Issue23_NovDec06-web

THE PROCUSSIONS BARACK OBAMA BAND OF HORSES FAITH & POLITICS SLUM COMMUNITIES | THE KILLERS | KATE HAVNEVIK | RICK WARREN | MUTE MATH’S LONG-AWAITED DEBUT

GOD. LIFE. PROGRESSIVE CULTURE.

RELEVANTMAGAZINE.COM

MUSE EXPLORES ETERNITY AND THE UNKNOWN

DANIEL NEGREANU HOW CHRISTIANITY HAS CHANGED THE WORLD’S TOP POKER PLAYER

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT’S

TONY HALE THE CAUSE IN D.C.

YEAR IN REVIEW YOUTUBE, TRUTHINESS & ’HAWKS, OH MY!

PLUS: BEN KWELLER DANIELSON SKEPTICISM AND JESUS ISSUE 23 | NOV_DEC 2006

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GOD. LIFE. PROGRESSIVE CULTURE. RELEVANT magazine November/December 2006, Issue 23 Check out daily news, podcasts, music videos and features at RELEVANTmagazine.com CAMERON STRANG Editor and Publisher cameron@relevantmediagroup.com

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Contributing Writers: John Bode, Craig Borlase, John Brandon, Fred Burrows, Aaron Caruth, Joseph Clevinger, Winn Collier, Kent D. Curry, Tim Edwards, Karen Green, Brandon Howard, Eric Hurtgen, J. Christopher Latondresse, Rich Lupman, Josh Orendorf, Greg Owens, Angela Pappas, Lisa Phillips, William Pilgrim, Dave Ramsey, Patrick Reeves, Mark Steele, Alecia Stephens, Jarrett Stevens, Rick Warren, Johnny Weiss

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MUSING THIS CAPTION: Sure, the guys in Muse have a lot on their minds, but the guy on the right really needs to focus.

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2006

16 18 24 44 46 49 50 52 54 56 58 60 64 68

FIRST WORD LETTERS SLICES THE SCENE: RIO REVOLUTION: SLUMS DEEPER WALK JARRETT STEVENS

70 74 82 84 94 96 100

RICK WARREN

PRAYER FOR JUSTICE

THE PROCUSSIONS DANIEL NEGREANU HYBRIDS SKEPTICISM AND CHRIST MUSIC REVIEWS MUTE MATH

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16 ALBUMS YOU SHOULD KNOW

110 112

BOOK REVIEWS

BEN KWELLER AFRICA

FAITH AND POLITICS

Adie, The Decemberists, The Roots, Pillar, The Killers, Lupe Fiasco, The Mars Volta, Copeland

DAVE RAMSEY MARK STEELE

TONY HALE

LAST WORD

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COVER STORY

IN REVIEW A look at the trends that shaped our lives this year.

78 COVER STORY

MUSE

The British space rock trio ponders the unknown.

14

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

9/29/06 10:52:04 AM

CAMERON

STRANG NO REGRETS

THERE’S A BUSINESS COLUMNIST I read regularly in the local newspaper. On Monday night a few weeks ago, she was working from her house writing the next day’s column and fell over with chest pains.

She died of a heart attack at the age of 47.

In what would turn out to be her last column, she reported about the local tourism industry’s recent efforts to advertise more to the gay market and used the column to soapbox against the conservatives in the city who objected. I thought it was odd she’d take such a politically divisive stance in a normally neutral business column, and little did she realize it would be her last words.

In the days since, I’ve thought about her— but especially about her last column. When someone dies unexpectedly, I often wonder what they would do differently if somehow they were able to come back to life. Would they go around living as they did before, or would their understanding of this thing we call “life” be so permanently altered that their time and energies would be focused completely differently? It’s cliché to say that none of us is guaranteed tomorrow, but why do we give such little thought to eternal things?

That’s why I found the Muse interview on page 78 so intriguing. Here’s a group of guys with no Christian faith who are absolutely consumed with questions about eternity and the unknown. They’re looking for hope and answers, but can’t find them. They know that something more, something eternal, is out there, but they don’t know what it is. And here, as a Christian, I have a strong belief in eternal life, but for some reason it doesn’t always affect my daily perspective. Why is that?

16

I wonder how people who don’t believe in God, or believe in Him but don’t really let that belief affect how they live, would be different after seeing Him face to face. And I wonder how people who are passionate Christians would live differently if they saw eternity as well. Think about it—we’d have no more doubt. We would see God in His full power. We would understand His heart and what He wants out of a relationship with us. We’d realize that the God of the Bible is the same today and forever, and it’d probably change our faith, focus and actions a little bit. Passiveness and spiritual neutrality would be completely thrown out the window, and a new passion for the things of God would most likely consume us. If you really think about life in this perspective, Jesus’ disciples start to make a whole lot more sense. They lived with determination and purpose, with no fear of man, taking an eternal perspective in everything they did.

If we knew we were going to die tomorrow, or next month, how would we live today differently? It’s a sobering thought, yet not one that should produce guilt or remorse. The wonderful thing about God’s grace is that it’s always there for the taking. We’re human, and yes, we make mistakes. We squander opportunities. We ignore the spiritual realm. We’re self-centered and get way too tied up on things that are fleeting, but God’s love for us is not conditional.

Life is short, and what we do with our years on this earth will affect eternity. The question is, are we tuned in? Are our hearts beating with God’s? Do we hear His voice? He wants to speak to us.

The good news is we don’t have to wait until we see God face to face to figure out that the Bible is true and actually applies to (and will change) our lives today.

Serving God and living with an eternal perspective doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves on this earth, but truly serving God will forever change our outlook on the things we do, say and pursue.

When looking at life from a hindsight perspective, all of a sudden having the latest phone, climbing the career ladder or pursuing the American dream kind of loses its luster, doesn’t it?

I’m beginning to understand why Jesus lived His life the way He did. He knew He was only here for a short time, and He lived it purposefully to reach people. He formed community. He invested in others. And 2,000 years after He left this earth, His impact is still being felt. Think about the most important things in Jesus’ life: His relationship with the Heavenly Father, investing in those around Him, and letting people know the truth of God’s love. May we posture our lives the exact same way.

I want to live a life with eternal impact—not out of fear of death, but out of a pure desire to serve God and be the person He’s calling me to be. I don’t want to squander the opportunities He’s given me.

Your legacy is completely up to you. Is your life one of impact, love and outward living? Or is it one of selfish ambition, laziness and doubt? I for one want to suck the most I can out of this life. I want to know, love and pursue spiritual things. I want to see God for who He is, and I want to have lasting impact. I want to be used to touch others.

If this were my last column and I died next week, could I step into eternity knowing I did the most I could with the platform God entrusted me with? Did I maximize the opportunities He gave me?

We’re here only for a short time. We each need to make a difference and have lives of importance and passion. We need to live today like it’s our last—with no regrets—because, after all, none of us is guaranteed tomorrow. 0

CAMERON STRANG is the president and founder of RELEVANT Media Group. Though he realizes that the new NBA season isn’t all that important in eternity, he still loves him some Orlando Magic.

FIRST WORD

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“In the spirit of Anne Lamott and Donald Miller, Tara Leigh pours all of herself into Here’s to Hindsight, bleeding pain, beauty and gut-wrenching honesty into every page. And this book is frustratingly good. I actually grieved finishing it, fearing the loss of a friend.”

