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My Wife's (Not So Secret) Superpower

Amanda has a superpower. She's impossible NOT to love. Go ahead... try. I dare you.

4 Reasons to Take Communion with Katniss

HG-KatnissOver the past several posts, I've explored the story of Suzanne Collins' first Hunger Games novel (and the excellent film adaptation). We've seen that while we identify with Katniss, we have much more in common with the Capitol. That our culture distracts us from injustice with pleasure and entertainment just like the Capitol does. That just like Rome and the Capitol, our culture seeks to control our bodies, to convince us to devalue our bodies. And last time, that Katniss and Jesus both use their bodies as the primary site of resistance against the Empire's evil actions.

So what do we take from Katniss' example in The Hunger Games? How do we imitate Jesus, resist Empire today, using our bodies?

In the New Testament, Worship is how Christians wage war on Empire, and the center of Christian worship is the Communion Meal.

Appropriately, the meal is an embodied act that regularly reinstructs us how we can resist the story our Empire tells us and live in the reality of God's story. Communion teaches us how to resist the Empire's claims on our bodies and souls.

Here's how:

1. Communion affirms that our bodies are essentially who we are.

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What Katniss Stole from Jesus

Katniss uses her body to resist the Capitol's claims to own her. This echos Jesus' crucifixion and models for us how to resist Empires today.

Who Owns Your Body? The Hunger Games and Political Rebellion

In The Hunger Games, Katniss uses her body to resist the Capitol's story of power and control. She becomes our model for resisting today as well.

The Hunger Games: Bread and Circuses and Voyeurism

Watching The Hunger Games is problematic for a number of reasons...Since the rebellion 74 years ago, the government of Panem has staged Hunger Games once annually. The purpose of the games is ostensibly to remind the districts of the cost of rebellion, to showcase the Capitol's strength and to celebrate the high cost of peace.

But like every Empire, the real reason the Capitol stages the Games is to distract and entertain its citizens. To distract them from the Capitol's injustice.
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The Hunger Games: We Are the Capitol

While we sympathize with Katniss, we're actually more like the Capitol. We'd do well to heed the story's warning!

If 50 is the New 30, then is 30 the new 21?

Extended Adolescence is just part of the larger evolution of our culture's script. Rather than criticizing, we all need to work together to figure out what's coming next.

Which Film Deserves Best Picture This Year

The Descendants, Tree of Life, The Artist, Moneyball, Midnight in Paris, The Help, Hugo, Warhorse and Extremely Loud & Incredibly close. What's your pick?

Jesus Got a Sex-Change (Sort of...)

Jesus is not just eternally masculine. Because Jesus is the incarnation of divine wisdom, he is both masculine and feminine.

Don Draper Stole Our Imaginations

Beauty was once attainable by anyone. But the rise of print advertising shifted Beauty from metaphor to concrete images. We must resist the unattainable forms of Beauty ads show us.
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