Books That Captivated Me at Barnes & Noble

Today, I thought I would be blogging about the play Damn Yankees. Friday night, I drove down to the Menlo Park Mall in Edison, New Jersey to meet my friend, Sharon. Our plan was to eat dinner in the food court there and then go on to the nearby Roosevelt Park for Plays in the Park, the play of the evening being Damn Yankees. But, alas, we arrived at the park just in time to hear that it was cancelled due to rain. It had, by that time, already begun to drizzle. So, deciding to come back for another try in better weather, Sharon, my fellow bibliophile, and I headed back to the mall for our favorite hang-out, Barnes & Noble. After a few moments of browsing, Sharon had found a book that intrigued her and began to peruse it. My attitude at a bookstore, or with reading in general, is like a sumo wrestler at an all-you-can-eat buffet, so I found a pile of five, a fairly versatile selection, which I carried to our table in the cafe section.

I can not give full recommendations for the books I picked, because I did not read all five books while sitting in the Barnes & Noble cafe over an iced caramel macchiato, but I can give a little description of each and tell you why they intrigued me. Each of them initially caught my attention either by the title or cover picture or both which compelled me to read the back covers. Sitting down with them, I read a few opening pages.

First...

Sharon's pick -- Runaway Girl: Escaping Life on the Streets, One Helping Hand at a Time by Carissa Phelps

This is the one Sharon picked up, but I quickly agreed with her that it was an interesting book. It is an inspirational autobiography. The author ran away at twelve and got connected with a brutal pimp. Eventually, she ran away from that life, feeling abused and neglected. By age 30, thanks to a teacher and counselor, she graduated UCLA with a law degree and an MBA. Now, she works with the homeless and with at-risk teens.

I wish it was more widely understood, especially by men, that women who get into the prostitution business aren't necessarily in love with what they do. For some, it's a desperate attempt at survival, and many are entrapped. They may be abused and may be compelled to do things distasteful to themselves. In the current trends of human trafficking, many girls are ensnared into it by deceitful means. No wonder Jesus was a friend of prostitutes. He understood their pain and believed them to be totally redeemable.

I really appreciate this organization, Nightlight Bangkok. This organization helps the intervention and rescue of victims of commercial sexual exploitation. Women are given vocational training in jewelry making. Purchasing jewelry from the website will support these women in their new lifestyle.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

This first caught my eye by its dramatic cover in red, black and white and the words #1 National Bestseller, which is no indication that it will be a favorite of mine, but it is an indication that it is a favorite of many other people. One reviewer called it "a literary fantasy," and the author herself stated that all her books are "fairy tales in one way or another." The story is of two fiercely competing magicians, Marco and Celia, at Le Cirque des Reves, who, in spite of everything, fall in love. After perusing it very shortly, one thing I noticed was that its format and organization seemed creative, the style was engaging, and I immediately felt like I was expecting something exciting to happen.

The Thread by Victoria Hislop

I will need to tell my Greek American writer friend Stephanie -- check out her blog -- that this novel set in Greece caught my eye. She and I had just been commenting on a photo she posted to facebook. The photo showed a man climbing a hill, leading a flock of sheep which seemed to occupy the whole span of a public road. Stephanie posted that this was a common scene near her home in Greece.

The sentence on the back cover that caught my attention was this, "Thessaloniki, 1917: As Dimitri Komninos is born, a fire sweeps through the thriving multicultural city where Christians, Jews and Muslims live side by side." The story seems to be some historical saga spanning 80 years of "Nazi occupation, civil war, persecution and economic collapse."

Although, I identify with the first group mentioned, Christians, I have a great interest in Jews and Muslims and in stories where the three religious and cultural groups have lived in close proximity, such as in Bosnia. One fictional book I read recently along this line is People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks. The story traces the history of a mysterious illuminated Haggadah that is found in Sarajevo. The book, although fictional, is somewhat based on an actual find.

I liked Hislop's descriptive style, giving you the feeling that you are in the setting she describes, as in this sample, "With the lifting haze, Mount Olympus gradually emerged far away from the Thermaic Gulf and the restful blues of sea and sky shrugged off their pale shroud." I did not, as with reading The Night Circus, feel like I was being set up for something exciting to happen. That may have been misleading as one reviewer called this book "a page turner," which to me suggests fast-paced. But even if it does not read like a thriller, that is not a deterrent to me. I enjoy books which show some lulls between the action and takes the time to make you deeply acquainted with the characters.

Mistress of Mourning by Karen Harper

A fan of the costume drama, the medieval gowns on the cover caught my attention at first. From the back cover, "London, 1501. In a time of political unrest, Varina Westcott, a young widow and candle maker for court and church, agrees to perform a clandestine service for Queen Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII--carve wax figures of four dead children, two of her offspring lost in infancy and her two brothers, the Princes of the Tower, whose mysterious disappearance years ago has never been solved."

This hooked me. I remember the story of the "Princes of the Tower" as told in one of my favorite Shakespeare plays, Richard III. Why I like this play is a mystery even to myself, because it is a tragedy and full of bloodshed. In college days, I saw it performed when the college hosted a series of Shakespeare film nights, and it has been a favorite ever since. I think I like the banter between Richard III and Queen Elizabeth (Woodville), queen consort of England as the wife of King Edward IV. I remember these lines. The murderous Richard III wants permission to woo her daughter, Elizabeth of York.

"Richard III: Then in plain terms, tell her my loving tale.

Queen Elizabeth: Plain and not honest is too harsh a style.

Richard III: Your reasons are too shallow and too quick.

