In StereoOn the Heavier End

Out of Their MindsCultivating True Leisure

The Discerning LifeDid Jesus Smoke?

ResourcesFrom Boredom to Sounds

The Darkened RoomHaunted by Happiness

10

In This Issue

02 Editor’s Note

03 Dialogue

16 Clicks

0099

1100

1122

1133

An excerpt from Richard Winter’s Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment:Rediscovering Passion & Wonder.

A review of the must-see, must-discuss movie: 13 Conversations AboutOne Thing.

Kevin Hilman, a “hard-music lover” and committed Christian shares some of hisfavorite albums.

Reviews of Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment; John Donne: Man of Fleshand Spirit; The Marketplace Annotated Bibliography; and Ghetto Monk.

0044Christians who smoke. Are they simply wearing their sins where the rest of uscan see and smell them? Or is there more to the issue than “sin”?

CritiqueHHeellppiinngg CChhrriissttiiaannss DDeevveelloopp SSkkiill ll iinn DDiisscceerrnnmmeenntt

Issue #1 - 2003A Publication of Ransom Fellowship

CritiqueIssue #1 - 2003

EditorDenis Haack

Managing EditorMarsena Konkle

Contributing EditorsSteven Garber, R. Greg Grooms,

Donald Guthrie, John MasonHodges, Preston Jones, David John

Seel, Jr., Andrew H. Trotter, Jr.

Board of DirectorsSteven Garber

Lilly Faculty Scholar at Calvin College

Donald GuthrieVice President for

Academics at Covenant Theological Seminary

Denis and Margie Haack co-founders of Ransom Fellowship

Rev. Ed HagueSenior Pastor, Christ Church PCA

Bonnie LieferDirector of Communications for Coalition for Christian

Outreach

Henry Tazelaar MDProfessor of Pathology, Mayo Medical School

SubmissionsCritique considers unsolicited manuscripts only for poetry.

Mail with SASE to:Critique Managing Editor

406 Bowman AvenueMadison, WI 53716 or

marsena@ransomfellowship.org

CorrespondenceAll other correspondence and changes of address:

Denis D. Haack1150 West Center

Rochester, MN 55902info@ransomfellowship.org

Copyright © 2003 by Ransom Fellowship

http://www.ransomfellowship.org

Critique #1 - 2003 2

Editor’s Note

Over the yearswe’ve often beenasked if Ransom

has a website, and it’sgood to be able tofinally answer, Yes wedo. It was launchedlast month—this isthe first officialannouncement in anyof Ransom’s publica-

tions—and I invite you to log on, check it out,and take advantage of the resources we haveposted there for your use.

Marsena Konkle, who designed and editsboth Critique and Notes From Toad Hall, alsodesigned and manages the site. She’s taken timefrom working on her novel for this, which makesus all the more grateful for her imagination andpatient, hard work. We believe she has capturedsomething of what Ransom seeks to stand for inher designs of the newsletters and the site.

We’ve taken our time on this, but thewait has been worth it. What the site lookslike is as important to us as its content, andwe’ve wanted to consider the design as care-fully as we do the ideas expressed in the mate-rials posted there. We’ve wanted it to beattractive, creative, and easy to use. Serious,but with a sense of humor. Thoughtful, butfor ordinary believers like us who are simplyseeking to live faithfully under Christ’s Lord-ship in a postmodern world. Orthodox andbiblical, but with a cutting edge. A site thatpeople find interesting and useful enough tovisit not just once, but often.

Which will be important—visiting the siteoften, that is—because only a fraction of ourmaterial is posted there. It takes time to formatpieces, arrange the graphics, and log them ontothe site. Marsena’s hard drive is stuffed withmaterial awaiting her attention, and so eachmonth new articles, reviews, and discussion

guides will be available. (It’ll take most of thisnext year to just get caught up.)

Past issues of Critique will also be postedthere, eventually, but only after a period of timehas elapsed—people will need to be on our mail-ing list to receive current issues. And as you willnotice when you visit the site, there are numer-ous articles and movie discussion guides availablethere that will never appear in these pages. Thereare also introductions to us, to the ministry ofRansom and its Board of Directors, to Critique’sContributing Editors, and a number of picturesthat will allow you to see that there are real peo-ple behind the names that appear in these pages.

I want you to know that we do not takesuch things for granted. We are praying thatthe Lord will use the site—and Critique andNotes From Toad Hall—to his glory. Thatbecause it exists, his people will more win-somely read the world in light of reading theWord. If you would join us in praying forthis, I would be appreciative.

And please let us know what you think.

22000022 CCrriittiiqquuee IInnddeexxWe’ve included an index for everything that hasappeared in these pages in the issues dated 2002.We occasionally hear from readers who tell usthey carefully save each issue, and we’re pleasedthey would want to do so. Hope you find theindex helpful. ■

~Denis Haack

www.ransomfellowship.org

We’re on the web!

www.ransomfellowship.org

Critique #1 - 20033

Dialogue

You are invited to take part inCritique’s Dialogue. Address allcorrespondence to:

Marsena KonkleCritique Managing Editor406 Bowman AvenueMadison, WI 53716

or e-mail:letters@ransomfellowship.org

Unfortunately, we are unable torespond personally to all correspon-dence received, but each one isgreatly appreciated. We reserve theright to edit letters for length.

From the Phillipines to D.C.

I want you and Margie to know how much Ienjoy your writing (both Critique andNotes from Toad Hall, each with its own

“flavor”) and how much I have been helped bythe way the two of you share from your mindsand your hearts. By way of citing a couple ofexamples, the University of the Philippinesfaculty member with whom my wife and I areteamed up in ministry (we are Navigatorsstaff ) and I were recently discussing the appealof legalism. Imagine my surprise to find anarticle on that subject in a back issue ofCritique provided me by the friend to whom Irecommended Critique many years ago. Andsecondly, I was happy to discover that youslightly expanded your article on discernmentand republished it in issue #6 - 2000. I will beusing your outline with the students I ammeeting with at University of the Philippines.All are bright, and several are majoring in thearts, so we particularly enjoy and are helpedby the subject matter Critique takes up.

Greg HaskellPhilippine Islands

W e just talked to our daughter, Steph,on the phone tonight and she wassaying she and her school buddies vis-

ited a Presbyterian church in the D.C. arealast Sunday that she had not been to before. Awoman who was greeting visitors had aCritque under her arm. Steph mentioned thatshe knew the magazine and read it. Thewomen said, “I asked a friend to tell me ifthere was one publication that you wouldread, what would it be? The friend told meCritique and gave me a copy. I haven’t lookedat yet. What do you think of it?” Steph wasblown away by this and of course told thewoman it was the best thing since sliced breador something like that.

