Harry Potter and No Greater Love

I went to see the final Harry Potter movie last night and it was fantastic. It's been a few years since I read the last  book in the series, so I forgot about some of the story elements and how it really is all about love (what Dumbledore stresses to Harry so many times). In the Chronicles of Narnia it's a given that Azlan is a Christ-like figure. In Harry Potter, it doesn't come out until the final book/movies, but his character is also Christ-like!

Throughout the series people died for Harry Potter, and he is known as "The boy who lived." Or perhaps we could even say the chosen or anointed one? The only person he truly fought was Lord Voldemort, or the Evil one. At the end of the book/movie, when Draco and company are about to die in a raging fire, Harry insists on saving them. He knew how to love his enemies. And in the end, with fear pumping through his body, he went to face Lord Voldemort and death. He accepted death, not knowing it wasn't the final death for him.

In his brief time "between worlds" he had a conversation with Dumbledore, and a quite from that really struck me. "Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all, those who live without love." Harry knew love. Throughout the series he was constantly reminded about the love his parents had for him. He was also loved dearly by friends. His love was greater than his circle of safety and comfort though. It extended to those he might not of cared for at first. Ultimately, Harry defeated death and Lord Voldemort with that great love.

Last night as all of this, and more, was going through my mind, my heart hurt for the world. There is a such a lack of love, and yet a deep and unquenchable desire to be loved. All we want, as humans, is to be loved and know that someone cares about us. People seek attention, just look at Facebook! And I know I'm guilty of wanting some social media love as well. We can learn a lot from Harry Potter. Although he is a fictional character and a mere teenager, he lived his life with passion and a purpose. He had courage like none other and he let his love shine through.

This Henri Nouwen quote sums up a lot of the correlations I barely made:

Jesus is given to the world.  He was chosen, blessed, and broken to be given.  Jesus' life and death were a life and death for others.  The Beloved Son of God, chosen from all eternity, was broken on the cross so that this one life could multiply and become food for people of all places and all times.

As God's beloved children we have to believe that our little lives, when lived as God's chosen and blessed children, are broken to be given to others.  We too have to become bread for the world.  When we live our brokenness under the blessing, our lives will continue to bear fruit from generation to generation.  That is the story of the saints - they died, but they continue to be alive in the hearts of those who live after them - and it can be our story too.

Eat, Pray, Love

A few weeks ago, when my dad was in town visiting me, we went to see the movie Eat, Pray, Love. I hadn't read the book and my dad was part of the way through it, but we both wanted to see the movie. Despite what the US Bishops said about the movie, I liked it. They're discouraging people from seeing it because of the acceptance of divorce and the nonmarital and premarital relations that happen throughout the story line. Apart from those details, it was great! It gave a little insight into three completely different countries: Italy, India, and Indonesia. Each experience in the distinct countries corresponds to her title; she ate in Italy, prayed in India, and fell in love in Indonesia. The bishops also criticize the movie for it's lack of, or perhaps complete disregard for Christianity and "ignoring [it] as a source of insight." In the book Liz Gilbert does write on Christianity. The purpose of her year-long excursions to these exotic places was a self-indulgent, self-seeking "pampered pilgrimage."

While the movie doesn't follow the book perfectly, you get a general feel for the book and the adventures that Liz Gilbert experienced. After seeing the movie I zipped over to Amazon.com and bought the book. I cannot say that I agree with a lot of the decisions Gilbert made and how she went about things, but I can say that there are some valuable lessons to be learned from her travels and own insights. As I continue to travel along with Liz in her written account I plan on writing my own observations. I like to call it: Catholicizing Eat, Pray, Love.

