the duh-vinci code

Sure is a lot of hubbub about "The DaVinci Code" movie coming out... sure is a lot of hubbub from folks who haven't read the book.

Ignorance.
Idiocy.
stupidity.

The part about all this that compels me to blog is, specifically, Christians who are speaking out against the book as tearing down Christianity.

What.
The.
Fuck.

The book is FICTION. It's clearly stated it is FICTION... and for those people who want to bury their heads in the sand - people have been talking about these same "theories" about Jesus' lineage for a long time (very very long time).

Not even Historical Fiction... it didn't even say that.

But now that it's a best-selling book, and soon to be a movie - every church, minister and Christian business is jumping on the bandwagon to make money off of this movie.

Take, for instance, this website from Tyndale House Publishing > DaVinci Didn't Convince Me. Among other things, the site is designed in somewhat the same feel as TDVC official movie site (sadly, DVDCM's site lacks the intriguing content of the official site). And, if you don't want to visit either site, I'll share with you a few tidbits from the DVDCM site.

Capitalism. Gotta love it. Way to go Tyndale House - you bottom-feeders. And I hope this does the opposite - I hope it DRIVES people to see the movie (which cannot be as good as the book - and the book was good)!!!

First, the homepage has some great stuff - heh... - this is a gem:

"... blurs the line between history and fiction, leaving readers, and now movie-goers, thinking that Christianity is based on a lie."

AND my favorite...

"Learn the facts behind the fiction that is SHAKING THE FAITH OF CHRISTIANS WORLDWIDE..."

Now, as a Christian, and as SOMEONE WHO HAS READ THE BOOK - it didn't shake my faith at all. I read this FICTION book for entertainment. Shake my faith? HARDLY!

Blur the lines? Of what! The book IS FICTION.
FAKE.
FICTION.

Is this the state of Christianity? The state of Christian faith is one *so* delicate that a book or movie could shake it?

My.
Soul.
Stolen by Dan Brown!

Entire churches are doing sermon series on how it's fake. DUH. And the lemmings are putting their [Cartman voice on] Dollah in the box [/Cartman voice off] - buying into how this movie is evil and horrible and ruining Christianity.

PUH-LEEZ.

I had a similar personal experience with someone about 6 years ago at Fellowship Church of Grapevine, Texas. I'll keep it brief:
I was on the music team for 2 years and seldom used on the platform... and when I asked why, I was brushed aside. Finally, the situation came to a head when I was told I wasn't needed for the service the weekend after Christmas. I had cut my Christmas vacation short to be back to sing - and was shocked when I was told that I wasn't needed and that the music directors at the time would talk to me the 3rd or 4th weekend of January.

Unhappy with that answer (why wait 3 or 4 weeks, let's just settle this), I went up to the church Saturday night and confronted Rob and Lianne about it (they were very shocked to see me). After the service, I was told the two reasons I was no longer on the music team... "I wasn't the image they wanted to portray from the stage". Part 1 - my appearance (overweight) and Part 2 - the biggest part (which goes with this blog entry) - that the Jr High Minister's wife told them I was working on a website that was "Satanic". Or rather, Oprah-esque (new agey).

They simply could not have that image on the platform! And I was cut lose, without even asking me my side. They didn't even know the name of the website in question, nor had they seen it. All of that based on one person's false representation - based on gossip.

Here is where my tie in with this DuhVinci stuff comes in - Lianne (music leader person) said to me - LITERALLY - "I would not feel comfortable going to such a site, it may hurt my faith. I certainly would not even consider going to it if I were alone."

I remember laughing a bit and asking if she was serious. She was.

Long story short - the meeting ended with my husband and I never returning to Fellowship Church, even after asking for one of the pastors to get involved and mediate the situation. A certified letter to Ed Young (the senior pastor) went unreplied to.

Yeah - hurt her faith. A website. Yeah, right.

Anyhow, back to somewhat of a point:

If one's faith is so weak as to be rattled by a book of fiction or a movie, such a person should first figure out what they believe and WHY. Why is their faith so shaky as to be blown by this or that?

I didn't see the Jews going all ape-shit over "The Passion of the Christ". And to them, Jesus being the Son of God was fiction. They weren't all going crazy over how this movie would hurt their faith and numbers!

Wow.
Just, wow.

Yet another reason church just isn't for me (that and the aforementioned bad experience with places like Fellowship Church).