Keep up the good work!Terry Opgenorth

Racine, WI

Our new Dialogue e-mail:

letters@ransomfellowship.org

4

The Discerning Life

Did JesusI remember three things about the

church I attended from 1976-1979.The first involves scary pastor-

portraits in the hallway. The second,roller skating to impress a girl namedTina. And the third, the one I can’t getout of my head, involves lepers. EverySunday after church, shuffling behind myfamily through the parking lot, I sawThem. Always the same ones, huddled ina close circle, their circumference dictatedby temperature: the colder the air, thetighter the circle. Always, a pillar ofsteam rising from their cen-ter, regardless of temperature.No one talked to them, andno one went close enough totouch them, taking long-cutsto their station wagons toavoid them. Parents gatheredtheir children in close, slowly foldingthem into their coats, shutting their eyesto the show. My parents never caught melooking, and, though I waited, terrifiedand delighted, nothing bad happened tome. I became infatuated with the mys-tery, and I began looking forward toSunday. I daydreamed about Them, and,in terms of firing my curiosity, theyranked right up there with reproductionand how could there be so many rampsin Hazzard County.

One morning in Sunday school, Mr.Goode gave us a lesson on lepers; heapologized for not having any felt boardcharacters for us to see. So he sketched aleper colony on the blackboard, andwhen he moved out of the way, mybreath caught, and my lungs began toburn. We had a leper colony outside ourchurch, and my delight in Them wassnuffed out. I was afraid.

A few years later, after I read WhereDid I Come From? and discovered theworkings of television car chases, I also

realized that those weren’t really lepersoutside my church—they were smokers.Here was my first lesson in mystery, fear,stigma. I’ve learned since that the churchlabels its vices well, and, rather than step-ping into sordid circles, we tend to colo-nize our offenders and rope them offwith Bible verses and voices of concern.

The church was/is/will be full of smokers.Some of them are regarded as kings (C.S.Lewis, Charles Spurgeon, R.C. Sproul),some of them are considered “normal”

(the regular number outside my churchin St. Louis), and some of them are fil-tered out, quietly vanishing from thechurch like wisps of smoke. They havethese things in common: they love Jesus,they like to smoke, and they leave them-selves open to criticism.

All Christians, truly, are open to crit-icism; when we become children of God,we also become his representatives—hishands, eyes, ears, mouth. What we dowith those hands and mouths must faith-fully represent their creator. We are res-ponsible for representing him faithfully,which means we must be open to criti-cism and be willing to criticize unfaith-fulness. We are called to community forthis reason. Our criticism must be warm,gentle, winsome, thoughtful; otherwise,unfaithfulness adds to unfaithfulness.Though some criticize smokers warmlyand gently, few of us do so winsomely,fewer still thoughtfully.

We see a Christian hold a three-inch cylinder packed with dead leaves,

set it on fire and suck on it, and we pronounce “sin.” The Christian blowssmoke from his mouth, and we back upand say, a bit louder, “Sin.” We watchthis happen again and again, twentytimes per pack, and, without thinking,we cry “SIN,” effectively cutting smokersoff from meaningful dialogue, from bib-lical criticism.

Over the last few years, I’ve beenspending time with Christians whosmoke, sitting in circles of Christians’smoke. Many of these people have left

the church, refugees fromrebuke and subtle disregard.Some of them are addicts,some of them are just smok-ish, but all of them have beentreated poorly. And they stillsmoke, huddling in their cir-

cles, cut off from the corporate worshipof the living, breathing God.

The church is called to be God’shands and mouth: warm, thoughtful,compassionate. We are called to evaluateour behavior with discernment (prudencerather than prudishness) rather than merereaction. When we find our knees jerkingin reaction, we must question ourselves—the Kingdom does not operate on thebasis of jerks.

During my praying, thinking, ques-tioning, interacting, I have yet to find away to support from Scripture that smok-ing itself is sinful. Addiction, yes. Under-age smoking, yes. Causing a brother tostumble, yes. Smoking itself, no. This isno black-and-white matter, where we’reeither Pro-Lung or Pro-Choice. To ourlessons in mystery, fear, stigma, let us adddiscernment.

Last Sunday morning, as the offeringplate drew near, my pew-mate confessedthat he had spent the few dollars he had

DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

We see a Christian hold a three-inch cylin-der packed with dead leaves, set it on fireand suck on it, and we pronounce “sin.”

Critique #1 - 20035

Smoke?set aside for the offering—he ran out of ciga-rettes Saturday night. The gas station is onthe way to church. Cigarettes add up; theycan be costly financially and physically.Cigarette smoke offends most people.Secondhand smoke hurts babies. So, is it asin to spend money on the things we like? Toexpose our bodies to physical harm? To smellbad? Put another way: smoking is the leadingcause of cancer, and the Fall is the leadingcause of sin. So, are cigarettes a result of theFall? Is smoking a cigarette a sin?

To at least approach an answer, we mustexamine our hermeneutics: our understand-ing of Scripture and our application of com-passion.

Last month, my roommate asked me topromptly return some videos for him. I toldhim I would. I did, but not last month. Myroommate now has anasty late fee. Have Isinned? Fundamentally,sin is a transgression ofthe law of God, a prohi-bition committed or acommand omitted. Isearched Scripture, thinking surely that theapostles didn’t have time to rent movies. Iwas right—no specific command to returnmovies on time, and no specific prohibitionagainst keeping movies too long. While I wasat it, I searched and found a similar absenceof references to smoking cigarettes. So, arethe smoker and movie procrastinator freefrom sin? (Reader: my intent is not to insult,but carefully to punctuate our agreement.)By this hermeneutic, they have not sinned.But this is a strictly literalistic hermeneutic,and were we to adhere to such, I would beforced to forego my hatred for neo-Nazi hatecrimes, as the Bible doesn’t address them(and, thus, condemn them) specifically. Ifsmoking isn’t denounced on these grounds,then which?

I told my roommate I’d return thevideos on time. I had the opportunity, and Ididn’t. I did not fulfill my commitment, andI acted unfaithfully, both principles thatScripture clearly enunciates. Deprived ofspecifics, we look for principles. Rightly so.Lacking specifics, then, what principle domost people raise against smoking? This isthe part, frankly, where my ashy skin tightensand I strap on my anti-mantra helmet, hop-ing to avoid the near-inevitable Scripture-grenade: “The body is the temple of theLord.” Plucked from I Corinthians 6, thispassage tends to be the champion of thosewho label smoking sinful. And the principleinfusing the passage? That exposing the bodyto physical harm is a sin. Here is the point ofcontention.

