The Rabbit Room

One Minute Review: Dark Shadows

by Thomas McKenzie

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp have joined up again, this time for Dark Shadows. Fr. Thomas McKenzie has visited the shadows for you, and he has returned with this One Minute Review. You might want to watch it before deciding to spend the time and money on the movie.

And in case your $14 have not joined the other billion that the movie has already made, check out the One Minute Review of The Avengers: www.oneminutereview.com/2012/05/avengers.html

Christian Storytelling, Part V: Faithful Improvisation

by Travis Prinzi

Part I: The Right Stories
Part II: The Story of God
Part III: The Story of the Scriptures
Part IV: The Biblical Drama

There’s a lot of N. T. Wright talk around here right now, so it seems an appropriate time to continue the series on Christian Storytelling. In the past couple of installments we began looking at Wright’s view of the Bible as an “unfinished drama.” We continue now with an understanding of ourselves as actors in the fifth act.

The Christian story gives new meaning to the old Shakespearian line, “All the world’s a stage.” The world is the stage upon which the drama of redemption takes place. And you and I are players. But we are not merely players. We are the faithful improvisors of the tragic and glorious fifth act of history, trying with all our might to remain faithful to the first four acts, as well as the few scenes of the fifth act, that preceded us.

Mother’s Day

by Rebecca Reynolds

I remember what it was like to want a baby.

I remember how it felt to walk through the grocery store
watching others dispose so recklessly
of everything I ached to be.

I remember mothers
(or so-called mothers)
snapping off ugly words
to curly-haired toddlers.

I remember mothers
(or so-called mothers)
sighing in exasperation,
ignoring bundles of angel on earth,
telling them to hush.

I remember seeing from a distance
the wonder of ten little curved fingers,
dimpled knuckles,
wrapped sweetly around a shopping cart handle.

I remember small voices saying,
“Momma, Momma,”
and wondering what unforgivable thing
I had done
to become unworthy of that name.

It has been sixteen years,
but I will never forget Mother’s Day empty-armed,
trying to smile politely,
running to the church bathroom,
weeping the long, hard, labor of grief
behind a locked door.

Because of this, I define motherhood
a little differently than most.

I define motherhood
as the womb of creativity
and breasts of recreativity
made full.

Motherhood is an idea fluttering and kicking,
compassion fluttering and kicking,
music birthed,
books nursed,
social healing held upright on wobble knees until it walks,
wounds of the heart and body dressed and bandaged.

Motherhood is entrance into dark rooms
where fright cries out from sleep,
and motherhood is chasing away the monsters.

Motherhood is the renaming of the rejected,
it is the embrace of the lonely,
it is a Saturday picnic packed for the hungry,
it is the rocking of the forgotten
in the lap of an old, sweet song.

Motherhood is the soft, feminine hand of love
on the cheek of the world’s need.

For children are born and tended
in a million different sorts of ways.

The earth cries out,
and here you are to answer.
You are maternity,
and you are beautiful.

N. T. Wright sings The Beatles

by The Rabbit Room

And finally, here’s our video of N. T. Wright serenading us with his (and Francis Collins’) version of The Beatles’ “Yesterday.” Enjoy, and have a great weekend.

Watch the other videos here: Dylan’s “When the Ship Comes In” and Sydney Carter’s “Friday Morning.”

Son of a Gun: A Musical

by The Rabbit Room

Just a few posts below this one, you’ll find Waterdeep (Don and Lori Chaffer) covering Paul Simon. And that’s not all they’ve been up to. In the last couple of years, Don and Lori have been collaborating with Chris Cragin and Steve Day of the New York City theater company Firebone Theatre to develop a musical called Son of a Gun. They hope to premiere the first fully-stage production in New York City later this year and are trying to raise the money to do so on IndieGoGo.

Here’s the hilariously awesome synopsis:

Son of a Gun is a quirky, darkly comic, folk/rock musical that tells the story of Danderhauler Agamemnon Khrusty, the eldest of three sons of Winston and Elmadora Khrusty, and the heir apparent to the throne of the Khrusty family Appalachian band. Danderhauler’s life is dominated by the charismatic personality of his father, a highly- functioning, highly-entertaining alcoholic. When Danderhauler meets the love of his life, Lucy Sunshine, they conspire to free him of the burden of his father’s addiction, but the surprising news of Winston’s tongue cancer thwarts their plans. In exchange for Winston agreeing to have his tongue surgically removed, Danderhauler steps up as the new band leader. As the events that follow spiral out of control, Danderhauler clings to his love for Lucy to keep him upright. When even that window of hope is shattered, Danderhauler realizes that to save his own life another sort of surgical removal is required. He must find a way to confront both his dead father and his own demons. He does both by means of an old fashioned cowboy duel.

If you can help support the project, here’s the link.