I'll close with some words that were on a sign above the door to my 9th Grade History Teacher's office:
"Ignorance is Expensive".

sponsored by the number 29

I turned 29 Saturday. One more year to the big three-zero! I don't feel almost 30 though - I still feel 24... but I know I'm getting older, because I see college kids and think they're in High School. *sigh*

My birthday was kinda - well - ho-hum. Maybe part of it is that this is the first birthday in 6 years without Marla. Or that Rick and Joy (who managed to not nearly wreck my birthday for the 3rd year in a row - they weren't invited this year) aren't a part of our lives anymore... or that Lisa is in Tennesse - or that my friends from my last job (who numbered nearly 40 at my last party) are now a small handful of folks (I do love them, though).... I dunno. It was just a shitty birthday, all in all.

Some of you may think I'm talking about you, below - and maybe I am. And for those of you who I don't talk about (namely those I don't have a beef with - you already know I love you).

I've come to a couple of realizations over the past few days - some good, some not so good, so I'll share them.

• Too many people don't seem care about their word and keeping commitments. I've been known to flake... to have things come up, it's just a fact of life - but there are too many people I have in my close circle that never seem to keep their commitments. Stupid things, yeah - like showing up at a birthday party that they RSVP'd to... but still - have the courtesy to call! This isn't to discount the friends that did show up - but there were a few folks I was excited to see that just blew me off and it hurt my feelings.
• It hurts my feelings that you won't just come out and tell me you don't want to hang out - more than just telling me that you don't want to. Honestly, I don't fucking care if you don't want to hang out, come to my birthday, join me for a movie, or whatever - but when this is the 5th invitation you've turned down, just be a grown up about it and tell me you're not interested in hanging out. Or, better yet, you're off my list.
• It's too late for one dream, so why not try another? It's too late for me to be a rockstar... I have to come to terms with the fact that the thing I want to do more than anything - the thing I wake up thinking about, and go to bed and dream about - Singing and Performing - won't happen. I'm past my peak. It's just a fact. So, maybe I can move that dream to comedy... you can break into that anytime, right? I'm doing a stand-up comedy workshop for the next few weeks. Right now, I'm trying to not be funny (the assignment starts with just real life topics, not funny things). All leading up to a showcase at the Addison Improv and that will determine if this is just another dream with no chance of taking off (and me being out $450).
• I get hurt when those closest to me don't recognize things that are special to me. I hesitate to air my dirty home laundry here, but my birthday - just like my anniversary, came and went without a surprise from my husband. If it makes me spoiled or naggy or a bitch to want to be surprised on special occasions, so be it... but I think I deserve a bit of special thoughts on such days. I don't want to negate what he does do, but I'd be lying to say that I am not hurt when there's not even a card or something small - a surprise to let me know I'm thought about more than just what I say I want or ask for.

Anyhow, sorry for the bitchfest, all. Just had to get a few things out (EmoJane returns)... hopefully I'll be back to my bitchy, sarcastic, humorous self soon.

dear neighbors...

I'm a good neighbor, I think. I keep to myself, keep the yard clean, I don't have 15 flamingoes in the front yard or 75 of those wooden "women bent over asses" stuck in the shrubs. I also don't routinely rev my vehicle's engine after 9pm, or anytime for that matter - I have a couple of parties a year, but nothing obnoxious. I don't leave trash out -and I don't put trash out before trash putting out time.

But we have a few bad neighbors, though. One, in particular, has a pair of annoying dogs. Here is a letter I'm putting on their door tomorrow:

Dear Neighbor -

I've lived next door to you for a year and a half, now - and believe I have come to the point in my neighborship that I should communicate with you about your dogs and their incessant fucking barking between the hours of 6:45am and 7:30am Monday through Friday.

I have, by my calculation, lost a total of 337.5 hours of sleep due to your pet mis-management.

As a dog owner myself, I understand that dogs bark - it's just part of what they do - but it seems that your dogs have no "off switch" once they are out of the house in the early morning. If I hadn't seen with my own eyes that my dog could refrain from his own barking (even when he is tempted to by your dogs), I would not bother you with this letter - but it's obvious that if other dogs can be restrained from barking, yours can as well.

Our wonderful city government has listed clearly an ordinace regarding such an issue: Article 1, Section 14-2, (12) The act of permitting a dog to bark in such a manner as to disturb the inhabitants of the community. Breaking such an ordinace can result in fines as well as Animal Control getting involved. I would hate for that to happen - so I'm coming to you, first.

I am requesting, respectfully that you please treat us with the respect we have always afforded you - to offer us the time we need to sleep, so as not to be fucking, crazy, mean neighbors who would simply shut your dogs up by our own devices.

Should you not be willing to honor this request - I'll be left with no recourse but to stand outside of your house sometime between the hours of 3am and 5am, Monday through Friday, singing the theme song to TV's Survivor.

Thank you,
Me