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After graduating from college, Tara Leigh Cobble set off in her Toyota Camry to become a full-time, touring indie musician. This is the story of that six-year road trip, told with brutal honesty and brilliant humor. She struggles with faith and fundamentalism. She navigates tricky relationships and the postcollege funk. And somehow, somewhere, she learns to trust in the goodness of God.

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COMMENTS. CONCERNS. SMART REMARKS. Send your love and hate mail to feedback@relevantmagazine.com.

I was stoked to open the new mag and see one of my favorite people, Jay Bakker, in your “RELEVANT Nation” article (Sept./Oct. 2006) about people who are changing the world driven by their faith.

Also, the articles about Invisible Children and To Write Love on Her Arms challenged me and made me think. I love this magazine.

—RYAN LANKFORD

Just as any hip, latte-sipping Christian would be, I was pleased to see a good spread on Sufjan Stevens (Sept./Oct. 2006). I just need to say that I think these articles would be much better if they delved into what this creative, engaging artist reads in the morning, or at night, or what movies he looks forward to. —KEVIN JANOFSKI Sufjan told us he couldn’t wait to see Snakes on a Plane.

I am very discontented with the rules of the RELEVANT Nation contest [that ran on RELEVANTmagazine.com in September] that say you have to be a resident of the United States. How about allowing anyone to join in?

This is a global community you are reaching.

Get revolutionized.

—VANESSA AUSTIN, CANADA

We’d love to open it up, Vanessa. But our creative director, Alastair Sterne, is from Canada, and because of some of his past improprieties, let’s just say RELEVANT is no longer welcome there.

Thanks for what you are doing with your magazine and your website. I’m in school getting my journalism degree, and your magazine was what turned me to that. So thanks for that! I’m loving it.

didn’t hold a steady job, was homeless and failed to stay on point when asked a question.

He seemed to be stuck on eating healthy and exercising. Surely He doesn’t expect us to do that, right? This is the first time I have decided not to put RELEVANT in the waiting room in my chiropractic clinic. I consider it a drug-free zone, and I go to great lengths to tear out drug ads. —JENNIFER WHITMAN As a teacher of 14 years who has been diagnosed with ADD, I think it’s interesting that people are fully willing to accept medical diagnosis and prescription medication, but for some reason when some Christians hear about psychological issues and medications that help, they reason that more faith and prayer will fix it. It is frustrating to hear people theorize about things that they know very little about and have never experienced.

The last thing I need is to feel judged about treating my disorder. —WAYNE HERNINKO I wanted to tell you how much I appreciated the “RELEVANT Nation” piece in this last issue (Sept./Oct. 2006). I’m amazed at how many of my peers are rising up to impact the world with the Gospel in such new, creative ways. It’s so exciting to see what our generation is doing to change the world!

Perhaps someone from your staff could send a copy of RELEVANT Nation to John Mayer just to clue him in that we’re not all sitting on our duffs “waiting for the world to change”— we’re doing something about it!

—KATIE HAGSTROM

—ELIZABETH SMITH

RELEVANT Magazine: Steering people toward highly competitive, low-paying career fields since 2003!™ If Jesus were alive today, He would probably be prescribed Adderall (“Wonder Drug,” Sept./ Oct. 2006). He wandered from His parents,

18

If we do get the chance to communicate with John Mayer, we’d rather use it to ask him to stop making music.

I was delighted to see Touchdown Jesus in the last issue, but apparently geography is irrelevant. Touchdown Jesus is, in fact, near Cincinnati but is north of the city on I-75.

(Insert your sarcastic comment in red print here). —BRIAN FERRY Like you can tell us what to do.

Last week, my girlfriend gave me an iPod as a birthday gift, and I soon found the RELEVANT Podcast subscription and became addicted.

Since then, I’ve downloaded every show since July, and I really love the chemistry between the staff and enjoy your insights on pop culture and Christianity. —JOSH ELLIS As you know, Josh, every person who signs up for the podcast helps in our well-documented quest for a No. 1 ranking at iTunes. You hear that? We’re coming for you, Osteen.

I must admit that one of my least favorite parts of my generation is the fact that we are so cynical and think we know everything. So, when I read Cameron Strang’s editorial (“The Most Perfect Generation,” July/Aug. 2006), I was pleased that he pointed it out. As I read, I thought, Yes, yes, you are so right! And then, much to my chagrin, I discovered I was doing the exact thing I dislike in everyone else.

Turns out I know everything, too. Thanks for taking notice. —JILL MCAFEE I have a minor complaint. When news is presented in Slices, there is always sarcasm or witty humor at the end of the news update.

It seems very unprofessional to me. If you are to be taken seriously in the mainstream market, which I believe you are making a lot of headway with, I think it is important to exercise a little more professionalism.

—JONAH MCDONOUGH

We tried exercising professionalism in 2004.

Didn’t really work for us.

LETTERS

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BARACK OBAMA • CHRIS TUCKER • JACK BLACK

ENIGMA

OF THE STATE IT’S DIFFICULT to get a clear read on Barack Obama.

The Democratic senator from Illinois has caught the attention of conservatives and liberals alike with his call for bipartisanship, his personal charisma and his immense popularity. In fact, Obama has drawn so much attention that before the close of his fi rst U.S. Senate term, he is already being touted as a presidential contender. Though Obama has stated unequivocally that he will not run in 2008, he has not denied speculations of a future presidential bid.

In June, Obama drew even more attention when he spoke of his personal faith at the “Call to Renewal” conference in Washington, D.C. Telling of his salvation experience which took place at a church in Chicago, Obama said, “Kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side, I felt that I heard God’s Spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth.”

He urged Democrats to no longer shy away from conversations about faith in the public arena. “We make a mistake when we fail to acknowledge the power of faith in people’s lives,” Obama said.

Yet, for all of Obama’s statements of faith, he has come under criticism from evangelical Christians for many of his left-leaning policies, including a prochoice stance on abortion. He has also raised eyebrows with his seemingly pluralistic views. Obama believes all paths lead to God and does not believe in hell, according to an article in the Chicago Sun-Times.

With statements of strong evangelical faith coupled with some policy stances that critics say don’t line up, Obama seems somewhat enigmatic from both sides of the aisle.

26

SLICES

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MISC. Software giant Microsoft was embarrassed when its new Vista operating system, touted for its tight security, was hacked at a recent hacker convention.

Although complex programs were employed to breach Vista’s defenses, many say the best way to destroy a Windowsbased computer is to merely attempt to use it ...

CHRIS TUCKER

RUSHES BACK INTO THE SPOTLIGHT Chris Tucker became a household name in 1995 with Friday, in which he played a fast-talking, foul-mouthed, lovable pothead. He then saw a huge boost in stardom when he co-starred opposite Jackie Chan in the box office hits Rush Hour and Rush Hour 2.

However, those are the only two films Tucker has appeared in since 1998. With Rush Hour 3 releasing in 2007, it seems Tucker is on a remarkably slow pace for making movies. But that has been by choice, he says. Tucker has become a Christian and now is much pickier with his roles.

In the meantime, Tucker has been hard at work with philanthropic activities. He started the Chris Tucker Foundation to provide HIV/ AIDS relief and clean water in Africa, and he recently traveled to Africa with U2 frontman Bono. “We went on a fact-finding mission,” Tucker told the New York Post. “Bono showed me a spiritual way to view things and how to use contacts to raise money. After seeing all these people dying, and the lack of clean water, plus the hospitals filled with sick babies, I started the Chris Tucker Foundation to help them.”