And here is the point. First, this passagecertainly refers to believers and their bodies,

but Paul isn’t addressing physical harm to thebody. I Cor. 6:15-20 describes the believer’sbody as a figurative temple, the union-houseof Christ (6:15) and the vessel of the HolySpirit (6:19). In this passage, Paul speaksexclusively of sexual immorality. Because ofthe believer’s union with Christ and, thus,his union with other believers, sexual sin,the only sin against the body (6:18), andthus, against this union, affects, mysterious-ly and differently than other sins, everyonewho is united to Christ: the Church. This,the unique peril of sexual immorality, isPaul’s contention with Corinth. Certainly,from this passage, we can infer that ourbodies are important, possibly moreso thanwe realize, and we must treat them well,but we cannot, from this passage, conclude

that exposing the body to physical (non-sex-ual) harm is a sin.

Second, supposing that the other 1,188chapters of Scripture might have somethingto say, let us grant, for the sake of discern-ment, the proposed principle that exposingthe body to physical harm is a sin. I returnedmy roommate’s movies at 5:15 on a Mondayafternoon. St. Louis had just received a car-ton of snow, and, on the way to the car, Islipped on the ice and bumped my bum. Iscraped my knuckles on the door handle try-ing to de-ice the lock. I almost lost controlon Delmar Avenue. On the way home, tosoothe my nerves, I picked up some MSG-laden General Tso’s Chicken. Once home, Iwashed the General down with Coca-Cola.Two states away, a dear friend of mine, wholabels smoking a sin on the “physical harm”principle, was having his fourth cup of coffee

for the day. Twocountries away, amissionary was deal-ing with dysentery.My friend in LosAngeles was breath-ing smog, and a cab-

driving Christian in New York was doing hiseveryday cab driving in New York. Acrosstown, a Christian was delivering a baby. Eventhe recluse hypochondriac, who decided toavoid the perils of the world, was experienc-ing muscular degeneration from sitting onthe couch all day. We live in a fallen world,and the only guarantee we have, save the sec-ond coming, is that we will die in a fallenworld, certainly a physical harm. Truly, someexposure to physical harm is necessary, someof it voluntary, some of it part of calling; inall of these examples, though, physical harm,either actual or potential, is unavoidable,exposing our bodies to harm is inevitable,and it measures itself in degrees. And who ofus has the right to legislate degrees? We can-not say, absolutely, generally, or consistently,

We do not have the right, from Scripture, to see a Christiansmoking and, on the basis of the cigarette alone, call hisbehavior sinful: sin resides in the heart, not in the tobacco.

6

The Discerning Life cont.

that exposing the body to physical harmis a sin.

We do not have the right, fromScripture, to see a Christian smokingand, on the basis of the cigarette alone,call his behavior sinful: sin resides in theheart, not in the tobacco. We do have theright to require prudence, and we areobliged to evaluate each other’s behaviorwith discernment.

Smoking can be expensive, offensive,and addictive, and it is mostly not a goodidea. But if we make judg-ments beyond that, we mustask ourselves why. What is theorigin of our judgments? Is itScripture, society, tradition, amixture of them all?

Of all the things I hoped I would neverhear a Christian say, “Kirk Cameron wassoooo hot in Left Behind, The Movie”tops the list. A close second: “Don’tsmoke, don’t chew, don’t go with girlswho do.” For all of us who had grand-mothers who turned snuff into a beauti-ful art form, let us be grateful that thisdictum didn’t sway our grandfathers. Formy part, I’m not necessarily looking for agirl with a dip-can ring worn into theback pocket of her Wranglers, but I can’t,on biblical grounds, rule her out. On cul-tural grounds, it’s worth discussion, buton biblical grounds, no. When we seek toevaluate our behaviors, we must not allowculture to inform our decisions morethan Scripture. In India, a smoker is con-sidered a non-Christian; in Holland, anelder; in Mississippi, a backslider; inCalifornia, a Republican. How much ofour views on smoking is dictated by cul-ture rather than Scripture?

As we must be critical and discern-ing of culture (and our own viewsregarding it), we must be the same with

smoking. But we cannot equate critiquewith prohibition. Much of what we cri-tique (music, film, politics) we alsoenjoy, and are at liberty to enjoy. Wemay not be able to parcel out the par-ticulars, to draw the line betweendegrees, but that is the difficulty, theresponsibility, and the privilege of beinga discerning people. You may not thinkit prudent to be a Democrat, or towatch Magnolia repeatedly, but can youcall it sinful?

I doubt if Jesus smoked or watchedMagnolia, but I know he engaged inmuch that was considered culturally sin-ful. Were he to stand outside one of ourchurches today, I have no doubt hewould gladly engage with the smokers,the modern-day leper colonies. In hisown day, lepers were considered culturallyunclean, sinful. The Pharisees refused totouch lepers, lest that touch make themunclean in the process. Jesus was born totouch lepers. And in his touching, Jesus’point was that sin resided not in the lep-rosy itself, but in the heart. Those whostigmatized lepers, especially thePharisees, were criticizing the formrather than the substance; they werecondemning people based on culturerather than Scripture. We cannot makestrict parallels between leprosy and smok-ing, but we become Pharisees when wecondemn a smoker on the basis of cultur-al grounds rather than biblical standards.We must be careful, lest we strain thegnat and swallow the Camel Light.

Jesus, while touching lepers with compas-sion, extended little to Pharisees. We, too,like the Pharisees, are in danger ofbecoming selective with our compassionif we allow culture to direct our judg-ments. Ask yourself: were you on a panelto select a youth worker, the applicantsbeing equally qualified in all other areas,would you be more inclined to hire thesmoker or the coffee addict? The shop-aholic? More willing to invite over fordinner the smoker or the Christian strug-

gling with alcoholism?From my experience, thesmoker, whether addict oroccasional inhaler, receivesless patience, compassion,and sympathy than otherswho “struggle” with a tra-

ditional vice. My fear is that the churchhas become selective with her compas-sion, and we select based on potentialburden. The drug addict, the churchmember who struggles with pornography,and the alcoholic don’t make our clothesstink, don’t pollute our air, and our dif-fering treatments reveal that we are oftenconcerned for ourselves more than others:“As long as your smoke, your ‘sin,’ doesn’tget into my fibers, welcome. We touchyou in the name of Jesus.”

Recently, on my morning walk tothe coffee shop, I noticed a button on theground. I leaned over, picked it up, andwiped off a thin layer of dirt. Under-neath, the slogan: Fight Homophobia. Idecided to keep the button, proud of mycompassion for “sinners,” and as I reachedto put the button in my satchel, the pinon the back pricked me, and the thoughtflashed through my mind: “Thoseactivists planted this thing to give meAIDS.” I became aware of two things atthat moment: One, I should be carefulwith buttons. Two, until it became a bur-

DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

From my experience, the smoker receives lesspatience, compassion, and sympathy thanothers who “struggle” with a traditional vice.

