The Pope's recent assertion that condoms exacerbate the AIDS crisis has reportedly made this papal protest condom all the rage in France. Akimbo has the scoop; more here. One commenter testifies to the product's effectiveness:
I completely believe this is an effective form of birth control.
One look at Pope B16 and I lose all interest in sex . . .
Via Eyeteeth
Via Ads of the World
Animation writer Brandon Aumon provides a detailed account of his response to prolonged fasting:
It was as if the world was a magical picture book, and each object was a different aspect or quality of the All. This seemed perfectly clear to me, first on an intuitive level, and then later on an experiential level. Slowly I could see the world break down into their pristine, shimmering archetypes. . . .
Recently I've been writing superhero stories for Marvel Entertainment. Many of these archetypal tales are of regular humans going through tremendous trials, gaining super powers, encountering aliens and monsters, and learning from wise elders. I never planned this profession, but I suppose art really does imitate life in so many impossible ways.
Above: "Angel or Winged Alien Pendant"
Next to me at Starbucks as I write this: a group discussing Cat Yoga Postcards and strategies to promote spiritual enlightenment. DJs and celebrities are, apparently, a must!
Every so often when I stop by Myers of Keswick, the English import shop in NYC, I look around for anything Doctor Who. Dalek chocolates, something. Alas, no luck.
Sad to say, even the video on the BBC's Doctor Who Advent(ure) Calendar is restricted against viewing in the U.S.
From the online exhibit examining early photographic images of "Ghosts, apparitions, angels, spiritual visitations and views of the future." It was an age without Photoshop, so it must all be real.
Here's something you don't see every day--sex blogger, education and author extraordinaire Violet Blue as the iconic image of a Christian music podcast. The host says that he has never met her, but we shouldn't be completely surprised that he chose her for his show: after all, the New Testament does advise Christians not to be "forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."
Via Trendhunter, a gallery + link set on nun imagery in the fetish community:
The subversion of a nun, a paragon of religious virtue, by the latex fetish community is both fantastic and messed up. No wonder this underground cultural icon of a nun in a gas mask is found in art that ranges from street art to sculptures. Chances are good that if you start looking, it won’t be long before you see your first rubber nun.
Sigh:
On Saturday, August 15th, 2008 at 6:00 PM, the Gen Con Live Game Auction hosted their traditional charity auction. This year, the event was in honor of Gary Gygax. Originally the charity chosen for GenCon was Gary's favorite charity, the Christian Children's Fund. Unfortunately, when they found out that the money they would get came partially from sales of Dungeons and Dragons they decided not to be the sponsored charity.
Below: as part of the auction, GenCon sold a memorial 20-sided die.
At least for Halloween. Photo by Scott Beale.
Via Animal New York, pictures from an exhibition of Obama action figures re-designed by artists. Click through for more, including an Obama bunny redistributing eggs & candy.
I just got the latest Obama campaign email, which solicits contributions--now, needed before the deadline!--in exchange for a "Special Edition" car magnet. It's one of the things I love about this country, the way we blend the ritual surrounding high status positions with the marketing gimmicks of televangelists, infomercials and mail-order spam.
Urgency, participation, exchange, a magic souvenir--they're all here. And that's not a disguised criticism--I really do think it's wonderful!
"Amanda Hammond, author of Illuminate Living with Candles, reminds us that these small incendiary devices may no longer be a practical necessity but remain a 'powerful symbol of inner enlightenment.'"
From The Corner via Counterfeit Chic
I couldn't figure out what this "shirt" actually "meant," but then I "found" the "caption"--
Barack Obama uses the "Christian" title like Jesse Jackson uses the "Reverend" title. Barack Obama's membership in Wright's christian church was only for his political aspirations like John Kerry served in the military. All for political aspirations.
I used to think that the hallmark of humanity was that we're self-aware, but now I'm not so sure.
Sex and spirit come together in Tantra Chocolate, one of several erotic food products mentioned in this list from Em & Lo--another way that people transform natural desires into something more.
Pasties meet political satire in this devilish performance at Oakland's Uptown Hubba Hubba. More about Lady Satan at her MySpace--including, of course, charitable benefits!
The ketchup and pickles are particularly festive. Via A Hamburger Today:
For the final game at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees allowed fans to walk the warning track in the outfield. TV footage just highlighted a fascinating scene: an outfield wall covered with the fans' handprints.
And so connection to a baseball team connects us to our past.
Is Oprah the manifestation of the satanic Lilith? Is Obama the Antichrist?
Blacks Against Obama claims to have proof.
Looking at the symbols in the above image, I'd say the movement could kill at least a couple weeks in a comparative religion in America seminar.
Via Journalista!, a scene from Grayson & Jimenez' Parade.
More about performer and activist Kirk Read at his personal site & Madison Young:
This is the Thing is Kirk Read's multi media performance which explores his apocalyptic fantasies and sex work. Kirk's performances are always innovative, compelling and keep me captivated from the moment he walks onto stage to the moment he exits. His gentleness and honesty and ability to love and open his self up to the audience with in his stories is truly beautiful. He delves into his history as an evangelist and goes into a story regarding a protest outside of the Sex Workers Art Show. Crowds of press and mobs surrounding the venue in which they were about to perform. Evangelists were singing and lighting candles and Kirk decides to join them in song. It was really touching and beautiful.
The 9/11 comment of the day:
Man, it feels so far away but whenever it gets to this day I remember my boss who died in 9/11 and 4 of my coworkers. Even though I was an intern and did not know them very long it's still very sad. Sometimes I think about the small things that's why I also mourn the loss of my gym clothes that I lost in 9/11. I think about them sometimes. One day I'm wearing them for spin class at NYSC and the next they are in the rubble of the biggest tragedy to hit US Soil ever. They were of that futuristic micromesh breathable material too. Goddamn You Taliban and George Bush.
Via Racked, this account of two philosophically significant promotional stunts for Fashion Week:
This morning outside the tents, some fifteen to twenty models in Grecian white dresses were lined up facing the library steps. One had the word "Dolita" printed on her front, leading us to believe this had something to do with the Italian line. Suddenly, they all turned on their heels and walked away, followed by three nearly-naked ladies in bikinis covered in a thick layer of Dead Sea mud. These were representatives of the Israeli skincare line Ahava, which kindly e-mailed us this morning to explain that mud women would be "on display handing out brochures and product samples to fashion show guests and passersby."
New York's indie fashion sensation has an opening reception at its new Lower East Side store tonight.