Queen Elizabeth: Oh no, my reasons are too deep and too dead, too deep and dead, poor infants in their graves.[A reference to the "Princes of the Tower."]"

Lately too, I am very interested in learning about the history of British royalty, both through film and books. Watching The Young Victoria, which I loved, inspired me to read Queen Victoria's biography by Lytton Strachey. After I saw The King's Speech, I was inspired to read The King's Speech: A Lesson in Perseverance (What George VI Can Teach Us) by Susan Crimp.

The Fatal Gift of Beauty: The Trials of Amanda Knox by Nina Burleigh

I don't have a very definite opinion on the guilt or innocence of Amanda Knox, the American girl who, while studying Italian abroad in Perugia, found herself accused of the murder of her housemate, Meredith Kercher. I am a little interested to see what the author's conclusions are. The book appears to be well-researched. The opening pages featured a detailed diagram of the house where Amanda and Meredith lived, a map pointing out key places in Perugia and their relationships to one another, and a listing and description of all the people pertinent to this story. The book's title is taken from a Lord Byron quote which is given its own page, "Oh Italia, Italia! Thou who hast the fatal gift of beauty." I wonder though if the author has given that phrase more than one meaning.

The Girl in the Blue Beret by Bobbie Ann Mason

The book I saw in Barnes & Noble had a different front cover than the one shown. That cover picture featured a girl with a bicycle, but the head of the girl was past the picture's frame of the picture. It is odd, and perhaps purposefully mysterious, that the girl in the picture, whom we could assume is the title character, does not show her head, never mind a blue beret.

This historical novel, set in World War II, starts in an exciting way, with a fiery plane crash. I was thinking at the time that I was reading that this bit of writing was quite an accomplishment for a woman since I know very few who are knowledgeable about planes or have first-hand experience as pilots. The story is based on the real war experiences of the author's father-in-law. I can see that she likely interviewed him extensively to give you the feeling that she did have that first-hand experience.

The story is of Marshall Stone, a U.S. flyboy stationed in England, who is forced to crash land his B-17 in Belgium near the French border. Ordinary citizens, members of the Resistance, help him find an escape route back to England. Decades later, he returns to the crash site, wanting to find the people who helped him and especially one girl who risked her life for him, the girl in the blue beret. Lovely thought, right?

Women in Literature and in Life -- Modesty and Misogyny

Three years ago, I read Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott, the story that weaves bold knights and chivalry with Richard the Lion-Hearted from history and known characters from the Robin Hood tales. It had only been sitting on my shelf for 16 years waiting for me to get to it. I know it was sitting on my shelf for 16 years, because it's encased in a fragrant leather book cover I brought back from a trip to Riga, Latvia in 1994. When I brought it home, I searched for the appropriate paperback to put in it and chose Ivanhoe; and there it sat in its place of honor neglected until recently.

There are many themes and thoughts I could expand on from Ivanhoe, such as the very unchristian way that the Jewish people were treated during this period of the Crusades. I do want to talk about a Jewish character, Rebecca of York, not as a Jewish woman, but simply as a woman.

As the story goes, she is sexually harrassed and kidnapped by the Knight Templar Brian De Bois Guilbert, a man who is sworn by his order to a chaste life. Rebecca must have feared for her chastity, because, in one of the book's dramatic moments, she threatens to throw herself from a parapet of the castle to save herself from him.

When De Bois Guilbert's crime is discovered by a superior of the Templars, it is explained away as the result of the Jewish woman's witchcraft and evil spells. That is the only thing that can explain this man's bad behavior. Rebecca is put to trial and sentenced to death at the stake for her supposed witchcraft. Of course, she is rescued by Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe who acts as her champion and wins her life back for her in a jousting match.

In the novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Archdeacon Claude Frollo parallels De Bois Guilbert in some respects. He falls in "lust" with the gypsy woman Esmerelda. Frollo's feelings cause him to kill his romantic rival, the soldier Phoebus whom Esmerelda loves, and have Esmerelda arrested for the crime. Later, he visits Esmerelda in prison, after she has endured torture, explains to her his feelings for her, saying, "Each night, on examining myself, I found that I was more helpless, more spellbound, more bewitched, more undone."

Frollo states:

"I learned who thou wert; Egyptian, Bohemian, gintara, zingara. How could I no longer doubt that there was witchcraft in the case? I hoped that the law would break the charm. A sorceress had bewitched Bruno D'Ast: he caused her to be burned and was cured. I knew him. I decided to try the same remedy."

Just as Rebecca had Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe as her champion, Esmerelda has the hunchback Quasimodo. He swings down on the ropes from the bell towers to rescue her from the gallows and takes her into the church for sanctuary.

Frollo makes several attempts to win Esmerelda's affection but is rejected each time. In the end, Esmerelda dies at the gallows, and Frollo dies at the hands of Quasimodo. The story of The Hunchback of Notre Dame is over all a tragic one. All of its major characters die in some tragic way.

Frollo, like De Bois Guilbert, could not take responsibility for his own actions. If he had feelings he shouldn't have for Esmerelda, it must be that he was bewitched. A psychologist might say that both De Bois Guilbert and Frollo used psychological projection. Unable to accept failure for their own sins, it was necessary to blame another.

Notice that it is two literary men, Sir Walter Scott and Victor Hugo, that write with such sensitivity about these issues concerning women.

Sir Walter Scott

Victor Hugo

Sadly, these examples in fiction make me think of real situations with real women. Another book I have read somewhat recently is the non-fiction Reading Lolita in Tehran, written by Azar Nafisi, a female literature professor, who gives a glimpse into what life is like for Muslim women in Iran.

