“I never take my own side in a quarrel.” Robert Frost

For The Bible Tells Me So

"Anyone who has begun to think, places some portion of the world in jeopardy." John Dewey

Two movies to talk about today. Both revolve around the controversial issue of Christianity and sexual identity. The first I saw a few weeks ago is FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO that documents the process that five families go through in adjusting to a gay or lesbian member. The other I saw tonight is entitled CAMP OUT about a summer camp for gay teenagers. For me these movies are all about taking myself through my own adolescence again with respect to this issue. I just know that I was not exposed to multiple perspectives with respect to some issues and I tend to think that everyone has similar issues in their lives that they should intentionally "re-teenager-i-fy" themselves regarding. For some people, the issues may revolve around religion or spirituality. For others the issues may center on diet or self image. For some it may have to do with their sexuality. For others it may be their thoughts about education or their own family or their personal pursuit of happiness.

Camp Out

Life gets a whole lot simpler when people talk about the process by which they have acquired their attitudes and opinions and these movies are certainly effective conversation starters. The pastor who organized Camp Out says somewhere in the documentary that when we wrestle with ourselves, with the church, or with God, we always seem to come out limping but that is not a bad thing. In short, defining yourself in any way takes some guts and an openness to a little pain I suppose because we were not born into lives that fit us all the time.We are often born into lives that we must, in some way, change.

"la angustia es el precio de ser uno mismo" ("anguish is the price of being oneself"). 

The Jewish novelist Chaim Potok once wrote that "One hopes that if you're really related to the core of your particular culture, you have profound commitments to it, and that you are aware of how much you can strain it before you do violence to its essential nature.”

Question for Comment: Do these movies do "violence to the essential nature" of Christianity? Or do they affirm it in its most fundamental sense?