Critique #1 - 20037

den to me, I was glad to practice compassion,but once pricked, I realized the true depth ofmy concern. If patience, compassion, andunderstanding aren’t coupled with sympathy,the willingness to enter another’s world, to getdirty, to smell bad, to hurt personally, then wemight as well hang a letter on the necks of sin-ners and rope them off.

My friend Winston (yes, go ahead, laugh) isa deacon in his church, a gracious husband,and a playful father of three. Every once in awhile, after a long week of church meetingsand work and dirty diapers, he puts the lastwhining child to bed, pours two glasses ofwine, sits on the deck, and enjoys a cigarettewith his wife, the wine and the nicotinemaking his heart glad.

A friend of mine spends a lot of time sit-ting inside a coffee shop, writing. After star-ing at a sentence for 45 minutes, he likes totake a break and sit outside and have asmoke. The coffee shop is near the local uni-versity, and almost every time he sits outsideand smokes, a student approaches him andasks to “bum a smoke.” He obliges, offers alight, and they talk, smoker to smoker, image

of God to image of God. And the only rea-son for the discussion, the spark that ignitesit, is that in his smoking, he has created asafe haven, instant hospitality, unabashedfreedom from judgment that smokers crave.He is gifted and called to write and tobefriend and respect unbelievers; smokingisn’t a necessary part of his calling, but it is avaluable one, and, according to Scripture, ifhe can pack smoking into his calling respon-sibly (without addiction, e.g.), then he is atliberty to do so.

Is the typical cigarette-smoking Christianaddicted? Yes. Must the Christian smoker,addicted or not, be sensitive with his smoke?Yes. Must he be regarded or treated different-ly than others with behaviors that we don’tlike? According to Scripture, no. Does thismean our churches are required to buildsmoking rooms inside our churches so thesmokers don’t have to shiver outside whileeveryone else is shaking warm hands?Probably not, though it’s worth considering.What is required of the church is that shethink through her criticism before stigmatiz-ing people. That she be willing to offer the

benefit of the doubt first, and to seek under-standing accordingly, before she cast judg-ments. We have lost many gifted and beauti-ful saints because of our lack of discernmentand biblical thinking on this issue. Regardlessof whether fewer or more people are smokingnow than last year, or ten years hence com-pared to now, the church will always have hersmokers. Will we continue to make them feelthat their “temples of the Lord” aren’t asvaluable or healthy as the rest, or will wetreat them respectfully, winsomely, warmly,thoughtfully? I hope for the latter. I can’t quitpraying for the latter—I hope to becomeaddicted. ■

~Jeremy Huggins

Jeremy Clive Huggins, 28, says he's a freelance writer/edi-

tor/teacher, but his mom hears that and chuckles, as always,

at his nice euphemisms. “Call it what you will, honey, but

there’s nothing wrong with being unemployed, as long as you

love what you're doing,” she says. In addition to his mother,

Jeremy loves his Dodge Dart, likes the color brown, and is

obsessed with Franka Potente. If you know her, e-mail him

at <eprentiss@aol.com>.

Q U E S T I O N S F O R R E F L E C T I O N A N D D I S C U S S I O N1. What was your initial or immediate response to this article? Why do you think you responded this way?

2. Go through the piece again and note the key statements, arguments, and reasons that the author uses to make his case. State the author’sthesis, as clearly as possible and without editorial comment, in your own words.

3. How have you understood and applied 1 Corinthians 6:15-20 prior to reading this article? Study the passage in detail, taking care toread it in its literary and historical context. Compare your interpretation with that found in several commentaries (choosing at least twowhich were written in previous periods of history). Did anything surprise you as you examined this text? How has your understanding ofthe passage been changed or deepened as a result of this study?

4. Do you agree with Huggins’ use of the metaphor of “leper” in his discussion of smoking? Why or why not?

Continued on next page...

8DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

All books mentioned in Critique maybe ordered directly from Hearts andMinds. A portion of the proceeds willbe donated to Ransom Fellowship.

OOrrddeerr FFrroomm::

Q U E S T I O N S C O N T I N U E D ...5. “All Christians, truly, are open to criticism; when we become children of

God, we also become his representatives—his hands, eyes, ears, mouth...We are responsible for representing him faithfully, which means we must beopen to criticism and be willing to criticize unfaithfulness... Our criticismmust be warm, gentle, winsome, thoughtful; otherwise, unfaithfulness addsto unfaithfulness. Though some criticize smokers warmly and gently, few ofus do so winsomely, fewer still thoughtfully.” Do you agree? Why or whynot? How would you characterize the way you have criticized smokers?

6. “I have yet to find a way to support from Scripture that smoking itself issinful. Addiction, yes. Under-age smoking, yes. Causing a brother to stum-ble, yes. Smoking itself, no.” Do you agree? If not, what texts would youuse to make your case?

7. Why might non-smoking Christians feel threatened or angered by this arti-cle? What would you say to them? Should Christian parents try to keep thisarticle from their adolescent children? Why or why not? Should they atleast use a magic marker to first blot out a few lines (e.g., “I’m not necessar-ily looking for a girl with a dip-can ring worn into the back pocket of herWranglers, but I can’t, on biblical grounds, rule her out.”)?

8. Huggins writes: “If patience, compassion, and understanding aren’t coupledwith sympathy, the willingness to enter another’s world, to get dirty, tosmell bad, to hurt personally, then we might as well hang a letter on thenecks of sinners and rope them off.” To what extent is this true of you?Since this is precisely how Jesus acted toward us in the Incarnation, why dowe find it difficult to faithfully follow him? Though Huggins uses AIDS asan example here, what specific examples could we list where we fail to liveincarnationally?

9. “Jesus, while touching lepers with compassion, extended little to Pharisees.We, too, like the Pharisees, are in danger of becoming selective with ourcompassion if we allow culture to direct our judgments.” To what extent isPhariseeism a problem in the church? A problem in our lives? How wouldyou define Phariseeism? How can we become more sensitive to the problemin our own lives? What other ways does our culture tend to “direct ourjudgments” and “select our compassion?”

10. Would you be comfortable if your church attracted believers who, beforeand after each service, congregated on the front steps to smoke? If a churchintentionally makes smokers feel unwelcome, what does this imply concern-ing the gospel it professes? How might a church inadvertently make smok-ers feel unwelcome?

We’re on the web!

www.ransomfellowship.org

9

Cultivating True Leisure

T hough we are tempted by the ever-pres-ent, seductive quick fix, most of us havediscovered that lasting solutions to the

serious problems of life usually take patienceand require evaluation of some foundationalprinciples and themes. In dealingwith boredom we need to considerthe importance of leisure, the pur-suit of happiness and the problemof knowing what is good and beau-tiful in a world dominated by rela-tivism.