There is one example in the book I remember where some Muslim girls find themselves in a similar position as Rebecca or Esmerelda. In one chapter, Nafisi describes comforting her daughter Negar who came home from school crying. Negar tells her mother her story.

"That day in the middle of her last class -- science -- the principal and morality teacher had barged in and told the girls to put their hands on their desks. The entire class had been escorted out of the classroom, without any explanation, their schoolbags searched for weapons and contraband: tapes, novels, friendship bracelets. Their bodies were searched, their nails inspected. One student, a girl who had returned from the United States the previous year with her family, was taken to the principal's office: her nails were too long. There, the principal herself had cut the girl's nails, so close she had drawn blood. Negar had seen her classmate after they were dismissed, in the school yard, waiting to go home, nursing the guilty finger. The morality teacher stood beside her, discouraging other students from approaching. For Negar, the fact that she couldn't even go near and console her friend was as bad as the whole trauma of the search. She kept saying, Mom, she doesn't know about our rules and regulations; you know, she just came back from America -- how do you think she feels when they force us to trample on the American flag and shout, Death to America? I hate myself, I hate myself, she repeated as I rocked her back and forth and wiped the mixture of sweat and tears from her soft skin.

This, of course, diverted the whole class [girls meeting in Nafisi's home.] Everyone tried to distract Negar by joking and telling stories of their own, how once Nasserin had been sent to the disciplinary committee to have her eyelashes checked. Her lashes were long, and she was suspected of using mascara. That's nothing, said Manna, next to what happened to my sister's friends at Amir Kabir Polytechnic University. During lunch, three of the girls were in the yard eating apples. They were reprimanded by the guards: they were eating their apples too seductively!"

The picture below is from the graphic novel Persepolis, an autobiography of Marjane Satrapi, depicting her life in Iran during and after the Islamic revolution.

An incredible burden is placed on Muslim women in some nations to guard their own modesty, to what would be deemed in most other cultures as ridiculous extremes. As with Brian de Bois Guilbert or Claude Frollo, if a Muslim man has a lustful attraction to a woman who is not his wife, the woman is blamed. Perhaps, she showed a little ankle or made direct eye contact. Maybe, she bit an apple seductively! A woman might even be blamed in her own rape, and thus victimized twice. Certainly, it is mysogynistic to put the full burden of purity on the woman, even to the extreme of defying all reason.

I confess I don't know how to bite an apple seductively. Perhaps, there are some people who might know how to make an attempt at it. But since what might be perceived as seductive is subjective, my thought is that these girls were merely eating apples with no thought of flirting.

I think I can relate to those apple-eating girls in a scenario from my own life. Once, I was with a friend shopping at a drug store in New York City.

The temperature was stifling hot inside the store, and my friend and I both found cold drinks to purchase which we carried with us around the store. My hair was quite long at the time, hanging halfway down my back. At one point, I lifted my hair and put the cold bottle I was carrying on the nape of my neck. Shortly after that, a man, who was a complete stranger to me, said something to me with a creepy leer on his face. I did not hear what he said. I only know that he made me uncomfortable, and I quickened my pace to hurry past him. It wasn't until months, maybe even years later, that I considered the thought that, perhaps, in this man's mind, my cold bottle to the neck was some sort of attention-getting flirtatious gesture, as I have since seen women on TV do a similar trick with a cold can or ice cube to some part of the body. The creepy leering man was quite mistaken if that's what he thought. My neck was hot, and that's all.

In the U.S. and Canada, rape shield laws have been put in place to prohibit cross-examination of the accuser(alleged victim)in certain areas, such as what she was wearing at the time of the incident. Of course, there have been cases where women have falsely accused men, such as in the 2006 case against three members of the Duke lacrosse team.

So it is hoped, that the truth would come out during a fair trial. Of course, it should be determined if the accusation rings true or not. However, in a case where there is force, not consent, I don't think it is really that consequential what the woman was wearing. Some choices of clothing may show poor judgment on the woman's part, but her state of dress or undress doesn't give license to the man to lose control of his behavior.

Modesty, pornography and related topics have often been a discussion point in my workplace, so I have given it much thought. Where does the burden lie in cases of sexual sin and sexual crime? Does the burden lie with women to guard their own modesty or does the burden lie with men to guard their own minds? I have heard arguments for either side, sometimes with an extreme lean towards one side or another, but I think the answer is more straight down the middle, a little bit of both.

As a Christian, I believe that all mankind descended from Adam and Eve. When sin came into the world with Adam and Eve, so did clothing. Adam and Eve first made clothing for themselves from fig leaves, and then God Himself made clothing for them from an animal's skin. If sin had not come into the world with Adam and Eve, I think it is reasonable to assume from the Bible that people would have continued to live in the Garden of Eden, as strange as it seems, in some sort of nudist colony type civilization. If everyone could be trusted to be pure-minded, nudity would not be an issue.

Nudity itself does not equal lust or necessarily produce lust. People of certain professions -- doctors, surgeons, medical examiners, people in the funeral business -- look at naked bodies repeatedly. We certainly hope that these professional people look at the body with a pure mind, in a professional way, and not a lustful way. Some people I know, who are not coming from a Christian worldview as I am, in debating with me, have taken this point to the extreme, that if we, as a culture, were less prudish about the body, if we were more lax about modesty and more lax about pornography, sexual crime in this country would actually decrease rather than increase. I think the point that my debaters attempted to make was that removing the mystery of the naked human body would remove the unhealthy obsession with it.

If this is the case and that point is valid, then it is only reasonable that cultures where people have traditionally worn less clothing should have less sexual violence.

