A Very Nice Review — "Believe That Subtitle!"

Many thanks to Susan Vigilante for her review on Amazon.

When I opened "Thus Sayeth the Lord" I was expecting something, you know, churchy. I couldn't have been more wrong. Julie Davis's "fresh take" on all prophets major and minor prophets is just that- a completely different way of thinking about all prophets minor and major, from Moses (I never thought of him as a prophet, either!) to Jesus Himself. She strips away all the musty scents of incense and grandiose intonations and gives it to us straight: "To become holy is to become more authentically who we are." This utterly engaging book would be perfect for all readers from young adult and up. Highly recommended.

Remember Thus Sayeth the Lord is on a deep discount at Amazon right now - just $2.99 for the ebook. Get a copy now!

Portrait of Countess of Santiago

Portrait of Countess of Santiago, Joaquín Sorolla

There's more to telling a story than just telling a story...

All I wanted was something lightweight and undemanding. The Da Vinci Code was both of these. However, as I compulsively turned the page to discover what incredible nonsense might happen to Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu next—incredible but gripping—I could not help noticing that the book was exceptionally poorly written. You go to a thriller for its thrills, not its poetry, but this was distractingly bad. ...

To be clear, Dan Brown knows how to tell a story—but there is more to telling a story than just telling the story. Stephen King understands this...

Andy Miller, The Year of Reading Dangerously

Andy Miller manages to be incredibly fair to Dan Brown while pointing out the very reason I never read The Da Vinci Code. I'd heard it was terribly written and that can be such a point of distraction for me that I'll not be able to read a book sometimes.

Gospel of Matthew: Matthew's Resume

I especially like the point made below of the extent of Matthew's sacrifice because he couldn't turn back. I never thought about that before.

Saint Matthew (1713–1715) by Camillo Rusconi,
Archbasilica of St. John Lateran in Rome

More than any other disciple, Matthew had a clear idea of how much it would cost to follow Jesus, yet he did not hesitate a moment. When he left his tax-collecting booth, he guaranteed himself unemployment. for several of the other disciples, there was always fishing to return to, but for Matthew, there was no turning back. ...

Jesus gave Matthew a new purpose for his skills. When he followed Jesus, the only tool from his past job that he carried with him was his pen. From the beginning, God had made him a record-keeper. Jesus' call eventually allowed him to put his skills to their finest work. Matthew was a keen observer, and he undoubtedly recorded what he saw going on around him. The gospel that bears his name came as a result.

Matthew's experience points out that each of us, from the beginning, is one of God's works in progress. Much of what God has for us he gives long before we are able to consciously respond to him. He trusts us with skills and abilities ahead of the schedule.

Strengths and accomplishments:

• Was one of Jesus' 12 disciples
• Responded immediately to Jesus' call 
• Invited many friends to his home to meet Jesus
• Compiled the Gospel of Matthew
• Clarified for his Jewish audience Jesus' fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies

Lessons from his life:

• Jesus consistently accepted people from every level of society
• Matthew was given a new life and his god-given skills of record-keeping and attention to detail were given new purpose
• Having been accepted by Jesus, Matthew immediately tried to bring others into contact with Jesus

Key verses:
"As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector's booth. 'Follow me,' Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him" (Mark 2:14).

Matthew's story is told in the Gospels. He is also mentioned in Acts 1:13.

Excerpt from Life Application Study Bible. This series first ran in 2008. I'm refreshing it as I go.

Sewing the Sail

Sewing the Sail, Joaquín Sorolla

Raanjhanaa [Beloved One]

A small-town boy needs to break through the class divide to gain acceptance from his childhood sweetheart who is in love with big city ideals.

Between the poster and the description we were expecting a light romance. I mean, look at how much fun they're having during the Holi celebration!

So we were really surprised when this began taking some dark turns, but it was good and I really liked Dhanush's performance. Both the main characters are really stupid about each other when it comes to romance which was rather realistic when you think about their different backgrounds. However, as the film goes on it takes a turn into something different which is more interesting than a standard love story. We see Dhanush's character, Kundun, suddenly think outside his own desires after he makes a big mistake. Simultaneously we see Zoya's twin desires for vengeance and paying tribute to a loved one result in a fascinating journey. The movie becomes an interesting look at selfishness versus true love in what will we do for our beloved ones.