He also recently returned to his roots as a stand-up comedian, surprising audience members by headlining some small venues. Though he still has the occasional risque bit, he has notably toned down his act. Tucker says he’s happy to be back on the comedy circuit. “Comedy is like playing golf. If you don’t play every day, after a while you lose a step,” he says.

The Indian capital of New Delhi has monkey troubles. The mischievous primates have been plaguing the city’s subways.

The solution? Larger monkeys. The langur, a fierce larger primate, evidently frightens the monkeys away, and the city has retained a full-time langur wrangler to corral the animals. Delhi Metro Rail Corp. spokesman Anuj Dayal eloquently summed up the complex situation, saying, “There are too many monkeys” ...

NEW LEASE ON LIFE Tired of the drudgery of a rich life surrounded by loving family and friends? Now, there’s Second Life! Second Life is a massive online 3-D world. It allows players to create a character and interact with others. Players in Second Life are represented by digital characters that they can model to look like themselves (although, seeing the denizens of Second Life, it’s hard to believe there are that many attractive online gaming enthusiasts). Many media outlets have been taking advantage of the game’s growing popularity. Bands like Duran Duran have performed digital concerts, and Fox even held a Second Life red carpet premiere of X-Men 3. Critics of the game say it blurs the lines between fantasy and reality.

But we all know it will never match the gritty realism of Ms. Pac-Man.

TENACIOUS G-O-D

Simple Life star Paris Hilton said in a recent interview that she has committed to abstinence for the next year. Now if she would just commit to abstaining from singing or making public appearances ...

Comedian and actor Jack Black recently played King Herod in a concert performance of the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar.” The concert was held to raise funds for YouTHeatre America, a theater program for at-risk kids.

Black is an alumnus of the program. The actor is best known for his comedic work in films such as Nacho Libre and his involvement in the metal satire band Tenacious D, whose new movie Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny (and corresponding soundtrack) releases in mid-November. Black shared the stage with the show’s original Jesus, Ted Neeley, and famed dancer Ben Vereen as Judas Iscariot.

Although “Jesus Christ Superstar” has been widely praised as a classic musical, it’s not the greatest story ever told. It’s just a tribute.

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ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT • SUMMER CONTEST WINNER

MISC. A manatee was recently spotted in New York’s Hudson River. The marine mammals usually prefer much warmer climates, but marine biologists say that this errant sea cow may have been looking to have words with comedian and NYC resident Jim Gaffigan ...

According to a recent TIME article, Christians comprise about 5 percent of the Chinese population, or around 65 million people.

Those numbers are continuing to grow by the thousands every day ...

REDUCING YOUR

CARBON FOOTPRINT Your carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide, the most prevalent and dangerous man-made greenhouse gas, that you release into the atmosphere on a yearly basis. Americans have the largest average carbon footprint on earth.

The average American releases 22,000 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere every year, more than citizens of any other country. By comparison, the average Canadian releases 10,000 pounds of CO2 per year. Here are some simple steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint and help the environment you have to live in.

• Turn off your electronics when you aren’t using them. This will significantly lower your footprint and your power bill. Unplug them; as long as they are plugged in, they still draw power.

• Walk or bike on short trips around town, carpool to work and buy a small car or hybrid for your next automobile purchase. A hybrid can cut up to 16,000 pounds of CO2 emissions per year.

• Turn down your thermostat a few degrees in the winter and up a few degrees in the summer.

• Buy local produce; less distance driven to deliver your food to market means less emissions.

• Keep your car tuned up, with good oil, good filters and fully inflated tires. These tips give you better fuel economy (which saves you money) and fewer emissions (which saves you a planet).

• Offset what you can’t reduce. Go to NativeEnergy.com or Carbonfund.org and donate money to natural energy projects to offset your emissions.

SOURCE: www.carbonfund.org, cdiac.ornl.gov

AND THE WINNER IS ...

MER SUM EST T CON NER N I W

BATMAN?

????

BUDGET CUTS: The new Batman movie is forced to scale back special effects.

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Actor George Clooney teamed with Nobel Prize-winning author Elie Wiesel in September to address the U.N. Security Council, urging action to end the genocide taking place in Darfur, Sudan ...

A couple of issues back, we threw down the gauntlet and laid a summer challenge to RELEVANT readers. We gave you 10 tasks to complete during your carefree summer months, but we needed photographic evidence (the honor system means nothing to us). Even better, our favorite entrant would win a video iPod. Though many of you rose to the occasion, one reader went above and beyond. Samuel Adebiyi, you blew us away. Not only did you complete each of the tasks, you did so while dressed as Batman (with no explanation why). We were all very impressed. Impressed and a little terrified. You can check out more of Samuel’s sweet, contest-winning pics at RELEVANTmagazine.com.

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“Crowder and Hogan masterfully address both sides of the phrase ‘high lonesome.’ Their book is as hilarious as it is heartbreaking. Until we can vote Ralph Stanley for president, this study of death, the utterly absurd appearance of chickens and why bluegrass is secretly the most important achievement of Western civilization will do quite nicely.” —ANDREW BEAUJON, author of Body Piercing Saved My Life

In an honest, profound look at the connection between death, the soul and bluegrass music—that’s right, bluegrass music—best-selling musician David Crowder comes to terms with a Savior who understands suffering and a God who grieves.

From exploring the death of the soul in mainstream culture to uncovering slave spirituals in the DNA of bluegrass, Crowder discovers that grief is one of the truest ways to follow Jesus ... and realizes that death is not the ultimate calamity.

David Crowder*Band B COLLISION or (B is for Banjo), or (B Sides), or (Bill), or perhaps more accurately (...the eschatology of Bluegrass)

WWW.DAVIDCROWDERBAND.COM WWW.EVERYBODYWANTSTOGOTOHEAVEN.COM

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DANIELSON • KID ’N PLAY • WEEK OF PRAYER IN LONDON

WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED TO ...

Kid ’N Play THEN

DANIELSON Daniel Smith is in some ways the godfather to the modern neo-folk revival being thrust into the forefront of the pop-music landscape by indie icon Sufjan Stevens and company. Long before Stevens and the Illinoisemakers swooned the critical elite with cheerleading uniforms and multi-instrument sing-alongs, Daniel Smith (better known as Danielson) was dressed up like a giant tree, creating innovative art-house folk-rock with a network of friends and family.

It was through this songwriting collective that he met Sufjan Stevens, who was then an unheard-of Hope College student with “a box of CDs under his bed,” at a music and art festival he describes as a “Christ-centered ruckus.” And like many in the Danielson circle, a friendship blossomed into a creative relationship, and collaborations followed.

Danielson’s latest album Ships, which received rave reviews and is one of the hipster darling albums of 2006, is a tribute to the friends and fellow musicians with whom he has worked throughout his 10-year career. “It’s an album about relationships, and the best way to talk about that is to actually work with a lot of people,” he says.

The outcome is a colorful collage of songs and collaborations with a list of artists that includes Deerhoof, Sufjan, Half-Handed Cloud and others in celebration of art, music and the beginning of a movement. —JESSE CAREY

SOBERING FACT #23

The Power of Giving If Christians had given the traditional 10 percent tithe of their income to their churches in 2004, instead of the 2.56 percent that they actually gave, there would have been an additional $164 billion available, according to a report released in October called “The State of Church Giving through 2004.” If the churches chose to funnel just $70$80 billion of that additional income to missions and humanitarian works, the basic needs of every person on the globe would be provided.

