On a Stiiiick, Day One

We walked in through the main gate this morning, I took in a deep breath, smiled, and breathed out "Hello my happy place, it's good to see you again." Maminka just laughed and shook her head.

Today was our old St. Mark group day - PL and Dave, Don and Anita, Maminka and myself.

We began with the breakfast of champions: a pronto pup. I'm actually kind of embarrassed about that, but I overslept and was running a little late, and consequently hadn't eaten anything before I left to meet up with Mom, Don, and Anita at the park and ride. So I was really really hungry by the time we got to the Fair, and Don was hungry too, and he loves pronto pups, and. . .well. . .I too ate a deep fried batter-dipped hot dog for breakfast, I admit it.

Then we walked to the other end of the fairgrounds and ate the true breakfast of champions, the grilled porkchop on a stick:



Seriously, we discovered this completely by accident a few years ago, but if you start your Fair day with all that protein, you don't hit the wall in the middle of the afternoon or suddenly sugar crash in the early evening. I highly recommend it.

Then we made our way over to the horticulture building to meet up with Linda and Dave. Of course, as long as we were there, we had to get a dish of honey sunflower ice cream.



We covered quite a bit of ground today but there is still a lot left to do and see - never made it anywhere close to the DNR building, the Midway, the barns, or Heritage Square. Good thing I'm going back a couple more times!

A couple highlights from what we did see today:

The coolest thing I saw in the Creative Arts building was this huge tinker toy display that looked like the Midway



Look at the detail, I love these Tilt-a-Whirl cars!



The best thing I saw in the Art Show was this painting



It's a still life of a bowl of potatoes on top of a newspaper opinion page, the headline of which is about Minnesota's poor, and the picture in the paper



is Van Gogh's "The Potato Eaters." I believe the title of this painting in the show was "Vincent" - I found it very clever - poignant and political at the same time.


Finally, this picture is for Adri



because she is currently sitting in Dresden impaling homemade pickles so she can pretend she is eating them here with us instead. You should know we ate not merely one but TWO of these ginormous pickles in your honor today, and we missed you and Burki something fierce.

Take Me Out With the Crowd

Nana and Pa went to visit the bambino a couple weeks ago. Auntie C was the designated airport shuttler and cat caretaker while they were away. As a thank you, they took me to the ballpark yesterday. My not-so-secret crush was on the bench



as was Cuddy, but Justin and Danny were both playing, so that made me happy.





We had amazing seats



not that there's a bad seat in the house, really, but these seats were particularly sweet. :)

We lost, but what else is new? It was at least an interesting game and - funnily enough - right at the top of the 5th Nana said "Ok fellas, hit a home run now, let's get something going here." And then Hughes and Repko hit back-to-back homers to start the inning!

In a pleasant surprise, my friend Erik sang the national anthem for us



(dude, I thought you were moving out of the state. . .does this mean I'm going to see you at InVocation rehearsal this week?)


And, for the second time this season my old debate coach and I were at the same game and didn't know it until we were both posting about it on facebook after the fact. One of these days, Sunne, we'll figure these things out ahead of time so we can catch up in person at the game!

The Play So Nice I Saw it Twice

Kristin is about to move to Princeton to start a PhD in Old Testament, so she's making the rounds of her Twin Cities goodbyes this week. We were originally planning to just hang out today around/after lunchtime but then she heard the Guthrie was taping the H.M.S. Pinafore for public television this afternoon and was looking for for an audience to fill the house. So, we did that instead.

And I have to say, I wish to retract my previous criticism of the new orchestration - it totally didn't bother me today. But I could also clearly hear all the words to all the songs today. So either something was off with the balance in the sound system when I went to see this back in June, or I was previously sitting in a dead spot for the speakers (in June I was sitting in the center of the balcony; today we were five rows up from the bottom of the slope).

I also want to reiterate - the whole company and production is fantastic, but Robert O. Berdahl and Christina Baldwin are both especially worthy of a shout out, he for his facial gymnastics (which was a treat to see up close this time), she for her incredible vocal range, both of them for their comedic timing.

It closes on August 28, which means you've got less than a week left to see it, folks. Get thee to the Thrust Stage.

Arguments I Don't Hear Much Part 2

The gospel lesson this morning reminded me that I had not yet written this post. To refresh your brains, part 1 was the political argument. This part is the biblical/religious argument.