In doing some research on this subject, I read Chapter 7 of "The Origins of War in Child Abuse," 2010, by Lloyd DeMause. What I found is far too disturbing to share in detail -- Feel free to look it up yourself. The book is online -- but the author made a study of this aspect of life in Papua New Guinea, Australian aboriginal culture and African tribal cultures. His study would certainly seem to suggest otherwise. In fact, some child abuse seems to be encouraged by the fact that some families in Papua New Guinea would sleep close together in the nude. This includes the abuse of boys and not just girls or women.

Clearly, removing the mystery of the human body does not lessen lust or sexual crime. It is true that, to the pure-minded, nudity is not necessarily pornographic. Titus 1:15, "To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure." At the same time, we are a fallen, sinful people, and we need the fig leaves. It is not wise to live as nudists or to wear provocative clothing. The mind can not be trusted to be pure, and we can not trust the minds of others to be pure. This makes modesty a necessity.

But how modest is modest? How much covering do we need? I Timothy 2:9 in Scripture says, "In like manner also, that the women should adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation..." But how do you define what modest apparel is?

Should women wear burkhas, smothering garments that impair both vision and movement?

Should we go back to wearing cumbersome Victorian swimsuits on the beach?

These measures are a bit extreme (certainly in the case of the burkha) but I think it's clear from the modern culture what is considered to be sexually provocative. Otherwise, a prostitute would not know how to dress. To be modest, a woman should not dress like a prostitute. She should not draw too much attention, as in showing cleavage, to the parts of the body that are eroticized.

Though she's far removed from being a theological or moral expert, I like this quote by fashion designer Edith Head.

In closing, yes, a woman should guard her own modesty, but, that said, a man should also guard his mind. "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." Proverbs 4:23

Robot "Love?"

In 2004, I went to the theater with a friend to see the movie "Stepford Wives." Even before I had seen the movie, I had some understanding of the basic story concept since my mother had seen the 1975 version of the movie.

The story, a slightly creepy dark comedy, explores several interesting ideas. What if a human being could be robotically programmed to "love" you? Would that love be rewarding if the person's will was not involved? Similar themes have been explored in other ways such as in the movie "Love Potion Number 9." What if someone loved you but only because that person was under the influence of a potion?

Sandra Bullock and Tate Donovan in "Love Potion Number 9."

"Stepford Wives" also explores another "what if." What if a human being could be robotically programmed to do all the perfect things? The person's natural weaknesses and flaws would be erased. The person would be "perfect," but the person's will is not involved. How rewarding could this arrangement be?

The Female Improvement System



Although the 2004 "Stepford Wives" movie explores the husband and wife relationship, with the wife as robot, the '70's series of movies included "Stepford Children" and "Stepford Husbands," so the same concept could be applied to artificially perfect husbands and children. If your wife or husband, son or daughter hugged you, but only because they were programmed to do so, would it be as rewarding as if it were an act of the will? Planting computer chips in human brains is a bit far-fetched for real life, but other mind control devices such as brainwashing and hypnosis are not.

Sometimes experts in hypnosis persuade people to do goofy things they wouldn't normally do for our entertainment. I personally would never volunteer for such an experiment, but at the same time, I confess I have found watching these experiments entertaining and disturbing at the same time. Below is a man hypnotising members of an audience at a state fair. Notice that one of the girls is convinced she is in love with the hypnotist and wants to hug him.



On the subject of robotics, I've been doing a bit of reading as research for some of my fiction writing. Some roboticists are interested in making robots as human-like as possible. This Japanese humanoid robot below, HRP-4C, sings and dances while imitating human-like mouth and head movements and human breathing.



The "Daily Mail" online, on June 12 of this year, had an article about this "last moment" robot below that could soothe a lonely person who is about to die in lieu of family or friends.

Eddie Wrenn of the "Daily Mail" writes:

"A smooth white robot starts gently rubbing your arm with a swing-saw motion and then, with a metallic voice, says: 'I am the Last Moment Robot. I am here to help you and guide you through your last moment on Earth. 'I am sorry that your family and friends can't be with you right now, but don't be afraid. I am here to comfort you. You are not alone, you are with me. Your family and friends love you very much, they will remember you after you are gone. ' Last moments: The robot gently swings its arm back and forth to simulate a relaxing stroke.

Is this a better way to go than dying alone? Or is it creepy? Is this kind of affection wanted when it is received by placebo, or worse, simply the pre-recorded responses from an unthinking, programmed machine?"

As fascinating as robot technology is, I don't think robots can replace humans in such a personal role, and judging from the reaction to the article, I think most people agree.

On a less creepy note, Connie Francis, in the '60's, sang a light and funny song, but suitable to the theme of this blog, "Robot Man," about how a robot's company would be more reliable than a live date. Here are some actual robots dancing to the song.



Really though, the "Stepford Wives" story plot has always made me think of a theological application. God could have created us, automatically programmed to be morally perfect and to love God as He loves us. He didn't He gave us free will.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16 To believe or not to believe is a choice of our will.

Once we believe, God works with us to morally perfect us. Romans 8:28 a"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son..."

From C.S. Lewis in "Mere Christianity:"

"God created things which had free will. That means creatures which cn either go wrong or right. Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong: I can not. If a thing is free to be good, it is also free to be bad. It makes evil possible. Why then did God give us free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. A world of automata -- of creatures that worked like machines -- would hardly be worth creating. The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water. And for that they must be free."

