Here's an article my dad wrote about "The Golden Compass" that he allowed me to post here. Rick Reeder is the Director of Missions for the Caldwell/Lyon Baptist Association based in Princeton, Kentucky. He was recently elected Second Vice President of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, and as been involved in ministry for about 30 years. He can be contacted by email at: bro_rickreeder@bellsouth.net
--Kim

The Golden Compass: Leading Children in the Wrong Direction
By Rick Reeder

By now, most people with children, and many with grandchildren, will have heard of the movie starring Nicole Kidman, "The Golden Compass". If not, you will. What may have escaped many, including myself until recently, is the sinister theme of the movie, and especially the book series that it is based on. The trilogy of books (I hear there may be a fourth) was originally published under the title "Northern Lights" and written by British author Philip Pullman, a self-avowed atheist. As a matter of fact, given the many years the books have been around, and the awards that they have won, it is amazing to me that we are just now hearing of this. So what are others who have been following his work saying about him? Peter Hitchens, a writer for "Mail On Sunday" said, in 2002, that Pullman is the writer "the atheists would have been praying for, if atheists prayed." Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League has produced a pamphlet entitled, "The Golden Compass: Unmasked" and says that this series "sells atheism to kids". "Evangelical groups like The Christian Film and Television Commission, run by Ted Baehr, and James Dobson's Focus on the Family say they're taking a wait-and-see approach to the movie, although Baehr has plenty to say about the literary version of the series...Baehr said. "We'll put out writings on the book. Children who buy into this are going to be trapped in a sad, desperate world." So let's consider what the story is actually about.

I was so curious about this, that I rented the first of the three books on audio and listened to all 14 hours of it. It is a compelling tale of 12 year old girl, Lyra, who stumbles onto intrigue and adventure of another world. Even in her fantastical world, armored bears can talk, there are witches and angels who fly and other strange creatures. And in this adventure, the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, play a significant role in the setting of the story. Everyone has what is called a demon, in the form of an animal which appears to be one's conscience, or soul. But animals do not have a demon. So they are immune to what humans have to endure. There are many dangerous near death encounters for Lyra and others who are helping her discover the mystery of the Dust (the verdict is out on what this represents, and Pullman has not said) and how to stop its affect on humans. She comes into possession of an alethiometer, or the Golden Compass. With the right intuitive gifts, she learns how to read it, thereby being able to discern if people are telling the truth (aletheia in Greek means "truth or true"). This gives her an edge over others in her quest to see what the adults are up to, and why so many children are turning up missing. She finds that the adults are experimenting with the children to discover how to reverse the effects of the "dust". Well, you get some of the picture.

I must admit, as I write this and remember the story line of the book, it would be very enticing to a child, and difficult for a parent to resist giving in to the temptation to satisfy a begging son or daughter who wants to see this movie. But I think you should resist, and I will tell you why. Pullman says that his works are an atheist answer to C.S. Lewis' books, such as "Chronicles of Narnia", that try to teach Christian ideals to children. According to the entertainment section of foxnews.com, Pullman is quoted as having said in an interview, referring to the Chronicles of Narnia, "I hate them with a deep and bitter passion..." and has called the series "one of the most ugly and poisonous things" he's ever read. In case you think I am reading too much into this movie, consider that there has been a backlash from both atheists, and people of faith. The atheists and fans of Pullman are steamed and accuse him of caving in to the religious right for allowing the anti-God themes to be muted in the movie itself, since these themes are so prevalent in the books. The faith community is sounding the warning bell because of the not so subtle attempt to raise the interest level of the book series through the movie, so that parents will rush to the bookstores and rip these books off the shelves for their children this Christmas and beyond. There seems to now be an attempt to distance Pullman from the movie version of the books.

On the website http://www.bridgetothestars.net/, dedicated to the movie, the bio section on Pullman says that "He seems quite bent on having absolutely nothing to do with the film adaptations that are currently being written and produced by New Line Cinemas..." But that does not seem right, since he is said to be a co-screenwriter on the film. I suppose it could be "technically" true. Maybe he wanted the movie to present his more overt aversion to the idea of God, religion, etc.