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A wholesome, teen-friendly rap group known for their blistering dance moves and Kid’s majestic, towering coif, Kid ’N Play dominated the “wholesome rappers turned buddy comedy stars” scene of the early ’90s. The duo showed their artistic range in varied and multifaceted film projects such as House Party and House Party 2. In the mid-1990s, Christopher “Kid” Reid and Christopher “Play” Martin kick-stepped their way into the sunset as they amicably parted ways.

NOW After the harsh light of morning was cast on their many Pajama Jammy Jams, Kid turned his eye to television appearances with guest-starring roles on a variety of sitcoms. Today he works as a standup comedian in Los Angeles. After the duo split, Play started a House Party with Jesus, becoming a Christian and briefly teaming with Evander Holyfield to produce a variety of Christian hip-hop acts. He now resides in Durham, N.C., where he owns a media production company.

‘THE SPIRIT IS MOVING IN THE NEW EUROPE’ Last year, 2,000 British twentysomethings gathered to talk and pray through the streets of London at an event called “Jesus Christ the Fullness of Life” during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Inspired by this event, several organizers have created an ongoing prayer event called “Jesus Christ the Fullness of Life: The Prayer Continues” for young adults ages 16-30 that began in October.

“The Spirit is moving in the new Europe, and I very much look forward to this new initiative which will bring young people together from around London to pray together inspired by the Gospel,” the Rev. Richard Chartres of the Anglican Diocese of London told England’s Christian Today.

The group meets on the first Thursday of each month at St. Andrew’s in Holborn Circus, London, at 7:30 p.m.

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RELEVANT AD TEMPLATE.indd 5

9/20/06 5:10:22 PM

MUSLIM DATING • BUY YOUR OWN CHURCH • JESUS IN THE NEWS

MUSLIM SPEED DATING MISC. For Muslim families from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, life in the United States poses quite a few obstacles to the long-held tradition of arranged marriages. The idea of dating, even with the intent to marry, is considered taboo. Even the word itself is equated with premarital sex. Attempting to retain certain conservative traditions of Muslims (like abstinence and a ban on alin the U.K. are married cohol), many parents are organizbetween the ages of 16-24 ing alternative gatherings to help their offspring hook up. Called “Helal dating” or “matrimonial of Christians in banquets,” the events look and the U.K. are married operate like speed-dating events, between the ages of 16-24 according to a feature in The New

22% 3%

York Times, but accompanying the SOURCE: www.statistics.gov.uk singles are their parents, who still want the sense of control in what one panelist at a dating seminar at the largest annual Muslim conference in North America called “assisted marriages.”

SOURCE: “It’s Muslim Boy Meets Girl, but Don’t Call It Dating.” The New York Times, Sept. 19, 2006

TAKIN’ IT TO THE HOLE-Y Earlier this year we reported on Milwaukee Bucks guard Michael Redd buying a church in Columbus, Ohio, for his father. Now making it a bona fide trend, Dallas Mavericks guard Jerry Stackhouse recently bought a church as well. In August, Stackhouse purchased House of Hope Free Will Baptist Church for his mother, Rev. Minnie Stackhouse. The church is located in an impoverished area of Kinston, N.C. We’ve seen the two tussle on the hardwood, but how do their churches stack up? We take a look at the stats to see whose vertical leap is bringing him closer to God.

JESUS IN THE NEWS JESUS A TERRORIST? An Anglican chaplain drew criticism after likening the Islamic terrorists who bombed London’s Tube in July of last year to Jesus cleansing the Temple with a whip.

Canon Philip Gray said the extremists shared the same passion and religious fervor that led Jesus to overturn tables and drive out moneychangers.

RACIALLY MOTIVATED?

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MICHAEL REDD

JERRY STACKHOUSE

Team: Milwaukee Bucks Nickname: Redd Hot Height: 6 ft. 6 in.

Weight: 215 lbs.

Career Points Per Game: 19.3 Career Shooting %: .451 Conference: United America Free Will Baptist Church Seating Capacity: 500 Cost: Estimated $1.2 million

Team: Dallas Mavericks Nickname: The Student Height: 6 ft. 6 in.

Weight: 218 lbs.

Career Points Per Game: 19.9 Career Shooting %: .409 Conference: Ohio United Church of Christ Church Seating Capacity: 300+ Cost: $500,000

Color of the Cross, a new independent film, looks at the possibility of Jesus’ crucifixion being racially motivated. The film portrays Jesus as a Jew of African descent.

Filmmaker and star Jean-Claude La Marre says the concept of Jesus as a light-skinned man stems from European artists’ depictions. “I did not introduce race into this issue,” Lamarre says. “Da Vinci did.”

A British filmmaker has sparked controversy after making a documentary-style movie about the fictional assassination of President George Bush. Death of a President, which depicts Bush being killed after giving a speech in Chicago, will air on British TV. The White House said that they would not dignify the film with a response ...

The Flaming Lips are set to release a live DVD of concert performances this November. Among the more bizarre special features is footage of a high-school commencement address given by lead singer Wayne Coyne at his alma mater in Oklahoma City ...

Actor Russell Crowe was disturbed by rumors that he was slated to play Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin in an upcoming biopic.

“This is my friend,” Crowe told CNN. “I’m not doing business over the grave of my friend” ...

POPE FACES IT Pope Benedict XVI made a pilgrimage to a small sanctuary in Manoppello, Italy, which houses a piece of cloth said to have been used to wipe Jesus’ face.

The cloth, known as the “Veil of Veronica,” bears an image that appears to be Jesus’ face. The pope did not comment on the relic’s authenticity, instead saying that his trip served as a reminder to “try to better know the face of our Lord, so that from it we can find strength in love and peace that can show us the path.”

A recent study found that celebrities are more likely to be narcissistic. Many celebrities responded by saying, “That’s boring. Let’s talk about me!” ...

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KATE HAVNEVIK • RELEVANT TV’S TOP TEN

MISC. A Finnish opera singer was injured while cycling when a squirrel ran into his bicycle spokes and flipped his bike.

The singer suffered a broken nose in the fall. This goes to prove the age-old theory: squirrels hate opera ...

KATE HAVNEVIK While growing up in Oslo, Norway, singer Kate Havnevik always thought she wanted to be a classical or jazz musician. But the experience she gained as a teenager in an all-girl punk band changed her perspective.

“It was just a natural development, moving from classical to jazz, then punk to folk, then rock to electronic,” Havnevik says. “At that age I wanted to be so many things, and there was a constant curiosity toward new things. I think it is good to move forward and not stick to the same thing forever.”

Havnevik has had the opportunity to continue to expand her musical horizons, working on three sonically different albums simultaneously as well as having a hand in the creation of albums by Royksopp, Carmen Rizzo and Noel Hogan.

“I am not surprised [that] I am doing so many different projects.

The real reason behind it is that I have written so many songs during the last years, and now I am really creating outlets for all these songs.”

Havnevik’s first album, Melankton, is set for an official release this fall on her own record label, Continentica, and she hopes to release the other two albums in the near future.

“I can’t put 50 songs on one album, so I’ve been making plans for several different albums. I am hoping to be able to create a distinct sound for every project or album I make.” —DANNY MILLER

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Hip-hop performers Three 6 Mafia are in trouble because of a lawsuit filed by a fan who was beaten during one of their shows. Ramone Williams alleges that during the band’s song, “Let’s Start a Riot,” concertgoers did just that. Williams was thrown on the floor, hit with a chair and kicked in the face in the ensuing melee. Williams did, however, express gratefulness that the band didn’t follow up the song with their hit, “They Bout to Find Yo Body” ...

Rapper Mos Def had a run-in with the law after a performance outside New York’s Radio City Music Hall.

