10 Shades of Grey

I was asked to repost a previous blog I’d written about the book 50 Shades of Grey, in the wake of the release of the movie and the resulting brouhaha.

Well, if you want to read that post, feel free to click here: http://fragileclayjars.blogspot.com/2012/06/fifty-shades-of-grey-i-jump-into-fray.html

But I have some other thoughts I’d like to share instead…

1.        50 Shades is actually “fanfiction”, initially created by E.L. James as a sexualized version of Edward and Bella from the book Twilight…A book involving a romance between a teen girl and a man who is over 100.  Where was the furor when we allowed our children to ingest THOSE books, supporting the idea that an age gap of 80+ years is fine for our daughters?  Just because Edward LOOKS the same age as Bella doesn’t negate the fact that the relationship borders on pedophilia.

2.       The main character, Mr. Grey, gets his name from a 2002 sadomasochistic movie titled Secretary.  In this movie, the mental illness of the female character is well developed, yet it is billed as a “comedy” on IMDB.  Did the Christian community throw a fit about this movie?

In this scene, Mr. Grey tells her to sit there without moving until he returns.  She stays that way for 3 days.

3.       Boycotting or fussing about a single book or movie (or song, for that matter…) will not change the culture around us.

Remember all the "change" that was created by getting all fussy over this song?  Me neither.

4.       There will always be books and movies about people in broken relationships, because we are broken people living in a broken world.  We are called to act/react in a way that is congruent with both our beliefs and the lifestyle of love Jesus emulated and commanded of his followers.

5.       It is my opinion that the enemy is using an excellent tactic by deflecting Christian time, energy, and passion into piddling efforts which will have no sustainable results.  If you truly care about REAL people caught in destructive relationships, use your time, money, energy to go out there and get involved with a local organization that is down in the trenches.  For example:  Safe Harbor House

6.       Get dirty…meet and talk to people who have been in destructive relationships…both men and women.  Find out the pain behind the behavior, and love the person anyway.  You know, that thing that Jesus was so good at.

7.       If we continue to shout vitriol about people in lifestyles different than ours instead of attempting to understand them, they will look at us and want nothing to do with us.  Is that our ultimate goal as Christians?  It’s not mine.  If a person isn’t yet a believer, what reason would I have to judge their behavior and condemn them?  You don’t hate people into Christ.

8.       Abused boys often turn into sexually aggressive men, which is an issue that needs to be faced instead of crucifying the men for being maladjusted and having PTSD.  I know this is an extremely difficult stance, but somehow we need to find a way to create an environment for abusive men to seek and receive help and healing in an accepting environment.  For example, the Journey to Freedom program provided by CitiLookout http://www.citilookout.org/services.html

9.       It seems like mainstream Christianity has become a litany of items to become passionate “against” instead of “for”.  We are not on the losing side, and we are not on the defensive.  We are warriors, and it’s time to stop acting like we are on a slippery slope, slowly losing ground.  The best way to achieve a positive culture is to create, not destroy.

10.   And just to be a teensy bit controversial (if I haven’t been already), keep in mind that there’s a touch of erotica in the Bible too…

You are tall and supple, like the palm tree, and your full breasts are like sweet clusters of dates.  I say, "I'm going to climb that tree!  I'm going to caress its fruit!"  Oh yes!  Your breasts will be clusters of sweet fruit to me, your breath clean and cool like fresh mint, your tongue and lips like the best wine.