So, one of the major critiques often launched against "liberal" positions on homosexuality within the church is that those who hold such opinions are antinomian (aka anti-law). Because Leviticus and Romans and yadda yadda yadda all clearly state this is wrong, so if you want to say it's not wrong you clearly just want to torch the Bible and dance on its grave. Or (less dramatically, and perhaps more nerve-wracking) you're setting up your own arbitrary criteria for what we follow and what we don't, and (this is the real concern) where will it stop? If you're wiling to "pitch" some parts of the Bible, whats to stop you from pitching the whole thing?

This is a very "brick wall" mentality regarding the Bible - every "brick" (verse) has equal size, weight, and value, and is rock solid, not flexible at all - and the fear is if you punch out enough bricks you compromise the integrity and stability of the whole structure.

A lot of people have this understanding of the Bible. But it's not the only way to think about it. A contrasting image is that of a trampoline, and thinking of the verses as the springs that hold it together. You can take a few springs out of a trampoline and it will still function, but more importantly, springs have give, they are flexible.

(we interrupt this post to give props to Rob Bell's Velvet Elvis, because that's who I'm stealing these images from - if you haven't read this book yet, you should)

Now before anybody gets all "You're pulling springs out of the trampoline? That's antinomian!" on me, please let me clarify that I'm NOT pulling springs out of the trampoline, and I'm not advocating that anybody else should either. I AM advocating that we should all be thinking of Bible verses as more like springs and less like bricks.

And I advocate that in part because that's kind of what we'd been doing for centuries. The law has never been so black and white, so cut and dried, as some folks like to make it out to be. You'd think something like "Thou shalt not steal" would be, but there are volumes of rabbinic debates and commentary as to when this law is bound and when this law is loosed.

Let me explain: let's say you are walking along and you spot a $100 bill on the ground. If you pick it up, is that stealing? It depends, say the rabbis. If you just pick it up and put it in your pocket without making any effort to look around and seek out who may have dropped it, then the law is bound, and yes, you are stealing from your neighbor. But if you make every good faith effort to return the money to its rightful owner and cannot find them no matter how hard you try, then the law is loosed, you may keep the money and you are not breaking the commandment.

This is a broad generalization of the kinds of reflection and rabbinic debate that would happen all the time. In reality it would go much deeper and in greater detail, but hopefully with this small example you get the picture.

Jesus himself was steeped in this tradition. In fact, we see him engaging in it in Matthew 12 when the Pharisees come after him and the disciples for plucking grain (aka doing work) on the Sabbath, a clear violation of their cut and dried understanding of the third commandment, to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. Jesus counters with arguments as to why the law in this case should be loosed, and like a good case lawyer, he even cites historical precedent (King David, no less).

(we interrupt this post once again to give props to Mark Allan Powell's How Lutherans Interpret the Bible, because that's who I'm stealing these examples from - if you haven't yet watched this DVD series, you should)

Ok, so what does all this have to do with arguments you don't hear much and the gospel from this morning?

Namely this: in this morning's gospel, Jesus gives the church the power to bind and to loose. My Catholic brothers and sisters interpret this passage as giving only Peter and Peter's successors (aka the Popes) this authority, but we Protestants interpret it more broadly as the body of Christ, the church, having this power.

And we've used it. Repeatedly. I love ham and pork and bacon, others love shrimp and lobster, and we all eat these things freely because collectively the body of Christ decided to loose the Levitical kosher laws. The laws (which are pretty clear cut) are still sitting there in the Bible, no one has thrown those springs out, no one is "against" them, but we have decided they've got give and they are no longer binding upon the community. Similarly, I am a woman who is ordained and regularly speaks in worship, because the part of the body of Christ that is the ELCA collectively decided to loose the "law" in the Pauline letters that forbids women from speaking in church (though I am cognizant that several other members of the body have declared this law is still bound).

To me, it makes logical sense to extend this power to bind and to loose the law to the passages forbidding homosexuality. And to me, that is essentially what certain members of the body (the ELCA among them) have done, declared collectively (if rather contentiously) that these laws are indeed loosed. They are still sitting there, right next to the kosher laws in some instances, we have not thrown them out, but we have decided they are no longer binding.

