Scary. Which is more enlightening? Which is more self-destructive? Which is more social? Which is more fun? Which encourages more peace? Which is more expensive?
Absolutely. And blasphemy helps me question assumptions and the status quo. As I free associate questions such as these and challenge myself to answer, it's clearly a fertile realm of controversy. My answers speak to the human ability to moderate, or failure to moderate. [Reference to Salman Rushdie] [List of victims of the Spanish Inquisition] [List of political prisoners] [List of jailed writers throughout history] When Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, “What are you doing in there?” Thoreau replied, “What are you doing out there?”
And, for the record, I NEVER go out to intentionally blaspheme. But I work with these images and concepts all the time - they are always running around in my head - so they are going to pop out on occasion. Some I think are potentially funny, like this one; some are meant to be comments on Christianity and what it could and should be like away from the hands of the fundamentalists. But I can't think of ONE instance where I thought, okay, now TODAY I'm going to blaspheme. Which DOESN'T mean I don't recognize that some of it could certainly be seen as blasphemous. That's sort of a bi-product as opposed to an initial intention...
Scary.
ReplyDeleteWhich is more enlightening?
Which is more self-destructive?
Which is more social?
Which is more fun?
Which encourages more peace?
Which is more expensive?
Don't know all the answer to the above questions, but I do know that IBL's blasphemy almost always make me chuckle out loud.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. And blasphemy helps me question assumptions and the status quo.
ReplyDeleteAs I free associate questions such as these and challenge myself to answer, it's clearly a fertile realm of controversy. My answers speak to the human ability to moderate, or failure to moderate.
[Reference to Salman Rushdie]
[List of victims of the Spanish Inquisition]
[List of political prisoners]
[List of jailed writers throughout history]
When Emerson visited Thoreau in jail and asked, “What are you doing in there?” Thoreau replied, “What are you doing out there?”
And, for the record, I NEVER go out to intentionally blaspheme. But I work with these images and concepts all the time - they are always running around in my head - so they are going to pop out on occasion. Some I think are potentially funny, like this one; some are meant to be comments on Christianity and what it could and should be like away from the hands of the fundamentalists. But I can't think of ONE instance where I thought, okay, now TODAY I'm going to blaspheme. Which DOESN'T mean I don't recognize that some of it could certainly be seen as blasphemous. That's sort of a bi-product as opposed to an initial intention...
ReplyDelete