While performing his song “Katrina Clap,” meant to raise awareness for those still suffering in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Mos Def was arrested for not having a permit, though he shut down his performance as soon as he was made aware of the situation ...

Regina Spektor

VIEWER

TOP TEN 1. Regina Spektor “Fidelity” 2. The Forecast “And We All Return to Our Roots” 3. Showbread “Oh! Emetophobia!”

4. Second Monday “Mono Injection” 5. Edison Glass “This House”

6. Nevertheless “The Real” 7. The Album Leaf “Always for You” 8. The Format “The Compromise” 9. Superchic[k] “We Live” 10. Jet “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is”

RECENT RELEVANT.TV

SPOTLIGHT VIDEOS

The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus “Face Down”

The Format “The Compromise”

Angels and Airwaves “Do It for Me Now”

Ben Folds “Jesusland”

Mars Ill “When Heaven Scrapes the Pavement”

Thom Yorke “Harrowdown Hill”

Tune in to music that matters every day at www.RELEVANT.tv. New videos are added every Wednesday, so take that!

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BAND OF HORSES • RELEVANTMAGAZINE.COM POLLS

MISC. Malaysia will send its first astronaut into space next year. The primary purpose of the mission is to study the effects of zero gravity on tea making.

Malaysian officials said they decided on this experiment because they wanted to find a new useless thing to do in space ...

BAND OF HORSES AND SOMETIMES DOGS: (L-R) Ben Bridwell, an unidentified fan, Mat Brooke

BAND OF HORSES There are two things Band of Horses frontman Ben Bridwell loves: songwriting and baseball. If you ask him to choose between the two, he’ll most likely pick music, but that may depend on how well the Mariners are playing.

“I played baseball for 12 years; it’s my favorite thing in the world, besides music,” Bridwell says. “As I grow older, I become more obsessed. I’m a die-hard Mariners fan, no matter how bad they are sometimes.”

With Band of Horses’ debut record Everything All the Time garnering outstanding reviews and a national tour with fellow Sub Pop labelmate and close friend Sam Beam (Iron & Wine), Bridwell’s got more going for him than a love for the game.

“It’s mind-blowing in some senses,” Bridwell says. “All of a sudden you wake up one day and it’s happening.

Everything has exceeded my expectations so much. The songs were really just writing themselves, and I guess I realized I could be a vessel for it.”

The Seattle-based duo of Bridwell and Mat Brooke isn’t slowing down anytime soon. They’ve spent their time off rehearsing and writing songs for the release of their next album.

“It’s really just a matter of survival for me; there’s nothing else I feel qualified to do. My motivation is simply that I have to get it out or I go crazy. At about 21, I started to get a hunch that I was supposed to be doing music. I haven’t stopped since.” —JOSH ORENDORF RELEVANT MAGAZINE .COM

NAME A SITCOM YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE A REMAKE OF?

HOW MANY SODAS DO YOU CONSUME EVERY DAY?

WHAT RETRO FILM SHOULD BE MADE INTO ANOTHER SEQUEL?

Blossom Alf Full House Perfect Strangers Hanging with Mr. Cooper

I don’t drink soda 1-2 I really, really like soda 3-4 More than 5

Back to the Future Ghostbusters Airplane!

Jaws “Crocodile” Dundee

Total votes: 3,942

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WE ASK STUPID QUESTIONS, YOU ACTUALLY TAKE THE TIME TO ANSWER

32% 23% 21% 15% 9%

Total votes: 2,265

39% 36% 18% 6% 1%

38% 32% 13% 4% 3%

Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z has officially ended his retirement and will release his new album on Nov. 21.

Apparently, bocce ball and wearing socks with sandals weren’t the Def Jam CEO’s cup of tea ...

Keith Ellison, a Minnesota state legislator, is trying to become the first Muslim in Congress.

He has received support from the local Muslim community and has been endorsed by a Jewishowned newspaper in Minneapolis ...

Nintendo announced that its new game system will be in stores by Nov. 19 and will retail for $250, substantially less than its competitors, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The Nintendo console is nicknamed the “Wii,” possibly because the name “Nintendo Incredibly Lame” was already taken ...

Total votes: 3,022

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G O DEEPER

Craig

WITH

And the truth will set you f r e e

Groeschel

Is the real you getting lost because the fake you is just so annoyingly

impressive

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JENNA PRICE-DEY, 22 KITTY LYNCH, 23 DARK ROOM EXPOSURE DARK ROOM EXPOSURE IS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION SEEKING TO END HUMAN TRAFFICKING THAT YOU ARE STARTING. WHAT BROUGHT YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS CAUSE? Kitty Lynch: I was 12 and reading a magazine in a grocery store. It had an article about the sex slave trade in Eastern Europe. Here I was, impatient for my mom to finish shopping, when girls my age were being strapped to beds. I majored in International Politics and learned everything I could.

HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED? Jenna Price-Dey: I joined a company that was working to build a school in Thailand as a place of refuge and rehabilitation for these girls. That’s when I came up with the idea to film a documentary telling the stories of these girls, being able to give a voice to so many kept silent globally.

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS AFTER THE DOCUMENTARY IS RELEASED? KL: I’d love to focus on the rescue side of it. There are some organizations that just need funding to go buy girls out of brothels, then return them to their parents.

JPD: We will also support schools that are a refuge for these girls. We are supporting a team that will be rescuing girls that the government is too busy to rescue. They were tricked into sexual slavery like the majority of women and children are, with the promise of work (restaurants, clothing stores, maids).

WHAT WAS YOUR RECENT TRIP TO THAILAND LIKE? KL: It was nothing like what we expected. The misinformation coming out of Western media concerning Thailand is staggering. We went to Bangkok thinking we were going to uncover child brothels, and we found none. We had to literally throw out all of our research and start from scratch and pray.

Then we found out about girls who were being trafficked in from other countries with the promise of jobs, only to be placed in brothels. We found our story there.

ONLINE BONUS: For information on how to get involved and about the release of the documentary, visit www.myspace.com/darkroomexposure.

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Founding Pastor of the Crystal Cathedral

Dr. Robert H. Schuller presents

A Leader’s forum at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California!

PASTOR BRIAN HOUSTON Largest Church in Australia

Faith Forward doesn’t just stage these

PASTOR ED YOUNG, JR.

forward moving voices – it places them

Creative Church Developer

in dialogue, grappling with today’s issues and tomorrow’s strategies!

BISHOP EDDIE LONG

It turns SKEPTICS into SEEKERS.

Largest Church in Atlanta

Find your place in this emerging Faith Forward movement.

BISHOP KENNETH ULMER, D.MIN., Ph.D. Pastors Church at Great Western Forum

PASTOR MILES MCPHERSON Ministers to Teens Issues

MICHAEL GUILLEN, Ph.D. Emmy Award Winning Scientist

PASTOR CHRIS SEAY Leader in the Emerging Church Discussion

LEONARD SWEET, Ph.D. World Renowned Futurist

PASTOR JUDAH SMITH

RYAN BOLGER, Ph.D.

Inspires Youth with Messages Emerging Church of Faith and Professor at Purity Fuller Seminary

DR. BOB ROBERTS, JR. Church Planting Expert

BOBBY V. SCHULLER Leader of The Gathering at Crystal Cathedral

The Robert H. Schuller Institute for Successful Church Leadership

PASTORS! – LEADERS! – THINKERS! – DREAMERS!

