You Sentenced Her to Hell

Dream: Sister -- you know how I felt for Nada once. What I feel for her still. But she defied me. I gave her due warning, and still she spurned me, so...
Death: So you sentenced her to hell.
Dream: ...yes.
Death: Desire was right.
Dream: What?
Death: Well, maybe not about everything. But right about Nada, anyway. You did a terrible thing to that poor girl. You acted appallingly.
Dream: You too? Even you turn on me, my sister?
Death: Oh, just shut up and let me finish. You can shout at me afterwards.
Nada loved you. She really did.
Now, maybe Desire had more to do with that -- and with your reaction to Nada's love -- than it's saying. That doesn't matter.
Because Nada was right.
It is bad for us to get involved with them. You know that.
Dream: I would have made her a goddess.
Death: Maybe she didn't want to be a goddess, little brother. Did you ever consider that?
Anyway, condemning her to an eternity in hell, just because she turned you down...
...That's a really shitty thing to do.   

 - Sandman #21
by Neil Gaiman and Mike Dringenberg

MitchWords: 15.1

We need to start talking about depression.

By "we," I mean Christians.  I mean the church.  I mean all of us that claim to have been called to love our neighbor as ourselves.

And by "talking about depression," I don't mean we should be dismissive about it or pretend it is something that only afflicts non-Christians.  Heavens no, do not do that.  Instead, we must face the reality that Christians struggle with depression, anxiety, and emotional and mental issues as much as anyone else.

Never Deserved or Earned

We've heard a lot about nature today. By its nature, mercy is never deserved or earned. It can only be given as a gift.

- Fables #93

by Bill Willingham and David Lapham

Live Tweeting Noah

I lamented to myself the other day about the lack of a theology minded MST3K that would comment on religiously themed movies.  So, I decided to do something about that.  This ended up being watching Noah starring Russell Crowe and tweeting my reactions to the film.  I wasn't very funny, or even entertaining.  But, if you care, here are my thoughts on Noah, rock monsters and all.

Mild spoilers follow, I suppose.

Halloween Dealie

Satan: So, if candy wasn't the motivating factor, Grim, what made you think I would enjoy this Halloween dealie?
Grim Reaper: Well, I just keep hearing on TV about groups who condemn it as a day in which you're worshipped.
Satan: Really? I haven't been getting any presents or anything.
Grim Reaper: Yeah, I know, That's why I figured we'd come up here.
Satan: Well, let's see if they are right.

- "Candy for All, Justice for None" in Hector Plasm: Totentatz

by Benito Cereno and Nate Bellegarde

Ramblings: Prayer and The Punisher

On occasion I listen to a podcast entitled Theology Nerd Throwdown.  That certainly sounds like something I would listen to, doesn't it?  I would direct you towards it, but that would violate these ramblings' current ban on links, footnotes, and other cumbersome formatting which inhibit productivity.

Ramblings: Faith and Fables

Nobody ever told me how much my faith would change as I grew up.  At most I was told I would grow deeper in my faith, meaning I would believe what I already believed, but with more conviction.  Well, that didn't happen!