Cigarette Smoke and Piano Noise

I feel like I should smoke a cigarette after I play on the piano.

It's not music

I don't play a song.

There is no constant rhythm

I don't even know what notes I'm playing.

The song doesn't start and it doesn't end

I just pick it up and let it go.

There are no recording devices

This song is for this moment.

And this moment.

And that last moment.

I cry when I'm done

When I'm doing.

I don't know how to play on the piano.

But I play.

Heaven Home

Last night I had a dream. I was walking back with Lowrey from a swimming pool from an old friend who lived in my neighborhood. He lived in a different house though. Also, he had a pool (though he never actually did). The sun was setting as we worked our way down the street in our swim shorts. I looked back at Lowrey who had suddenly become my brother, David. This, being a dream, didn't phase me in the least. I looked ahead and marveled at the shape of the clouds and the suns reflection off of them. Pink, orange and yellow pervaded through a spotted hole of dark blue and grey. David said something like, "that's a glimpse of heaven," and then I saw it. It was like a black waterfall but smooth as glass and it poured from above where my vision could reach. It poured itself down with a red lining on it's side into some distant place in the horizon. Covering it were yellow and red dots flowing with the motion of the glassy water. I wondered at the size and scope of this marvel as it turned before it crushed some distant ground and scooped up to race across the face of the earth. At that moment I knew: Heaven had come to earth. I looked at David, whose smile was almost as big as mine. I tried to speak but my breath had gone. My flesh began to tingle. Ecstasy flowed through my veins. I felt light, weightless and I thought, "I'm going home." A bright flash of light. Then I awoke.

The Origin of Art

Man has always had the desire and will to create (of course when I say "man" I mean "mankind," and by always I mean since his very inception). This should not be surprising considering that God made man in his image. Immediately after God created man, Adam, the very first action we see him take is to name all of the creatures of the earth;

Genesis 2:19- Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature that was its name.

The very first thing man did was create. He created the names of every living thing. Before this we see God give Adam his responsibilities and purpose but the first action he actually performs is creation in reaction to God's creation.

Even today we title everything we do as the most basic form of creation. Nomenclature was the first art! Anything unnamed is mysterious and frightening and so we create as natural instinct for protection, survival, and to define the world. Our first response when we encounter something new is often to ask, "what is it? what do I call it?" because the first creation by man was names; definition. This is both art and science. Science is to discover what is already there and to name it, even if it is to discover (uncover) a process that makes something that did not previously exist. The ability, the function, the possibility of it has always been there. To quote the comedian Mark Lowrey, "A few years back they discovered DNA. I had it the whole time." We cannot truly make what is not there, we can only uncover God's glorious creation a little at a time.

Man will always be under God because He is our creator. Here is a story that was told to me many years ago as an example. "A group of scientist got together and decided that man had become self sufficient and no longer needed God. They nominated one of their kind and sent him to go tell God they didn't need Him anymore. Shyly to scientist recounted this information and God responded, 'If you believe man is self sufficient then let us put it to the test. If you can create a man as I did, from the dust of the earth and with no help from Me, then I will leave mankind alone and acknowledge that man no longer needs Me.' The scientist thought this was fair and reached down to the ground and picked up and hand full of dirt. And God said, 'No, you have to get your own dirt.'" As simple as this story is, we can see that we have a desperate need for God, for without Him, there is nothing and nothing would remain. We cannot be self sufficient.

Man was made in the image of God and in the image of God man was made to create. This is what comes to every human no matter what race, class, stature, knowledge, experience, pain, or deformity. God made and so we make. We do so in a way that the creatures of the earth do not. Because we are made specifically, personally, precisely in God's image. Thus is the origin of Art.

Violet

Violet like purple

like rain falling onto an open subway where you never see light

unless it's at the end of the tunnel.

Funnel down

and swirl around

like backwards barney ice cream cones

that drone their gum ball eyes

to see the survived

in an apocalypse against orange.

Like sweaty socks

of the regal

hunting down

for seagulls as servants,

like dogs,

fetch the retched death.

Mean green things

fight in the rainbow

while violet sits silent

in its own quiet subdue

to see the hue

fall down into the rain

of it's reign.

Big and tall

like falling and going home.

Violet is violence

but quiet

like a dragon's flagon

sifting sweet misery

until it's time to eat.