Long before Madonna popularized the red string as the symbol of Kabbalic mysticism, the toy company Transogram marketed ka-bala, a game with at best attenuated roots in Jewish spirituality. Taro cards, The Eye of Zohar and a roulette wheel promised to reveal the future of children with faith in the game's powers, and as you can see, ka-bala had quite the vision of how the role of women would evolve in the decades after 1966:
The Comics Reporter posted this today in honor of Jack Kirby's 91st birthday. More about this pic--one of my favorites from the whole book--in Kirby: King of Comics.
The first ever, so be sure to get yours now!
You can't really get more American than this, photographed on display at Salvatore's Italian Gardens in Depew, NY:
And in the spirit of the season, here's a tourist 9/11 meditation from Overheard in New York.
A classic splash page by Will Eisner.
Defending Freedom is a project of the Nevada Benefits Foundation. The aim: to raise money for charities that benefit U.S. troops and their families. The project's home page is chock-a-block with the values of the American heartland--tradition, family, civic association, a fundraiser with the Girl Scouts, a wristband touting prayer.
Not featured: this benefit in the city where the American heartland goes to play:
Scores Las Vegas will set the world record for most lap dances given during a single song this Monday night.
Scores is working in a charitable partnership with DefendingFreedom.org on the first-of-its-kind event that will feature hundreds of dancers from around the country. All proceeds from the world-record dance will be donated to various charitable organizations that aim to give back to those who have bravely served in the armed forces.
The night's festivities will be hosted by Nathan Burton of the Flamingo Hotel & Casino's "Nathan Burton Comedy Magic" and adult star Carmen Hart, who is the reigning Exotic Dancer national champion. Hart is also on the cover of the August issue of AVN magazine which explores the synergy between the gentlemen's club industry and the adult film industry.
Leveraging synergies--social enterprise at work!
Blogspot bloggers have created a mocking award in response to Blogger's gateway to adult content. The photo above: a symbolic protest.
Mecha Manga Bible Heroes is, surprise, a Christian mecha manga adaptation of the Hebrew Bible. The gimmick: to remain scrupulously faithful to the literal text, except for the setting in a "futuristic world of aliens, robots and advanced technology." As co-creator Tom Hall explains,
"David is a young kid who has to go toe-to-toe with a giant super robot," said Hall. "Other than that, everything is what the Bible describes, down to the small details that most Sunday School versions gloss over."
Fun coincidence: the press release is datelined "Flanders, New Jersey."
One of six variations on the supermodel "hot nuns" theme for the Fall-Winter 2008 issue of Pop.
Big Ass Fans is a business that markets, well, big ass fans. On the occasion of a new Big Ass Fan being installed in a Brooklyn Catholic church--imprinted with the names of the parishioners who donated money to buy it--the NY Daily News writes up the company whose product has proven particularly popular with religious groups:
Big Ass Fans director of sales Paul Lauritzen said that since 1999 the company has installed its large fans at about 50 churches nationwide, insisting the name has not yet offended the churchgoing public.
"Our name came from people looking up and seeing the fan and saying, 'That's a big-ass fan,'" Lauritzen said.
"Even in a church, parishioners sit down and say not only, 'Wow, look at that big-ass fan!' but 'I'm glad they bought that big-ass fan.'"
69 Euros for 1 GB storage--Mary aside, that's a sin!
Standing dignified on her socket, enshrined in Plexiglas, when work calls she frees herself of her surroundings. Connected with the computer she comes to life, her red LED heard starts to beat – in passive state slowly, quicker whilst connecting or saving data. On her halo is engraved the prayer – “Oh Maria, keep my data safe!”
Via Libby Purves.
Actress Shirley MacLaine offers a line of "eco-friendly" jewelry based on sacred geometry. Above: Swirl to God, an homage to the spiral:
Generally, the spiral represents a broadening of consciousness, which is the destination arrived after a long journey.
In terms of astrology, mysticism and myth the spiral translates into meanings of spirituality and rebirth.
In terms of spirituality, the spiral symbol represents the path leading from outer consciousness (materialism, external awareness, ego, outward perception) to the inner soul (enlightenment, unseen essence, nirvana, cosmic awareness).
In terms of rebirth or growth, the spiral symbol represents the consciousness of nature beginning from the core or center and thus expanding outwardly. This is the way of all things, as recognized by most mystics.
This is just one of many spiritual products offered on her site, an epitome of commerce as an extension of the self. As Ms. MacLaine can affirm, there's little more rewarding than living long enough to go from outside to mainstream.
Via Robert Scoble's Twitter feed
Radosh.net points to what is surely a historic first: an ichthys tattoo in a Playboy pictorial. Ashley's explanation:
In the word-things that accompany the pictures, Ashley says she got the tat when she was younger, but stands by it. "I still believe in God, but God made female athletes beautiful and sexy, and I want to represent that."
Now, alas, sold out.
The Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services provides a graphic reason to avoid noodly appendages.
Call the fire men--Parisian psychobilly burns like hellfire in this impish song from the Washington Dead Cats.
In this series of vignettes, the Phoenix Neutrino Project riffs on "terrorist plots, illicit drug use, and religious icons."
A voice from the ethereal realm has called unto to me to feature Divine Interventions, an inspired example of commercial "religious obscenity." DI's products are primarily from the Christian tradition, tho they also include Moses and the Buddha--but not Muhammad.
I remember when this was filmed & Bart's wondering whether he'd make the cut. Turns out he did, starting at 2:08-11 and several times afterwards.
Most people wouldn't associate a Dolly Parton song about Jesus with downtown Manhattan, but she works with an excellent avant-garde filmmaker who happens to be based here:
You will not see g-strings, revealing leotards, or nudity at Claude Thomas' newly-created cabaret revue in Marrakech. Instead, dancers' bodies are demurely hidden and kisses are only allowed on the cheek.
"Les Folies de Marrakech", launched earlier this month, is an unusual blend of Western decadence and Islam.
The following signs with a Howard Finster vibe have popped up in my neighborhood, and Animal has the pics.
In case you, like Hurley on Lost, want to whomp intruders with a Jesus statue, here's a gold-plated one so you can do it in style.
You're crazy to buy it? It ends up in flames?
The divine proportion has been a making a mark in the beauty industry, as plastic surgeons have been using it to persuade people to use their services to express God's ideal of beauty. Now the hit TV show Nip Tuck makes it possible for everyone to fuel their insecurities by analyzing their photos on Facebook.
Of course, not everyone is sure that God approves of plastic surgery . . . well, except for the work that they need done.
All this and more in No Regrets, featured in Needled.
The beer can coffin reminds me of this classic from 2004--the Doctor Who-inspired TARDIS coffin designed for artist Tim Haws, a fan who died of cancer at age 43.
