A secular, humanist, non-practicing Jewish writer from New York takes a year-long tour through evangelical Christian pop-culture? Yeah…I know how that book’s going to turn out…or at least I thought I did. Daniel Radosh‘s Rapture Ready! Adventures in the Parallel Universe of Christian Pop Culture is one of the most insightful, entertaining books I’ve ever read concerning this branch of Christianity. (more…) Read more
I absolutely love and am fascinated with apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic narratives. To me, they speak far more about our current theological, philosophical, and political state of affairs than they ever do about how it’s all going to go down in the end (which despite popular evangelical opinion is what they were always intended to do). One of the more interesting characteristics of said narratives, especially the pop-culture variety, is the ever-present hero, most often the man who holds it all... Read more
(Hint: There is none.) Frequent Pop Theology contributor Richard Lindsay offers his take on the music video for Lady Gaga’s new song, “Alejandro,” after the jump. You can view the video here on the Pop Theology home page. (more…) Read more
I’ve got a one sentence review of Splice, the latest sci-fi/horror film currently playing in theaters, but it doesn’t an article make. If you really want to read/hear it, you’ll have to swear you’re not planning on watching it…in theaters at least…because if I had to suffer through the film, you do too. For my extended review, read on. (more…) Read more
Film critic Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle recently said that we are in a Golden Age of comedy. It’s hard to ignore, given the release of films like Forgetting Sarah Marshall, I Love You, Man, The Hangover, and now Get Him to the Greek, to name a few. While the latter, which released last Friday, is laugh-out-loud funny, it also has a genuinely serious streak. (more…) Read more
If any of you, like me, had tickets to U2’s second leg of their American 360 tour, then you were sorely disappointed to hear about the cancellation due to Bono’s surgery. Yet, last week’s release of their DVD, U2 360 at the Rose Bowl, the recording of last Fall’s record-setting concert, should help ameliorate that pain and tide you over until the dates are rescheduled next year. After the jump, check out mine and Richard Lindsay’s review of the concert... Read more
I have always admired and deeply respected army and hospital chaplains for their emotional and spiritual strength and their ability to stand with those who mourn during the sacred time and space of loss. The same could be said of those who must bear the actual bad news of the death of a loved one to the family and friends they’ve left behind. The other critically acclaimed “war movie” of 2009, The Messenger, focused on such a task and was,... Read more
This summer will mark the 5th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and by then, David Simon‘s newest series, Treme will have come to close. Its twenty episodes will serve as a fitting reminder of the devastation that that storm, and the ensuing floods, wrought on countless lives, a devastation that continues to plague many lives even today. Perhaps the series will return the tragedy to our public consciousness and remind us of the vulnerability of the poor and marginalized in our... Read more
“All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” –Pablo Picasso I came across this quote in, of all places, this week’s Sports Illustrated. Yesterday, I finally got around to watching Son of Rambow (2007) and found the quote and the film to be a perfect match. The film revels in child-like creativity while revealing the forces, both religious and secular, that seek to squash that creativity and individuality. (more…) Read more
Mara Einstein argues, in her book Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion in a Commercial Age, that we live in a culture of “planned obsolescence.” This is hard to deny given the frequency with which, for example, Apple releases new iPods and iPhones. Yet she turns her attention to the effects that such consumerism has on religion. Einstein reveals that the sacred has become more secular through intense commercialization and marketing. On the other hand, though she doesn’t write as extensively... Read more
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