And like that.

Like rainbows.

Like dragons.

It's gone.

Paper Boy

O.
right.
ok then.
I. . .

Lonely minstrel sitting down
burning frown
like cycle down
into utter travesties
never-meant-to-be's
and a twist in the knee.

I am paper boy!
not like deliveries
with remedies to inquiries,
but more so like. . .

theoretical hypothetical dream machine demeanor
that comes off cleaner if it hides behind your bed.
The kind of guy that's superfly
but you can't say that you've read.
Let's break it down like a tick
like a tock
and beat the clock
for keeping score
because at 22 with no lips perused
you think they'd like me more.
But in the sense of flies in vents and hiding under that wall
I tripped the tip and found the slip when in hearing you
you fall.
Heart was beating
bleating
for air when question 1 he slipped past.

I gasped.

And waited.

Desperate sifting of the air.
Holding tight to nothing there
my spies eyes had hidden me from the stare and you said. . .

Probably not.
Twitch
burn
reasons
why?
Burn like frogs in spines of grey
like frankincense and murder.
Smelling sweet with bitter repore
my heart beat building like an enraged door
"growing up to do"
shattered through my veins biting
like flighting mentions taunting my brains

O. . .
Right. . .
Ok then. . .
I. . .

O.
Right.
Ok then.
I

O,
Right,
Ok then,
I,

O
Right
Ok then
I
WHY?

Which perfection that admired
burned blackest in desperate mire?
Into what moment did suspension bring your suffering to halt?
"Not so good enough"
"Like'm fine by himself but you can't take him in public"
but at the same time it's not like. . .
like. . .
like. . .
like,
I like you that way.
I didn't want you to be infatuated I just wanted to be. . .
infatuating.

O.
Right.
Ok then. . .

The I-Screaming Man

Ding a ling a ding
Like taunting promises of freedom
shifting focus into seethedom
so that
when that once powerful creamery
strikes joy into the hearts of thousands
joy will be renewed.
In the tantalizing tastes
the graces of faces long past
blast their orbit through the sherbet forest
into tigers with gum ball eyes
whose only vision is of joyous carnivores
making metaphor the most simple of desires
fire that rages around
burning down the black hole
and filling the soul with laughter
and after its segregation the congregation
begs for more hopeful substation
of mansions promises
for a penny more than a dollar
that hide in surprise attack formation
to pillage the nation of it's most beautiful extremities.
like liquid knives
the finding is binding
as the siren sings it's battle cry
and I find my mind is thwarted and aborted
until mission sweetly-tasested is complete.
feet run like lightning
and the fire is frightening
until icicles calm the soul down.
Upside down frown resounds threw ground pounds
have dew of the sugary treat
lapping at feet
that have come to rest in the chest
of happy, homely bows.

Like Trees

We need be like dem trees. See dis tree? Is tall and old. Is grown; mature. Look here at its skin. Cracked and wrinkled. Like grandma's. See how broken it looks? But it ain't broken. Is strong. See, 'cause when da tree is a baby tree it has one bark. One big bark that covers it up, but when da tree grows bigger and stronger it don't need da little bark no more so it breaks it with da new bark. da bigger, stronger tree still uses da dead little bark to protect itself and protect da new bark. It ends up with lots a dead barks. Lots a layers and strengths. Also like grandmas. But see, Inside da tree is strong too, it's very strong. And it gets big. We should be like these trees because we should know what we were, and now we need to be who is; big and strong. Reaching out all over da place and holding up da sky and cracking through da rocks. People is like sky and rocks too. Some is mystical and float around, others is solid and unmoving. We should be like trees to dem 'cause see, we is da middle now. Trees is in da middle. We is solid but break. We move but we're solid. See, trees have da right idea, I think. dey know how to be both and neither. Trees is smart like that. 'Cause see Trees hold da truth. We hold da truth too. Daddy gave it to us and now, like da trees, we have to hold da earth together with da truth. He gave us long fingers and big minds so that we can hold da solids like ground and da thinks like air. We is breaking and we is cracking and we is falling because Daddy loves us too much. It's so much we don't even know. So much we can't see. 'Cause see, trees don't have eyes neither. We only know where our Daddy tells us, but that's all we need. 'Cause see He loves us to much to let us see everything, but because He loves us we know even falling trees help all da other ones. Dead ones is making live ones more living. He gives us ground just like He does trees. He gives us sky just like He does trees. He made us like trees, but He loves us more than dem. Because He made us like Him. We is cracked because we grow, and strong because we cracked, and alive because we reach. And because Daddy loves us too much. We should be like trees and love like Daddy. Daddy makes us both. See?