And according to this recent conference in the UK, having more Doctor Who references in church could be a path toward spiritual revival. From the London Telegraph, here's The Church is Ailing--Send for Dr. Who:
The number of under-16s attending Church of England services fell by almost 20 per cent between 2000 and 2006, but the Church believes that improving communication can reverse that trend.
Andrew Wooding, a spokesman for the Church Army, which organised the conference, said that its intention was to give vicars new ideas for conveying their message.
"There are countless examples of Christian symbolism in Doctor Who, which we can use to get across ideas that can otherwise be difficult to explain."
"Clergy shouldn't be afraid to engage with popular culture as for many young people television plays a large role in their thinking," he said.
Via About Colon Blank:
Bill Bramanti is drinking himself to his grave. Bill loves Pabst Blue Ribbon beer so much that he has designed his own coffin to look like a can of his favorite brew.
He doesnt plan on using it anytime soon though so, for the time being, hes going to use it as a cooler to keep his little tin friends chilled at parties.
By lakormis. Brilliant.
Via Oh No They Didn't:
Amy Winehouse has has abandoned her Jewish roots to embrace Catholicism as a show of unity towards her incarcerated husband Blake Fielder-Civil.
The troubled singer, 24, has started wearing rosary beads and has turned to the Roman Catholic faith in a show of solidarity with Blake — who’s locked up in London’s Pentonville prison accused of assault and conspiring to pervert the course of justice.
A sacred relic preserved for eternity by the Comics Curmudgeon
A brilliant depiction of the meaning of the game:
Avant-garde cinema meets lingerie marketing in this ongoing series from Agent Provocateur. According to the official series' description, the villain of the story is indeed a religious group that appears to have a vendetta against bridal underwear. A new video will be posted each day through May 7th.
Taking the culture of personal production one level higher, in this spiritual clay sex kit you create your own instructors.
But if the whole clay thing is too earthy for you, Kama3D provides a comprehensive set of virtual Kama Sutra sexual position sculptures for your spiritual edification.
Via Journalista, this meditation on meaning from graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi hits on a fundamental truth:
We meet in London. She can’t stand Britain because of the smoking ban. She suggests that we talk in her hotel room because at least she will be able to smoke there. She lives for her cigs, and is quite happy to die for them, she says. “For me smoking is like looking at your soul,” she says in a rasping hybrid accent. “There is something extraordinarily poetic about smoking — from the gesture of holding a cigarette, turning it on, smoking it, the taste of it, the smell of it, I love every-thing about smoking.” She has no truck with the kill-joys who want to stop us doing all the things that we enjoy — simply because it might prolong our life. “Anything that has a relationship with pleasure we reject it. Eating, they talk about cholesterol; making love, they talk about Aids; you talk about smoking, they talk about cancer. It’s a very sick society that rejects pleasure.” She’s working herself up into a climax of disgust. “Why should we live like sick people just to give some fresh meat to the ground? I hope my meat is so rotten no worm in the whole universe will want to come and eat it. I want to be rotten to accept the idea of dying. Every day you live you get one day closer to death. If you are never born you will never die. Giving birth is also giving death.” She smiles, having hit on the solution to combating death.
Video: Cartoon penguins and the Statue of Liberty show kids teach kids how cigarettes are synonymous with freedom in an old advertising cartoon for Kool.
If I were in Boston this weekend--the 11th through the 13th--I'd definitely hang out at this conference. Sounds like fun, with engaging topics and interesting speakers.
Ghost signs make walking in New York City a trip through time. One of the questions I've asked myself: why are so many of these old signs up so high?
This photo on Shorpy shows the reason: the old elevated train lines. View the expansive full-sized picture to see the signs in detail.
My favorite: "Cheap signs." In that one simple ad lies the history of modern communication.
Here's a fact about yours truly that might not be obvious from this site: when I was high school & college, I became an uber-strict fundamentalist. As in, not tolerating anything remotely connected to worldliness, which included, well, basically most of my pop culture obsessions. Star Trek espoused evolution. Star Wars--the Force, which was obviously (to the folks I listened to, anyway) satanic. Non-Christian comics likewise were deemed to be pure evil.
Which is why I refused invitations to go see Star Trek III & Return of the Jedi, which in retrospect wasn't as bad a couple of omissions as they felt at the time. Perhaps the most painful thing was getting rid of my rather sizable comic collection and all my 1st edition Complete EC Library sets, a series to which I was an original subscriber.
Y'know, that comic collection had a complete run of Batman and Detective going back into the early 1950s. Sold those for 200 bucks to buy tracts. To see how I feel about that transaction now, watch this video.
This experience came to mind today when I read the story making the rounds re Simon White, the guy in the UK who is selling his extensive Doctor Who collection now that he's a Christian. A few excerpts from the story below--although before he gets rid of everything, he may want to attend the Spirituality and Doctor Who conference in Sheffield on April 19.
By the by, did you note how I said "most of my pop culture obsessions?" That's because even when I was separating from everything that wasn't fundamentalist, the one thing that stayed was Doctor Who.
As a counterpoint to what is clearly my spiritual Achilles Heel, here's the confession of Simon White:
Dr Who and his materialistic obsession with it represents the "greatest lie that Satan ever told" according to Mr White.
He said: "I loved science fiction as a kid. It was the Tardis that did it for me. You could get in that box and go anywhere.
"I started collecting Dr Who stuff starting with the Dalek, which I got from an old exhibition in Brighton.
"Me and a friend spent two years making the Tardis and I became obsessed. I made a model of K-9, then a full size Cyberman with authentic Dr Who parts. I couldn't stop.
"I had to retire early from my job as a nurse at the Royal United Hospital in Bath in 1998 because I was suffering from bipolar disorder.
"I turned to drink and became an alcoholic and the Dr Who obsession was the only thing that kept me going. I wouldn't have given it up if you'd have put a gun to my head."
Having discovered Christianity Mr Smith has renounced his old life and is putting the whole collection up for sale in local trade magazines and on eBay.
He said: "God delivered me from the evil that is Dr Who, materialism and alcoholism.
"Through my relationship with Jesus I saw that none of this was making me happy and I was born again like Lazarus.
"It's a timely tale as we come up to Easter. I wanted to tell others that no matter what trouble you are in God can deliver you from the evil. If you are prepared to have a relationship with him then God can help. I have been resurrected. My old life is dead, my new life is alive."
Available here.
Pop satire finds a new home when Skullphone hacks Clear Channel's digital billboards in Los Angeles.