Assorted Thoughts on Reading Inspired by C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis is a personal hero of mine for his imaginative writing and his theological writing, spiritual insights, deep thinking, studious nature and many other reasons. He was also a voracious reader all his life, starting in childhood.

"You could never get a cup of tea large enough or a book large enough to suit me."

I can relate to this, can you? I am continuously reading. I constantly desire to enrich my mind and learn and explore new things or just appreciate the beauty of language and storytelling. Now that I have a Kindle, I can carry a large library with me everywhere. Some evenings, I go from my office to restaurants for dinner and then to municipal meetings at night.(I'm a reporter.)So, my Kindle is my companion when I eat solo or when I have a waiting period before the meeting starts or when the municipal council goes into a closed session. Council people will approach me and ask in a friendly way, "What are you reading today?"

I've heard many people say they prefer traditional books made from paper to the Kindle or the Nook, and I can understand those feelings somewhat. I would never want these contraptions to completely replace traditional books. However, it is much easier to carry around a "large book" such as Lewis liked around on a Kindle than tote around, say, "War and Peace" to read on your lunch break (which I actually did at a former job.)Toting "War and Peace" might be just as much exercise for the body as for the mind.

I only half-agree with Lewis on the tea part though. I'm an American but have a bit of the Anglophile about me. I adore pretty tea cups and teapots, and I do drink tea fairly often. My favorites are Darjeeling and Earl Grey. This said, I prefer coffee. So, this mug with a similar quote is perhaps more personally suitable.

I remember how inspired I was after reading Lewis's autobiography, "Surprised by Joy," reading just how voraciously Lewis read growing up. I remember reading how his family never borrowed books from libraries but always bought them and how they did not put any limitations on what books he could read. He did some pretty ambitious reading at a young age. Books were stashed in odd places throughout the house, even stacked on the stairs. This photograph I found on Pinterest reminded me of it.

I don't recommend this book storage system. I don't have a husband, but I think this would drive a husband berserk. As a single, I would still want friends and guests, and this, I would imagine, would drive your friends and guests berserk too. As much as I love books, I love people more. Still, it makes quite an interesting visual.

I've made such a hero of Lewis that, when I read about the books that inspired him, I have a desire to read those same writers and books. So, in recent years, I have explored George MacDonald and G.K.Chesterton like the books listed below.

I also have an interest in reading books written by the other Inklings, Lewis's writing friends, such as Tolkien.

I don't read these writers exclusively, but Lewis's example to me has inspired me to read more, to read more books of great quality and to keep book lists of the works I read each year.

This brings me to another quote of his.

One of my goals is to read more.

1) Read more good books.

2)Write good books. Finish what you start. Publish to Kindle.

3)Exercise more.

4)Lose weight.

5)Work on my weaknesses. Develop, with God's help, those positive traits that don't come naturally to my personality type. I am, by the way, a phlegmatic.

What are your goals?

The Mystery of the Cross

(I'm republishing a book review I wrote in 2009, so the book is no longer a recent release.)

I was one of those strange people that liked my freshman requirement humanities class at Cedarville University, in spite of numerous warnings from other students. Later, as a Gibbs College student, art history was again a subject of interest. So, when author, Judith Couchman, was looking for blog reviewers for her new book, “The Mystery of the Cross: Bringing Ancient Christian Images to Life,” the idea intrigued me and I volunteered.

Couchman is the author of many Bible study books, including several my girlfriends and I have studied together from the “Women of Faith” series: ones on Mary (mother of Jesus,) Deborah, Esther and Ruth. She is also a part-time art history professor at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. Her new book explores the history of Christian art, specifically cross images.

Certainly, the book could appeal to anyone interested in art, but it would not be quite right to say it was simply an art history book. “The Mystery of the Cross” could be a lesson in Christian church history, a Bible study book and a devotional book as well.

Her writing style is interesting and descriptive; you will not get the feeling of reading a dry textbook. Although it relates to art and several specific pieces are mentioned, it is not full of color images but there are plenty of black and white sketches and photos throughout. The book is divided into seven major sections with several short chapters organized under each. Each of these chapters focuses on a specific art object, explores its historical context, and from this, Couchman draws illustrations for an aspect of the Christian life, sharing Scripture verses.

Couchman’s first chapter even discusses the cross image in pre-Christian times. Counchman thoughtfully states, “Some skeptics claim this ancient sign of the cross disproves Christianity. Because this image recurred in early divergent cultures, they claim Christ’s story wasn’t true; that the first Christians borrowed ‘the cross myth; and its sign from pre-existing religions. But couldn’t the God who oversees the universe and its events have etched the cross image into humanity’s soul before Christ appeared? Could this early sign have prophesied our need for a savior? Perhaps, when the pagan ancients created their own gods and religious signs, they unwittingly patterned the way of Christ.”



Tied in with this thought is something gained from a second book, “The Real Meaning of the Zodiac” by Dr. James Kennedy, Ph.D, in which Kennedy says, “Therefore from the very beginning, God has given a story of His salvation from which have come most of the ancient mythologies and ancient traditions.” Kennedy claims that the constellations have Christian meaning, quoting a verse in Genesis, “And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years…” This is truly a strange thought for someone who has long been taught that the study of astrology is evil. Kennedy doesn’t argue that point, quoting Bible verses that support this idea, but believes that astrology and predicting the future by the stars is a corruption of their original meaning.

The Southern Cross is a decan or minor sign which is sometimes seen and sometimes not seen in the sky at different times and centuries. Kennedy wrote of this, “It is interesting that this constellation, though it is now far to the south from the latitude of Jerusalem, had been seen there for many centuries, but disappeared from view at almost exactly the same time that Christ, the real Sacrifice, died on the cross. It has not been seen there since!”

