Week 4 - Commercialised Jesus

Harvey's analysis of Jesus in American Culture (2010) provides a solid background to the increasing mediatization and commercialization of Jesus. This is done by recounting the history of Jesus in America, from the Jesuits in New France and Pluebo Indians in New Mexico to the more recent awakening and rise of the Evangelical Jesus (Harvey 2011, 397-398). Each of these cultures embraced Jesus in different ways, but have ultimately come together to make America a Jesus nation. Harvey points out that even the KKK identified with Christ seen through their white uniforms which "bore the righteousness of Christ" (Harvey 2011, 406).

Jesus Camp Documentary Film: http://i2.listal.com/image/1850183/600full-jesus-camp-artwork.jpg

The shift to the Evangelical Christ happened during the first industrial and technological boom. This meant that the Evangelicals were the first to implement the use of printing presses, radio and other forms of media to spread the message of Jesus (Harvey 2011, 400). The product of this is a rapidly expanding industry of merchandise, television programs, movies and religious sects dedicated to Jesus in America, and indeed the world today. The evangelicalisation of America is poignant in the 2006 film Jesus Camp. The controversial documentary follows the story of children attending an Evangelical Camp run by eccentric camp leader, Becky Fischer. The way in which the film was shot depicts Fischer brainwashing the impressionable children into an army for God which has consequently seen the camp shut down (Curtis 2006).

Jesus Underwear: http://www.alittleleaven.com/files/thong.jpeg

The use of media to convey a message is one thing, but the mass mediatization  implemented more frequently these days is a little out of control. The media has skewed our moral compass; so much so that now the printing of Jesus on underwear is socially acceptable. As well as this, there is a skewed representation of what Jesus looks like. For instance, the television program, The Bible, portrays Jesus as a handsome, white Hollywood actor when in actual fact what Jesus looked like is somewhat unknown. By doing this, the media appeals to wider audiences for financial gain; because let's face it, when has the lead of a movie ever been ugly?

References: 

Harvey P. 2011. Jesus in American Culture. In D. Burkett (Ed) The Blackwell Companion to Jesus. Ebook. DOI: 10.1002/9781444327946

Jesus is my Homeboy Thong. No date. Retrieved March 22, 2013. http://www.alittleleaven.com/files/thong.jpeg

Jesus Camp. No date. Retrieved March 22, 2013. http://i2.listal.com/image/1850183/600full-jesus-camp-artwork.jpg 

Curtis G. 2006. Jesus Camp Shuts Down Due to Negative Response. Christian Today. http://www.christiantoday.com/article/jesus.camp.shuts.down.due.to.negative.response/8539.htm.

Week 3 - Art as a Medium of Spirituality

This week we were fortunate enough to go on an excursion to the UQ Art Museum to see the work of Linde Ivimey. Linde's art at fist glance is very full on. However, once the story behind it all is explained, it permeates a strong sense of spirituality. Through her Catholic upbringing as a child, Linde began to explore the stories of the ordinary saints and gradually found herself immersed in the stories of some of the more extra-ordinary ones (Ivimey 2012). Not only are a number of Linde's works religious in the sense of depicting particular saints, but all of her works have a sense of spirituality. This is evident through personal trauma and tribulations she has faced over the course of her life, including divorce and health problems, which she evokes through her art. She displays her relationship between art and religion in a special way. This is predominantly done through the interesting implements she uses in her artwork, namely: bones. 

My own interpretation of Lindey's use of bone. Left: human teeth and sheep bones. Right: natural cow bone. Bottom: chicken necks in chainmail arrangement

At first, this is quite a dark and disturbing concept. Linde describes it as "an externalization of what's inside" us naturally (Ivimey 2012). With this thought, it is easier to understand where she is coming from. A few of her works, in particular, use chicken neck bones in the form of chainmail. Linde uses this as a way of representing strength in her work through self portraits using the chainmail (Ivimey 2012). The biological approach to her art is appealing coming from a science background where these materials would usually be seen in laboratories as specimens. Here, Linde gives them a second life in a creative and spiritual way. The intimate details on the bones like stress fractures and their own quirky dents portrays the experiences the animals/humans endured as Linde aims to do with her art. Art is Linde's life, love and has become her own 'secular' form of belief (Anderson 2012).

