random bits

[cellio]

Sunday night we went to see the Narnia movie (finally). The previews were mostly aimed at kids, with one notable exception (The White Countess); that was an odd combination. One of the previews was for Hoot, which appears to be another in the theme of "these kids, and only these kids, can save the world (or their small part of it)". I find that while I'm willing to suspend that sort of disbelief in a fantasy or SF millieu -- Narnia, my recent D&D game, and a number of novels boil down to this plot -- I am usually unable to do so for stories set in the real world. So Hoot came across to me as dumb and lame, even though I was sitting there waiting for Narnia.

A doctor friend was recently opining that "some guy" is responsible for about 80% of ER visits from violent crimes, and if we can just find him we'll all be better off. "For instance", he said, "you get reports like 'there I was, sitting on my front porch at 3AM reading my bible and minding my own business, when Some Guy shot me!'". Err, this might be more challenging than he thinks.

I caused a telemarketer to violate the script this weekend. I was lured in by him pronouncing my name correctly, so I didn't immediately detect his true nature. Then he said "I'm calling from the PA Pro-Life Commission" (or some such) and I interrupted and said "you really have a wrong number". He stopped mid-shpiel and apologized. Negative points for calling in the first place but positive points for not persisting. And maybe this one will actually put me on their do-not-call list.

A random thought: in this age of global communication, when giving an email correspondent your phone number it is polite to mention your time zone. On the internet nobody knows you're a dog, and also, nobody knows you're in Bangladesh. Or wherever. Fortunately, Google can answer these sorts of questions pretty easily given the phone number, unless it's a cell phone.

Saturday is a local SCA event, Dance and Romance. It's a free event (pot-luck food) at Pitt, and as the name implies, there will be a lot of dancing. Ensemble Rigodon (that's On the Mark's SCA identity) will be doing a short concert, and lots of us will undoubtedly be playing dance music all day. Should be fun!

Comments

Christian connections?

[selucid.livejournal.com]

I'm wondering what Christian connections you noticed in Narnia. I was told by a few people that one should be able to spot the connections in the storyline.

Re: Christian connections?

[cellio]

Well, Aslan sacrificing himself to redeem the unintentional and unworthy sinner Edmund, only to then be resurrected and declare the debt paid and Edmund to be just (huh? on that last part), is pretty blatant.

A close examination raises a theological questions. Aslan had to endure humiliation as part of this and lions are canonically prideful, so that seems a sacrifice that does not come back with the reset button. (His temporary death isn't a sacrifice because he knew about that reset.) Aslan came out of the experience lessened in some way, albeit probably a minor one. On the other hand, Jesus is supposed to be fully God, so presumably he is above that kind of pride. Doesn't that mean that if Jesus sacrificed anything in the end, it was all about the (err) excruciating pain? Mel Gibson's torture-centered theology isn't considered mainstream among Christians, but if Jesus knew that he wasn't really sacrificing his life, and as God he was above human emotions like pride, then what exactly did he sacrifice? I ask this in all sincerity; I'm not snarking.