Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Great movie.  For those of you able to attend, I truly hope you enjoyed the last day of school for the fall term.  It was an immensely interesting week, full of symbolism and intrigue.  Whether you recall the lecture from Fr. Len or reflect on the movie, the events of the week should have opened your eyes to mysteries of the church and Christianity.

The movie is based on the book by C.S. Lewis.  It is one of seven books he wrote about the land of Narnia.  While in no particular order, the three stories made into movies have focused on the Pevensie children and their adventures in Narnia.  The stories and the movies are full of symbolism depicting Lewis’ translation of his Christian faith.  Once you are aware he is writing about Christianity, it is easier to pick out the analogies, but if you are unaware, the stories are simply good.  They are full of mystery, adventure, and spirit. 

It is believed by many, C.S. Lewis’ intention was to write good stories which would capture the imagination and hearts of readers of all faiths.  He did not want to limit his audience or the impact his stories may have.  He wanted the stories to be read and loved by all people.  The readers would come to love the character of Aslan and look for that kind of character in the real world.  As a result, they would come to find Jesus Christ. 

After knowing the movie is an analogy of Christianity, what symbolism or similarities strike you the most?  (You can use examples from all three movies or the books if you have read them)  Are there any commonalities between the topics Fr. Len shared and the movie?  Now knowing C.S. Lewis was writing about Christianity, does it make the story more or less interesting? 

Pearl Harbor

In the 1930’s and 1940’s the United States chose to operate under the idea of isolationism.  After the fallout of World War I and the immense debt not yet to be fully repaid, the United States was under tremendous pressure from citizens and politicians to take a neutral stance with respect to the break out of war in Europe and Asia.

This proved to be more difficult than thought.  Although the United States could pretend to ignore the issues occurring between Germany, Italy, Japan and the rest of the world, it was a matter of time before we would be forced to choose sides and join the fight.  One primary issue was trade.  International trade was critically important to the financial stability of the country.  Our preferred alliance with Britain and our defense of China showed the Axis powers are true loyalty would one day side with the British.  That being said, it was in the best interest of Germany, Italy, and Japan to keep the United States out of the battle for as long as possible.

This became a greater challenge for Japan than for the other countries.  Japan was highly dependent on the United States for iron and oil.  Both resources were critically important to a country engaged in warfare.  As the Japanese aggression grew in the Pacific, the United States implemented a number of embargoes disallowing the trade of oil with the Japanese.  Our refusal to trade without concessions from Japan was the beginning of the United States entry into the war in the Pacific. 

In November, Japan began plans to attack the United States at Pearl Harbor.  Unbeknownst to the United States Navy, the decision was made to move most of the US fleet to Hawaii in preparation of the coming war.  The United States never suspected or anticipated and attack at Pearl Harbor.  Japan had given no indications of their intentions.   

Early in the morning on December 7^th, the Japanese Navy attacked the American fleet.  By the end of the attack more than 2,000 soldiers and civilians were dead.  Nearly all of our battleships were either sunk or badly damaged.  The next day President Franklin Roosevelt spoke to the American people and to Congress urging the declaration of war.  Three days later Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.  We were now engaged in World War II.

What do you think of the United States decision to stay neutral?  When is it a good time to stay neutral in your life?  What is your reaction to the thoughts of a foreign country attacking the United States?  How should we respond?  Is it different today than in 1941?  If so, why?

Jimmy V Week

“Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.” 

                     Jimmy Valvano, 1993 – announcing the Jimmy V Foundation

December 1-7 is Jimmy V week on ESPN.  You may not know who Jimmy Valvano was, but if you have had the misfortune of knowing someone afflicted with cancer, the odds are he and his life’s mission impacted your life. 

Jimmy Valvano was a successful basketball coach, commentator, and author.  He was a person of strong conviction and personal drive.  At an early age he pulled out white index cards and began to write down his personal goals for life.  He wanted to play high school and college basketball, he wanted to become an assistant coach, go on to become a head coach, cut down the nets in Madison Square Garden and win a National Championship.  At age 36, he was able to pull out those cards and cross off every item on the list.  Throughout his life he developed a personal philosophy which allowed an ordinary man to accomplish the extraordinary.  He once commented, “There are 86,400 seconds in a day.  It is up to you to decide what to do with them.”  Jimmy V chose to cherish and make the most of each one. 

After accomplishing his goals on the basketball court, he explored new directions from writing to commentating.  He was not interested in limiting himself to a single profession.  He embraced diversity in his life and his interests.