There is a time to be lazy, atime to slow down, a time to play, atime to reflect on the world aroundus and the world inside us. Oftenwe are afraid to “be still” becausethe endless distractions of busy-ness and entertainment keep usfrom having to face fundamentalquestions about our existence andabout our deeper anxieties, inse-curities and fears. We are literally runningfrom ourselves. Josef Pieper wrote a booksome years ago called Leisure: The Basis ofCulture. The jacket of the current editioncarries this affirmation: “This book issues astartling warning: Unless we regain the art ofsilence and insight, the ability for nonactivi-ty, unless we substitute true leisure for ourhectic amusements, we will destroy our cul-ture—and ourselves.” Pieper argues thatleisure is not just distraction and entertain-ment but a time of withdrawal from theordinary routines to renew our priorities andour perspective on life. Without it we willnot see reality truly. Similarly, writer and lec-turer Os Guinness distinguishes sloth

from idling, a state of carefree lingeringthat can be admirable, as in friends lin-gering over a meal or lovers whiling away

hours in delighted enjoyment. In W. H.Davies’s lines, ‘What is this life, if full ofcare, / We have no time to stand andstare?’ Or as George MacDonald argued,‘Work is not always required of a man.

There is such a thing as sacredidleness, the cultivation of whichis now fearfully neglected.’

In this fast-paced culture wefind it hard to slow down and bestill. Even our leisure times oftenget packed with endless activi-ties. “Perhaps you can judge theinner health of a land by the

capacity of its people to do nothing,” wroteSebastian de Grazia in 1962, “to lie abedmusing, to amble about aimlessly, to sit hav-ing a coffee—because whoever can do noth-ing, letting his thoughts go where they may,must be at peace with himself.” The biblicalcommand to rest for one day of the week isan important God-given principle for ourhealth and sanity. We neglect it at our peril.Some people feel very guilty if they are notdoing something “worthwhile” with theirtime. They cannot rest with a clear con-science. The Christian understanding of thesabbath is that it is given by God as a symbolof our being able to rest in his presence witheasy consciences. Knowing that we are forgiv-en and accepted by him, we do not have towork to earn our salvation because Christ hasdone all that was necessary for us to have arelationship with him. We can, as the Bible

says, “enter God’s rest” (Heb 4:1-11). Weneed to take time for our minds and bodiesto re-create and recover from being driven sohard. This also allows time for a renewal ofperspective.

Leisure time is often when we rest andrelax, but it is also good for us to know howto play well. We live in a time when enter-tainment comes to us while we watch, andthough that is not all bad, it is important forus to engage in active as well as passive play.We listen to music, we watch sports on tele-vision, we go to movies—but how often dowe make music? How often do we get outand play a sport ourselves or go hiking,

climbing, biking or sailing?Some people think of Chris-

tians as being joyless and sober,suspicious of any earthly pleasuresand preoccupied with spiritualthings, of being too heavenlyminded to be any earthly good.

On the contrary, when truly understood,Christianity sets us free to enjoy leisure andpleasure in the way God originally intended.It affirms the goodness of the creation, offood, of drink, of beauty. ■

~excerpted, Richard Winter

Excerpted from:

Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment: Rediscovering

Passion and Wonder by Richard Winter (Downers Grove,

IL: InterVarsity Press; 2002) pp.126-128.

See book review on page 13.

Critique #1 - 2003

Out of Their Minds

“Work is not always required of man. Thereis such a thing as sacred idleness, the culti-vation of which is now fearfully neglected.”

Excerpt from Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment by Richard Winter.

10

V ery occasionally a movie comes alongthat raises so many important issues,so clearly, so compellingly, that dis-

cussing it with friends seems mandatory.13 Conversations is one of those films. Itallows us to watch four groups of ordinarypeople pursuing the ordinary events oftheir lives. Though they don’t know oneanother, their lives are intertwined. Thefilm is divided by title screens into thirteenvignettes, each containing a conversationabout one thing. The one thing we all talkabout: about whether happiness, signifi-cance and meaningful relationships can befound in a world that is not only broken,but where life is finally beyond our control.The conversations unfold throughout thefilm, following the trajectory of each char-acter’s life. One person’s answer prompts aquestion in someone else, good things donot always happen to good people, tragedycan strike when we least expect it, and con-tentment is fleeting in a world in whichdisappointment and suffering lurk justaround the corner.

13 Conversations is a remarkable win-dow of insight into the lives of people whoare just like us, finite creatures who yearnfor meaningful relationships in a world inwhich honesty compels us to face the factthat try as we might, very little in life turnsout exactly as we had planned. There areno easy answers here, nor a tidy ending—as if the film’s producers expect the 14thconversation to be ours.

We meet Troy, an attorney celebratinga court victory who will flee from an acci-

dent after the party. As a prosecutor it hasbeen easy for him to assume the accusedare always guilty, but now he discovers thathe has far more in common with the felonsthan he had ever imagined. Though hisinvolvement is never discovered, the guiltover his wrong choice slowly corrodes hissoul. We meet Walker, an engineering pro-fessor whose marriage and life, unlike thetidy and predictable formulas which directthe cosmos, are spiraling out of control.We meet Gene, an insurance companymanager who has, in Walker Percy’s memo-rable line, achieved success but failed atlife. Alienated and bitter, Gene lives aloneand only sees his former wife when theymeet in court at the trial of their waywardson, a petty thief and drug addict. Hiscompany is facing hard times, and theguileless happiness of one of Gene’semployees seems to mock his very exis-tence, prompting him to act.

And we meet Beatrice, an honest, sim-ple, hard working maid whose optimism isshattered by suffering and distrust. She isthe one who is cut down by Troy’s car on adeserted street, and after a long and painfulrecovery discovers her former employer hasfalsely accused her of stealing. For all herlife she has lived in light of a mystical expe-rience she had when rescued from drown-ing as a child, but now she sees the worldas a dark place. “You’ve changed,” herfriend tells her. “I’m just like everyoneelse,” Beatrice replies.

We meet these characters in 13 Con-versations, listen to them talk, watch themlive, and are drawn into their search for sig-nificance, for happiness, and for someonewho in the end, will be there for them.Their choices and settings are unremark-able, but the film is compelling in the wayit forces us to see ourselves, and our friendsand neighbors, in the characters. The imag-inary world conjured up in this film is the

Haunted by Happiness

The Darkened Room

Film CreditsStarring:Matthew McConaughey

(Troy)Alan Arkin

(Gene)William Wise

(Wade “Smiley”Bowman)

John Turturro(Walker)

Amy Irving(Patricia)

Clea DuVall(Beatrice)

Tia Texada(Dorrie)

Director:Jill Sprecher

Screenwriters:Jill & Karen Sprecher

Producers:James Burke Michael StipePeter Wetherelland others

Original Music:Alex Wurman

Cinematographer:Dick Pope

Costumes:Kasia Walicka-Maimone

Runtime: 102 minutes

Rated R for language andbrief drug usage

DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

b y D e n i s H a a c k

A review of13 Conversations About One Thing

Critique #1 - 200311

world we live in. Broken, but full of peoplewho yearn for redemption, even if they neveruse that term.

