Pop Culture Jesus: Part Three

This may be the last installment of our chronicle. For now I've got pop culture remix of "The Last Supper," an incredibly famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci. Here's the original painting:

Now we have the remixes.

First up is the Pokémon Last Supper.

The Rave Last Supper...

Canine Last Supper?

90s Cartoons Last Supper!

The Rat Diorama Last Supper from "Dinner with Schmucks."

Lego Last Supper.

Video Game Last Supper

South Park Last Supper

Zombie Last Supper

And, finally, Star Wars Last Supper!

I guess I have to say that I'm not surprised that such an iconic painting would be recreated in so many ways. Some of these are a little funny; some a little disturbing. I get the idea that most of the renditions were not created by highly religious artists.

That's all I've got for now.

Pop Culture Jesus: Part Two

The glorious return of the pop culture Jesus chronicles! This time I've got something slightly less offensive than last time. Here are some of the best 'good guy Jesus' memes out there on the internet.

These memes are a little more palatable than the Jerk Jesus memes. They're a little funny with context and they modernize Jesus in a way that appeals to the young'uns of today.

Just as an added bonus, here's a hipster Jesus meme as well:

Pop Culture Jesus: Part One

I'm pretty interested in all the ways that Jesus comes across in pop culture these days. Weirdly enough, Jesus is used as a 'meme' (if you aren't familiar with the term, just look it up on Wikipedia.) Now, most of these Jesus memes are pretty offensive. They're supposed to provide some sort of comedic relief, but it is really easy to find them offensive. That's because they are, in fact, offensive.

Anyway, here's the first set of Jesus memes: Jerk Jesus. It's actually called a different name, but I think it's probably inappropriate to post the name here. I've also blacked out any inappropriate words just for the sake of keeping the offensiveness to a minimum. Most of the pictures were initially art of Jesus inspiring people in every day life, but someone somewhere on the internet decided they'd be better with super-offensive captions. These are some of the more mild variations of the meme.

As you can see, they aren't exactly the most cultured or sophisticated captions. Some audiences may find them funny, but it's curious how easy it is for people in pop culture to mess with a religion. These Jesus memes are scattered across the web and there are tons of people laughing at them... but at what expense?

That's it for the first installment. Stay tuned.

Jesus: Teacher, Messiah... cannabis enthusiast?

I found this gem of an article today and I've got to tell you; this is one of the most un-scholarly yet intriguing things I've read about bible interpretation to date. It seems to be the case that some readers believe that the interpretation of "sweet cane" as an ingredient in Jesus's anointing ceremonies was actually translated wrong. Instead, some say, the words kaneh bosm translate closer to reed or hemp, even going so far to guess that it's the equivalent of the modern word for cannabis in the Hebrew language. Apparently, this group (Canna Central... very official and scholarly) believes that the ingredient used in Jesus's anointing oils was cannabis, thereby explaining the healing effects on people with epilepsy and leprosy (things that can be treated with medical marijuana today.)

I'm not sure I'm buying any of this theory, but it's definitely interesting. The one major pitfall is the fact that the ingredient was used to make an anointing oil, which means it would have never been ingested. So even if hemp had been used in his ceremonies, it wouldn't have given anybody a high.

Good luck Canna Central. I'm sure you'll eventually find another way to fight for your cause.

Catholics and Vaccines

I've always been curious about how the Catholic church feels about vaccinations and why they feel that way. When I was a kid, I used to hear stories about how some religious people would refuse health care altogether because they instead believed in putting their lives in the hands of God. I assumed for a while that this idea of faith must be the reason that the church objects to vaccines.

What I found out, however, is much different. As it turns out the objection does not exist within the idea of vaccinations, but rather in the way that vaccines are created. Many commonly-used vaccines today were made using cells apparently obtained from abortions (stem cells.) Some Catholics believe that the vaccinations are therefore "tainted" because abortions are inherently evil. The Vatican has made no strong comment either way, recognizing that health is an important cause and also that the abortion issue is a big deal for many Catholics. They simply say that parents may or may not allow their children to be vaccinated. Of course, most schools disagree with this idea and some have even barred the attendance of Catholic students who abstained from vaccination on the grounds of  religious belief. It's still an item of controversy.