In 1993, Jimmy Valvano was given an obstacle that would prove to be his most difficult.  He was diagnosed with cancer.  The cancer proved to be too much for him to personally overcome, but through his vision and passion he has inspired and continues to inspire funding for education and research to cure cancer.  At the time of his diagnosis, cancer was an underfunded and devastating disease.  His charismatic and infectious attitude towards life and easy appeal to people made him an ideal person to raise the awareness of cancer and its impacts on our world and to raise arms to find a way to cure cancer.  While no cure has been found, through continued research many forms of treatment have been developed.  The Jimmy V Foundation has risen over $100 million in the past 18 years to fund cancer awareness and research. 

Jimmy V is an inspiring person.  His attitude towards life, even in the face of overwhelming obstacles is something to admire.   

The URL below is a video clip from the 1993 ESPY awards when he received the Arthur Ashe award for Courage.  During his speech he announces the Jimmy V Foundation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuoVM9nm42E&feature=channel

The URL below is the highlights from the 1983 National Championship.  It was one of the most exciting endings the tournament has ever seen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFolL4Is-sU&feature=related

What do you think of Jimmy Valvano, his life and his mission?  Do you have or are you developing a personal philosophy for how you live your life?  If so, would you mind sharing?  Who inspires you to be a better person?  What qualities do they possess you admire?

President Kennedy is Assassinated

Monday marked the forty-third anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination.  He was shot in the head as his motorcade was driving through downtown Dallas, Texas.    Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the crime and was killed two days later by Jack Ruby as he was being led to jail.  Following the assassination, many have questioned whether Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone or whether it was part of a larger conspiracy.  Regardless, while many will remember the death of John Kennedy, most will remember the way he lived.

Born into a wealthy and famous family, John Kennedy was a privileged youth.  He was well educated at private schools and prestigious universities.  He joined the Navy in 1941 as was sent to the South Pacific during World War II.  He was given command of PT 109 (patrol-torpedo boat).  In 1943 his boat was hit by a Japanese destroyer.  Heroically, he helped many of the marooned crew to safety.  As a result, he was award the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for heroism. (There is a movie about this, PT-109)

After the war, Kennedy had aspirations of being a journalist.  The cries of political life became too strong and in 1946, he ran and won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for Massachusetts.  He began his term in Congress in 1947 at age 29.  He ran twice more before he changed course and ran for U.S. Senate in 1952.  Early in his term as a Senator he was forced to have back surgery.  During his recovery, he wrote his Pulitzer Prize winning biography “Profiles in Courage”.

He chose to run for President in 1960.  His opponent was a well known and former Vice President Richard Nixon.  Kennedy’s youthful and vibrant charisma was a major issue is deciding the election.  This was particularly evident in the first-ever televise debates.  He was elected by a narrow margin of 120,000 votes and became the youngest man ever elected to the presidency.

In his inaugural address he called on all Americans to join together to end poverty, continue the progress of the United States and fight to win the Cold War against communism.  It is here you hear one of his most famous quotes, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”.

He was energetic, decisive, and charismatic.  Although he is one of the most loved presidents of all time, his leadership was at times controversial and he was not liked by groups of Americans and foreign citizens.  Many of the changes he was encouraging were not well received.  It is this controversy which led to many of the conspiracy theories surrounding his death.

Unfortunately, just over 1,000 days into his presidency, he was publicly assassinated. 

What qualities are necessary to be a great and effective president?  How do you think the age of television changed the role of the president and how elections are run?  How do you think the use of television, Internet and instant access to news will continue to shape our world, our leaders, and our ideas?

Harry Potter Release

This week Part I of the seventh and last Harry Potter film is set to release on Friday.  This is the beginning of the end of the tale which has captured the hearts and minds of readers across the world.  The Harry Potter series was written by J.K. Rowling.  The first book was released June 30, 1997.  Since then more than 400 million books in the series have been sold.  The last four books set records for the fastest selling book in history.

Since the first release and their immense popularity, the books, movies and characters have become a part of our culture.  Whether or not you enjoy the story of Harry Potter, it is difficult to deny the impact it has had on our lives.  Many attribute the series with bringing young readers back to books.  It would not be a stretch to state the success of Harry Potter has inspired further young reader book series such as Stephanie Meyers’ Twilight series, Rich Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and the resurgence of C.S. Lewis’ books of Narnia. 

Have you read the Harry Potter books, seen the movies or both?  Do you plan on seeing the Deadly Hallows Part I? What type of books do you enjoy reading and why?  What impact has Harry Potter had on our culture?