The Pasadena / San Gabrial Valley Journal News - Black African American Business, Educationsl and Social News
Religion
For Whom The School Bells Toll
On Monday last there was a confusing cacophony swirling all around me. Usually, I'm not one to give vent to the noises around me but this was a little different. I like to pick sides but this time I'm not sure who to root for. Perhaps you can understand the confusion I am facing.
It is like being a Gator fan in Bulldog territory.
This uncertain sound has confused the dickens out of me, and it isn't even Christmas time.
Looking out our living room window, I spotted the source of all this commotion. It was a yellow school bus filled with children on their way to their first day of school. As I watched the bus turn left and disappear out of sight, I thought about how the same incident can have completely opposite reactions.
First, there was the loud "hurrahs" of parents all through the community rejoicing in the commencement of school. Either, my hearing is getting better or the sound is getting louder, almost deafening. Up and down our street parents were high-fiving each other and smiling like they won the lottery. Even the lady across the street who has no children was out in her bathrobe joining in the celebration.
Creative Ways to Read the Bible
If you are like me, you have read the Bible the same way all your life. However, there are many creative ways to read the Bible while preserving and honoring its meaning. One way is to read through artistic expressions and renderings.
Viewing art from actual biblical expressions (pictures, drawings, etc. . .), evoke certain thought/feelings/interpretations. How do these ideas vary from its actual originator? Witness how a kind of social and cultural ethnography plays a role in imposing ideas, views and thought upon certain religious/biblical images. As you view an image, quickly jot down what you think this image is saying or what meaning is being conveyed. As we learn more about the image, see how our particular assumption varies from its intended story. How do our cultural/social located assumptions inform the way we think or cast certain judgment?
Another way to read the Bible is through what I call Aesthetic Biblical Interpretations. Many have offered hermeneutical renderings of scripture as non-spoken, non-written expressions. These expressions, in the form of aesthetic offerings, have taken shape as pictorial art (paintings, drawings or photographs), quilting, dance, drama, music and other creative forms like carvings (the Ashante's Golden Stool).
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