Why God Matters - Book Review

Why God Matters is a great little gem to have in your spiritual reading collection. It contains short stories and reflections on faith by a daughter and father, one a cradle Catholic, the other a convert. It has a simplistic beauty to it; the chapters are short, which makes it easy to put down and pick up on your own time. Each chapter is a great personal witness of their own faith, but what I like the most are the little extras after the stories. Each chapter contains a Life Lesson, a short Scripture passage, and a quote from the Catechism. The Life Lessons help the reader to reflect on their own faith life and can be a great guide for prayer, while the Scripture and CCC quotes tie everything together. This isn't just another book on faith and it doesn't tell you why God should matter in your life. I see it more as a witness to God's love and a tool for the reader to examine their faith and help them grow as witnesses of Christ.


Check out chapter two here:
http://tribute-books.com/whygodmatters/share_your_story.html

And while you're at it, check out the book's website:
http://www.whygodmatters.com

Fireproof

It's amazing how things work in media production and how people can stretch things out. Don't get me wrong, I love the concept of the movie/book Fireproof and The Love Dare, but at times it seems like people are in it for profit. I'm not exactly sure what came first, if it was The Love Dare or the movie Fireproof (let's say the movie). It was a decent movie - the acting wasn't award-winning, but the storyline was. In the movie The Love Dare was introduced and that is what kept a broken marriage from dissolving completely. Viewers were then intrigued and wanted to know more about The Love Dare, so [they] wrote some more books. There is The Love Dare, similar to the journal in the movie, in two forms: hardcover or a leather journal (again, like the movie). There is also The Love Dare for couples, a year-long devotional. There are several more resources on how to "fireproof your marriage." So there is a movie, several books on The Love Dare, small group study guides, and then someone wrote the book Fireproof, which is how I first came in contact with it.

It seems strange that a book was written after a movie, but someone decided they wanted to expand the story. I enjoyed reading the book more than watching the movie; it allowed time for the characters and plot to develop and I was more emotionally involved. I was actually mad at the husband in the beginning because I thought he was such a jerk! He redeems himself by using The Love Dare and the book had me crying at the end. It's a great book about faith as well. Caleb (the husband) asks his dad "how can I love someone who constantly rejects me over and over again?" while his dad is standing by a life-size cross. This is a story about love, not only the love between a husband and wife, but the love that God gives us freely and graciously and He never gives up hope.

Media Break

Alright, this post isn't really related to Lent, but I wanted to give a shout out for two CDs I bought last night. I was at LifeWay and they had TobyMac's new cd on sale AND Francesca Battistelli's album for $5. What a steal. I've been a fan of TobyMac for quite some time, always intrigued by his hip hop beats and his lyrics. His albums continue to impress and the newest always seems better than the last. On his latest album, "Tonight," he has familiar sounds from previous CDs, but I'd say he has branched out in his music as well, ever growing in his creativity.

The first time I heard Francesca Battistelli on the radio I really liked her song "Free to be Me." I've heard several of her songs since then, but I was really digging her entire album, "My Paper Heart," when I was listening to it in the car today. It's neat when albums actually hold a theme to the music, and Francesca does just that. Her music is catchy and her lyrics are very relevant to the lives that we live today and becoming who we are called to be.

I'd post a video for Tobymac's City on our Knees, but because it's still new, I can't embed that particular video, but here is one from Francesca.

The 13th Day

This week I was able to see a screening for The 13th Day, a new movie about the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima. To be honest I was a little skeptical and almost did not go to see it, but I am glad I did! I thought it would be a super long and boring film, but Catholic film makers finally know what they're doing! The 13th Day is very unique because most of the film is in black and white. With the lack of color they do a phenomenal job of using shadows and different lighting.

Many Catholics today have probably heard of "Fatima," and what The 13th Day does is make it come alive. There was a miracle in 1917 that 70,000 people witnessed, but we do not hear about it anymore. Have we lost our faith in miracles?

I think they played up the children, the three seers, and downplayed the messages Mary gave them. The secrets of Fatima have all been revealed, but I think people could see this movie and be confused on the messages. Of course, the main message is clear: Pray the rosary daily! I can't say that I do, but seeing this film made me think a little bit more on my devotion to our Blessed Mother and the importance she has in our lives.