From Judith Morgan's Dr. Seuss and Mr. Geisel:
The fall of Eliot Spitzer has been all the buzz here in NYC. While it's got some folks understandably talking about whether prostitution should be illegal, the public outcry is also a potent reminder of the degree to which we associate sex with sin.
It's right there in the Garden of Eden, really--I don't mean literally, but as a moral archetype. On one level it's a children's story about our complex relation to sex. Partaking of the fruit of the tree is a source of transcendence and adult self-awareness, giving us the power to create; having children also binds us to work and inflicts blinding pain.
When someone like Spitzer gets caught, for many people the act signifies a repeat of Adam's folly--the assumption that one can engage in sex free from responsibility, as if it's all play for one's own pleasure. Part of this response is judgment; part of it is envy; neither is particularly favorable to him. Perhaps if there were a sense that he, a la Clinton, felt our pain folks would be a tad more merciful, but Spitzer's own actions as a moral avenger pretty much seal his fate.
On a lighter note, all the hullaballoo brought to mind one of my favorite songs from last year--the old Tin Pan Alley parody "My Angel Put the Devil in Me" by Murray Gold, from "The Daleks in Manhattan" in Doctor Who Series 3. The song captures how the music of the 20s and early 30s could be graphically obscene without using a single nasty word. Listen carefully and you'll hear a musical echo of the biblical Fall as a sexual act, from serpentine seduction to the Tree of Life growing tall to the wistful yet boistrous afterglow.
GodHatesObama.com reveals all.
Not so long ago a trip to Penn Station meant seeing ubiquitous promos for Justin Timberlake. I was hoping to see the same thing for Hasidic pop star Lipa Schmeltzer, but alas, it's not to be.
Two Brooklyn community leaders, Asher Friedman and Rabbi Avraham Shor, mobilized opposition to the concert late last month, warning that the concert would promote “ribaldry and lightheadedness… [and] strip the youth of every shred of fear of heaven.” Some Hasidim criticize Friedman for corrupting Jewish youth with secular musical styles, others warn his popularity might eclipse the authority of the rabbis.
Gothamist highlights a telling response from one commenter:
“We have now banned sporting events, concerts, amusement parks, the circus & malls among other things. Of course I don’t argue with the p’sak on these. But what in heavens name do we want people to do realistically for recreation?”
Via Postsecret
When I wrote about the passing of Steve Gerber, prolific comics writer and creator of Howard of Duck, I did so recalling the way the themes of God and fate reverberated through his work. What I didn't know: that he named the character after a high school friend who later became a rabbi.
Howard the Duck was reading the newspaper at a coffee shop in Dayton, Ohio, when he saw a wire service item that Steve had died. "I was shocked," Howard told me in a phone interview on Monday.
Howard — Howard Tockman, another U. City classmate — probably was Steve's closest friend through high school and college. "I used to do a Donald Duck voice," he recalled, "so when Steve came up with the character, kind of a combination of Donald Duck and Groucho Marx, he named him Howard the Duck."
In high school, "we were all kind of carefree and joked around," said Tock, as he was known. We put out a comedy magazine called 'Nerve' from Steve's basement. Some of what was in 'Nerve' was political and social, and some of it was just silly. Steve had a very sharp wit. He could reflect humorously about something in a very dark way."
Tock, now the rabbi at Congregation Sh'ma Yisrael in Dayton, knew Steve had had some health problems, but he, too, had lost touch with his old friend. "I know that at one time, he had hopes of writing more than comics," Tock told me. "I got the sense that he would have liked to write something of greater significance. He had a lot of talent, and he was sort of pigeonholed in the comic book field."As Steve's friend, Tock said it saddened him to learn that Steve had been so unhappy. As Rabbi Tockman, he said he understood how it can feel "when you are by yourself a lot and creating fictional characters and you don't have a grounding in relationships and no real permanent base for yourself. When we were young, I didn't have a sense that he would have a lonely life, and I'm sorry to hear that."
From Oscar-winning Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody's blog response to the supposed scandal of (partially) nude photos from her past. You can buy a variation of this and other "Twisted Religious Shirts" at FoulMouthShirts.com
One of the fun things about Lost is thinking about all the philosophical, religious and literary references.
Not so much fun--discovering they come from Wikipedia searches:
EW: How about Matthew Abbaddon?
[Lost producer] LINDELOF: ''Abaddon,'' we dug that one out of Wikipedia. When we name people, we often do Web searches on certain verbiage or if we want to pull something out of Greek mythology or Native American mythology, like, ''Who was the god of wheat?''
NPR's Bryant Park Project is running a discussion thread prompted by its feature story on Book22.com, a Christian online shop of "Intimacy Products for Married Couples." Among the various interesting comments this one in particular caught my eye:
Now I've heard everything. You need to go on to the website listed and see what this is really all about: as usual, making money. What about those moneychangers in the temple?
Orpheus went down to Hades in a doomed attempt to rescue his beloved Eurydice. Now we come on down to challenge fate at Plinko. Quoth new Price is Right host Drew Carey in today's New York Times:
"[F]or every single person that makes it onstage, it’s like a Joseph Campbell journey, an everyman plucked from obscurity to attempt a journey, with obstacles placed in their way. And I just want to be a good guy for them, so they can win money. I’m there to help them on their journey."
Of course, the show hasn't always had such a benign view of its mythic significance. When I went there back in the Bob Barker days, Rod Roddy tried to cut off my hand.
Anyway, as the Times article explains, Carey's spiritual reference isn't facetious:
Mr. Carey, 49, said that in the past two years he has undergone a “huge spurt of spiritual growth,” having immersed himself in texts from the Bible to books by Wayne Dyer and Marianne Williamson. The result is a changed attitude about comedy, show business and himself.
“I’ve thought about changing my name, I’ve changed so much,” he said, “If Drew Carey now met Drew Carey from 5 or 10 years ago, I wouldn’t recognize him.”
It's fair-trade, which means the more Divine Chocolate you eat, the more you help save the world.
Sellers call this a "Fibonacci Fractal Chaos Math Pewter Pendant". But wait--isn't it tied by a string? So it really should be the Fibonacci Fractal Chaos Math String Theory Pewter Pendant. And the big circles turn into little ones . . . hmmm . . . maybe it's the Evodevo Fibonacci Fractal Chaos Math String Theory Pewter Pendant.
I'm all for the integration of science and design, but ya gotta be careful to do more than just follow fads.
Via Consumerist
On Slate, Jeff Greenfield observes that tomorrow's Super Tuesday primary vote will make for "a nutty night." Yet one thing is certain:
Now, barring a McCain appearance at a Black Mass (and given New York's approach to matters spiritual, maybe not even then), McCain appears certain to win New York—and its neighbors.
