Godspeed, Mr. President

You can read President Barack Obama's inaugural address here.

R.I.P. Andrew Wyeth

I have a particular affinity for American Painters from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Winslow Homer (d. 1910), the ubiquitous Edward Hopper (d. 1967), Thomas Hart Benton (d. 1975), and the now late Andrew Wyeth have all captured my attention for various reasons: Homer for his ability to capture the ruggedness and beauty of New England and its people, Hopper for His use of color, choice of subject, and the underlying commentary of his works on isolationism within the American psyche, Benton for his unique fluid style and strong use of color in portraying American life particularly in the many murals he created (and also because He was a resident of Kansas City--his home, which is now a museum, was only a few blocks from where we lived), and finally Wyeth for his moody and stark realism and use of light, lines, and subject, particularly in the Helga pictures.

I hope you'll take some time to explore their world.

Sasquatch . . . Now You Know He's REAL!

Yet more evidence to confound the chorus of Bigfoot naysayers: Tenacious D (aka Jack Black and Kyle Gass) offer up the Sasquatch song. Check it out here.

Parental Advisory: They may (okay, do) use a couple of potty mouth words.

Design Your Own Church

A friend of mine recently challenged me to dig deeper into what it is that God's called us here to do--to give congitive flesh to the yearning that God's placed in my heart. Each of us hopes and waits for something, he said. That "something" doesn't look like everything else. Specifically, if I've heard him correctly, he's describing an expression and incarnation of faith that is authentic and genuine: we know it when we see it, and consequently we're drawn to it.

The Church, (and by "Church" I don't mean the Institution, but rather the Body of Christ, i.e. the life of the Holy Spirit lived out within those who call themselves Jesus' followers), is the nexus of this yearning hope and incarnate expression. It embodies (or ought to, at least) the Kingdom of God here on earth. Too often it (we) fall short. This "falling short" induces in many of us the yearning described above: we long for the fullness of salvation and relationship (with God and others) for which God created us.

When I say, "Design Your Own Church" I'm asking what does the Church that fully embodies the Kingdom of God look like for you. In these intial stages of exploration and definition I've simply come up with a list of words that at least hint at what I believe it is.

Trinitarian
Worshipful
Christ-centered
Mysterious
Explorative
Open
Belonging before you believe
Genuine
Authentic
Confessional
Healing
Devotional
Historical
Eucharistic
Celebrative
Imaginative
Spirit-inspired
Life-giving
Journeying
Safe
Fellowship
Hopeful
Inclusive
Forgiving
Beautiful
Relational
Comprehensive
Color-blind

What do you think?