13 Conversations was a labor of love.Sisters Jill and Karen Sprecher (who directedand co-wrote it) went deeply into debt toproduce this film. Jill studied literature andphilosophy at the University of Madison,and some of the movie’s most poignantscenes are inspired by true events from herlife. Soon after arriving in New York in1985, she was mugged, hit over the head,and less than a year later was mugged again.Alarmed and despondent as she tried tomake a living in the world of independentfilm, she was cheered one day when astranger on the subway made simple humancontact—by smiling. These extraordinarilyordinary events, along with Bertrand Russell’sbook, The Conquest of Happiness, gave birthto this thoughtful and sensitive film.

“Movies are finally, centrally, crucially,primarily, only about story,” Brian Godawasays. “And those stories are finally, centrally,

crucially, primarily, mostly aboutredemption.” 13 Conversations isnot sentimental, but insists wesee life as it truly is in this fallenworld. It is also not unremitting-ly dark. Each character receivessome measure of grace, some

kindness, some insight, which allows them atleast a glimmer of hope while they continueto walk through a world which is simultane-ously broken and glorious.

You will need to watch the film morethan once to keep all the details straight—Icertainly did—but it is well worth theeffort. Watch it, and then use it as a pointof contact to discuss with friends, Chri-stians and non-Christians, the one thing

that matters most. ■~Denis Haack

For downloadable discussion guides on 13 Conversations

visit Ransom’s website <www.ransomfellowship.org>.

Source:

Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and

Discernment by Brian Godawa (Downers Grove, IL:

InterVarsity Press; 2002) p. 54.

The one thing we all talk about: whether happiness, significanceand meaningful relationships can be found in a world that isnot only broken, but where life is finally beyond our control.

Q U E S T I O N S F O R R E F L E C T I O N A N D D I S C U S S I O N1. How realistic are the vignettes—and the conversations—depicted in this film? Is your manner of life and conversation such that the dif-

ferent people depicted in the film would seek you out to talk about such things? Why or why not?

2. What character(s) do you identify with most? Why? What is attractive in this film? Why is it attractive? Is the film a metaphor for life? A slice of life?

3. Do you ever face similar questions, yearnings, and doubts? If no, why not? Why do some Christians believe that true believers never havesuch struggles? Do the Scriptures provide stories of believers who wrestled with such issues?

4. Could a Christian screenwriter and director have made 13 Conversations? Why or why not? Does the film tell the truth? What minimalchange(s) would you require to produce this film as a Christian? Why would you insist on the change(s)?

5. When people are facing tragedy and disappointment, even true answers to the big things in life can appear to trivialize the situation if theyare given too glibly. What might we as Christians want to be careful to do—and not to do—if we find ourselves drawn into lives and con-versations similar to the ones depicted in this film?

6. In what ways were the techniques of film-making (casting, direction, script, music, sets, lighting, action, cinematography, editing, etc.) used toget the film’s message(s) across, or to make the message plausible or compelling?

7. Do the Sprechers somehow reveal their own world view in 13 Conversations, or does the film merely raise questions? How do you know?To the extent you believe the film contains a specific perspective, where do you agree? Where do you disagree? Why? In the areas inwhich we might disagree, how can we talk about and demonstrate the truth in a winsome and creative way in our pluralistic culture?

12

In Stereo

On The Heavier End

DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

Pedro the Lion, Whole EP (1997)Although Pedro the Lion was already men-tioned in these pages, they deserve to be men-tioned again. This 6 song EP grabbed mebecause of it’s ability to portray the deepinner struggle of a battle withaddiction. Listen especially to“Fix” and “Almost There.”

~Kevin Hilman

Kevin Hilman lives in Seattle, WA, with his wife

Ann where they are members of Bethany Com-

munity Church. He enjoys sharing good food

with good friends, skiing, studying Christianity,

brewing beer, and works as a software developer.

He can be reached at <kjh@hilman.org>.

Other bands in current rotation: Clutch,

Faith no More, The Streets, Helmet, Phish,

Weezer, Bruce Cockburn.

Tom Waits, Mule Variations (1999)It’s difficult for me to describe the wide diversity ofTom Waits, so I’ll defer to Rolling Stone, but myfavorite song on this album is “House Where NobodyLives” which is a refreshing view on what makes ahouse a home.

“What Tom Waits does to the bluesis something like what newspapers do tobright colors—in the way that a pictureof the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling ends uplooking like roast beef in the morningedition, Waits’ arty, seasick imaginationturns a rural American song form into agarish, surreal fantasy.” ~Rolling Stone

Queens of the Stone Age, Songsfor the Deaf (2002)I started following QOTSA because the singer/guitar player

Josh Homme came from one of my favorite bands, Kyuss, which is now brokenup. QOTSA is another band on the heavier end of the spectrum, and has evenbeen called “the new Nirvana.” I wouldn’t call them the new Nirvana myself, butDave Grohl of Nirvana happens to play drums on this new album. Songs for theDeaf is a bit heavier and louder than their previous efforts, and in my opiniontheir best album yet.

NOTE: strong lyrics that some may find objectionable. To readers: if you’reinterested in talking with a committed Christian who is also a committed hard-music lover (which often involves strong lyrics) feel free to contact me.

Low, Things we lost in the fire(2001)My musical tastes lean towardsthe thick and heavy end of therock spectrum, but there is some-thing moving about the emotion,

slowness and simplicity of Low. Listen to“Closer” when you’re feeling down and need-ing the closeness of a loved one. Low is con-sidered one of the leaders in the “slo-core”genre, and perhaps one of the slowest as well.They’re also from my hometown of Duluth.

Built to Spill: Ancient Melodies of theFuture (2001)From the opening moments of“Strange,” you’re hooked by the melod-ic buzz and fuzz of this guitar sound.Its unique sound is then combinedwith the equally unique voice of frontman Doug Martsch.Built to Spill is over all a mellow, melodic indy-rock power trio.The emotion of the lyrics blends well into the mood of the lay-ers of guitars, synths and drums. My favorite song is “Strange”with the chorus: “And it’s strange, but nothin’s all that strange \Yeah it’s strange, but what’s so strange about that \ Yeah it’sstrange, but what isn’t strange \ Yeah it’s strange, but oh well...”