It's a great line, but what Greenfield might not realize is that McCain is a Satanist.
No, really: it's on YouTube:
For an exegesis and (print!) of this painting, read the artist's post and comments.
Gawker has footage of the scene outside Heath Ledger's apartment as his body is being wheeled out to an ambulance, an iconic dance of darkness, light, death and immortality.
Another photographer was struck with the import of it all. He crossed his chest. "You heard about this already? Jesus. This is tragic." He looked down mournfully. "I should have brought my cross."
A wonderful creative mashup by Jason Lambert of Eye Candy Tattoos. It may seem like an odd combination, but the commonalities between Hinduism and Super Mario have actually been a topic of discussion for some time.
Via Retrospectacle
Some blogs are a labor of love. Others, not so much:
Sent in by tattoo artist Brian from Youngstown, Ohio who deserves the worst of the worst that Hello Kitty can offer for not only thinking for a second that it was a good idea to send this photo to me, but for also giving notice of what 2008 is going to be like in Hello Kitty Hell…
Via Neatorama
This is the featured album (disc?) cover on Sleevage today, and as the prophet Ezekiel would say, it's got wheels within wheels. Beyond the implicit message in the group's ostensibly trademarked name, the package itself is designed to emulate a blister pack of pills. Click through for more pictures.
From Miss Poppy:
The latest PostSecret has the following true confession:
Ahhh, a riddle!
Assuming the daughter's name isn't God of Thunder, there were two possibilities that came to mind.
The first is the Kiss classic Beth, a derivative of the Hebrew Elisheva, or Elizabeth, popularly translated as consecrated to God.
Another candidate is Shandi (from Shanti?), which doesn't refer to a biblical concept per se but whose folk etymology claims an origin in an unspecified foreign term for God is gracious.
I probably missed one, so if you have a better idea feel free to shout it out loud.
No, really. In this filmed performance of a recent Electric Arc Radio show, Chocolate Rain's Tay Zonday plays God. TZ also sings "Say No to Nightmares," which is only appropriate, given the recurring "Fear Not" theme in sacred texts.
Here's a blast for the past via WFMU. Watch it without the sound off and you can feel how alien the styles in this 1971 video now appear. Listen to the sound for for a fascinating spiritual syncretism: magnetic fields, Stonehenge, dowsing, pagan ritual, laser-beam visions and Hare Krishna.
Judging from the switch from robes to suit and tie, spiritual speaker Prem Nawat doesn't do all the much speaking nowadays in front of naked hippies chanting in a field.
"Our model for presentation of ministry is Dr. Billy Graham."
Or, more accurately, Superstar Billy Graham!
Apparently based on a true story, this home-made sitcom portrays the star's ability to see and hear her guardian angel.
How did she acquire this ability?
Apparently it's all about the headgear:
Apparently based on a true story, this home-made sitcom portrays the star's ability to see and hear her guardian angel.
How did she acquire this ability?
Apparently it's all about the headgear:
The big news in New York today: the confession of the personal assistant who killed celebrity real-estate agent Linda Steiner.
The murder weapon: a "yoga stick" or "Pilates bar." For folks who didn't realize that spiritual exercise could kill, here are a couple likely suspects:
![[image]](http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/hierakonpolis/thumbnails/zombies3b.gif)
These beads were found around the neck, but the head was gone. (Courtesy of the Hierakonpolis Expedition)
For proof that archaeologists have a sense of humor, check out Zombie Attack at Hierakonpolis in the latest online edition of the journal Archaeology, from the Archaeological Institute of America.
At least I think they're joking . . .
Jesus said that the disciple of the kingdom of heaven "brings new and old things out of storage" (Matt 13:52)--and in regard to women's fashion, ain't that the truth? Faith Central has a nice rundown on modest women's swimwear from Christian and Muslim vendors--it's new, but oh so old.
Pictured below: Bill Norton, the bathing beach policeman of Washington, D.C., in 1922 enforcing a regulation prohibiting a woman's bathing suit from stopping more than six inches above the knee.
Today's story of the web is the undercover reported at the latest DefCon, a hackers convention. But that's far from the only interesting thing there. Check out the Church of WiFi, whose playful name and fun commandments also reflect a deep organic connection between electronic networks and spiritual identity. You might also want to look for the Christian hackers known as Jesus Phreaks (or Phreakers), who have been known to be there selling t-shirts.
Kanye West has provided a good bit of material here at the BofG, and today he provides a nice addendum to this morning's painfully hip video on King Solomon Bling. From today's Page Six:
IF you use the word "bling" these days, you're unhip and totally out of style, according to Kanye West. The hip-hop star tells Complex magazine: "Only white people and older black people say 'bling' now. If a white person uses slang too early, then that makes them look like a wigger. But if black people use slang too late, then it makes them look like a wigger." Thanks for straightening us out!
Word.
Camfess.com is a new site for video confessions. Unlike its more famous predecessor, PostSecret, Camfess attempts to leverage the historic link between confessing and religion, from its logo
"The act of confession - widely encouraged by religion and psychology alike — makes people better."
to anonymizing:
Mother issues are a sign of a healthy child. That, at least, is the conclusion of a recent university study, which found that children who openly resist their mother's command reflect an emerging mature sense of self. Children who merely comply, however, exhibit a lack of self-confidence and a proclivity toward depression, traits likely to have unfortunate ramifications throughout their adult lives.
Which raises an intriguing question about what the jewelry pictured here represents more generally about religious culture. It's a pendant of the Blessed Mother from the Synchronicity Foundation, a new age faith led by an initiated Vedic monk named Master Charles. MC claims to be experiencing unique visions of this divine figure, the maternal spirit that animates the world.
As Ellen Dissanayake astutely illustrates in Art and Culture, religion tends to embody values of maternal care-taking that have a distinct evolutionary advantage, particularly the importance of transcending a narrow sense of self. As intrinsic to our development as this is, what should we make of those who elevate the nurturing mother metaphor to the highest form of good? Are they creating a religion where the followers never grow up?
The inevitability of death is a recurring theme in the Harry Potter series, so it should not come as a surprise that JK Rowling has been asked to write for Doctor Who. In DW, like Potter, the greatest enemies are those who seek absolute control over all aspects of life, include their own demise.
Why this obsession with death and change? Perhaps Harry Potter's global popularity is a sign that we all, like Britain, have come to grasp one lesson of the phoenix: there is no rising from the ashes without loss.
What does it mean to be human? For some people, it's all about distinguishing ourselves from our animal nature to the fullest extent possible, from shaving off hair and abstaining from sex to living forever as a spirit. For the furry community, however, our drive for creative transformation takes shape in a different way--namely, in visual representations of anthropomorphic animals.
