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Normally, my inner-academic snobbery quietly (or not so quietly) mocks the vast majority of television “entertainment” for its shallow plot lines, flat characters, stilted drama, and neatly packaged resolutions that fit into 22 minute segments for the vegetative consumption of the masses.

Well, I finally got around to watching the acclaimed series The Wire, and just a few episodes in, I was hooked. For years, various friends have been telling me that I would love the show, and they were right. I don’t think it’s a stretch at all to call it one of the (if not the) greatest television series ever made. Continue reading »

It should be a relatively difficult task to sum up a whole year’s events in only 172 seconds, but Google Zeitgeist manages to do a decent job. I’m not exactly sure whether that should amaze or alarm me.

Regardless, another year has come and gone, and 2012 is now upon us. I hope the Mayans were wrong, I hope the presidential election is over quickly, and I hope Harold Camping hides under a rock for a while. Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas, everyone. At the risk of being a bit of a grinch, I thought I’d share this video set to the Christmas classic, Happy Xmas (War is Over). I know I should probably just sit back and enjoy the time of relaxation and indulgence that typically characterizes this holiday, but something within me is irked by a combination of guilt and [likely self-righteous] indignation.

I think what it boils down to is my [unfortunate] inability to turn off the consumer-critique that often accompanies my observation of almost all North American “holidays,” an inner-monologue that tends to preoccupy my thoughts in the absence of my usual work. So while I should be working toward being fully present with my family, I can’t help but feel a little angsty about how shallow and self-centered Christmas seems to be. Continue reading »

It may be irreverent to mix these metaphors, but let’s just call it taking some creative theological license for the moment. Advent is a season of waiting, a reflective time of expectation and hope. In anticipation of God’s arrival in the person of Jesus, the church must remember not only its own longing for deliverance, but also its solidarity with those who suffer in their waiting.

“Undun,” a new concept album from The Roots, tells the story of “Redford Stephens,” an urban archetype of the disenfranchised black male. Redford is “neither victim nor hero,” but he represents the life and experience of many for whom Advent, in its traditional sense, has little meaning. Continue reading »

Henry Suzzallo, after whom the famous UW library is named, said that universities should be “cathedrals of learning.” Anyone who has visited the graduate reading room (I studied–and napped–there on occasion as an undergrad) should note the silent sanctity of knowledge in that place. The cathedral-college metaphor also evokes the distinctly theological origins of most institutions of higher education in the U.S., from the Ivy League on down.
But the more I become solidly entrenched in the institution of academia, particularly theological academia, as a Christian and aspiring scholar, the more I sense a deep-seated skepticism growing within me about the endeavors of the Christian academy. I returned from AAR about a week ago, and while I am still processing some of the stimulating conversations and ideas that were presented there, I am also struck (perpetually, it seems) with the glaring discontinuity between the academy and the “real world.” Continue reading »

It’s official: the blog is in a production slump. I’ve noticed a steady decline in the frequency of my posts for most of the calendar year, but particularly since July (which happens to be the month baby Micah was born–coincidence? Probably not.). Is having a second kid really that big of a change? In short, yes.

Practically speaking, the parent-to-child ratio is cut in half, and all sorts of new logistical challenges present themselves at inopportune times. To be fair, my lovely wife (and resident super-mom) bears the brunt of this, but I’ve had my share of life adjustments to make since Micah showed up. But I’d hate to sound like I’m complaining–the many changes are in fact good, if not at times painful, course corrections required to grow into the task of being more present with my family. Continue reading »