Here's the news story I read relating to this topic.

Jesus in pop culture (the weird-and-nonsensical-action-guy)

Okay guys. I have a WEIRD one for you.

I stumbled across this video while surfing the web by total accident; let me start out by saying that I have never witnessed something so blatantly nonsensical. There is an evolving modern culture around Jesus that makes him out to be a "Chuck Norris" or "James Bond" -esque figure. That is to say that people like making funny videos of Jesus doing ridiculous action-based stuff. And that's where we get this uh... gem...

The video is all in Spanish, but it has subtitles. It features Jesus accidentally turning Lazarus into a zombie, who in turn bites a bunch of the Pharisees and Romans, who also turn into zombies (I'm still trying to figure out where the cowboy zombies came from.) Jesus and Judas proceed to destroy all the zombies using fish as weapons; Judas is obviously bothered by the bloodshed, but Jesus seems to think it's pretty awesome.

Anyways, I will warn that this has some pretty nasty stuff in it even if the gore effects suck. Enjoy! (or something...)

Speaking in Tongues...

Okay. So I finally looked it up. And speaking in tongues is probably the most unusual concept I've ever heard of.

I stumbled on this video after several others that left me bewildered. As an added twist, a neuro-scientist examines the MRIs of people speaking in tongues. He seems just as confused as I am; the frontal lobe of the brain controlling speech goes dormant while the subjects speak in tongues.

Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah

Kabbalah is basically the word that envelops all Jewish mystic practices. It is considered a theological denomination of Judaism that focuses on human holiness through thought and deeds.

"There are many strands of teaching in the kabbalah. Medieval kabbalists, for example, were wont to speak of God as the En Sof (That Which Is Without Limit). The En Sof is inaccessible and unknowable to man. But God reveals Himself to mankind through a series of ten emanations, sefirot, a configuration of forces that issue from the En Sof . The first of these sefirot is keter (crown) and refers to God's will to create. Another sefira, binah (understanding), represents the unfolding in God's mind of the details of creation, while hesed(loving­kindness) refers to the uncontrolled flow of divine goodness. Most of the sefirot are regarded as legitimate objects for human meditation; they represent a way in which human beings can make contact with God. Through contemplation and virtuous deeds, human beings can also bring down the divine grace to this world." (see Kabbalah link)

I also found this site which describes Kabbalah as "a universal knowledge that has appeared in many forms around the world. Although we use the Hebrew word Kabbalah to describe it, this knowledge is not the property of the Jews or any other group. Kabbalah is also known by other names, such Kalachakra in Tibetan Buddhism. Modern science calls it "physics," but they have not yet discovered the full range of this knowledge. For that, they need to use other instruments that reach far beyond the reach of the physical senses." 

Reading about Kabbalah sort of reminded me of the Gnostic description in the "Christianity: A Global History" textbook. They are somewhat similar, both focused around philosophy, wisdom, and divine truth through human discovery. Interestingly enough, I'm not the first to make this connection: "Kabbalistic Philosophy and Gnostic theology are also occupied with the concepts of Philo. The first of these concepts is Being: abstract, unknown and nameless. The second is disclosure: the concrete which emanates from Being. The return to unity is also accepted to a certain extent, particularly with the Christian philosophers. This return, which is considered third, approaches Logos. [1] According to Philo, Wisdom is the teacher, High Priest, which leads the third back to the first, and thus to the vision (hóros) of God."  

An interesting connection, to be sure. I think that you can find a lot of strange similarities between different sects of Christianity.

The Infancy Gospel (this is fun stuff, guys..)

After hearing a little about young Jesus from the Gospel of Thomas, I decided to read through it for myself. I think it may suffice to say that you should neither try to be a playmate to Jesus or try to teach him the alphabet. Anyways, I picked out some of the most interesting verses and here they are!