Cartoon furries abound on the web, but at the annual Anthrocon--held this weekend in Pittsburgh--people dress up like animals to show that there is more to the lifestyle than the stereotype of pervy animal sex. Like, um, playing furry Twister.
For more overtly religious furry adornment and iconography, here's
a furry church
a furry Christian fellowship group
the "spirituality track" at a local furry conference
Christian furry kitsch
And, last but not least, here's one writer's meditation on secret furry jewelry:
Q. How many folks out there have furry-based jewelry of some sort?
A. Well, the closest that I have on me at all times is my shamrock necklace. While at first this may not seem furry orieneted to the untrained eye, it is in fact a secret trademark of mine. the secret (was) is that is you flip it from the green onyx side over to the purely silver side, yo would notice the strange exact resemblance to a paw . . .
The irony of this video, of course, is that capitalism has incorporated the pre-modern religion of santeria to sell . . .
Ahhhhh forget it. Capitalism gives rise to Rogue Traders; Communism, the Red Army Choir. Remember that the next time you're reading Habermas!
The New York City subway system is one of the world's major miracles, connecting millions of otherwise disconnected people into an entity far greater than themselves. Part of what makes subway life exuberant even on the greyest of days is the rich array of music underground. Pictured above: Meghan McGeary, the "insect goddess," one of the fortunate few talented enough to win a lifetime license to perform.
What is an insect goddess, you ask? For more info, check out her web site, music video, and this helpful description from the New York Post:
"I'm the insect goddess that's come to lift everybody out of their boring day!" announced Meghan McGeary, who kicked off the 20th year of the program by singing and playing drums in the rock-opera duo Dagmar 2.
Wearing a gold bustier and matching high heeled boots, an aviator cap with goggles and a gold-trimmed set of green mesh wings, McGeary sang a quirky song about a guy who can't get out of bed in the morning - and the "insect goddess who plunges from the ether to rescue him."
I look forward to hearing more from McGeary and Dagmar on my way to work--it seems they're getting some well-deserved good buzz!
Paris Hilton wears a cross--and a Bible--in an effort to stay out of jail.
Tara Subkoff discusses her role as a social engineer and explains the bony darkness of her latest line.
The Doctor is described at one point as a "lonely god". He has something close to the perspective of a god: he can munch, if he so chooses, his breakfast bagel shortly after the Big Bang and have supper the same day in the Restaurant at the End of the Universe. But he does not have the power of a god: he can't go back and change the course of events. So everybody he cares about or ever will care about is always already dead; every companion he picks up will, sooner or later, be gone. I've mentioned before, in connection with this, T S Eliot's notion that if "all time is eternally present/ All time is unredeemable". Eliot was interested (inter alia) in the theology of this; Russell T Davies in the psychology.
Popsugar recently posted an update on the latest religious stylings of Britney Spears. What is the significance of her new Star of David necklace? Has she gone back to the Kabbalah? Have the approaching terrible twos led her to apostasize from her belief that "my baby is my religion"? Click here for pictures and more speculation.
Aficionados of the Bible's family friendly Book of Judges will no doubt recall the story of the man who cut up his concubine and sent her body parts throughout the tribes of Israel. That's what came to my mind, at any rate, when Jennifer Emick of the always enchanting Alt Religion sent me a link today to this incredible design collection: Margaux Lange's handcrafted jewelry fashioned from cut up Barbie and Ken dolls.
cWhether you love her or hate her, there are few who feel neutral about the plastic princess. I am fascinated with who she is as a cultural icon, her distinguished celebrity status, and the enormous impact she has had on our society. Specifically, I’m intrigued with her influence in defining gender roles of women in contemporary American culture.
My childhood spent with Barbie cultivated my interest in adornment. Extensive play with the doll and her miniature world strengthened my dexterity. This is a skill imperative to the art of jewelry making. Hence it feels natural for me to make art on a small scale.
I enjoy the funny juxtaposition of wearing the body, on the body. Barbie has become the accessory instead of being accessorized. I take pleasure in the contrast and contradiction of something mass-produced being transformed and revealed as a unique, handmade, wearable piece of art.
Where's this poor soul going? Well, my personal vision of hell is an eternity of paperwork, and this week, I'm pretty close to livin' it--hence the light posting. But as I took a free minute to pull together some posts for next week I came across the following video of the Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan buying jewelry on Christmas Eve.
The source?
The store's security cam. Isn't there an implicit social contract that we let these things proliferate with the understanding that their owners won't release the film unless there's a crime or some illicit hanky panky?
Just as some modernist theologians posited that the afterlife is a metaphor for one's state of being while alive, seeing this footage reminds me of Jack Chick's iconic cartoon tract This Was Your Life, in which Jesus plays back your whole existence on Judgment Day. It's God's Unfunniest Home Videos, except it's our world now.
"Why be beautiful when you can be blasphemous?" That's the question asked by Miss B of the band My Ruin, and she backs this sentiment with her cutting-edge line of clothing called Blasphemous Girl Designs. Above: a fan video featuring her work. Below, Miss B's design philosophy:
I have spent many hours CREATING shirts and other pieces of clothing for the IMMACULATE CHURCH of MY RUIN MERCH. The place where I go to PRAY FOR ROCK and repent MY SINS. For some women dressing is akin to personal SALVATION. For me it's all about the SANCTUARY. My RELIGION is RELATIONSHIPS. I do not go to CHURCH and I am not sure if I believe in GOD, but I do find his image comforting. I also find it kind of disturbing. It's my opinion that JESUS was the first ROCKSTAR. Everyone else is just an IMITATION OF CHRIST!
Gingerbread yogi from bakedideas.com.
"Elvis Religion: The Cult of the King" is the subject of a new book by Professor Gregory Reece, whose pilgrimage book tour & research are described in this nifty article from his hometown paper.
True confession: for years I used to collect this sort of stuff. My library carrel was strategically positioned opposite the stairwell entering the lower floor of the Duke Divinity School Library, which meant that the first thing anyone saw when going to consult the wisdom of the ancients was this iconic poster of the King.
BONUS VIDEO: Click here to see Mojo Nixon's legendary music video, "Elvis is Everywhere"!
Above: the Sanskrit Power Ring (HT: the divine Ms. E). According to its purveyors,
The amazing and mystically powerful Sanskrit Power Ring ™ is a ring of harmonic energy that protects the wearer from negative energies of all types, dark forces ,witchcraft and the ill will of others. The ring enhances the auric field of the human body and allows the human mind to function on a much higher level of contentment, positivity, peacefulness and joy.
