of creation, and why that matters. Then the next week we're going to be looking at Jesus and the Fall.

All of this in the normal context of both the Communion meal and the Church Year. Children and Youth ministry are following along, we're going to have a Sunday school class on it for adults, and we're going to have discussion questions for small groups. I'm so jazzed up--you have no idea.

If you want to follow our journey, check us out at www.JesusStoryYear.com. Also, here is a 7 minute introduction video I made.