Forum for Possibility Thinking Leadership

www.crystalcathedral.org/faithforward reservations: 714.544.5679 // faithforward@crystalcathedral.org Crystal Cathedral 12141 Lewis St., Garden Grove, CA 92840

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UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF GIANTS • LAME TECH GADGETS • JONNY LANG’S BEST BLUES

TECHNO-FEAR There’s no shortage of cool gadgets out there. However, not all technology is good. This holiday season, make sure not to fall for any of these high-tech blunders.

O-ROKR SUNGLASSES

BY OAKLEY Finally there’s a new way to make yourself look ridiculous! These Bluetoothcapable headphones/ sunglasses stream your iTunes and receive cell phone calls all while drowning out the jeering taunts of onlookers.

PANTECH C300 Guys, if you ever want to strip yourself of your masculinity, pull one of these out of your pocket. A phone so small that Derek Zoolander would laugh at it, the Pantech C300 has a tiny keypad that makes text messaging an exercise in rage.

SEGWAY Yes, Segways are cool. Yes, we all want to look like Gob Bluth. However, Segways were recently recalled for glitches that caused them to shift into reverse without warning. And, at a blistering 12 miles per hour, that can spell disaster.

TICKLE ME ELMO EXTREME Not that you were going to run out and buy a doll, but if you were thinking of giving this as a gift, you may want to reconsider.

The latest iteration of Tickle Me Elmo pounds his knee, falls on the ground, rolls around and then stands back up and stares at you with his cold, soulless eyes. Creepy.

HOT CUBBY USB CUP WARMER This device plugs into the USB port on your computer and keeps your coffee warm.

However, in our experience hot beverages and delicate electronics aren’t really the best mix.

Perhaps the best bet is the ever-dependable, oldfashioned cordless thermos.

NINTENDO Wii OK, so maybe the Nintendo Wii will grow on us, but we’re skeptical. The new console easily sports the worst name for any product, ever. What’s more, we still aren’t sure about playing anything using what looks like a remote control pair of nunchucks.

42

QUEER EYE FOR THE INDIE GUY: (L-R) Jamin Wilcox, Aaron Bruno, Dave Amezcua, Drew Stewart

UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF GIANTS Aaron Bruno is a complete failure. Or at least he was in his high-school Spanish class.

It’s a good thing too; otherwise he may have never met fellow punk-rock enthusiast Drew Stewart, and the L.A.-based dance-rock crew Under the Influence of Giants may never have existed.

“We met in Spanish class,” says Bruno, UTIOG’s frontman. “I was repeating Spanish 101 because I failed it. I was having a hard enough time learning the English language. So we basically bonded over me cheating off him.”

Sporting similar punk-rock T-shirts, the two shared a love for music and eventually joined forces. With the addition of drummer Jamin Wilcox and bassist David Amezcua, UTIOG was prepped and ready.

“We just did it from the ground up,” Bruno says. “We hit the flyers and EPs. Before you knew it, we could sell out the smaller clubs in L.A. We’d been in tons of other bands, but this was by far the best.”

Describing their live show as “The Who getting into a knife fight with Prince,” and citing musical influences in everything from George Michael to Run DMC and Radiohead, UTIOG’s sound is an enigma at best.

“I’m not sure what we are, but it’s just good music,” Bruno says. “A good song is a good song. If we love it and we’re passionate about it, other people will like it. And they have.”

With a major debut self-titled album on the way and a bustling tour schedule in the works, it would be hard to disagree. —JOSH ORENDORF

BEST BLUES Jonny Lang’s album Turn Around (A&M) features the husky, soulful voice and ripping guitar solos he’s been known for since his debut at 15 years old, but this time around the lyrics reflect his newfound faith.

RELEVANT asked the 25-yearold to name his all-time favorite albums that have influenced his signature blues sound.

ALBERT COLLINS Ice Pickin’

ALBERT KING Live Wire/Blues Power

B.B. KING King of the Blues (Box Set)

DOOBIE POWELL The Offspring, Vol. 1

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RELEVANT’S LOOK AT WHAT’S HAPPENING AROUND THE WORLD

Copacabana Beach

RIO

BEACHES

BRAZIL IS A MOSAIC of styles and cultures, and its most famous city, Rio de Janeiro, is no exception. It was founded by somewhat unimaginative Portuguese explorers who entered the Guanabara Bay in January of 1502 and promptly named the city River of January (Rio de Janeiro).

Blessed with ocean, mountains and a multicultural history that spans several centuries, Rio provides something for everyone, whether art lover, historian, athlete or all of the above. But the best thing about Rio is defi nitely the hospitality and warmth of the people.

There is a reason that Rio’s beaches are immortalized in song. Pristine white sand, sun and beautiful temperatures virtually year-round ensure that if you head to the beach, you’ll be where the action is. Play volleyball, soccer or surf. Hang glide from a nearby bluff. Eat in one of the many restaurants or at a “barraca” food stand on the beach. Or just kick back on a blanket and do some people watching with friends.

With a total of 23 beaches to choose ????????????????? from, you’re bound to fi nd at least one that appeals to you. Copacabana is the most famous. Nearby Ipanema and Leblon offer a more relaxed—yet still lively—atmosphere.

HISTORIC WORSHIP If you are into history and tradition, visit a church that has been around since the 18th century. Candelária is one of the city’s best known churches. It has an active ministry serving Rio’s homeless street children and was the location of a massive shooting incident in 1993 that brought worldwide attention to the issue of police brutality toward Brazil’s street children. Or take in a service at the Mosteiro Sao Bento, located north of downtown, which features Gregorian chanting by the monks.

Like the rest of South America, Catholicism is the primary religion in Brazil, but Protestant churches Christ the Redeemer from charismatic to evangelical to mainline are growing fast and providing a worship experience for everyone. For a more contemporary worship service, try the Bola De Neve church in Barra da Tijuca, the youngest neighborhood in Rio. Commonly known throughout Brazil as the “surf” church, worship is a blend of reggae and rock, and the crowd consists mostly of surfers, skateboarders and young Brazilians.

HANG OUT IN BOHEMIAN LAPA The recently renovated Lapa neighborhood was popular in the ’20s and ’30s with the city’s artistic community and has recently become hip again with the young and stylish, offering music, restaurants and a very active nightlife.

Along the main street you’ll fi nd stores and pubs of all kinds—with live music from samba to rock to hip-hop.

Rio at sunset.

SHOPPING Like any major metropolis, Rio has all the international design houses represented; just take a stroll down Garcia D’avila Street. If you are looking for more local flair, Brazil is home to many world-famous designers. Check out swimsuit designer Rosa Chá or the quirky and beautifully crafted style of Isabela Capeto. The upscale retail store Chocolate Flavor carries both.

If high fashion isn’t in your budget, head to the Hype Feira (hippie fair) in Ipanema, one of the many outdoor markets where you can fi nd leather goods, jewelry, clothes and souvenirs. If you’d prefer something indoors, the Barra Shopping Mall is the largest mall in South America.

SUSAN SIMCOX is a writer and publicist in Orlando, Fla. She and her husband try to spend as much time as possible in Brazil working with local churches.

Lapa PHOTOS BY CHAD RILEY

44

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TAKE ACTION AND DO SOMETHING

AGENCY SPOTLIGHT URBANA

SLUM COMMUNITIES

BY ERIC SULLIVAN

WHEN WE THINK ABOUT the truly poor people throughout the world, the first thing that often comes to mind is a rural African village. But this fails to address the issue of the urban poor. More than 1 billion people currently live in urban slums.