Breathless

Here's a poem I found in an old notebook of mine. If my guess it right this was written in the summer of '05 when I was 17.

Breathless

Breathe on me O breath of God,

I long for your smell.

How long must I burn, my Lord,

in my sinful hell?

Apart from You and Your grace

nothing can I gain.

Only the constant slamming

of seizures in my brain.

As my lungs breathe their last

slowly death I feel,

And reaching out with my dying fingers

I make one last appeal:

"Breathe on me O Breath of Life,

how I long for Its scent!

If only my own imperfection

I could somehow prevent.

If I was perfect

anything I could subdue,

But Lord I am lacking,

I cannot even breathe without You.

Inflate my lungs, my Savior,

With Your Breath of Strength,

And after I exhale again

I need more breath after short length.

Breathe on me, my Father.

Exhale Your Breath of Will.

Breathe on me Your silence

and help me to be still.

Search my heart, my Lover.

Strike down my defenses.

It is such a joy to know

without You I am breathless.

When We Lovin'

Ain't nobody gonna scream it, gonna shout it, gonna love it from hilltops like we did when we was short. Ain't nobody gonna b'lieve them words when we says'em now. Not one body gonna know if we start singing'em now 'cause words doesn't mean nothing no more. Not a bit. Not a lick. So now, see, it's gonnna hafta be a new way we sing. Like praisin' Jesus but with the movement. Like dancin' we need movement in our bones that comes from our hearts. Not no fancy words that bleed there way into meanin' something else. One undeniable moment when they sees us lovin' each other. That's how they know. When we be lovin' each other without benefits and without holdin' back. Not worryin' so much 'bout sanity or safety but becasue we is brothers and sisters takin' bites away from the bleeding wounds. If we's help and love each other that when we sayin' somethin'. When we see it ain't got nothin' to do with us that's when we get it. When we be lovin' with the love given to us and not so much with instincts and thinkin' 'bout benefits. That's when they see what we was screamin'. When they wonder why we lovin'. 'Cause then they know we lovin' Daddy and not so much us. When we lovin' Daddy like He love us is when they gonna know. Not so much with shoutin' and screamin'. Not so much from hilltops. But so much from right here. Right now. With us.

GCA Goes Away

The Georgia Council of the Arts is to be eliminated for budgetary reasons at the end of the month. This will eradicate all arts funding for the entire state of Georgia. What do we do? What are the effects? Without government funding the Arts in Georgia will suffer greatly: Arts teachers will lose jobs, Theatre's will close, and artists will have almost no work available. As a theatre artist that will be graduating soon this seems like a thoroughly intimidating proposition.

But I must ask, is this really a bad thing? Yes, in the the sense that many people will be out of jobs, but no, in the sense that the arts will have to prove their own existence again. Without the government funding artists will be forced to justify our art for the sake of our community and culture. Now only the art that is meaningful for our state, our country, and our people will be able to exist. In it's formalized form, the arts may fail. But now only the art that is done out of the desperation for expression and communication of our deepest soul's needs will be possible because it will be all we can afford. Artists will have to have other jobs and means of surviving physically while our art will be what forces us to life spiritually. Perhaps this will help cleanse the art of Georgia because it will only be able to exist in it's purest form.

One of the arts main functions is to reflect and influence the culture. Without the arts we no longer preserve our society and change the hearts of the people in it. But art is not so easily vanquished. Art comes from the soul of the artist. Art will persist with or without the government's help. And to quote the infinitely wise Sean Haley, "The government will always help the artist. Either through funding or inspiration."

Bread and Puppet Theatre is one of many theatre's that has great methods to survive without such funding. Have products to sell that raise money of their own accord. Use cheap or found materials. If money is what inhibits us from making our art then we are not expressing that need through our art. We cannot sit back and be lazy because we lack funding. Make it happen. If we love it we will do what it takes to get it done. Funding from the government may actually be hindering our progress as artists because we are in a constant state of pleasing our beneficiaries and not pursuing our art. We should and must be able to survive without it. Otherwise our art cannot justify its own existence.

