Modernism fails again!

"The Western empirical, materialistic tradition of science takes the stance that if something cannot be observed and measured it does not exist. To study the full range of consciousness, this archaic and human-centered view must give way to the possibility that the range of reality extends beyond ordinary human sensory-perceptual experience" (p. 449).

I'm excited about this quote because, it's not from a theology or philosophy book--it's from my (secular) neuropsychology text.

Zillmer, E. A., Spiers, M. V., Culberson, W. C. (2008). Principles of Neuropsychology. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadworth.

: )

Projectives

This is a chalk on canvas piece called "Bust of a Woman" by Picasso. We discussed it in class today, and I was struck by the diversity of the interpretations it received from my classmates. Some saw this woman as being seductive and others saw her as being afraid. While some saw her hand gesture as one of strength and confidence, others saw it as one of defensiveness.

As I began to formulate my own interpretation, I started realizing how much of ourselves we project into works of art such as this, that are striking enough to provoke us, and ambiguous enough to force us to draw our own conclusions.

So, how do I see this woman, aside from what Picasso may have intended?

First, her gaze and her positioning (her body is centered to the left of the canvas) indicates to me that there is someone standing at her side, facing her. Her hand, the focus of piece, is rather masculine, and it divides the image in two--to the right is mostly shadow and darkness, and to the left, the softness of her shoulder, breast and arm is illuminated. Therefore, I see her masculine hand as obstructing the view of her softness, her vulnerability, from the figure on her left, who is off the canvas.

So, I suppose I see this woman as someone who is misunderstood. She is soft and feminine, but often, the first thing one notices about her is her masculine qualities (intellect, assertiveness, competitiveness, maybe?). Or perhaps, this image reflects the struggle of defining what it means to be a woman, given the striking juxtaposition of the masculine hand next to the soft shoulder. Or maybe this girl is guarding her vulnerability by using her masculinity as a shield. She doesn't want her softness to be seen.

See? It's a projective. : )

The Brotherhood of Man

This song by The Innocence Mission* has been haunting me:



In a time where so much mistrust has been fostered between nations, religious groups, and between people and their governments, in a economic system designed to promote the survival of the fittest of the fit, and within the Church where individuals are feeling increasingly isolated--let's get some "brotherhood" going.

Christina

*I first heard it as part of the soundtrack to the short film, "Weathered," directed by Matt Barber and Matthew S. Webb. Great movie, if you ever get the chance to see it.

The Getty and Matthew 26:6-13

While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. "Why this waste?" they asked. "This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor."

Aware of this, Jesus said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."

Some friends and I visited the J. Paul Getty Museum in Brentwood yesterday, which houses five galleries and a central garden that contains over 500 types of plants. However, the Getty Center is probably most known for its unique architectural design. Located on the Santa Monica hills, the Center offers breathtaking views of both the city of Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean. Natural light illuminates the interior and is adjusted by a system of computerized shades. The exterior of the building is made of blocks of a beige stone called travertine, which ends up looking immaculately white against the blue Los Angeles sky.

The Getty Center is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. And thanks to individuals with a lot of money to invest and a lot of love for the visual arts, the museum is open to the public, free of charge (except for parking).

That being said, the maintenance of the Getty is (obviously) quite costly. The building itself cost about 1.2 billion to construct, and who knows the net worth of all the paintings, sculptures, photographs and sketches in the galleries, or of the plants in the central garden. A lot of time, energy, and finances were put into this thing to make it happen. And I couldn't help but wonder, as beautiful as the Getty is, couldn't all this money have gone to something more...useful?

As Christians (and as members of the human race), shouldn't we prioritize giving to the poor above our own, seemingly selfish need for aesthetic fulfillment? How much could have been done in the name of justice and mercy with 1.2 billion dollars? I love the arts but, shouldn't I love the needy even more?

So, of course, this issue was addressed somewhat on the car ride home--mostly with this guy--and I continued to think about it when I was back in the apartment later that evening. Then, this morning, the passage from Matthew came to mind. And although a perfect correlation can't necessarily be made between the pouring of expensive perfume on Jesus' feet and the construction of a billion-dollar museum building, there are at least some parallels that can be drawn.

Similar to the myrrh that was poured from the alabaster jar, works of art are costly, precious acts of worship. They are a testament to God's graciousness in giving humans the capacity to create beautiful things for each other that inspire and stir the deepest emotions within us. Art moves the soul (or, it moves our "soulishness," depending on who you talk to). It touches the depths of what it means to be human. And I would guess that it gives God much pleasure to see His children serve each other in such a profound way, using the creative gifts that He blessed them with.

So, although we are called to serve the less fortunate, we are also called to worship, and part of worship is taking the time to invest in, appreciate, and be awestruck by the beauty that we, as the human race, are capable of creating, thanks to a loving Heavenly Father.

The poor will always be with us, but the arts are something that must be deliberately nurtured in order to be kept alive, and worship itself is something that must be that is initiated by us. I guess the key is just finding a good balance.

Surviving Amidst Capitalism

Forgive me if this is too simplistic, but for the last couple of days, I've come to the conclusion that, in our society, there are two things that are crucial to survival: resources and strategy.

Resources are "assets that can be drawn upon by a person or organization in order to function effectively" (thank you, dictionary widget!). Money, education, and social support are examples of resources that most of us rely on to get through life.

The ability to strategize is the ability to carefully plan in order to achieve an end of some kind. A good strategist will use his or her resources in the most efficient way possible in order to reach a goal. A good strategy requires foresight, vigilance, and a lot of effort.**

Very few people are both wealthy in resources and adept in strategy-making. Most people who are doing decently well in our society either make up for their lack of wealth with their ability to strategize, or are fortunate enough to be able to balance out their poor judgment with an excess of resources.

However, those that are not doing so well are likely in complete deprivation of resources, strategy, or both. You could find the smartest person in the world on the streets because they have no social network, no money, etc. You could give someone in need $1000 and they could completely blow it on something useless, simply because they don't have the common sense to save, or invest, or to live according to a set of priorities.

You need money to make money. But you need smarts, too. Maybe more people wouldn't be so down on their "luck" if they could just sit through a Money Management 101 course--and if those that are in the "know" about survival would be a bit more generous with their hard-earned resources.

If you're wanting to help, here's a place that's worth investing your resources in.

Christina

*As with all my "conclusions," this one might change one day.
**And often, good strategy is involved with good resources. How many of us learned strategy (how to pay for school, how to make the most of our education, how to save, invest, and spend money wisely, how to network, etc.) from more experienced individuals in our social support networks who invested tons of time and effort into us (parents, teachers, relatives, etc.)?