I don't think that's being antinomian. I also don't think it's such a bad argument. My question is: why do I feel like I'm the only one I ever hear making it? In all the debates I heard leading up to the Churchwide Assembly in 2009, in all the debates I heard on the floor of the 2009 CWA (I volunteered as a page), in all the continued fighting and controversy in the wake of those decisions (in which many who have been leaving have gifted us with parting jabs about abandoning the Bible), I don't recall hearing anybody make this case. And I can't help but wonder why.

Reclaiming the Title

I think the Twin Cities are gunning to reclaim the title of the most bike-friendly city in the country.

Either that, or a whole new wave of tobacco-lawsuit money just came in.

But has anyone else noticed a bunch of new green Bike Share stations being installed, all over the Cities?

It's a good thing, really, considering it's becoming virtually impossible to get anywhere by car these days.

[seriously, MNDOT, whose brilliant idea was it to work on every major artery between St. Paul and Minneapolis in the same summer, hmmm?]

Then again, maybe that's part of their master plan. . .make driving such a frustrating experience that everyone readily hops on a bicycle instead.

The Danger of a Single Story

This is fantastic. Hat tip to Mary for the link.

Let the Panic Resume

I have been maintaining what many would call a ridiculous pace for an entire year: full-time PhD student, working 3 part time jobs, helping out with family stuff (particularly getting grandma to doctor appointments) as I'm able, providing pulpit supply here and there on occasion, helping out at church as I'm able. . .well, you're getting the picture.

This summer the stuff I was doing shifted a bit but the pace remained unrelenting: June was SPSS Hell, half of June and all of July was covering for Jen as she took a six week sabbatical at Holden, two of the four weeks of July were awesomesauce fun but still very busy hosting company from PA, all while still working for LPI and the library.

Then, finally, August. Glorious, glorious August, with very little on my calendar, only LPI and the library to worry about for work, and my Happy Place promising to appear, as it always does, at the end of the month.

I have been relishing August. Relishing the cooler, less humid weather. Relishing the much needed mental break. Relishing the difference between this August and last August, ever mindful and grateful for what I am NOT doing this month - unpacking all my crap and cramming for entrance exams.

Then today I met with Mary to plan the independent study we'll be doing together this fall. We are going to be reading and discussing some really cool stuff on narrative, communal faith formation, and religious education - I am actually quite stoked about it. But I was also a little anxious as I left her office, just remembering how frantic last fall was, and realizing it's all going to start up again in a short couple of weeks.

Then I went to grab some lunch in the cafeteria and Dr. Luedke joined me at the table. He was asking about what I'd filled my summer with once I finished crunching numbers for him, and was wondering about what courses I'm taking this coming fall, pushing me to think about how I could use them to help refine my thesis question and my field research design. I told him about the Sunday school curriculum I'm working on and how I've been thinking that might be a good beta test of a potential action research project. He agreed and suggested I throw together a baseline survey if for nothing else than the practice of writing the survey and testing whether what I think I'm doing is what I'm actually doing. Truly, it was a really good and helpful conversation, but I left lunch with my anxiety turned up just a little higher thinking about incorporating everything we talked about into the coming months.

Then I went to Babylon to visit the bookstore in its current exile. They really culled their collection to help with the move and lack of storage during the exile, so I figured they would have to order half the books Mary and I had just decided upon (my assumption was correct). And as long as I was there I asked "Hey, has Keifert given you a booklist for Theological Hermeneutics yet?" (this would be the other class I'm taking this fall) And they were all like "Yup, here it is."

I seriously almost had a panic attack right there in the middle of the bookstore. It's all really good stuff, authors I am excited to read and discuss, but holy crap is it a long list full of heady thinkers. I went and grabbed all that were in stock and the clerk checking me out was like, "Ooh, you might want to start reading some of these now." Thanks dude, I know.

I keep trying to take deep breaths and remind myself it's going to be better this fall. I won't have the busywork that I was dealing with for one of the classes last year, and I'll only be working two jobs, not three. Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Deeeeep breaths.


. . .I think I'm gonna go start reading now, bye.

A-Fringing We Will Go

Today went to see Disney Dethroned, a most excellent one-man show (well, two-men if you count the musician on stage with him). Clever, biting, hilarious, tightly written and performed (if you click through the link and scroll down the page you can watch a small clip of it). The format reminded me of the Creative Expression category in high school speech - like if you gave somebody who was excellent at that an hour to fill, instead of 8 minutes, this would be the kind of thing they would come up with.

This was supposed to be the final performance, but it was the best-selling show at the Mixed Blood venue, so it earned the encore spot tomorrow night (Sunday 8:30 pm). Go see it while you still can!