If you would like your voice to be heard on this issue, here's a link that will voice your opinion directly to our chamber representatives. Your voice, heard.

W.T.Sex?!

This is a conversation I had with someone almost a year ago. There's a shorter version on my facebook because I posted it part-way through the conversation. Here it is in its completion. Let me know what you think.

???: So I have a question. (It's actually more of a series of questions, but I'll start with one.) Are you a virgin by choice or because of lack of opportunity? ... Or you don't know?

Me:I'd say both choice and lack of opportunity. but lack of opportunity in the sense of my preventing opportunity. I see sex as a sacred thing. it's usually treated in an itemized way. "I got laid" or "I got a blow job" or even things like "I'm a boob-guy myself." It doesn't matter who we get it from as long as we get it. We've turned sex into something to be obtained not something shared with someone we love. We've turned people into junkyards; we just go in looking for what we want the most at the least cost to ourselves. Don't get me wrong, I think sex can be purely fun too, but only if it ultimately brings the two people together. That's why I'm waiting until I'm married. Then I'll never know "how good" my wife is because she'll be the best I've ever had, The only one I would ever want because it's about her and I becoming one and not three or four. How could I ever want anyone else when I've waited all this time for her? I know that's worth waiting for.

???: Hmm.. I never thought about sex as being objectified, but you're definitely right. I never thought about it like that before. To each his own, I guess? The same can be said for other aspects of sexuality as well though. Holding hands.. Having a gf or bf just to have one. Kissing. Oral. All those things can be objectified. What makes sex different?

And that being said, are you restricting yourself to marrying a virgin? What are the chances of you actually finding someone like that?

Me: sex isn't necessarily different. whatever form of physical pleasure (or emotional for that matter) is objectified if it's only for the self gain and not about the unity. I never seen objectified pleasure help anyone. it's really only using someone. I've see it almost every time (if not every time) keep relationships together longer than they should and people getting hurt more than they would have without it. Sex and sexual pleasures have a lot of psychological effects that keep people where they shouldn't be if it's only (or mostly) about themselves.

but to answer your question, who I marry doesn't have to be a virgin. She can have a kid, or be divorced. It comes down to could I trust her with my everything? would she trust me with theirs? Does she actively love Jesus? He's the only one that can restore a person and give her His faithfulness and love to pass on to me and I to her. That's true regardless of if she's a virgin or not

haven't heard from you in a while. I'm still glad to answer any questions you have about my virginity or anything else. it's been good talking to you and I hope to hear from you soon

???: I've just been thinking is all.

Hmm...

So what if it's sex between two people who genuinely love each other but aren't married? It's not "itemized." Why wait until you're legally married? What's the difference besides a legal piece of paper?

Me: The difference is in the oaths. Vowing before God. paper is a technicality, but a lawful one. God wants us to obey the law and because He loves us and wants the best for us, it only makes sense to obey Him. and if impatience is what keeps you from waiting until then, then isn't that using for selfish means? isn't something worth more in waiting for it? if you can't wait then it's eating food that isn't fully prepared. not waiting until public vows is being selfish and itemizing, but the whole person and not necessarily one part

???: Obey the law?? It's the law to have to be married before having sex?

Me: no. that's not what I meant. to be married it illegitimate to not report it to the government. still a technicality though. But that for believers that are in a place with that kind of law. it's different in the jungles of africa for instance. no legal implications there

???: I guess I'm still questioning the connection between marriage and sex then?

Me: Marriage is when you officially make a commitment before God, other people, and (in

many cases) the government. for lack of a better analogy, it's like eating a candy bar before you pay for it because you don't know if you really want it. you buy it when you're sure you want it and then you eat it. it's stealing if you eat it and leave without paying for it. taking what's not yours and you can't give it back, but you still aren't committed to it. That's a silly analogy but I hope you get the point.