. . .
The design of The Sanskrit Power Ring ™ provides a shield against harmful external vibrations for example geopathic stress and the commonly problematic EMF waves associated with power lines, mobile phones, domestic electrical equipment etc.
The whole human organism is protected by strengthening the human bio-energetic field, guarding against bacteria, viruses and external negative influences.
And as a bonus, unlike other power rings, the Sanskrit Power Ring is not rendered ineffective by the color yellow.
At last night's opening of Superman Returns in New York, Superman himself (or a reasonable facsimile) handed out Christopher Reeve Foundation dog tags & key chains. Why picture them on the site? Well, not only is the Foundation the very model of a Good Cause, but the film itself draws heavily on spiritual archetypes.
Superman's resonance with Judeo-Christian themes has not been lost on religious leaders. Below: an excerpt from a Christian blog praising the film's . . . marketing campaign!
Having suffered financially in recent years, Hollywood seems eager to win the evangelical market with family-friendly, wholesome, biblically illustrative films. This looks like a job for Superman! But, strangely, Warner Brothers has chosen to ignore churches and pastors in their marketing campaign for "Superman Returns." And for this I say to Warner Brothers, Brian Singer, and everyone responsible for creating and distributing the movie, THANK YOU!
Thank you for not using the church as a money-making vehicle.
Thank you for not hijacking my church’s mission to make disciples by using it to make consumers.
Thank you for not replacing Christian art, symbols, and icons with movie posters and advertisements.
Thank you for not trying to interfere with the ministry of preaching God’s Word by offering pastors rewards for mentioning your film in a sermon.
Thank you for not filling our children’s ministry with Superman plush toys and kryptonite bracelets.
Thank you for not telling me "Superman Returns" is the greatest outreach opportunity in the galaxy.
Thank you for not asking me to rent an entire theater so our members can invite non-Christians to see the film.
Thank you for respecting the integrity of my faith.
And thank you for letting me enjoy "Superman Returns" simply for what it is—a good night at the movies.
A couple days ago, someone came to the Blingdom of God seeking the answer to one of the defining spiritual questions of our time:
"Is Paris Hilton's God Allah?"
Of course not. However, I can understand the mistake, since her deity does have a connection to the Middle East. As anyone can see from looking at the publicity pic below, she's clearly a devotee of Anubis! 
In commemoration of tonight's U.S. broadcast of the Series One finale of Doctor Who, today we have Who Shop International's TARDIS key pendant--which, should you buy it, brings with it a certificate of authencity. That means, I guess, you're guaranteed to have no problem getting into a TARDIS should you ever come across one.
What does this have to do with the Blingdom of God?
Glad you asked!
The key pictured above first appeared (sans the fractal origami & network images printed on the sides) in the serial Planet of the Spiders, in which the Third Doctor, John Pertwee, regenerated into the Fourth. While previous regenerations had been tacked onto the end of a mostly unrelated adventure, the director of Planet used it to present Buddhist teachings on death and life.
Really. The director, Barry Letts, himself a Buddhist, set the adventure in a Buddhist monastery presided over by a monk who, like the Doctor, was a Time Lord, albeit one who left the Planet Gallifrey to explore the inner worlds of the soul. The monk counsels our Doctor on the need to face his fear and to accept that true life can come only from total self-negation. It is no coincidence, it seems, that this examination of the spiritual key to life is the first in which the audience sees the physical key to Time And Relative Dimension in Space.
Thirty years later, Barry Letts is still using Doctor Who as a medium for spiritual themes--here, for instance, is a link The Tao Connection, a recent audio adventure of everyone's favorite Doctor companion, Sarah Jane Smith.
ERUDITION EXTRA:
The good folks at Oxford English Dictionary recognize "Tardis" as a real word, along with "Jedi" and "Klingon."
BELOW THE FOLD EXTRA:
Origami is also used as a metaphor for the nature of time in Grant Morrison's Invisibles.
BAD JOKE EXTRA:
Q: Why do all the aliens on Doctor Who speak with a British accent?
A: Because the suns never set on the British empire!
The picture to the left isn't great, but the pendant around Jessica Simpson's neck is a redesigned version of her wedding ring, with one cross inside and cross-turned-Christian-fishtail on the left. Could this be the start of a trend--instead of selling or returning mementos of your ex, you convert them into Christian jewelry?
This might seem odd to other folks who, like the Simpsons, identify with with evangelical Christianity, given its strict interpretation of Jesus' prohibition of divorce. Yet we should remember that in context, marriage was primarily an economic arrangement. The problem with divorce was not so much with lust, sex or splits in themselves, but rather, the man's abdication of financial responsibility toward his wife and heirs.
What does this mean for the present, when men and women have relatively equal economic rights? We'll let churches decide, but if you ask Jessica's estranged husband Nick Lackey, the Christian thing for her to do would be to pay him spousal support!
CLOSE-UP EXTRA:
Above is a Peace pendant from the Innergy collection by Paula Abdul, the pop star enjoying a career rebirth as a judge on American Idol. Abdul's jewelry has been getting a bit of press recently after selling out in her appearance on QVC.
The name of the collection points to its connection with spiritual adornment: Innergy is part of a greater trend toward jewelry of meaning. In this case, the message is one of personal fulfillment. Inscribed in the Peace pendant: "Find Your Inner Peace . . . Be Who You Are Completely."
Of course, there are also those who would say that this piece of jewelry has a deeper religious significance--as an icon of Antichrist!
Queen Victoria uses her cross pendant to ward off a werewolf in the latest UK episode of Doctor Who. For spoiler-filled reviews detailing another connection to the BofG, click these links.
Like the idea of an Easter basket but not a member of the Christian faith? Or are you a Christian looking for any excuse to indulge after Lent but uncomfortable with the secular Easter Bunny? Look no further, pilgrims . . .
Chocolate Deities is the answer to your prayers! Below for your Easter viewing pleasure are just a few of their divine (and tasty) treats. And for more on the historical links between chocolate and religion, check out this overview from the museum exhibit on chocolate now traveling throughout the U.S.
Deborah Lurie Edery is the designer behind JudaiClay, a line of jewelry drawn from Jewish ritual and holidays. Above special for Passover is her Matzah Heart Pin, an unleavened but nonetheless tasty piece of spiritual bling!
For more matzah blinginess, check out Jibjab's playful Matzah rap video, featuring Eric Schwartz, aka Smooth-E.
And below (hat tip: Mark Evanier) is a short documentary from Chabad.org in which an inquiring Jewish puppet finds out how matzah is made.
