Cedars, February 2020

February 2020 3 How can our Christian walk benefit from film? Ben Hiett In his book “Cinematic Faith,” William Romanowski describes a movie as a “two-hour metaphor that says: ‘Life is like this!’” Film is a medium for storytelling, and what are stories if not attempts to coherently encapsulate a human experience? Every movie, then, presents a particular vision for life, both of what it should be like and what it is like. This is why certain movies resonate deeply; they powerfully communicate the realities of our human condition in a way that’s easily accessible and poignantly articulate. With this power comes great potential, both for spiritual benefit and detriment. As Christians, we know God’s Word provides us the best framework for understanding life. Some movies present us with understandings of life that line up with biblical truth, while others advance frameworks that run contrary to Scripture. Most fall somewhere in the middle. And if we are not mindful of this, a film’s message will shape our visions for life, for better or for worse. How can we appreciate film’s power to communicate truth while being wary of its potential to corrupt our vision of the “good life”? How do we discern between its biblical and unbiblical messages? To answer these and other questions, I talked with Professor Sean O’Connor on the Cedars’ Ministry Moments podcast. To listen to our conversation, go to ReadCedars.com, click the Media tab and choose Podcasts. Just Sayin’ ... Alex Hentschel Galentine’s Day Manifesto T his year, in our house of girls, we did a Galentine’s Day — though we’re a whole mix of single, dating, engaged and confused, we wanted to take a moment to celebrate each other. And so, for a newly established holiday, we need a newly established procedure. I give you the Galentine’s Day Manifesto. We, the women of the United States, in order to form a more perfect holiday, establish kindness, ensure relational tranquility, provide for the single and the taken, promote general love and happi- ness, and secure the blessings of female friendship, do ordain and establish Feb. 13 as Galentine’s Day, for the women of America. ARTICLE ONE: Girls must support one another, in all circumstances, in all cases. You may inquire: Does it matter if the girl is not someone I know well? No! Women must form a tight-knit community of love and acceptance, inter- nally validating, because relationships with friends are incredibly important. ARTICLE TWO: Valentine’s Day, the dreaded Feb. 14, often serves to put stress on those in relationships, and place an unfair burden of loneliness on those not in relationships. In order to make the holiday about love a more inclusive time, and not so polarizing, Galentine’s will fill the gap to make sure everyone feels validated. ARTICLE THREE: Being in a relationship does not relieve a lady of her duties to the sisterhood; indeed, it enhances her bur- den, ensuring that single women know they are equally valued, and telling them truths and advice of her relationship. It also means that a woman has a duty to her fellow women regardless of whether other obligations tie her up. ARTICLE FOUR: Valentine’s Day is often a display of overly sweet affection, with red and pink everywhere and disgusting candy hearts; Galentine’s Day shall avoid these sad weaknesses and shortcomings. There shall be no overly sweet language, no teddy bears, no dozen roses; instead, there will be chocolate, watching of a movie that makes us feel warm and fuzzy, and com- pliments and encouragement for the sisterhood. ARTICLE FIVE: Under no circumstances may a boyfriend be invited to Galentine’s Day; if a sister wants to invite her man to Galentine’s Day, remind her that all relationship-related hangs can be postponed to Feb. 14 and that supporting the sisterhood is a priori; ARTICLE SIX: Before hosting any kind of Galen- tine’s-themed event, the hostess must watch “Parks and Rec- reation” Season 2, Episode 16 to gain inspiration from Leslie Knope; however, the hostess must be careful to avoid Leslie’s crucial mistake of ranking her friends, which should never be done in any context, but least of all on Galentine’s Day, which is meant for building one another up; ARTICLE SEVEN: Gifts are not required at Galentine’s Day celebrations; however, if any of the girls wish to honor another friend with a gift, that is acceptable and very cute. It is so ordered. Websclusives @ ReadCedars.com P hoto G allery Visual Communication Design exhibit If you happen to be walking through the Dixon Ministry Center, you may notice some boards set up with artwork on it. We got several of the artists, including Valerie Link, to pose next to their work. Go to ReadCedars.com, click on the media tab and choose photo galleries to see the artists’ with their work.