Economies of the world have been pushing people to move to cities in search of higher paying jobs. For the first time in history, half of the people on earth dwell in urban environments.

Unfortunately, the infrastructures of these cities are not capable of handling the influx of people.

One-third of the people living in cities throughout the world are living in slum communities.

“There are broken infrastructures all over the world,” said Scott Bessenecker, author of Quest for Hope in the Slum Community: A Global Urban Reader (Authentic and World Vision).

“Beyond the fact that a living wage is not available to at least 2 billion people, there are many in slums who can’t get a small loan, free primary education, affordable housing, waste disposal, clean water; most of these systems are broken in slum communities.”

To North Americans it can be hard to grasp the level of poverty that exists in urban slums around the world. Hundreds of families live together in cardboard or aluminum shacks that are pushed together in areas the size of small parking lots. The creeks that typically run through them serve as the community’s only bathroom, which contributes to an increase in disease in communities that already can’t afford health care.

Escalating unemployment in these cities means that —SCOTT BESSENECKER people living in slums are forced to work difficult jobs for little pay. The appeal of crime in these communities is increased due to the large amounts of money that can be made quickly by selling drugs or through prostitution.

There are a number of things that you can do to aid in the prevention and eradication of this phenomenon. “On the more radical end, you could relocate to a slum community and work with an organization that loves to take people and plant them among the poor as mustard seeds of faith and service,” Bessenecker said. Servant Partners, Word Made Flesh, InnerCHANGE and Servants to Asia’s Urban Poor are some of the many organizations doing this kind of work around the world.

If living in a slum community seems too drastic, there are smaller ways to help. Shortterm mission projects are one way that you can gain experiences living or working in the world’s slum communities without a full-time commitment. Contacting your congressmen and encouraging them to financially support developing countries is another way that you can make a difference in the lives of the urban poor.

“Mostly it’s about binding ourselves to the poor around us, living a life that does not run from the discomfort of being united with the poor, but embracing life alongside desperate people in our own towns,” Bessenecker said. “There is much we can learn from the poor. Still, desperation, poor health, insecurity of housing, human and spiritual oppression has taken a nasty toll on people living in slum communities. We can’t continue along in the American cocoon without investing in some way, small or large, to help people living in intractable urban poverty.”

“WE CAN’T CONTINUE ALONG IN THE AMERICAN COCOON.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION, check out www.RELEVANTmagazine.com/therevolution and The Revolution: A Field Manual for Changing Your World (RELEVANT Books).

46

Urbana is the North American student missions convention hosted by InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

During the five-day convention, attendees can explore short-term and vocational opportunities to serve as they interact with more than 350 mission agencies. The Slum Communities in the Developing World track is designed specifically for attendees interested in urban transformation. Urbana 06 will be held Dec. 27-31, 2006, at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, Mo. www.urbana.org/_u2006.cfm

THE NUMBERS Half of the people in the world live in cities.

By the year 2050 it is estimated that two-thirds of the world’s population, or 6 billion people, will be living in the world’s cities.

1 billion people live in urban slums.

By the year 2030, it is estimated that 2 billion people will be living in slums.

RESOURCES www.unmillenniumproject.org www.urbana.org web.mit.edu/urbanupgrading www.makingcitieswork.org

DIG DEEPER Psalm 113:7-8 Proverbs 28:27 Proverbs 31:8-9 Jeremiah 22:16 Luke 18:22

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING “Slums may well be breeding grounds of crime, but middle class suburbs are incubators of apathy and delirium.”

—Cyril Connolly, British author

REVOLUTION

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CONTEMPLATIONS FOR THE SOUL

Searching the Scriptures

by George Whitefield

JESUS, SCRIPTURE AND TREASURE

BY WINN COLLIER

THIS MORNING, I FOUND my youngest son Seth in the living room, sitting in our comfy khaki chair with a theology book in hand. He held the open book in front of him, staring at the pages as if they had swallowed him up. He would not be distracted. It was quite serious; he was reading. Mind you, Seth is 2.

I cannot imagine what Seth believed he was seeing in the words and the pages, but he was indeed seeing something. He mumbled a line about the picture on the cover and then, without looking up from the text, another line about it being a “scary story.” Actually, the particular volume he held had to do with contemplative theology, seeing Jesus in the everyday world. But Seth would not see Jesus in these chapters. He couldn’t. He didn’t know what to look for.

George Whitefield urges us that while we must be diligent to dig into the Scripture, we must remember what exactly it is we are digging for, what exactly it is we are looking for amid the Gospels and the prophets, amid the Law and the epistles. We are not looking first for a fact or an ideology or a doctrine. We are looking for Jesus, the “treasure hid in the field.” Jesus is the treasure we seek, even if we do not know it.

Often, however, I come to Scripture in search of an answer. Turmoil has arisen, or doubt has taken siege. I might need wisdom for a decision. I might need a biblical response to a cultural issue. And so, to deal with turmoil or doubt, to attain wisdom or a helpful response, I dig into the Bible. If I am unable to locate exactly what it is I have come to find, I am frustrated, angry that God has gone silent. Angry that the Bible doesn’t DIG DEEPER “work” like it is supposed to.

PSALM 40 But if Jesus is the treasure, then Scripture is not ISAIAH 34 first concerned with answering my many questions. It JOHN 5 & 6 is not first concerned with providing me what I insist 1 TIMOTHY 3 I need. Scripture is first concerned with leading me to HEBREWS 1 treasure, leading me to Jesus. The Scriptures lead you to Me, Jesus insisted to a band of religious hypocrites (John 5:39). These hypocrites made much ado about the words transcribed in the Scripture but knew nothing of the Word living in the Scripture. They came to the pages, but they missed the treasure.

But we do not have to miss it. Even if we come searching for the wrong thing, Jesus will appear. We come to the Bible distraught over why evil engulfs us, but rather than learning why, we find Jesus on a cross enduring evil with us. We come distressed over how we can find hope, but rather than discerning how, we find Jesus outside a tomb offering hope to us. In need of forgiveness, I see Jesus stretching out His arms. In need of direction, I hear Jesus saying follow. Parched for life, I encounter in Scripture the Jesus Whitefield knew was “drink indeed unto [our] souls.”

WINN COLLIER is the author of Restless Faith (NavPress).

You may connect with him at www.winncollier.com.

Our blessed Lord was the eternal God; yet as man, he made the scriptures his constant rule and guide. And therefore, when he was asked by the lawyer, which was the great commandment of the law, he referred him to his Bible for an answer, “What readest thou?” And thus, when led by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil, he repelled all his assaults, with “it is written.”

But how few copy after the example of Christ? How many are there who do not regard the word of God at all, but throw the sacred oracles aside, as an antiquated book, fit only for illiterate men? Such do greatly err, not knowing what the scriptures are ...

[They were] given us for no other end, but to show our misery, and our happiness; our fall and recovery; or, in one word, after what manner we died in Adam, and how in Christ we may again be made alive.

“Search the scriptures,” says our blessed Lord, “for they are they that testify of me.”

Look, therefore, always for Christ in the scripture. He is the treasure hid in the field, both of the Old and New Testament. In the Old, you will find him under prophesies, types, sacrifices, and shadows; in the New, manifested in the flesh, to become a propitiation for our sins as a Priest, and as a Prophet to reveal the whole will of his heavenly Father.