The way I see it I am my wife's. I'm not married and I have no prospects, but I am hers now. if I were to have sex with someone it would be to steal what is hers form her and give it to someone else. even if it's someone I was engaged to because she is still not my wife. imagine the trust that will be built immediately when I can say, "I've waited for only you." how could I want another when I have not tasted another. how can I long for someone else when I have no knowledge of any else. She'll be the best I've ever had and the only one I'll ever want. why would I bother to go to someone else when she is the best?

hey. haven't heard from you in a long while now and was wondering what your thoughts are. Also, I'd really like to post our conversation as a note on my page if that's ok with you. obviously you'll remain anonymous because I don't even know who you are

???: hmmm. I guess it's alright...

And I've just been contemplating, again. That's all.

Me: ok cool. Thanks

???: So I'm at this point again when I'm contemplating my virginity. Almost done with college and I feel like I've made it this far. But I feel like I'm handi-capped or something because of it sometimes. I think part of that is due to the fact that I've just started dating again for the first time in a long time, and it's always an odd subject that comes up. People just assume that I have sex regularly and I don't correct them because I don't want to be the "black sheep". It's almost embarrassing to me and I just prefer not to talk about it. Is that wrong?? Have you ever known someone to be a virgin who's actually regretted it?

And did you ever post our conversation out of curiosity?

Me: Not once have I ever heard of someone regretting waiting until their married. Very often Have I heard stories of people regretting giving away their virginity before they were married, even if they ended up married to the person they gave it to.

As far as 'is it wrong?' i'd say we're looking at a symptom and not the actual problem. but first we'll talk a bit about the symptom.

Culturally we are the black sheep, the oddballs. In our society "who are you dating?" has become synonymous with "who are you having sex with?" It can be very embarrassing to be different, but embarrassing is where we find the root of the problem.

To be embarrassed is to feel as though we don't not have or will not have the acceptance of others because of who we are. It causes a sense of unbalance which we desperately try to avoid. In this way other people control us. Not always on purpose or with ill intent but they have sway over what we do and how we think. In the end only God's opinion matters. God wants us to wait to have sex because He loves us perfectly, He can see the future and knows what is best for us, so He asks us to do things for Him which ultimately are for our own good. When we remember this and how other people's opinions don't matter in the end, then we are not embarrassed because God loves us and wants what's best. Our friends do not. They may love us but by no means do they know what's best. God can see what will happen in the future, our friends cannot. It's silly to take their opinions over God's.

But that doesn't make it easy. It's something we have to continually remind ourselves of. I have struggled over the same things. Virginity will not get you to the top of any popularity charts, but it truly is what's best. God promised as much.

???: If I don't have religion, how do I hold on to it? What reason do I have?

Me: Other than STD's and unexpected Pregnancy, The emotional and psychological reasons. When people have sex they are having the most intimate experience that is physically possible. Things literally go off in our brains (particularly for women) that bind us both physically and mentally to the other person. That's a lot to give to someone. especially someone who isn't bound to you in a way that cannot be broken. Yes, people get divorced all the time but let's assume marriage is more than that. Let's say it's unbreakable. That is the only time that I could quite literally trust someone with everything I am. That's what sex really comes down to in the end. I've seen people torn to pieces because suddenly the person they trusted with everything has left them. Sometimes it's so bad it takes years to recover. That's what people try to hide about sex, so that we don't have to be committed. so we can worship sex itself instead of forming a beautiful and (dare I say) magical bond with the most important person in our lives.

Happiness Deserved

Here's one for you. Are some people more deserving of happiness than others? Let's break it down. What is the assumption made in this question (I think that is where we'll find our answer). This question assumes one thing: that happiness is something deserved. Is happiness something deserved? If so, then how do we ensure that we receive our deserved quantity of happiness? Who is it that determines the correct distribution of happiness? How do you quantify happiness? Obviously these are silly questions. Happiness is an emotion and emotions are uncontrollable symptoms of life. I can be happy and stub my toe and I will instantly shift to upset. To try to be happy is to chase the wind. To decide who does and does not deserve happiness is to decide what emotions I will feel today. You don't have to be alive long to know that it is not possible to completely control all of our emotions all of the time. Therefore happiness cannot be deserved because it cannot be counted and it is not something given.

