Saturday’s paper (Great Falls Tribune) always has some “religion” stories, which means whatever the editors identify as religion, which (in the same way as sex) means whatever form the forever renewing/upwelling of the primal energy might be taking lately, most often in the form of culture wars. Two of today’s stories were interesting. Both are from Gannett papers in other places. I copied them and edited them slightly.
Here’s the first:
THE GREEN DRAGON
Going green is bad for your soul, a group of evangelical leaders argues in a new series of DVDs.
They warn of the spiritual dangers of environmentalism. They claim that well-meaning believers have been misled into joining a "Cult of the Green Dragon," which worships creation instead of God. They dismiss Christians who say protecting Earth is a biblical directive.
"Around the world, environmentalism has become a radical movement," Christian talk show radio host Janet Parshall said in a promotional video for the series. "Something we call the 'Green Dragon.' And it is deadly. Deadly to human prosperity, deadly to human life, deadly to human freedom. And deadly to the gospel of Jesus Christ."
But when Murfreesboro environmentalist Kory Wells received a link to the Green Dragon group's site, she considered it a misinterpretation of God's will for humans. A Methodist, Wells said her denomination is committed to caring for the environment because the Bible tells it so.
The Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation, a religious nonprofit that questions the danger of global warming, produced the DVDs, sold for $49.95 per set at www.resistingthegreendragon.com. Cornwall Alliance spokesman E. Calvin Beisner said many environmentalists see human beings as no more important than any other animal, but God put humans in charge of nature.
The image of a Green Dragon comes from several Bible verses, said Beisner, including the Garden of Eden and the dragon in the book of Revelation.
The resistance idea is from James 4:7: "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
"Repeatedly, there is this theme of enmity between the serpent, sometimes called the dragon, and the elect people of God," he said.
But Duke wasn't comfortable with the implication that environmental movement is demonic.
"I wouldn't say that," he said. "We think of the imagery as an understanding that a threat exists."
Duke said there's a balance between taking care of the Earth and worshiping it as somehow divine.
"You don't savage creation for the well-being of humanity," he said.
The second story is about a video that may have been removed from YouTube by now, but if you go to that website and type in “Doritos communion,” you’ll find many responding vids. Fascinating.
Doritos Super Bowl (Tampa Bay 10 News):
“Doritos replace Holy Communion in "Feed Your Flock" ad”
Original article by Phil Landeros
An entry in the Doritos and Pepsi MAX Crash the Super Bowl contest is creating an uproar. The ad is called "Feed Your Flock" and chronicles a small church's efforts to keep its parishioners from leaving the church.
In the ad, a pastor receives a divine message telling him to replace the Holy Communion wafers with Doritos. The wine that represents the blood of Christ is replaced with Pepsi MAX. The commercial ends with a line of parishioners trying to get into the church.
The actor who plays the priest came up with the idea. In a press release, actor Michael Lyons is described as a devout Catholic. Lyons says, "Those people misconstrued the content and intent of the ad. The pastor did not consecrate the Doritos and Pepsi - therefore it is not the Eucharist."
The ad was produced by Media Wave Video Productions of Philadelphia, PA. The director, Dave Williams, tells 10 News he's "shocked by the controversy." Williams says, "Some people have gotten ahold of it and turned it into something it wasn't."
Williams sent 10 News a list of clues put into the ad that he says prove it is not [CATHOLIC] Communion being served:
- Several religions represented in the wardrobes of the characters: Hare Krishna, Jewish, Amish
- actor Michael Lyons is referred to as "Pastor" by the younger pastor
- Wedding ring on Pastor
- No vestments, chalice, or any religious symbols - not even one cross
- No consecration of the chips/soda
- Sign at the end in front of the church says "Free Doritos and Pepsi Max Sunday"
Really struck a nerve on that one! I see that the forces of religious repression are now out in the open, nailed for what they are and the silliness of their indignation. All to the pleasure of the “git ‘em” media. The first controversy is in the long tradition of “Lord of the Rings” and the Bible’s “Book of Revelation” -- making ideas into monsters so as to stir up fear and opposition. But there’s a tricky shift in this metaphor by now: many youngsters see dragons as benevolent and even personal friends. (“How to Raise Your Dragon.”) This shift has also been there a long time. One of my major childhood story books was about two dragons who fell in love. A green dragon is likely to strike many people as something protective, desirable.
In the second story is even older. It comes from a strong two-millenia liturgy that emerges from human experience. Supping together becomes Passover becomes Jesus’ Last Supper becomes his iconic flesh and blood. This battered old ceremony has survived change, repression, denial, and reinterpretation over and and over, ranging from worshipping communion wafers to replacing wine with Welch’s grape juice. Why should a modern institution worry about it unless they're insecure in the first place?
It is so deep in our way of life that it survives EXCEPT in places where no one eats bread or drinks wine. I go back again and again to the brilliant book by Robert J. Schreiter (C.PP.S), “Constructing Local Theologies,” written for Christian missionaries working in such places. If in China, does one do a tea and rice communion? In the Arctic does one serve blubber? ("This is the blubber of Christ . . .") Among the Masai must the faithful drink mixed blood and fermented milk? Schreiter says you must first drive to the heart of the concept: what did Jesus mean REALLY? “I am always with you.” So what in this other culture means that?
And what does it mean to have a Doritos and Pepsi communion? You could say either that the plain fact is that’s the way a lot of people eat these days and therefore Jesus dwells in the Dorito, (Maybe his image will show up on one. Look before you swallow.)
The other is that this communion is a celebration of commodication: it’s not just junk food, it’s brand name food empty of nutrition. Not as scary as a dragon, but just as deadly. Both need to be identified and addressed, as individuals and as a society.
4 comments:
Yes, we Dragons are scary. But we're harmless, mostly. Ask my friends. I never Flame anybody who didn't deserve it. :) Of course, I'm just a scholarly Black Dragon, and we're often less activist than the Green Dragons, although we're considered smarter by some. *Dragon smile*
The problem I have with the Feed Your Flock piece, which isn't really touched on, is the blatant commercialism of the name-brands. It's not neutral bread and wine. It's named processed snack foods and ultra-sugary beverages, the very sort of thing responsible for the rise of obesity and childhood diabetes in our culture. While I completely agree with your approval of the ancient symbolic meal, of the human significance of breaking bread together, I find it very hard to approve of the co-optation of that ancient ritual by a junk food corporation. This isn't a neutral recreation of the feast, it's a Superbowl ad.
Reread the last paragraph of the post, please, Art.
Prairie Mary
Gotcha.
Consider my comments are reinforcement, then.
:)
Done! I do worry that I work on something like the pattern of communion so much that I skip over necessary steps of logic.
I used to have a friend in ministry with whom I had an occasional twinkie-and-cola communion, quite self-conscious and an effort to lighten the weight of history and obligation.
When impresses me more than the food substitutions is that in the primitive Christian church, the people brought the bread and wine (which was far from anything like modern wine -- almost vinegar and a safer drink than water) and left it by the entrance. The moment when the bread and wine are brought from the entrance is still in the Communion.
Prairie Mary
Post a Comment