My favorite scene was when he's picked up by the student political group as a thief. They are trying to figure out why he was stealing with discussion on a high intellectual level while not realizing he is hungry, thirsty, out of work, etc.

Anyway, good with several surprising twists which gave it depth.

Rating — for viewers with medium Indian film experience. (It's not rocket science, but without any cultural background at all you might feel kind of lost.)

Don't Forget! $2.99 Kindle Sale on Thus Sayeth the Lord!

April 27 - May 11, 2020

OSV has a temporary deep discount on the Thus Sayeth the Lord e-book for $2.99 on Amazon!

Get it now! 

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Remember Your Death: Lenten Devotional by Theresa Aletheia Noble

In the very simplest terms, memento mori(Latin for "remember you must die") is the practice of keeping a reminder in front of you that death is inevitable. The way I'd seen this most commonly was in paintings that included a skull tucked among still life items.

I'd never thought about it much one way or the other, except for the general way I would try to remember that my ultimate goal is heaven. When I saw this devotional it was after Easter 2019 so I waited until Lent 2020 to get it. How timely that turned out to be, what with global pandemics and suchlike.

Memento mori seems like a gloomy prospect but, especially as reflections written by Theresa Noble, it is actually life affirming. How do we want to live ... and why? How can we draw closer to God? Where are we going wrong and how do we fix it? These are all Lenten questions and all questions we want to have figured out by the time we die. Remember Your Death helps you with that.

Noble has her own two-page reflection, a prompt for Examen and intercessory prayer, and a journaling/prayer prompt. I liked all of them, especially the long quote from a saint that was included in each intercessory prayer section.

This book will definitely be one I use for future Lenten reflection.

Happy Birthday, Tom!

You may recognize this from last year. When Tom got that look on his face (see below) I reminded him of last year's ice cream sundaes and his look changed to one of amazed delight. Sometimes repetition is a wonderful thing. Done and done.

Tom always gets this look on his face when I ask him for a decision about something like this. What kind of cake does he want for his birthday? (His 66th birthday! So I'm willing to go all out — or to enlist Rose's help in doing so.)

It's the look of someone who ... though he has tons of imagination otherwise ... has no imagination when it comes to birthday cake. This is a problem I cannot relate to.

My mission — fulfill the dream that he can't come up with.

You can see the answer. When someone gives up ice cream for Lent year after year, because it is the most perfect food they can imagine — well it doesn't take much imagination to come up with a substitute for birthday cake (not a thing I'm ever going to need to do for myself, but Tom got a big smile on his face when I suggested it).

So sundaes it is! I've got four kinds of ice cream (66th birthday, after all!) - vanilla, milk chocolate, coffee, and white chocolate raspberry swirl. Chocolate sauce. Butterscotch caramel sauce. Toasted pecans. Whipped cream. And maraschino cherries because ... it's not a sundae otherwise. (Though Tom feels otherwise. I tell you, I do not understand this guy sometimes.)

Also I have many gifts, chosen with great difficulty because he's the kind of guy whose whims begin at $2,000. The way it is with a lot of people attracted to tech and cars and so on.

Happy, happy 66th birthday, Tom! We're gonna use the big bowls tonight - in your honor!

McLuhan, the Catholic Convert

From my quote journal.

Marshall McLuhan was a Roman Catholic with a profound understanding of the traditions of the Church and Catholic doctrine. Often other intellectuals and artists would ask him incredulously, "Are you really a Catholic?" He would nod and answer, "Yes, I am a Catholic, the worst kind—a convert," leaving them more baffled than before.

The Medium and the Light, introduction

Marshall McLuhan

Rest in peace, Irrfan

I'm surprised at how upset it made me to learn this morning that Irrfan Khan died. He was hands-down one of my favorite Indian actors, with a nuance and subtlety which gave every performance depth. I tended to forget that he'd been in Western movies like Life of Pi and Slumdog Millionaire although the admiring obituaries ranging from CNN to The Guardian to Deadline Hollywood reminded me that in many ways he was the face of India in Hollywood. What defined his skill for us were Indian movies like The Lunchbox, Haider, and Piku.