Happiness, however, can be generated from outside sources. For instance, I would be happy if was offered a piece of pie (or a whole pie if I was to be very happy), not because I have happiness inside of me, but because my happiness is a reaction to what is outside of me. Unfortunately most of these outside sources have only a temporary effect and therefore are lacking. Jesus is where our true joy can be found. His limitless love for us in spite of us is the ultimate cause of happiness. Through the forgiveness of Jesus' death on the cross and the love that drove Him there, we can have peace and joy (true, unlimited happiness) through God; Jesus Christ. And no, it's not deserved. It cannot be deserved. If it was deserved it would be quantifiable and It would be owed to us. God has given us the opportunity for happiness through His son, His death and His resurection. We can be happy because God loves us. Happy Easter.

Fear Eternal

Here are two blog posts I wrote on May 30th and June 3rd, 2008 respectively. These were four very important days in my development as a person. The subject has returned recently through a friend and so I thought I would post them again as a one blog mini-series.

The Reason to Fear Death

I have found the reason to fear death. To not end. After death nothing ends. I was more terrified today than I have ever been in my entire life. I was terrified of heaven. I still am. I need it to end. I need things to be over. I would rather have never been born because now that I have been I will always exist. I was shaking in worship. Every time grace or love or mercy was mentioned I ached. It all reminds me that I can't end. I want to end. I want to not exist. It's one thing to fear God, but what about abject terror? Of course having to pick between heaven and hell is an easy one and I am already spoken for, but I fear eternity more than life itself. Everything in life will end, so why fear it? Heaven has no such boundaries, and I have never known fear so strong that I cannot be rid of because of God. It is God Himself I fear. There is not stopping it. Accepting the fact doesn't make it non-fact. I asked God to make me a man. To give me courage. Perhaps this is step one. Perhaps it is step only. I am terrified.

The Reason Fear Dies

It's odd that I used to have a completely different view on heaven. I can remember times thinking, "God, if you wanted to take me now then that would be just fine." Why has my perception changed? Perhaps it is my cowardice. I asked God to make me a man: to give me courage and strength. Perhaps that's just what He did. What can be strong without God? What power is there without the source of power? Simply people who are weak and deceived. In Christ alone I have strength. Only with Him is the any reason for courage. All other situations have no reason for hope or courage. I must trust God that heaven is a good thing. That I wont want it to end. Not to let something as silly as comprehension be an all defining gage by which I can control my world with my whims. Jesus is where my strength and courage must come from. All else comes from myself or the decaying world and is simply futile.

Allowed to Be

Why are we so eager to destroy our childhood sense of exploration? “Quickly squelch the infidels. We cannot allow freedom when our own freedom has been taken.” We are so quick to subdue all hopes of joy in anything considered immature. But what is immaturity really? Is it the joy and hope of exploring life and treating every moment as an adventure? Of course not! But if someone decides to run instead of walk, to climb instead of stairs, to fall instead of sit we are quick to destroy these fantasies. Puppies and babies are allowed. A puppy can run into a door and, provided no injury, we laugh at his ineptitude to cope with the ever-changing environment. A toddler is allowed to sing whatever is on his mind without care or reason for pitch and tempo and we encourage his creativity and self expression. But once we reach middle school and often even elementary school we quickly crush all of these “immature” activities for the sake of standardization.

I feel as though I am the “inept” child. If I break into song or poem or dance the oddity is me. No more fun, no more freedom, no more life because of the innate pressure of society for conformity. We are safe within our self contained knowledge and any sense of chaos or non-normative behavior instantly instills fear and a reflex to resist and deter.

Maturity, in its true sense, is not to lose these important and vital life functions, but to know when and where they might be released. Maturity, in its most basic form, is simply the discernment of time and place. Perhaps I am immature but perhaps we should strive to create a safe environment among each other so that the times for this “child-like” freedom can be expressed and enjoyed. The maturity of discernment can allow for this. Let us love and enjoy each other through the letting down of our walls and habits of standardization and provide the encouragement to simply be allowed.

Christian in Theatre

As a Christian, theatre has always been an difficult pursuit for me. I am often stereotyped and seen as ignorant. I have had people in my theatre department at Kennesaw State openly laugh in my face when I have stated some of my beliefs. People have often assumed that I must hate homosexuals, of which theatre as a higher concentration of than most secular circles, without me ever doing anything to indicate so. Especially when they hear that I am a member of a Baptist church people often feel inclined to justify there own actions as though I was condemning them. I believe firmly and seriously in Jesus and that He is God, I do not hate homosexuals, and I do not condemn people. But as soon as I say “Christian” all of those negative attributes are given to me.