Reading either book is recommended. Reading Couchman’s book, you will be sure to discover things you never knew or pondered about before. She easily weaves one thought in with another, leading you on a tour of the world’s Christian art treasures and yet bringing to thought Bible lessons and Christian applications for your personal life.

"Leonardo" Notebooks

I was inspired recently to start a project with a friend, to share a Leonardo-style notebook. Here is my first entry from that shared notebook.

Today, I hatched a crazy idea that will help us both develop our creativity and our writing as well as help us bond.

I've been reading a book called "How to Think Like Leonardo DaVinci" by Michael J. Gelb. DaVinci is a fascinating person to me. He was not only a great artist but a great inventor and a talented genius in all sorts of areas, the reason why, today, a multi-talented person is called a "Renaissance man."

 The concept behind the book I'm reading is not that anybody can learn to be a genius on DaVinci's level but that everybody can learn from DaVinci's approach to learning and creativity. The book makes suggestions for exercises and one of those suggestions is to keep a notebook like DaVinci. You may have seen replicas of his drawings, sketches for his inventions and writings

This reminds me of the time when I read "The Journals of Rachel Scott" years ago. Rachel Scott was one of the teen girls who was killed in the Columbine shooting. Like Cassie Bernall, Rachel Scott was a devout Christian, and her journals illustrate her faith. The published journals we direct replicas of the original, showing both her handwriting and all the doodles and sketches with which she illustrated them. At the time, I also learned that Rachel Scott shared journals with several of her friends. She'd make an entry, exchange the journal with a friend who would write her piece and back and forth. This actually inspired me when I wrote about two female friends in my novel, "And the Violin Cried." The two friends share a journal that is a combination of a journal, sketchbook and scrapbook.

The back cover of one of Rachel Scott's last journals



My youth novel


So, my suggestion is that we combine these ideas and share a Leonardo notebook, Rachel Scott style! We can exchange the notebook every time we see each other and make at least a small entry each day we have it in our keeping.

Like Leonardo's notebook, the notebook should have both textual and visual elements.

Ideas for textual elements: a letter to one another, random thoughts, a poem, a story idea or the beginnings of one, a journal entry about happenings in the day, quotes from a song, Scripture or anything inspirational, slice-of-life writing (Look up Wikipedia article on slice-of-life writing or the lyrics to "Tom's Diner" by Suzanne Vega, an example of slice-of-life writing) or basically anything.

Ideas for visual elements: sketches and doodles (They don't have to super artistic,) a comic strip, a candy wrapper, ticket stubs, a short article clipping, pictures cut from catalogs or magazines...endless possibilities.

Spiritual Thoughts Drawn from "The Avengers"

I went to see "The Avengers" a week or so ago with a female friend. I have to admit that I rarely watch movies featuring comic book characters. It was a strange choice for me, because I barely understand who these characters are, with the exception of the Hulk, since I remember watching the old TV show with the Hulk growing up. I have watched a few of the Spider Man movies and enjoyed those,probably because of the romance in the plot. Yeah...I'm a girl.

My friend and I decided to go for two reasons. One,we simply wanted to watch a movie showing that particular weekend, and this one interested us the most. Secondly, several women we know, who are as girly as we are, had recommended it. I had also read a good review of the movie in "World Net Daily."

In spite of this introduction, and admitting to having no expertise in the area of comic books, I did make some interesting observations in the movie and saw what I thought to be spiritual parallels.

The reviewer for "World Net Daily" pointed out that the movie seemed to be in favor of one God. There is one scene where Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow) states, concerning Loki and Thor, "These guys come from legend, Captain. They're basically gods."

Steve Rogers (Captain America) responds,"There's only one God, Ma'am," and then, comically,"And I'm pretty sure he doesn't dress like that."

There's another scene where Loki demands "worship" from the Hulk. Loki orates, "You are, all of you are beneath me! I am a god, you dull creature,and I shall not be bullied..." Then there is a brief gratifying scene where the Hulk picks up Loki like a rag doll and and whips him around, smashing him into the ground. It's strange to say that I would enjoy this violence, but after such a comment, the audience enjoys seeing the villain put in his proper place. After this, Hulk tells him, "Puny god."

My friend and I were sufficiently creeped out by Loki, which is, of course, how we were supposed to feel, as he is the villain. We were creeped out by his appearance and manner. At one point during the movie, my friend turned to whisper to me and said, "He's like a demon."

I thought there was something to that. Satan, who started out as an angel of God, was thrown from heaven for the sin of pride. Even today,he would like to think of himself as equal to God or a god and demand our worship. So, for me, there was another sense in which he was "like a demon" besides his creepiness.

There is another "worship" type scene in which I saw more of a political implication, which was, perhaps, the intention of the script writers. The scene is in Stuttgart, Germany, and Loki is in front of a crowd.

"Kneel before me," I said. "Kneel! Is this not simpler? Is this not your natural state? The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joys in a mad scramble for power. For identity. You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel."
An old German man stands and says, "Not to men like you."

"There are no men like me," says Loki.

The German man says, "There are always men like you." Of course, I don't think it was coincidental that Captain America is the hero that swoops down at the appropriate moment to save this man.

The Stuttgart setting, I think, is intended to bring Hitler to mind as well as the rest of the political dictators who may have a similar attitude as Loki. So, it was interesting that the hero was Captain America, which seemed to symbolize some American patriotism and the American idea of political freedom.

But there was another scene from which I drew a spiritual parallel. This is the scene where Loki is taunting Black Widow.

