bloggedy blog

:: Saturday, January 24, 2004 ::

Your own, personal, American Jesus
There's an interesting interview over at the Boston Globe's website with Stephen Prothero, a Boston University professor and the author of the new book American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon. We Americans have been quite free in shaping Jesus in our myriad images, including "a capitalist, a countercultural hippie, a tenderly feminine savior, a manly soldier for Christianity, a driver of hybrid cars, and a fan of sport utility vehicles, among other guises." This, says Prothero, is both "a good thing and a bad thing."

The liberties we've taken bring religion to a lot more people. We have this wild freedom of religion -- we can have a gay Jesus and a straight Jesus, a black Jesus and a white Jesus, a Spanish-speaking Jesus and an English-speaking Jesus -- [that] allows our citizens to approach Jesus. But it also can have the effect of cheapening the prophetic side of Jesus, the ability of Jesus to call a culture to account. Religion has been the most powerful force for social and political change historically. That power of Jesus is diminished by his tendency in the United States to take his marching orders from the public. Jesus was important in the civil rights movement, in abolitionism. It's not that he can't do anything right. But it's increasingly difficult to call on his name in the service of social transformation. He seems to be worried now more about what we drive and eat than why so many black people are in prison and why poverty is so unevenly distributed across the country.

Link via Relapsed Catholic.

:: Andrew 10:42 + ::
...

bloggedy blog recommends

bloggedy pod (my podcast page)

Independent hotels
in Missouri

eMusic's Power Charts: The Most Interactive Music Charts Online.

In rotation

What I've been listening to lately. Click album cover or hyperlink to hear track samples and learn more.

Rickie Lee Jones, Sermon on Exposition Boulevard

Patty Griffin, Children Running Through

Of Montreal, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

Field Music, Tones of Town

De Bossen, The Girl Collection

Cold War Kids, Robbers & Cowards

Simon Dawes, Carnivore

Frida Hyvonen, Until Death Comes

Tratore Basics Vol. 2, Novo Rock Brazil

Yusuf: An Other Cup

The Beatles: Love

The French Kicks: Two Thousand

The Blow: Paper Television

Freedom Haters Unite! A Bloodshot Records Sampler

Swan Lake: Beast Moans

Prototypes: Prototypes

Scanners: Violence Is Golden

Voxtrot: Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives

Voxtrot: Your Biggest Fan

Macon Greyson: Translate

The Evens: Get Evens

Veruca Salt: Veruca Salt IV

Bob Dylan: Modern Times

Pink Tuscadero: Look Your Best

Leigh Nash: Blue on Blue

Yo La Tengo: I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass

The Hold Steady: Boys and Girls in America

Bobby Bare Jr.: The Longest Meow"

The Be Good Tanyas: Hello Love

The Lemonheads: The Lemonheads

Ben Kweller: Ben Kweller

The Pipettes: We Are the Pipettes

Paul Simon: Surprise

Exene Cervenka and the Original Sinners: Sev7en

Johnny Cash: American V: A Hundred Highways

The John Doe Thing: For the Best of Us

The Fondas: Runaway Bombshell

Buzzcocks: Flat Pack Philosophy

Asobi Seksu: Citrus

Tapes 'n Tapes: The Loon

Various Artists: 2006 Pitchfork Music Festival Sampler (24 free tracks)

The Futureheads: News and Tributes

The Bottle Rockets: Zoysia

Camera Obscura: Let's Get Out of This Country

Art Brut: Bang Bang Rock & Roll

Drive By Truckers: A Blessing and a Curse

The Raconteurs: Broken Boy Soldiers

Belle and Sebastian: The Life Pursuit

Cat Power: The Greatest

bloggedy tags

from our sponsors

for your viewing pleasure

24x7
rocketboom
the Richard Show

where in the world?