"IV. 1 After that again he went through the village, and a child ran and dashed against his shoulder. And Jesus was provoked and said unto him: Thou shalt not finish thy course (lit. go all thy way). And immediately he fell down and died. But certain when they saw what was done said: Whence was this young child born, for that every word of his is an accomplished work? And the parents of him that was dead came unto Joseph, and blamed him, saying: Thou that hast such a child canst not dwell with us in the village: or do thou teach him to bless and not to curse: for he slayeth our children.
V. 1 And Joseph called the young child apart and admonished him, saying: Wherefore doest thou such things, that these suffer and hate us and persecute us? But Jesus said: I know that these thy words are not thine: nevertheless for thy sake I will hold my peace: but they shall bear their punishment. And straightway they that accused him were smitten with blindness. 2 And they that saw it were sore afraid and perplexed, and said concerning him that every word which he spake whether it were good or bad, was a deed, and became a marvel. And when they (he ?) saw that Jesus had so done, Joseph arose and took hold upon his ear and wrung it sore. 3 And the young child was wroth and said unto him: It sufficeth thee (or them) to seek and not to find, and verily thou hast done unwisely: knowest thou not that I am thine? vex me not."

"IX. 1 Now after certain days Jesus was playing in the upper story of a certain house, and one of the young children that played with him fell down from the house and died. And the other children when they saw it fled, and Jesus remained alone. 2 And the parents of him that was dead came and accused him that he had cast him down. (And Jesus said: I did not cast him down) but they reviled him still. 3 Then Jesus leaped down from the roof and stood by the body of the child and cried with a loud voice and said: Zeno (for so was his name called), arise and tell me, did I cast thee down? And straightway he arose and said: Nay, Lord, thou didst not cast me down, but didst raise me up. And when they saw it they were amazed: and the parents of the child glorified God for the sign which had come to pass, and worshipped Jesus."

"XVII. 1 And after these things, in the neighbourhood of Joseph, a little child fell sick and died, and his mother wept sore. And Jesus heard that there w as great mourning and trouble and he ran quickly and found the child dead: and he touched his breast and said: I say unto thee, Child, die not, but live and be with thy mother. And straightway it looked up and laughed. And he said to the woman: Take him up and give him milk, and remember me. 2 And the multitude that stood by saw it and marvelled, and said: Of a truth this young child is either a god or an angel of God; for every word of his is a perfect work. And Jesus departed thence, and was playing with other children."

I found this image online the other day and thought it was definitely interesting. A good comparison to put the ark into perspective.

Apocrypha and Enoch

When we read about Enoch, we learn that he was 'seven generations from Adam' and the great-grandfather of Noah (ever heard of the ark?) What I didn't realize is that there is an entire Book of Enoch, considered apocrypha because biblical scholars do not actually believe that it was written by Enoch [1]. And what is written in the Book of Enoch?

"The Book of Enoch, written during the second century B.C.E., is one of the most important non-canonical apocryphal works, and probably had a huge influence on early Christian, particularly Gnostic, beliefs. Filled with hallucinatory visions of heaven and hell, angels and devils, Enoch introduced concepts such as fallen angels, the appearance of a Messiah, Resurrection, a Final Judgement, and a Heavenly Kingdom on Earth. Interspersed with this material are quasi-scientific digressions on calendrical systems, geography, cosmology, astronomy, and meteorology." [2].

If you follow link #2, you can read the entire book online. Some biblical authors argue that the Book of Enoch is strictly heresy, not having been written by Enoch and therefore completely speculative. But there are interesting theories about what the book teaches, even one that claims extraterrestrials as figuring into biblical history [3]. The Book also seems to draw upon other ancient cultures that are not Christian or Jewish; this alone is enough for some to label it heresy.

Regardless of the Book itself, Enoch in the bible remains an intriguing character. People like the metaphorical idea of "walking with God" in the way that Enoch did; they find it to be a comforting way to see spiritual faith [4]. Enoch seems to embody the way a man should live his life in order to be loved dearly by God. It's too bad the bible gives no specific record of exactly how Enoch lived and attained his status.