References: 

Linde Ivimey UQ 1280x720. 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2013.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfvD45OVqgk

Anderson JA. 2012. The (In)visibility of Theology in Contemporary Art Criticism. http://open.biola.edu/resources/the-in-visibility-of-theology-in-contemporary-art-criticism?collection=art-and-faith

Week 2 - On the Mediatization of Religion

Religion is more often being thrown into the media spotlight, and not just in light of a new Pope or turmoil in the Middle East. It is the mediatization of religion and ritual that is being seen. Meyer talks about this in terms of the aesthetics that mediums provide to religious projection in Religious Sensation Media, Aesthetics, and the Study of Contemporary Religion (2012). Meyer (2012) distinguishes a new meaning for the word 'sensation' [that of feeling something] in a religious context. The new 'sensation' is about the creation of an excited feeling towards something, in this case religious rituals, and it is the media which help to permeate these 'sensations' (Meyer 2012,160). This can be seen in the form of not only religious news, but in the rituals that are now televised, like Hillsong on a Sunday morning. In this way the media and the denominations that use this media are appealing to a wider and younger audience through television. It is not only providing a platform for religions to expand their horizons but as Meyer put it, the sensational forms of religion "make it possible to sense the transcendental" (Meyer 2012, 160). 

Hillsong United Conference: http://wallpaper4god.com/wallpapers/hillsong-united-show_60_1280x960.jpg

Hjarvard, on the other hand, shows a different perspective on media and the religion by coining the term 'banal' religion. Traditionally, banal means lacking originality or boring (Banal 2013). He uses this banal from Billig's definition of 'banal nationalism' which describes the use of mundane items as national symbols. In the same way, Hjarvard pronounces that the banal elements of religion, like superstitions about death, can be much more enlightening because they allow the use of the imagination whereas traditional religious texts are the hard facts (Hjarvard 2006, 15). Some of these banal elements can also be considered in terms of 're-enchanting' post modern religion. Influenced by Weber, it is clear that new religious movements provide a way of 'finding' oneself in a meaningful way in an increasingly busy and lonely world. These new religious movements do this through the media. Hjarvard says that the media add a magical element to current religious states (Hjarvard 2006, 16).

Considering both of these perspectives, it is evident that the media play a crucial role in promoting and engaging with religion in the world today. The media don't care about the institutions they are writing about, but they do care about the people they are writing to. Hence, the media will increasingly be used to convey the 'religious imagination' of religions in order to appeal to the masses. 


References:

Meyer B. 2012. Religious Sensation Media, Aesthetics, and the Study of Contemporary Religion. In G. Lynch and J. Mitchell with A Strhan Religion, Media and Culture: A Reader. London and New York: Roultledge. (159-170). 

Banal. Retrieved March 15, 2013. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/banal?s=t 

Hjarvard S. 2006. The Mediatization of Religion. Northern Lights Volume 6. Intellect Ltd. 

Week 1 - An Inspired Reflection

Today facebook directed me to one of the cutest and most inspirational videos I’ve seen in a while. No it didn’t have cats in it. It was a TEDtalk by a 9 year-old boy that goes by the name of ‘kid president’. One of the tag lines of the video was that we (the people of the world) are on the same team. We’re all playing the game (of life) and yet it seems like many of us are on opposing/different teams. This makes the world a tough place to live in. What if everyone could get along? A bit clichéd, but it reminisces on John Lennon's song Imagine: Imagine all the people, living life in peace... A lot of people over the years have tried to send the message, but this video captures it marvellously. This has a lot to do with placing the message in the hands (or voice) of a child. Children don't think about the things they say before they say it and often they think about the world in different ways - as well as being ridiculously cute! TED have ticked all the right boxes on this one. When 'kid president' talks about making the world awesome, he means working together as a team. One of the greatest reasons people don’t get along in the world today is conflict between faiths or belief systems. While it would be convenient if everyone were on the same team (faith), it’s not ideal. Instead, why can’t we all gain an understanding of one another’s faith’s? That is the most important step to getting anywhere in life. If we are ignorant towards other’s beliefs, how can we dare to disagree, question them or even begin to understand where they are coming from? Take a look for yourself: 

References: 

A Pep Talk From Kid President. 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=l-gQLqv9f4o