Christmas Film Festival
Christmas Film Festival
One of the events we are planning for the holidays this year is our first annual Christmas film festival. We will be inviting all the students over for cider, cocoa, cookies and popcorn while watching some of those film classics that have become a part of the season. Here is the line up for this year with a commentary of each.
The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (animated) This is a 30 minute short, written by Dr. Theodor Seuss and based on the book by the same title. The voice of the Grinch is supplied by that scary guy of yesteryear, Vincent Price who also sings the fabulous song, "You re a mean one, Mr. Grinch". The story shows that the real meaning of Christmas cannot be material but is something more substantial. Something transcendent. There is even a "conversion" at the end. I don't know much about Seuss' background but from this story, it would appear that the good doctor was a Christian. I have been told that his book, Horton Hears a Who, is an apologetic against abortion. Remember the refrain, " A person is a person no matter how small"?
It's a Wonderful Life This movie starring Jimmy Stewart is a fabulous portrayal of the sovereignty of God. I will never forget seeing this movie for the first time only 10 years ago. The theme of the movie centers around the principal character's life desires being altered by circumstances beyond his control. He is tempted and tested repeatedly until he finally gives up. Then he is allowed, through the visit of an angel, to see what would have happened had he never been born. The result is a lesson for us all. I wish I had seen this movie years before I did.
White Christmas Even though there are far too many seasonal cultural icons in this movie, the message of loyalty and love is overwhelming. The movie stars Danny Kaye and Bing Crosby as two former soldiers, now entertainers,who pull out all stops to help their former commander's ski lodge from going bankrupt. There are a few moments in the movie that may have inspired the remote fast forward button (after all it is a musical) but over all, this is a quality film that warms the heart.
A Charlie Brown Christmas Yes, we will end a high note. This film is great just for the soundtrack alone! This little movie is hard to beat for the images that it leaves you with. Charlie Browns search for the perfect tree and the reason he picks "a loser". Then there is Snoopy, the dog totally immersed in the culture, winning first prize for his decorated dog house. But most of all, Linus taking center stage and quoting Luke chapter two. Whew! I look forward to it every year.
[Editor's Note: Though this is not my review, I want to add one more. A Christmas Story is both funny and poignant. The nostalgia quotient, for anyone who has ever lived where there is snow, is off the chart. Check it out.
In With the Old
A House For My Name, by Dr. Peter Leithart
I don't know if it is in bad taste to review a book you have endorsed, but sometimes you just have to do it. When our friends at Canon Press asked if I would look over Dr. Peter Leithart's manuscript of this survey of the Old Testament, I jumped at the chance. Dr. Leithart is a Fellow of Theology and Literature at New Saint Andrews College, in Moscow, Idaho. I had enjoyed his earlier work, including Wise Words, a children's book of stories based on the Proverbs, and Heroes of the City of Man. In the introduction of this work Dr. Leithart describes it as "Through New Eyes for Dummies." Through New Eyes, by James Jordan, was reviewed here in our Oz issue. I therefore was most eager to read the book.
Both Jordan and Leithart have an uncanny ability to practice a biblical theology which recognizes the poetry in God's history. Here Leithart takes this gift one step further by adding another layer of order to the whole process, taking us step by step through God's works in the Old Covenant. He takes what to too many of us is a jumble or stories designed to give us bite-size moral lessons, and shows the order inherent in God's acts. We learn how God is not merely responding to man, but moving history forward, indeed pointing the way to the centerpiece of history, the Prince of Peace. Where Jordan gives us frequent flashes of brilliance, Leithart shines the light constantly upon the scarlet thread of redemption.
He makes connections between Bible stories that only a poet can find, and so helps us to see the story of God's people as a symphony, with motifs repeated, enhanced, reversed, and expanded. Such, however, is not merely an academic exercise. When we see how God works in history, it better enables us to understand our times, and to know how to respond. It helps us to understand the sovereignty of God, to trust in the sovereignty of God, and to rejoice in the sovereignty of God. The book edifies, enlightens and encourages.
And it can do so for you, and for your seed. Leithart writes in his introduction, "this book is designed to be read aloud at the dinner table during family devotions, and I have tried to write it in such a way that even very young children will begin to grasp the sweep and beauty of the Bible." Our family has been using te book for about a month now. I can attest that Dr. Leithart has succeeded. Our children are not only helped to pay attention as we study together, but are provoked to the most insightful questions. Here is an introduction to the Old Testament that will not only help you over your fear of it, but will also help you to love the Old Testament. The book is published by Canon Press.