Critique #1 - 200313

Yawning Frantically

Resources

S till Bored in a Culture of Entertainment,a new book by psychiatrist RichardWinter, should be widely read and dis-

cussed, but sad to say, it might not be readby all who need to read it. Those who knowthey are bored with life may not have thedrive sufficient to pick it up and begin, whilethose covering their boredom with franticbusyness may think that they have neithersufficient time nor need.

There is, of course, the deliciousboredom which comes when we’velearned to truly rest, content to befor a time, rather than having to do.When we accomplish absolutelynothing, and thereby accomplish arare and precious thing. Namely, toluxuriate in the chance to be quiet, tocelebrate being made in the image of theCreator who rested and blessed resting asgood, to cease working, taking a Sabbath inquiet confidence that we can trust the worldto the God who loves, sustains, and redeemsit. Which isn’t really boring at all, of course,but only thought to be such by those whoare consumed by their ownwork and busyness. It’s theopposite of boredom, actually,and the fact the two are con-fused reveals just how muchwe need to think through thetopic with care.

“Think of the synonymsfor boring,” Winter suggests.“Consider them slowly. Letthem sink into your mind.Feel them. Apathetic, drab,dull, colorless, humdrum,insipid, interminable, irksome,lifeless, lethargic, monotonous,mundane, repetitious, routine,stale, stodgy, tedious, tiresome,uninteresting, vapid, weari-some... Now think of the oppo-site. Again, let yourself feel

these words: interesting, absorbing,amusing, attractive, captivating,charismatic, compelling, delightful,engaging, engrossing, enthralling,entrancing, exotic, fascinating, grip-ping, riveting, stimulating—excit-ing.”

As I read this list I foundmyself wondering which onestend to pop up in conversations

about me, when friends and acquaintancesdecide to be brutally honest, and are sure Ican’t hear. Or which ones I would apply tomyself, if I was brutally honest and sure thatGod would hear. Or the ones my childrenand grandchildren will apply to me, whenI’m gone.

Boredom is one of those sub-jects most of us feel confident weknow something about—at least Iknow when I feel bored, and whenyou are boring me—but chancesare we haven’t studied it with anycare. We are aware adolescents andthe retired elderly often complainof boredom, but it’s easy to assumethat’s just a phase they are goingthrough. We hear lots of otherpeople say they are bored withlife as well, and wonder how thatcan be possible in a society whichis so packed with organizations,opportunities, and entertainment.Occasionally Christians blamethe phenomenon on lack of spiri-

tuality: people who are right with God arenever bored, we are told. Told so often—dareI say it?—that it gets boring.

Richard Winter, former L’Abri Fellow-ship worker, and presently associate professorof practical theology at Covenant Seminaryhas lectured often on boredom, and now

Winter helps us distinguish between the tem-porary boredom that occasionally accompa-nies monotonous tasks from the plague thatcan eat at the integrity of our souls.

Briefly Noted: Poet/Preacher of Witt

byD

enis

Haa

ck

If you have seen the movie Wit, you will perhaps be interested to learn moreabout the 17th century Christian poet whose work is celebrated in the film.(If you haven’t seen it yet, please do so.) John Donne was born in 1573, wasordained to the Anglican ministry in 1615, and died at the age of 58 in 1631.During his lifetime he wrote poetry which has endured the test of time, andnow a new biography allows us to see something of the passionate man whoso often surprises us with his earthy, biblical, and sensual metaphors for faithand life. “Batter my heart, three person’d God / ...Take me to you, imprisonme, for I / Except you ‘enthrall me, never shall be free, / Nor ever chaste,except you ravish me.” John Donne: Man of Flesh and Spirit is only one of a

number of works on Donne, but is particularly helpful because the author takes both Donne’spoetry and his sermons with equal seriousness in crafting the biography and assessing his life andwork. ■

Book reviewed: John Donne: Man of Flesh and Spirit by David L. Edwards (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans; 2001) 350 pp.

+ index + further reading.

14

Resources cont.

offers the fruit of his research, clinicalpractice, and biblical reflection in StillBored in a Culture of Entertainment. Hehas listened with care to the culture, tostudents, friends, and clients, and toGod’s word, so that he canboth diagnose the problem andoffer hope that resonates deeplyin our souls. He allows us tosee past our surface impressionsto the roots of the problem. Hehelps us distinguish between the tempo-rary boredom that occasionally accompa-nies monotonous tasks from the plaguethat can eat at the integrity of our souls.His exposition of the problem is nuancedand careful, permitting us to identify theboredom with which we personally wres-tle, rather than merely addressing theboredom out there, the social problemafflicting someone else.

I wish there were discussion ques-tions for each chapter, because I wouldlike to see Still Bored used in small groups

and Sunday school classes. Boredomrelates, finally, to the big issues of life,and considering its causes and curesforces us to reflect on foundational con-victions and values that animate our

hearts, minds, and imaginations. There isno easy cure, and boredom will always bepresent in a fallen world, but that is notthe end of the matter. Boredom turns outto be a predominant issue in our post-modern world, both within and withoutthe church. It is, therefore, somethingwhich must be engaged courageously inlight of the gospel, a task begun com-pellingly in Still Bored.

One of the saddest aspects of thisentire problem, it seems to me, is when Ihear non-Christians say that they are not

attracted to Christianity because Chris-tians seem so boring. So restrained, sowithdrawn and negative, so humorless, sofearful, so unimaginative. “We need toclean our windows,” J. R. R. Tolkien

wrote in Tree and Leaf, “ so that thethings seen clearly may be freed fromthe drab blur of triteness or familiar-ity.” A Christian mind is passionatelyin love with truth, a Christian imagi-nation is passionately in love with

beauty, and a life can not be said to befully Christian unless it demonstratesboth. Thoughtful pagans who opposedthe church in the first few centuries ofthe Christian era were forced to admitthat the church cared for the poor andpowerless in ways that were admirable.Imagine what it would be like if thosewho oppose the faith today were forcedto admit that the church was a center ofpassionate and grace-full vitality, a havenattracting the bored into a communitythat infuses a vibrant and imaginative joy

DDeeeeppeenniinngg DDiisscciipplleesshhiipp

DDeevveellooppiinngg DD

iisscceerrnnmmeenntt

DD

DD

DD

DD

Boredom turns out to be a predominantissue in our postmodern world, bothwithin and without the church.