Tom also felt it more deeply than he expected and, talking it over, we realized that Irrfan was so natural seeming that you felt as if you connected with him personally in many of his roles. So it is as if we have lost a friend instead of a star. I imagine that many in India feel that and more right now.

I am glad that we so recently watched Billu, which I reviewed yesterday. It was a nice last look at Irrfan Khan while he was alive.

Grant to Irrfan eternal rest. 
Let light perpetual shine upon him. 
May his soul and the souls of all the departed, 
through the mercy of God, rest in peace. 
Amen.

The Doctor and Nature

From my quote journal.

The doctor is the cooperative ally of nature, not its master.

Dr. Leon Kass, Toward a More Natural Science

I believe we are living through the proof of that very thing.

An Afternoon Coffee

Henri Adrien Tanoux, An Afternoon Coffee
via French Painters

Gospel of Matthew: Keeping Our Faith During the Storm

Matthew 8:23-27

Why does Matthew tell us the story of Jesus calming the storm? Multiple reasons but there is a specific one for disciples.

Lu Hongnian, 20th century, Chinese, Jesus Calming The Storm
via J.R.'s Art Place

While the incident of the storm at sea provides a glimpse of what sort of man Jesus is, Matthew's focus in recounting it is on what sort of disciples Jesus wants. Jesus invites his disciples to be with him wherever he goes, sharing his life and enduring the hardships he endures (verses 19-20). His disciples must put following him above all else (verses 21-22). They must remain firm in their faith, no matter what storms rage about them (verses 23-26). An ordinary teacher deserves respect; a Lord who has the authority to command winds and seas deserves absolute, unwavering commitment.

Quote is from  Bringing the Gospel of Matthew to Life by George Martin. This series first ran in 2008. I'm refreshing it as I go.

Billu

This was really charming. A barber's claim to be friends with a mega-star is put to the test when a movie is shot in his small village featuring, of course, that star. We are left wondering if the barber is telling the truth and what will happen if he can manage to meet the star face-to-face.

Billu provides an interesting insight into the challenges of Indian movie making on location as well as how to handle sudden notoriety. One of the things that makes this movie so much fun for Bollywood fans is that the mega-star is played by the biggest Indian star of our time, Shah Rukh Khan (SRK). We felt a real thrill when he first appears and pulls off his helmet to show himself. The role allows us to see him behind the scenes as well as the fact that every celebrity is, underneath all the glamor, a human being. I've seen Irrfan Khan in a lot of movies where his understated style means the movie is going to be relatively low-key. His parts of this movie were a definite contrast to the "big in Bollywood" SRK part.

 I am hard put to think of another movie that successfully blends big movie glitz with thoughtful small village reality, or in other words Shah Rukh Khan's style with Irrfan Khan's. But this one pulls it off.

With three item numbers (not moving the plot forward, just for fun, and frequently with stars who we never see again in the film) as well as various other songs, this was long. But we didn't mind and already know we'll watch it again sometime when we want a feel-good movie.

Rating — Introduction to Bollywood (come on in, the water's fine!) 

For You, Darling!

For you, darling! Remo Savisaar

Right hand and left hand

The Texas Quote of the Day:
"Hell, Judge ... I've got that much in my right-hand pocket."

"Then look in your left-hand pocket and see if you can find two years in the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth."

----- Exchange between Galveston bootlegger John Nounes and Judge Joseph Hutcheson after the judge fined Nounes $5,000 in May, 1926

Via Traces of Texas

$2.99 Kindle Sale on Thus Sayeth the Lord!

April 27 - May 11, 2020

OSV has a temporary deep discount on the Thus Sayeth the Lord e-book for $2.99 on Amazon!

Get it now! 

And tell your friends!

Lilacs in a Window

Mary Cassatt, Lilacs in a Window

Thank you, Ellen!

I received a lovely gift from Ellen, but there was no way to acknowledge it! There's nothing like a surprise present to brighten your day! I can't thank you enough. :-)