If you look at the media, the only people it is socially acceptable to openly mock are, in fact, Christians. Most often we are represented as redneck, condemning, and ignorant. As a culture we cannot openly mock Buddhists, Judaism, Hinduism, or Islam, but Christians are fair game. We are only represented by the stereotypes of those who are the least like Jesus. Not only is this acceptable but it is also encouraged and believed to be true by most non-Christians.

For a long time the Christian Church, Protestants and Catholics have believe falsely that the arts are evil. This has been a great misrepresentation of the Bible and of Jesus. Dancing is most notable for being thrown out of the church, but King David, whom God called “a man after my own heart” danced and praised God with his art. Much of this was due to philosophers around the time of early Christianity that influenced many of the non-Biblical beliefs. The body was seen as evil and the soul as perfect and thus anything the body desires is wrong. This is not at all what the Bible depicts of the body, mind, and soul. The Song of Songs shows sex to be something celebrated between a man and wife. Ecclesiastes says that there is a time for dance and a time for singing. The Prophet Jeremiah would often perform silently in symbolistic ways to communicate with the Israelites in what we would now consider pantomime or performance art.

Another unfortunate stereotype is that Christian Theatre is considered bad theatre. This is not because Christianity has poor concepts or is trying to avoid being to “artsy.” Christianity actually originated many of the classic ideas in the stories of ancient Greece. We can see this influence because the Bible stories were written long before many of the Greek mythologies were. But there is some truth that Christian Theatre is bad theatre. Mostly this is because Christian Theatre is most often done in churches where there are few, if any, trained Theatre people. The people writing and producing have no idea what they're doing, and thus put on bad theatre. This would be true of any people group with these same qualifications.

There is little good Christian Theatre due in part to these stereotypes I have mentioned. Most Theatre people see Christianity as closed minded and derogatory and they like to respond in kind to Christianity. Therefore, Christian Theatre is not done well because most people cannot tolerate anyone who believes in one absolute truth.

There is hope for Christian Theatre despite the fact that Christians are heavily persecuted in the theatre community. Our hope is in Jesus. Our hope is in each other. Our hope cannot be stopped by simple stereotypes because it is not dependent on the people making them.

War and Snot

Anit-war. Many people have been and are anti-war advocates. I, also, am not in favor of war, but I am afraid that being anti-war does not help achieve any kind of resolve. War, you see, is not made for its own sake. We do not have anti-war campaigns that fight against pro-war campaigns (that would be ironic and antithetical for those supporting anti-war), but war is a symptom of a much greater disease.

I think we can all agree that as human beings we all have wants and needs. I am not going to discuss whether humans are naturally good or evil in this article, but for the sake of the article let us assume that we as human beings are evil. Evil, as defined by Project 86, is, “I want something you have. I want it oh so bad. Don't move. Hand it over. I won't stop until it's in my hands.” We have war because we want something some else has and they will not give it to us. We often try for diplomatic means but if those continue to fail then we resort to brute force to obtain what we need. This has been true for every culture in the history of humanity. Our wants and resistance to what we don't want have consistently driven us to violence towards our fellow man. This violence, this war, is fueled by our desires and because we believe that we are more superior or that our needs are greater than the human beings that disagree with us.

War is like snot. When the body is sick it generates more snot to help fight against the germs and disease present in the body. War generates from necessity. When we have excessive amounts of snot coming out of out bodies we know that there is a deeper sickness within that is generating the excess of our defense mechanism. To simply stop war would be like wiping a runny nose. More snot will follow. Wiping it away does not solve the problem, it only treats the symptom.

The real disease comes from our own desires. We must stop wanting what others have so much that we force ourselves upon each other, or wanting to avoid what others are trying to give us. Some people simply want other people dead. War is necessary to fight and defend ourselves from the onslaught of endangering forces. War can protect us in the same way that snot helps us stay healthy by capturing infectious germs in our noses before they can reach the inner, vulnerable parts of our bodies. To stop war we must stop thinking of ourselves as superior and in greater need than other human beings. To be anti-war is to be anti-snot. If we truly seek for war to end we must be anti-want.