Briefly Noted: On Faith & Work

byD

enis

Haa

ck

Over the past several decades a renewed interest in thinking Christianly about what faithful-ness looks like in the modern marketplace has given rise to a host of conferences, studygroups, and resources. In The Marketplace Annotated Bibliography, a group of scholarsinvolved in this movement briefly review over 700 publications that might be of interest tobelievers whose calling is to the world of business. The resources noted in this book comefrom a wide variety of theological and practical perspectives, so discernment is needed. Still,those who find themselves living day by day in the world of business need to reflect carefullyand biblically on what it means to live under Christ’s Lordship in the marketplace. Our man-agement style, business ethics, advertising strategies, and understanding of business are not

neutral in a fallen world, and serious Christians will want to flesh out the truth in these areas to God’s glory.The Marketplace Annotated Bibliography can identify resources that will help in that process. ■

Book reviewed: The Marketplace Annotated Bibliography: A Christian Guide to Books on Work, Business & Vocation edited by Pete

Hammond, R. Paul Stevens & Todd Svanoe (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press; 2002) 191 pp. + indexes + helps.

Critique #1 - 200315

in living. One wonders why this is not so.Surely it is not a deficiency of the gospel.

In a fallen world all of us are bored someof the time, many of us are bored much ofthe time, and a few are bored to death, liter-ally. That is one reason to read Still Bored.Dr. Winter has written a book that demon-strates how the gospel addresses a veryhuman problem, and addresses it not superfi-cially, but substantially, with grace and hope.Still Bored is thus a model of Christian dis-cernment, of reading the world in light ofreading the Word. That is another reason toread it. I suspect that thoughtful readers willbe better able to speak meaningfully past the“generation gap” that divides the moderngeneration from postmoderns. Which isanother good reason to read it. And somereaders will be surprised to discover that theyare bored, coming to see perhaps for the firsttime that their frantic busyness is a cleverlymaintained dodge designed to keep themfrom having to face themselves, reality, andGod in light of the things that matter most.

“The sole cause of man’s unhappiness,”Pascal wrote—in what many will find a grossexaggeration—“is that he does not know howto stay quietly in his room. In busyness wehave a narcotic to keep us from brooding andtake our mind off these [ultimate] things.” Ifyou need it, one more reason: though StillBored is written from a distinctly Christianperspective, it is pre-evangelistic in itsapproach, and so is designed to be attractiveto non-Christians. Winters commends theChristian faith warmly, explains it clearly,and demonstrates how the gospel speaks pro-foundly to our dilemma as broken humanbeings, but without using religious languageor making assumptions which unbelieverswould find implausible. He appeals not sim-ply to Scripture, but like Paul speaking inAthens, to the authorities held in honor byour society, whether they be philosophers, orsocial scientists, or the insights of popularculture.

We recommend Still Bored in a Cultureof Entertainment to you. Read it, give it as a

gift to your Christian and non-Christianfriends, and discuss it with everyone who iswilling to sit and talk. On this side of theConsummation we cannot do away withboredom, but we can discover that God’sgrace allows us to transcend boredom with ameasure of glory. It is a fruit of the gospel,and something our very bored world is dyingto see. ■

~Denis Haack

Sources: Tolkien quoted in Imagine: A Vision for

Christians in the Arts by Steve Turner (Downers Grove,

IL: InterVarsity Press; 2001) p. 91.

Book recommended: Still Bored in a Culture of

Entertainment: Rediscovering Passion & Wonder by

Richard Winter (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press;

2002) 142 pp. + notes + index.

Briefly Noted: Ghetto Monk

byD

enis

Haa

ck

“The sound of things is important,” Jeremy Huggins, editor of Ghetto Monk writes. “This iswhy Ghetto Monk exists. We can talk and write theology and respect until hell freezes over,but if our good words are divorced from good sound, we are clanging cymbals, hermeneuti-cal windbags.” Ghetto Monk is an occasional, lively, creative journal of prose, poetry (whichwe are instructed not just to read, but to read aloud), reviews, and a CD with readings andmusic. It is lovingly produced by Huggins and a circle of people willing to be identified ashis friends. If you liked Huggins’ piece on smoking in this issue of Critique, you will appreci-ate Ghetto Monk, in which Christians who are serious about truth express that truth in waysthat show they are equally serious about beauty and creativity. For a copy (complete withCD and a match—it’ll make sense when you see it) send $5.00 to Editor, Ghetto Monk, at

the address below. By the way, the CD includes “Forgiven,” by Denison Witmer, for those who know and careabout such things. Get a copy and leave it on your coffee table—it’s sure to generate discussion. ■

Journal reviewed: Ghetto Monk, 5906 McPherson Avenue, Apt 3E, St. Louis, MO 63112.

Critique Mailing List:

Critique is not available by subscription. Rather, interested readers can request to be added to Ransom’s mailing list, which is updat-ed frequently. Donors to Ransom Fellowship, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, tax-deductible ministry, are added to the mailing list automati-cally. To receive Critique, send your mailing address to:

Ransom Fellowship, 1150 West Center, Rochester, MN, 55902.

Everyone on Ransom’s mailing list also receives Notes from Toad Hall, a newsletter written by Margie Haack in which she reflectson what it means to be faithful in the ordinary and routine of daily life, and gives news about Ransom’s ministry.

Critique is a newsletter (published nine times each year, funds permitting) designed to accomplish, by God’s grace, three things:1. To call attention to resources of interest to thinking Christians.2. To model Christian discernment.3. To stimulate believers to think biblically about all of life.

The artic les and resources reproduced or recommended in Critique do not necessarily reflect the thinking of RansomFellowship. The purpose of this newsletter is to encourage thought, not dictate points of view.

Now on the web: http://www.ransomfellowship.org

Our Students, World

Clicks

Critique #1 - 2003 16

http:/ / www.Beloit.edu

Deni

sHa

ack

TThhee MMiinnddsseett LLiissttEach year Beloit College distributes “The Mindset List” to its faculty to help them understand some of the waysthat incoming students “see the world differently from their professors, coaches, and mentors. The list is a reminderthat the world view of today’s new college students is significantly different from the intellectual framework of thosestudents who entered only a few years earlier.” Lists from the past 5 years are available.

Ransom RatingsDesign: A simple list.

Content: For incoming 17-18 year-old students: “A Southerner has always been President of the United States...Weather reports have always been available 24-hours a day on television... ‘Big Brother’ is merely a television show...Cyberspace has always existed... George Foreman has always been a barbeque grill salesman... Afghanistan hasalways been a front page story... China has always been a market-based reforming regime... The U.S. and theSoviets have always been partners in space... Males do not carry a handkerchief in a back pocket... Ozzy’s lifestylehas nothing to do with the Nelson family... Women have always had tatoos... Vanessa Williams and Madonna areaging singers... A ‘hotline’ is a consumer service rather than a phone used to avoid accidental nuclear war... Hip-hop and rap have always been popular musical forms... They grew up in minivans.” And the year they were born(1984): “Technology analysts questioned the need for briefcase-sized computers... Videotape technology was said tobe killing the film industry and slowing cable network development... The U. S. Supreme Court declared sleepingto be a form of free speech.”

Ease of Use: Easy to surf and print. Free. Beloit College includes “The Mindset List” as a link on its home page.