Loki asks her, "What is it that you want?"

"It's really not that complicated," she says. "I've got red in my ledger, and I want to wipe it out."

Loki taunts her,"Can you? Can you wipe out that much red?" And later,"Your ledger is dripping, it's gushing red, and you think saving a man no more virtuous than yourself will change that?"

That, again, seems demonic in the sense that Loki is trying to point out her own weakness and her own inability to save herself, to redeem herself by doing enough virtuous deeds to wipe out the evil ones. But this is where the spiritual parallel ends, at least, a theologically correct one.

It's a popular religious misconception that God weighs our good deeds versus our evil deeds to determine if we are worthy of heaven. But,I'm glad God is merciful, knows my weaknesses and knows I can't earn heaven by outweighing my evil deeds with good ones. In Romans 3:10, "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one." And Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

The solution is much easier."For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV).

Vampires and Redemption

A few years ago, I bought a copy of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” at a garage sale. I was not prompted by the trendiness of vampires, the Goth culture or the popularity of the “Twilight” books and movies. I am not even a horror fan. The closest I ever get to watching a horror movie is maybe an Alfred Hitchcock flick or a suspense/thriller that turns out to be a bit more thrilling than I expected. I will admit that, as an English major, I enjoyed reading some Edgar Allan Poe, but that’s about the extent of it. But I do like classic 19th century literature, and here was an opportunity to read a classic for only $.25.

I was surprised at the respect for Christianity that was present in this novel about a blood-sucking vampire. It’s true that Dracula was repulsed by garlic, but it’s also true that he was repulsed by a crucifix and the host, the round wafer used in Catholic mass. As a Protestant, I have a different interpretation of the bread. To me, it is representative of Christ’s body. To the Catholic, in the doctrine of transubstantiation, the host is Christ. That shows to me two things, that in the writer’s philosophy, Christ is the opposite of evil and has the power to repel evil.

Other things in the story disturbed me. What I found most disturbing was Mina Harker’s transformation into a vampire. Mina is depicted as a loving wife and friend before her vampirization. Mina is bitten by Dracula, and at one point, compelled to drink his blood which transforms her into a vampire herself. What bothers me is that her path to becoming this despicable creature seems to be through no willful choice of her own.

In Dracula, Mina describes her experience in these words.

“With that he pulled open his shirt, and with his long sharp nails opened a vein in his breast. When the blood began to spurt out, he took my hands in one of his, holding them tight, and with the other seized my neck and pressed my mouth to the wound, so that I must either suffocate or swallow some to the … Oh, my God! My God! What have I done? What have I done to deserve such a fate, I who have tried to walk in meekness and righteousness all my days. God pity me! Look down on a poor soul in worse than mortal peril. And in mercy pity those to whom she is dear!”

The same incident is described in the narrating voice of Dr. Seward.

“The attitude of the two had the terrible resemblance to a child forcing a kitten’s nose into a saucer of milk to compel it to drink.”

Even more bothersome is a scene with Mina that follows soon afterwards. Van Helsing takes some precautions to protect Mina from Dracula. Mina’s husband, Jonathan Harker, is the narrator in this section.

“‘Now let me guard yourself. On your forehead, I touch this piece of Sacred Wafer in the name of the Father, the Son and…’ [in the words of Van Helsing] There was a terrible scream that almost froze our hearts to hear. As he had placed the Wafer on Mina’s forehead, it had seared it…had burned into the flesh as though it had been a piece of white-hot metal. My poor darling’s brain had told her the significance of the fact as quickly as her nerves received the pain of it, and the two so overwhelmed her that her overwrought nature had its voice in that dreadful scream. But the words to her thought came quickly. The echo of the scream had not ceased to ring on the air when there came the reaction, and she sank on her knees on the floor in an agony of abasement. Pulling her beautiful hair over her face, as the leper of old his mantle, she walked out. ‘Unclean! Unclean! Even the Almighty shuns my polluted flesh! I must bear this mark of shame upon my forehead until the Judgement Day.’”

To me, this is mixed-up Christian imagery. The whole message of the gospel is grace, and here is a woman who is unhappy in her condition and seems rejected by God and beyond redemption. There is some discussion among the characters afterwards that God will make things right for Mina at Judgement Day, but that is little consolation to me as a reader that she must suffer until then.

In one sense, I can see that we are all “infected” in our blood as humans, not because of personal actions, but because we are all descendants of Adam and Eve.

In Romans 5:12…
“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man [Adam,] and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—“

And later in verse 15…
“But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!”

The condition that we’ve inherited through Adam does not place us beyond God’s grace. My God is a God of grace. There are no irredeemable people, certainly not someone like Mina who is unhappy in her condition and wants to change. Faith, however, is a requirement for redemption.

Blood is actually a theme throughout the entire Bible. If you do a search on the Amazon site for “blood,” you will find a lot of titles for vampire fiction and a lot of books on Christian theology.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites were told not to eat blood.

Leviticus 17: 13-14 NKJV
“Whatever man of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who hunts and catches any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood and cover it with dust; For it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.”

The idea of the life being in the blood is in Dracula also. This is most seen in the psychiatric patient Renfield, the zoophagous “life-eating” patient, who keeps pets that progress along the food chain, and seems obsessed with consuming life. In fact, Renfield even makes a reference to the Old Testament Scripture.

"I tried to kill him for the purpose of strengthening my vital powers by the assimilation with my own body of his life through the medium of his blood – relying, of course, upon the Scriptural phrase, 'For the blood is the life.'"

Also, in Old Testament times, a system of animal sacrifices was set up to atone for sins.

