Pop Culture Roundup

I breezed through a modest-sized book yesterday entitled What the Bible Really Says about Homosexuality. All in all, it's well done, utilizing original historical context and word study to analyze the dozen or so passages that have been cited to condemn homosexuals over the years. I'd heard variations of most of the author's arguments before, but one chapter I wasn't so sure about. He deals the most extensively with Romans 1, first studying the words used to describe the sexual acts mentioned ('unnatural' better translated 'atypical,' 'unclean' and 'dishonorable' rather than 'sinful;' he uses a similar argument for Leviticus), and then arguing that the whole chapter is a rhetorical device. Paul, he states, was writing to a mixed audience and this is part of his address to the Jews specifically. He quotes their own argument against Gentile conversion by describing certain Gentile behavior and then in chapter 2 turns the tables by stating that Jews are doing the same things and shouldn't be so self-righteous. Furthermore, Paul chose same-sex acts rather than circumcision or food sacrificed to idols because it was a 'safe' topic (!) in that day and age. But it's the rhetorical argument with which I'm having trouble. It'll take more study on my part for me to be satisfied. And if for no other reason, check out the book for his discussion of David, Jonathan, and Saul in the last chapter. It's fascinating.

We bought the Back to the Future trilogy the other day and watched them all in a 24-hour period. I can't get enough of these movies. They're just enjoyable. I commented to my wife, 'For all of Doc's talk about not knowing too much about your own future, he ends up knowing a lot.' While I was drifting off to sleep last night, I was thinking about Marty's fight with Mad Dog Tannen. Couldn't he have seriously altered history by getting Tannen arrested? This is why I'm content to think as little as possible when watching time travel movies. My wife and I had a huge argument after we watched The Jacket last week, and if you need the basic fodder for it, watch BTTF Part II where Doc is explaining that the three of them are in an 'alternate 1985' rather than the real 1985. So does that mean that the real 1985 still exists somewhere? And with the new 1985, how does that affect their trip to 2015; Biff's stealing of the time machine to take the book back in the first place? Maybe Doc would tell me that I'm not thinking Fourth Dimensionally. Maybe that's a plot hole in the movie that I'd be better served to ignore. Anyway, I like these movies.

This won't be a proper music selection, but it is a CD selection. The comedian Mitch Hedberg recently died, and he was hilarious. A brief sampling:

• "I don't have a girlfriend. But I do know a woman who'd be mad at me for saying that."
• "I tried walking into a Target , but I missed."
• "I haven't slept for ten days, because that would be too long."
• "I wrote a letter to my dad- I wrote, I really enjoy being here. But I accidently wrote rarely, instead of really. But I still wanted to use it, so I wrote I rarely drive steamboats, Dad. There's a lot you don't know about me. Quit trying to act like I'm a steamboat operator. This letter took a harsh turn right away."
• "And then at the end of the letter i like to write P.S.- This is what part of the alphabet would look like if Q and R were eliminated."

That's the type of humor he delivers, and he does it with such a deadpan style that makes you laugh even more. He has a couple CDs out: Strategic Grill Locations and Mitch All Together.

Around the web, Real Live Preacher changed locations.