Cultural Critics & Prophetic Christian Thought

/ Jason Morris / Leave a comment

I have always shunned the role of theologian because I have little interest in systematizing the dogmas and doctrines, insights and intuitions of the Christian tradition. Nor do I think that they can be rendered coherent and consistent. The theological task is a noteworthy endeavor – especially for the life of the church – yet my vocation uses Christian resources, among others, to speak to the multilayered crises of contemporary society and culture. So I am more a cultural critic with philosophic training who works out of the Christian tradition than a theologian who focuses on the systematic coherency or epistemic validity of Christian claims. This vocation puts social theory, historiography, cultural criticism and political engagement at the center of my prophetic Christian outlook. I do not believe that there are such things as Christian social theory, Christian historiography, Christian cultural criticism or Christian politics – just as there are no such things as Christian mathematics, Christian physics or Christian economics. Rather, there is a prophetic Christian thought and practice informed by the best of these disciplines that highlights and enhances the plight of the loveless, luckless, landless, and other victims of social structural arrangements.

(Cornel West, from the Cornel West Reader)

After reading this passage, I find myself thinking that maybe what the Church needs today is fewer theologians and more cultural critics who proclaim prophetic Christian thought and practice.

Cornel West- “You can’t lead the people if you don’t love the people. You can’t save the people if you won’t serve the people.”

Health-Care Reform Resource

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Jim Wallis and his friends at Sojourners have put together an excellent resource on the whole health-care reform debate.

I’d encourage you to read through the information on the site, especially the Guide to the Health-Care Debate.

Then, if you are so moved, I would encourage you to sign the Health-Care Creed.

So, in case you missed my point, be sure to check out the Health-Care Reform Resource from Sojourners.

For those of you wondering what the United Methodist Church might have to say on the issue, you can read the Book of Discipline statement by taking THIS LINK.

Favorite Charles Wesley Hymns

/ Jason Morris / 1 Comment

Last Sunday, I picked “And Can It Be That I Should Gain” as one of our hymns for the 8am service. As we were singing, I came to realize that the majority of our 8am congregation was unfamiliar with this beautiful hymn. “And Can It Be” is part of our Methodist heritage (as are all the hymns of Wesley). Not only that…it has a melody that is a lot of fun to sing!  I found myself thinking, “Wow! These faithful members of a United Methodist church are missing out.”

So, I decided that I’m going to take our 8am service on a journey through some of the hymns of Charles Wesley. There are some that will be familiar (“Christ the Lord is Risen Today”; “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing”) and some will be totally unknown. Each week, one of our hymns will come from Charles Wesley. I might even give a little “story behind the song”. The big idea is to walk us through some of the traditional hymns of the Wesleyan movement.

Anyone out there have a favorite Charles Wesley hymn?

Chocolate, Tiramisu, Hand-Painted Chocolates, Creme Brulee, Croissants

/ Jason Morris / 1 Comment

Today, I spent the day job-shadowing a pastry chef at Ghyslain Chocolatier in Union City, IN. It was absolutely incredible.

I arrived just before 9am and was given a quick tour and crash course. Then, I was matched up with a chef and we immediately got to work on making tiramisu (which happens to be Emily’s favorite from Ghyslain). After a couple of hours, and 900 tiramisu, we moved on to the creme brulee.

We started heating the creme and sugar (20 pounds of sugar…to give you an idea of the quantity we were making). While the creme heated, we prepared the egg and vanilla (the seeds from 40 pods, which is actually the hardest part of creme brulee). We took a quick break for lunch (salad with a killer dressing and a tasty chicken pot pie) and then finished preparing the creme brulee. Best part of the day…playing with the butane torch.

After the creme brulee, we moved on to hand-painting some of the chocolates. It doesn’t take long to realize that they totally under-charge for a piece of chocolate. There is a lot that goes into making their chocolate art pieces. We also assembled some chocolate piano’s and brushed them with edible gold powder. After that, we spent time helping with the croissants. We wrapped it all up around 3pm (when I was sent home with a pretty nice gift package…coffee mug, chocolates, some amazing desserts that Emily and I consumed after Sammie went to bed).

It was an amazingly incredible day. I learned a ton. I am totally excited to try out some of the tricks I picked up.

This all was a gift from Emily’s parents…a pretty awesome gift. If you ever get the chance and enjoy cooking (especially desserts and baking), I would urge you to spend a day with a chef at Ghyslain.

For those of you in Richmond and Zionsville, you can check out their restaurants (where you can get the amazing pastries and chocolates). In Muncie, you can order some of their pastries and desserts at Vera Mae’s (or you could just drive to Union City, Zionsville, or Richmond).

Road Rage Makes You Look Crazy

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This morning, while driving to work, I witnessed a very animated act of road rage.

While turning onto Walnut, I saw an old lady attempting to enter the Aldi parking lot.

As I made my way past her, I noticed the stereotypical soccer mom zooming down the road in her fancy SUV. This soccer mom was throwing both hands in the air and obviously screaming at the old lady. She was pointing with one hand to the lane in front of her and with the other hand she was making a gesture towards the old woman. With my lip reading skills, I was able to make out a “what the…” before I passed. I can only assume what came after the “the”.

What I noticed was how obnoxious the soccer mom looked. She honestly was giving the kind of aggravated display that normally is reserved for those who spend a majority of their day in straight-jackets.

I find myself wondering what was so absolutely important that applying the brakes for a few seconds so an old lady could pull into the discount grocery store parking lot was such a hindrance.

This event reminded me why we all need to attempt to keep fits of road rage under control. One seriously looks crazy when yelling and flailing his/her arms around while driving down the street.

So, if you learn one thing today, let it be the fact that road rage makes you look crazy!