We went out for ice cream afterwards, and not only was there a parking spot right across the street from Sebastian Joe's* (that never happens) but I pulled off a perfect parallel park (also a rarity, which is why I am always so inordinately pleased with myself when that happens, to the point of needing to brag about it).


*I love how, once you've introduced somebody to the pure deliciousness that is Sebastian Joe's, the lamest, thinnest reasoning will easily persuade them to go back. It starts with "We had a great concert - let's go to Sebastian Joe's!" Then (d)evolves to "That was an awesome play - let's go to Sebastian Joe's!" And pretty soon it's all: "The sun is shining - let's go to Sebastian Joe's!" "The Twins lost that one - let's go to Sebastian Joe's!" "It's a Tuesday - let's go to Sebastian Joe's!" You get the picture. :)

Be Still My Nerdy Heart

Behold, Hamluke, a mash-up of lit major geekery and Star Wars geekery from the brilliant mind of some genius named Brad. Not only is the play hilarious, well-directed, well-acted, and creatively costumed, it is accompanied by pieces from the original Star Wars score redone with period Shakespearean orchestration. Clearly, the Force is strong in this one. See it you should. Get thee to the Fringe Festival.

Another piece of awesomeness that has come into my life this week: The Muppets. Auf Deutsch.

Of course The Muppet Show would have been dubbed over, the Germans dub everything over. And people these days put anything and everything on youtube. Why didn't I think of this sooner? Behold the treasures waiting to be viewed:

Star Wars und Schweine im Weltall


Shakespeare und Tierklinik


Und am besten: Der Schwedische Koch!




The funny thing is, I can understand the Chef in German better than I can in "English!" The Germans actually made up more dialogue and articulated it enough to make it understandable! [though not being able to understand him in English is half the fun; that, and pistol-weilding lobsters liberating their muchachos!] Here is the turtle soup sketch in English so you can compare.

Vicar of Minneapolis, I love you for making me aware this was out there on the interwebs. Thank you!

Finally to round things out with some good old-fashioned church geekery - I'm working with a group of folks from my church and our two partners in the ministry center to write our own Sunday school curriculum for the coming year. It is so. much. fun. I hope the kids have fun with it too (and, you know, learn something to boot!).

ADDENDUM FOR MORE CHURCH GEEKERY:
I just put together that the dude who played "Darthius" was Mike Rylander, aka Jonah from recent years of Augsburg Fortress VBS stuff (I did not recognize him in his costume tonight).

Cookie Monster Gets Introspective

Perhaps my favorite line in this:

"They don’t call the vampire with math fetish monster, and me pretty sure he undead and drinks blood."

John Moulder Quartet

So the last time ECR and I went on a cultural adventure it turned out to involve computer jazz, which was. . .um. . .interesting.

We ended up leaving after the first song, which also happened to be the first set, which was an hour long (computers don't need to take breaths or breaks the same way real live humans do). We laughed most of the way to the car and, as the adventure had been her idea, she declared she "owed me one."

I can officially say that debt has been forgiven. Last night's cultural adventure completely redeemed the computer jazz experience.

ECR was not in town for this one, but on her recommendation I went to hear the John Moulder Quartet at the Artist's Quarter. It was excellent. This "quartet" is not a standing group, both the pianist and the drummer had done gigs with John before, but this was the first time all 4 of the musicians had ever played together. I would never have known that if they hadn't said it outright - they were tight.

And theological. Moulder is a "jazz priest" (dude, why was that track never made explicit when I was going through MDivland?!) - he is an ordained Catholic priest who also happens to be a professional jazz musician. Inspired by the religious music of the likes of Duke Ellington and Dave Brubeck, he's written his own religious jazz setting, called "Trinity." The quartet played parts of it last night, including some delta blues, which Moulder introduced with the comment, "I'm pretty sure the Israelites got the blues."

They also played a piece he wrote called "Being and Time" - he didn't make it explicit in what he said around it, but I couldn't help feeling it was a nod to Heidegger.

So, if you like good jazz and blues, or you like artists with deep theological and philosophical grounding to their work, check John Moulder out. He's a hep cat. :)

Actually, they were all hep cats, so check out Dan Musselman, Alexander Young, and Billy Peterson too.

Also - the Artist's Quarter is a sweet venue - how have I been ignorant of its existence until this weekend?!