Don't misunderstand my position. I believe there is a lot in organized religion, especially the unbiblical kind, which is dangerous and distracting to the truth of the Bible, and the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But these books, promoted for discussion in public schools, in video games, and now in movies, are not the correct forum for a child to get his or her view of God, Heaven, Hell, salvation and eternal things. Especially when in the end, the "authoritative" God is killed. Do we really want to contemplate what our society will be like with a generation of children growing up with no respect for God or the Bible and think they just might be able to pull off a "God homicide"? Who among us thinks children should come to the place where their consciences may be assuaged from guilt for wrongdoing (or as the Bible says, sin) by just doing away with God? There is enough of that going on without parents being duped into aiding and abetting the quest for a dead God.

I can tell you, the research I have done tells me that this is not a movie you want your children to see. You might be interested to know at this point that Mike Cherry, owner of the Capitol Cinema in Princeton has had similar concerns about the movie, and has decided not to run the film, although it could mean a loss of revenue to his business. I want to applaud him for this decision, which shows what a real conscience check can do for you. I'm glad that he was more concerned about children being led astray than losing some money. Of course, I was not surprised of his decision. I am sure that in the long run, a commensurate reward will follow. You might want to let him know that you appreciate what he did.

One final word. I think it would be a good time to remember the words of the Lord Jesus concerning leading children astray, or keeping them from Christ. Here is what Jesus said, "Permit little children to come unto me, and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, 'Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God like a little child shall in no way enter it.'" (Luke 18:16-17). Again, He said, "And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hung about his neck, and he were cast into the sea." (Luke 17:2) If the Golden Compass sends just one of these youth or children in the wrong direction, I sure would not want to be Mr. Pullman.

Labels: Kim Reeder

My wife and I are going through this class at church called "Starting Point". It comes with a book and set of cd's originally done by Andy Stanley at North Point Community Church. On one of the cd's today he said one of the most interesting and thoughtful things I've heard in a long time. I listened to it like a hundred times trying to memorize it, so I hope I can do it justice. (I could have written it down but I was too lazy, plus I didn't have a pen handy and it was too much to text into my phone) He says, (and I quote loosely),

"One of the greatest evangelistic tools, that is, one of the greatest environments where non believers can become believers is by being around Christians who are simply being 'Christians'. It is the closest they will ever get to being in the presence of Jesus Christ."

Wow...that's amazing. Did it hit you like it did me? In case you might misunderstand, let me put it in context. He was talking about how it is the responsibility of believers to build healthy relationships with one another becuase it is through followers of Jesus Christ that God continues to work in the world. He was relaying that just as God worked during the time of Abraham, Moses, David, and the Prophets, he now works in the world through Holy Spirit in the church and through His people.

Now please view his statement in this context. He wasn't trying to say that unbelievers were never "in the presence of God" in the sense that God was not "around" them or working "in" them drawing them to salvation. He was simply rephrasing the old adage that "You may be the only Bible another man ever reads". It was just a little more potent.

In other words, there is something supernatural about the healthy relationships that believers have with each other. They truely are "brothers and sisters" in Christ. As a result, the work of Jesus in their lives together and the observations that unbelievers draw as onlookers is one of the most powerful "tools" as he says, to draw unbelievers to Christ. It kinda sounds like something else I once read...

"By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another"
-Jesus in John 13:35

Labels: Kim Reeder

Alex's post got me thinking about the whole "black friday" phenomenon. Having worked in retail now for ten years (yes, what was I thinking?) I experience each year the rush and pandemonium that surrounds this eventful day.

Last year, I arrived at my workplace at five in the morning to meet between ten and twenty people standing at the door in the freezing cold just to get their hands on a massive deal we had on televisions. We didn't even open the doors till six. To keep them happy and to keep them from leaving, my manager sent me to Walmart to buy donuts and coffee. This year wasn't so crazy at a different store where I work...we didn't have any tv's, but some lesser deals that weren't so popular.

I suppose I have mixed emotions about the whole experience. On the one hand, Black Friday creates a lot of excitement for the true "shopper". I've known some people who relish the whole challenge of getting to a store at four in the morning, just to be the first in line. If you are of that thinking, Black Friday is a fun and enjoyable experiences. Just to get home at the end of the day and know you were the "early bird that got the elmo" is somehow satisfying. It's the whole "thrill of the hunt" idea. Somehow I think these people would be the ones who, if they lived in the country, would pull up at your house at six in the morning in their pick up truck, get you out of bed, just to show you that big 12 point buck they got on the first day of deer season. Where else in our society can we get that kind of rush? Except maybe in trying to beat the other drivers to the nearest parking spot?