Dracula drinks blood to take life to himself and give himself life and power. Christ shed His blood to give life to others.

Ephesians 1:7 “In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.”

Strangely enough, Jesus commands his disciples to drink His blood at the Last Supper. That sounds very close to vampirism. It must have seemed strange to these men that followed the law of avoiding animal blood in their diets.

John 6:54-56 “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.”

It’s explained this way in “Hard Sayings of the Bible” by Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Peter H. Davids, F.F. Bruce, and Manfred T. Brauch.

“What could He mean? Plainly His language was not to be taken literally: He was not advocating cannibalism. But how was it to be taken? It was not only obscure, they thought: it was offensive. For Jews the drinking of any blood, even the eating of flesh from which the blood had not been completely drained, was taboo. But drinking the blood of a human being was an idea which ought not even to be mentioned. This was a hard saying in more senses than one.

Jesus answered their protest by pointing out that His words were to be understood spiritually. ‘It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail’ (John 6:63 RSV) The physical or literal meaning of the words was plainly ruled out. But what was the spiritual meaning?

Again the reader of this Gospel, viewing these words in the context of the whole work, has an advantage over the first hearers, who had no such explanatory context. What we have in Jesus’ strange language is a powerful metaphor stating that a share in the life of God, eternal life, is granted to those who in faith come to Jesus, appropriate Him, enter into union with Him.”

Again, Jesus gives His life through His blood rather than taking life, ala Dracula, through our blood. Because Dracula’s action is kind of a sinister twist on the Christian communion, perhaps that is why the Sacred Wafer acts as a repellent.

Christ also acted as our final sacrifice for sins.

Hebrews 10:11-12 NKJV
“And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God.”

Hebrews 9:13-14 NKJV
“For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh. How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

Christ appears to John in Revelation as the Lamb, symbolizing the ultimate sacrifice. In Revelation 5:9 the twenty-four elders worship Him saying, “You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals, For you were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.”

Real Love on Valentine's Day

This Valentine's Day, I thought I would share some quotes on love from one of my favorite writers, C. S. Lewis.

"Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person's
ultimate good as far as it can be obtained."

C.S. Lewis in "God in the Dock"

"There is no safe investment. To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket -- safe, dark, motionless, airless -- it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable."

C.S. Lewis in "The Four Loves"

"There are two kinds of love: we love wise and kind and beautiful people because we need them, but we love (or try to love) stupid and disagreeable people because they need us. The second kind is the more divine because that is how God loves us: not because we are lovable but because He is love, not because He needs to receive but He delights to give."

"The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis," Volume III

Makoto Fujimura

I'm not sure I'm always a fan of abstract art, but I've been reading lately about Makoto Fujimura. He is a Christian abstract artist. Philadelphia Biblical University, where my brother and his wife graduated, was the first Christian institution to commission one of his paintings.

I liked this painting for its shades of blue and green. Blue can be soothing and can have a celestial ethereal effect.

According to what I read in "Saving Leonardo" by Nancy Pearcey, Fujimura uses an ancient Japanese technique called nihonga, and uses ground up precious stones such as gold leaf, lapis and malachite as pigments. Fujimura said, "Shall we be suspicious of fireworks spreading their abstraction over a summer sky? Or wave patterns created on the sand? What about classical music or jazz? Life is full of abstraction."

He is working on an illuminated version of the four gospels which I think is really neat. For more information, check out this link. http://www.crossway.org/blog/2010/11/makoto-fujimuras-illuminated-gospel-book-project%E2%80%94the-four-holy-gospels/

Some Thoughts on Christ and Friendship

I am a facebooker, maybe even a slightly addicted facebooker. My friend list is growing larger. There are a few individuals that I shower with comments, compliments and encouragement. Others perhaps I neglect a little more. Humanly speaking, perhaps this is understandable. Do these friends feel like I am a real friend to them? If Christ were on the Earth today, performing His earthly ministry, would He be on facebook?

It seems like a ridiculous question. Somehow, I can't imagine that He would do so exclusively. It certainly couldn't replace the impact of the face-to-face encounters we know He had from reading the Gospels. Would He take advantage of modern technology in a supportive way? Perhaps, He would.

But as I ponder His life and my friendships, I think of the many throngs of people Jesus impacted in His earthly ministry. He had twelve specially-chosen disciples, three very close friends we call His "inner circle," and yet the many crowds of people who gathered to hear Him preach, teach and receive healing. No wonder He had to pull away, refuel and be by Himself from time to time! Although He was and is fully God and had the power to perform miracles and healings, in His human body, He took on some of our human limitations. This human body of His was not present everywhere He might minister but instead was in one place at a time. We do know, however; from John 1 that Jesus saw Nathanael under the fig tree from afar off. How cool is that?

I can not be like Him in that respect, and I certainly feel my human limitations. But as a believer, I am His ambassador and should be like Him in my friendships. Jesus maintained His close friendships with James, John and Peter, but He ministered to large groups, some of whom would be watching Him from a distance. He still took the time, even in these settings, to give individuals special attention, such as Zaccheus, the tax collector, who climbed a sycamore tree to see Him over the crowd or the little children that, in King James English, He "suffered to come unto" Him. In some cases, Scriptures tell us that these encounters had life-changing impacts on those He met.

I'm glad too that Jesus did become acquainted with our humanness. I know that I serve a Lord who is not unable to relate to me.

I hope that I can be a blessing to friends whether they are acquaintances or my dear old friends for years. I hope that I don't waste my moments, even my chance encounters with those I meet, because, maybe after all, they are not such chance meetings.