Last week we looked at the anarchy symbol, V for Vendetta and the oft-glossed-over anarchist impulse in popular religion--all prompted by an A pendant designed for a baby. Now here's a little something to help your favorite little anarchist learn the true meaning of the alphabet.
Hat tip: the always entertaining News From Me
This ad is making the internet rounds, with the heading . . .
Hat tip: Counterfeit Chic
This past weekend someone arrived at the Blingdom by searching for "nude christian singles." This came as a big surprise to me, since those pictures are supposed to be behind a firewall.
I kid, I kid!
Still, Jesus did say "seek and ye shall find," and who am I to frustrate a seeker relying on this promise? So off I went on a sacred quest to find a link between the BofG and "nude christian singles."
The result . . .
Christian nudists!
(NOTE: Some links below obviously may not be safe for work.)
Although some Christians think that nudity is sinful, that opinion is by no means universal. The Naturist Christians site is a thriving online community, with discussions, photos, news and pertinent religious texts, including a chapter by the Pope. A real-world analogue is in the works: Natura, a Christian nudist colony now being created in Florida.
Want pictures? To keep this site relatively SFW I'll just post a sample link (free registration required for full access). As for the bling . . .
The Christian naturist jewelry market is somewhat under-developed on the web, but not so its counterparts. Pictured above: "Goddess" and "Worship" nipple jewelry sold by the Diablo Sun Devils Naturist Club. If you want to see Christian bling in a nudist setting, check out the Byzantine Church of St. Paul below, which is on a nude beach in Crete!
Religion has long served as a way to assure us that we have a life beyond the limits of our temporal existence. Some teach that our spirits and even our resurrected bodies live on in a heavenly paradise. Others teach reincarnation--in fact, you can now find out on the web in what form you will return (hat tip: the mighty TechSpace!).
Science, however, is pointing the way toward a new possibility: eternal life through cloning of one's DNA. And the Blingdom is here to help. Japan's Eiwa Industries is now selling pendants that contain a sample of a person's DNA. Pictured above, for example, is a set for couples, in which each separate locket holds genetic material.
With a DNA pendant, your loved ones will have the core code of your being to keep as a lasting memorial after you die. And, as a company manager notes, people are even buying these pendants in the hope of being able to clone the deceased.
Will believers in a literal resurrection accept wearing DNA jewelry as a symbol of the body's eventual return? We'll know for certain when Jim Bakker sells a DNA cross!
DNAppendix:
Does Eiwa's own DNA jewelry have with a more direct connection with religion? Yes, it does, as is evident from the theme of the company's publicity.
Note that Eiwa, a Japanese company, focuses on the use of the jewelry to commemorate the deceased. This reflects a deep spiritual culture of ancestor veneration--only now, instead of the deceased living on as a spirit revered in a household shrine, the ancestor is with us in a more literal way.
For an overview of traditional Japanese religion (with lots of links), check out this informative page on Shintoism from the Religious Movements project at the University of Virginia.
No longer can I, like Gollum, hoard these treasures to myself. The following photos are from a set sent to me by fashion blogger extraordinaire Julie Frederickson, of Almost Girl & Coutorture fame, who snapped them at the I-Con science fiction & fantasy festival at Stonybrook.
As the following pics illustrate, the science fiction and fantasy community is rich in spiritual symbolism. Pagan, magick, alchemical, taoist, even Christian--you name it, it's there, either in its traditional form or as a source of inspiration. The t-shirts below from Off World Designs portray, in order, the pentacle, the triquetra and the goddess.
Thanks Julie!
Marshall McLuhan would love these! (Hat tip: Jennifer Emick)
From the inventor, Russian designer Dima Komissarov:
Nowadays TV-set is not longer accepted as a mere reciever - it had transformed into a cult object, the thing we can watch and interact with for hours, the source of our knowledge and inspiration. If you accept this statement with humor, as a matter of fact - go after our new design of TV remote - remote control combined with beads (remobeads). Now you can shift between channels effortless - just slightly pressing the beads. The beads are glowing, so you can easily see them in the darkness. As an option you can add a sound - enjoy listening to your favourite mantras while switching the channels.
This piece on the revival of Christian geocentrism has sparked the usual snark within the blogosphere. But regardless of the shaky science, here at the B of G we're hard-pressed to deny the pop appeal of these geocentric knick-knacks. So let's gear up to fight convention wherever it may lie--Copernicus is the new Pope!
Q: What do Bunker Hill, Gettysburg and Elvis Presley's Jungle Room all have in common?
A: They're all federally recognized historic sites!
Yep, that's right. Yesterday Graceland, Elvis Presley's stately manor, officially became a National Historic Landmark. Secretary of Interior Gale Norton and Presley's ex-wife Priscilla flew in to mark the occasion with an elaborate ceremony, which will no doubt help boost business at this flagging tourist trap public awareness of Graceland's importance to our nation's history.
While this is indeed a moment that should lead all of us to reflect on how our lives "changed irreversibly because of Elvis" (quoth Norton), the event also reminds of the superficiality of honors accorded in the secular realm. For a sign of real devotion, we need only look to the work of the man pictured above.
As this story from The Hindu relates, Gajarajan is an Elvis fan in India who has made Presley an object of religious devotion. He first garnered international attention in the mid-90s, when he placed a picture of Elvis next to other gods in a Hindu shrine. Elvis, Gajarajan claims, was a reincarnation of the divine warrior Karna. Now Gajarajan is working toward construction of an Elvis temple.
Mojo Nixon was right--Elvis truly is everywhere.
So you see, if Liz Claiborne really were a satanist, her cross would have been upside down--like the Pope's!
This picture of a cross dangling above a Bible is not taken from a Christian art film. It is actually a scene from The Notorious Bettie Page.
What's a nice cross like that doing in a film about this iconic pin-up girl? As the LA Times relates, Bettie Page is actually a born-again Christian who served as a counselor for the Billy Graham Crusade! Expect the film to use Bettie's life to explore the tension between sex and religion, not just as a matter of personal conscience but as an issue in public morality.
Can a believing pin-up girl wear her cross without shame? Well, here's a single evangelical guy who celebrates his celebate obsession with Bettie in her prime, and he thinks it's great that Bettie put the "carn" in "incarnation." Bettie herself has had more ambivalence, but today at 82 she seems to have accepted her peculiar path. Since she's the one who lived it we'll let her have the last word:
"Being in the nude isn't a disgrace unless you're being promiscuous about it," she said. She added with a laugh, "After all, when God created Adam and Eve, they were stark naked. And in the Garden of Eden, God was probably naked as a jaybird too!"