Then there's the matter of stewardship. Say I wanted to buy my wife a new leather jacket for Christmas. Would it be better to spend 200.00 dollars on a regular priced one or 50.00 between the hours of five and eleven am on black friday on a special buy? Or say I needed a new saw from Home Depot. I can pay 99.00 everyday or 59.00 on T-giving weekend? I know which I'm choosing.

On the other hand, there's the danger that Alex mentioned in his previous post. We live in the most blessed nation in the world, yet marketing gurus know how to get under our skin. Flashy ads convince us there's one more gadget we can't live without. So, this hype and frenzy builds in our minds to the point that instead of spending Thanksgiving day actually being thankful, we spend it pouring over Black Friday ads planning where we're going to be at 4 am the next day.

One more little tidbit. Ever wonder why it is that most of the "special" deals at retailers are usually "while supplies last" and if you show up on Saturday they'll be gone? I'll tell you. Many of the black friday specials are "one time only" deals. Some of that stuff is regular stuff reduced for the weekend, but most of it just comes in for that day. Retailers know that if they lived on those specials, they would go out of business. They are just "teasers" to get you into the store. They know that if you'll get to their store first, you won't go somewhere else, and after you've "saved" your money on that special buy, you'll often "spend" your money on something else because "oh, well we're already here, and look at that other great deal!" So, like Alex indicated. Let's keep it in perspective.

Labels: Kim Reeder

What an honor it is to be a part of this team blog. An honor, and an irony. . . considering I absolutely, positively, without a doubt HATE coffee. I do like the smell of the beans, but other than that, I just can't do it. I'll admit I tried.

When my grandfather was alive he always offered it to me when I went to his house. I tried sugar and lots of it. It might as well have been coffee flavored corn syrup. I tried lots and lots of milk or cream. I even tried three quarters milk to one quarter coffee with a ton of sugar. Yeah. Nothing. He loved coffee so much that he would make a pot in the morning, and then just leave it on the table all day, and yep, drink it all day. I didn't like it in the morning, much less in the afternoon.

Of course anyone who knows David knows that he's one of the best at preparing a good steamy cup of Joe. When we lived in Louisville, it was for that reason alone my wife loved going to the Price's house for dinner because he made such good coffee afterwards. And yes, he offered to make me a watered-down weeny version of espresso just to try to get me hooked but I always resisted. I would make a horrible missionary, you know, eating and drinking the local fare...especially if it was coffee. Fortunately, our friendship was never based on a like or dislike of coffee so when we met at the coffee shop he drank coffee, I drank vanilla chai and he made fun of me. But that's ok. I'm comfortable in my non-coffetic lifestyle. (Did I just make up a word?)

Then there's my wife. She happens to love coffee, which works out great for me because she makes it, I can smell it, don't have to touch it, and don't have to feel guilty that a pot of coffee was made that I didn't drink. That is, until the pot sits on the counter for a week and turns into a green science project...then well, it's time to do something. There's nothing like waking up and saying, "Hey baby, could I have a steamy cup of penicillin?" I don't think they serve that at Starbucks. But I digress.

On the other hand, I am hooked on caffeine. Coka cola caffeine. I can easily down four or five a day like it's nothing. I'm talking about a serious problem here folks. If you own stock in Coke, I've quite possibly made you rich. I'm contributing to your retirement as you read this. Just the thought of a can popping open makes me salivate.

A new day has dawned though. We went to the store last night and I was out of, you guessed it, Cokes. When I walked down that aisle, thought of the price of gas, and saw a 12 pack for 4.39 or 4.99 or something like that, and I asked myself, "Could this be good stewardship gone bad?" What does it say when it costs less to purchase a gallon of gas (at these prices) than a pack of cokes that I can make disappear in two days? So I did it. I just said "no". That's right. I said no to the temptation. And today you wanna know how I felt? Elated? Victorious? Nah. I had a massive caffeine headache. So when I got home, I downed the closest glass of tea I could find. I could have taken Excedrin which has some caffine in it, but then where would I get a massive load of sugar that I can get with a big ol' glass of sweet tea? I guess I"m just trading one bad habit for another.

Anyway, I think this blog is actually intended for Christian commentary on life which I suppose may not have much to do with my view of coffee. Unless we're going to talk about caffeine addiction as an alternate drug and the hypocrisy of being a non drug user but being hooked on caffeine...but that's just too heavy a topic just before bed time. So anyway, thanks for making me part of this group even though I'm the non-coffee-drinking-non-conformist. So pull up a chair, pour yourself a cup, and let's sit a while. You can drink the coffee, I'll just smell the beans.

Labels: Kim Reeder