Have Christ, then, always in view when you are reading the word of God, and this, like the star in the east, will guide you to the Messiah, will serve as a key to every thing that is obscure, and unlock to you the wisdom and riches of all the mysteries of the kingdom of God. [As you ask Jesus to guide you], you will, with a holy violence, draw down God’s Holy Spirit into your hearts; you will experience his gracious influence, and feel him enlightening, quickening, and inflaming your souls by the word of God; you will then not only read, but mark, learn, and inwardly digest what you read: and the word of God will be meat indeed, and drink indeed unto your souls.

From Whitefield’s Sermons, “The Duty of Searching the Scriptures,” Christian Classics Ethereal Library, www. ccel.org.

ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to dig deeper with discussion questions and see RELEVANT book recommendations.

DEEPER WALK

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JARRETT STEVENS

GAMBLING ON GOD I FIRST ENCOUNTERED the thrill of legalized gambling when I was 11. I was with my family, and we had a layover at the Las Vegas airport. The airport was stocked with slot machines, row upon row of them.

I couldn’t believe when my dad gave my brother Justin and me a handful of quarters and told us to knock ourselves out.

Having grown up on video games and Chuck E. Cheese tokens, the concept of a slot machine didn’t take long for me to grasp. Put your money in, pull the shiny lever and wait to see if the cartoon fruit match up. If one of these fruits is not like the other, you lose.

But if all three match up, ka-ching! I don’t remember winning much, but I do remember the feeling of exhilaration that comes from gambling, and the confidence that comes from gambling with someone else’s money.

At the Christian college I attended, I had to sign an agreement that said I wouldn’t use “face cards,” the administration’s attempt at keeping students from gambling. My friends and I got around that pretty easily. We took the game “Pass the Pigs” and figured out a way to gamble with that.

The closest I get to gambling these days is eBay. And while I’ll never understand why anyone would watch gambling on TV, I do understand why so many people love to play.

50

It’s the risk, the thrill, the feeling that against all odds and statistical probability, you’re a winner!

On a much larger scale, life can often feel like one big gamble. You win some, you lose some, right? Maybe your story has been one of wins. Maybe losses. Probably somewhere in between. But odds are that however you have fared, it’s greatly affected your opinion and perception of God. If you have come out ahead, then it’s probably not all that hard for you to trust God. If it feels like you’ve had more losses than wins, then it is fair to assume you are reserved when it comes to trusting God. You have to wonder where God is every time you win or lose in your life. What is God’s involvement in every blessing, every catastrophe, every good day, every bad day, every great parking spot, every failed relationship? Is it all just random? Is it all His doing? These are questions that shape us.

I have been perplexed as to how and why things work out the way they do. I’ve wondered why everything seems to go right for some people while others are drawn to hard times like a magnet in a junkyard. Why does the lot of one’s life come down to something so simple and out of control as the color of their skin, their gender, the country they were born in, the family they were born to?

The seemingly randomness of God led me to believe at a young age that you should always hedge your bets and play it safe, or you could lose it all. So when it came to dating, I would only go out with the girls that I thought were sure bets.

When it came to choosing a college, instead of applying to larger schools where there were greater odds of being rejected, I went to a local college where just about everyone gets accepted. It was just like high school, only with ash trays.

For most of my life I’ve tried playing it safe, never winning big, but most importantly, never losing it all. I’ve tried to contain and control the seemingly randomness of God the best I could, but girls still broke my heart, friends still hurt me, loved ones still died and God still seemed to act however He wanted.

Deep down I hoped that God was at least somewhere between random and responsible. That the odds in this life are not “controlled by the house” (God) but the direct effects of sin and free will. Through the wins and losses in my life these last few years, I’ve come to realize that I will never understand where God is at in it all, and that’s OK. What’s more important is that He is with me. That’s what I’m betting on.

I’m beginning to see that of every person I have ever known in my life and of every story I have ever read in the Bible, those who play it safe in life never really live; those who hedge their bets on God never really know Him. No matter how hard they try to play the odds, they never truly win.

It’s no different for you and me. There is a risky opportunity that God has given us. The cards are on the table. Will you take all that you have and all of who you are and let it ride on God? He gives no guarantee that you won’t be hurt or suffer or take some losses, but He does promise you this: He loves you, He knows you, He is with you, and ultimately you win. 0

JARRETT STEVENS is director of the college and singles ministry, and teacher for 7|22 at North Point Church in Alpharetta, Ga., where he lives with his wife, Jeannie, and their son, Elijah. He is also the author of The Deity Formerly

Known as God (Zondervan).

STATEMENTS: JARRETT STEVENS

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RICK WARREN FOUR ATTITUDES THAT PRECLUDE RELEVANCE

RELEVANCE IS a slippery concept.

Seems like everywhere I turn people are engaged in intense discussions about what it means for the Church to be relevant in today’s broader society. A lot of those discussions turn into heated debates because our ideas about relevance are so very different.

But even if we aren’t unanimous about relevance, most of us understand irrelevance.

You don’t have to be a genius to recognize how some churches have retreated into isolation from today’s culture because they think the 1950s or the 1980s was the golden age of the Church, and they are determined to preserve that era. (At Saddleback, we wrestle with our tendency to become settled in our own “innovative” ways.)

As I’m thinking about this today, a question comes to me: Can we call ourselves relevant if we are ignoring the greatest crisis people face today?

Over the past 25 years, nearly 65 million people have been infected with HIV and an estimated 25 million have died of AIDSrelated illnesses. Today, about 40 million people live with HIV, and 16 million children 52

have been made orphans by AIDS. Sixteen million orphans! HIV is an evil virus, and a Church that isn’t fighting it can’t pretend to be relevant in today’s world.

As evil as the virus is, I think a greater evil exists in the attitudes that keep the Church from being relevant for people who live with the virus and its horrible effects. I can think of four attitudes: avoidance, intolerance, distance and superstition.

Avoidance says, “I don't even want to think about you.”

Intolerance says, “I don’t like you.”

Distance says, “I don’t want to be near you.”

Superstition says, “I'm afraid of you.”

About 10 miles up the road from our church building, there is a man who is living with AIDS. He is disabled and confined to a wheelchair. Because he has AIDS, his family has banished him to the back yard. He lives in the back yard! He doesn’t even get to come inside to use the toilet.

When he needs to shower, his wife sprays him down with the water hose. The dog in that family is treated better.

That’s just wrong. People should not have to live like that because others are afraid of them. That’s the power of the HIV/AIDS stigma. That’s the evil caused by avoidance, intolerance, distance and superstition.

What is the antidote to evil like that? Jesus said you overcome evil with good. Love is greater than evil. That’s why He said, “Love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself.”

Avoidance, intolerance, distance and superstition are evil. Love, on the other hand, is about repentance, acceptance, presence and endurance.

Repentance says, “I won’t avoid you anymore.”

Acceptance says, “I love you because God loves you.”

Presence says, “I’m here for you.”

Endurance says, “I’ll stay with you to the end.”

Who but the Church can give the gifts of repentance, acceptance, presence and endurance to people who are broken and hurting because of HIV? Can government do that? Humanitarian organizations? No, only the Church can demonstrate these gifts of love.

Unfortunately, when it comes to people living with HIV and AIDS, many churches have demonstrated attitudes of avoidance, intolerance, distance and superstition. Instead of welcoming these people into God’s house, we have banished them to the back yard.

We don’t even go out to give them a garden-hose shower once in a while. We just ignore them. That’s so wrong! That’s so ... irrelevant.

We serve a God who gets personally involved. If you want to be a relevant Christian, you have to do something personally about HIV/AIDS. You may be saying, “Rick, I'm too busy to add something else to my list.” I know what it means to be busy, but no one else can do this for you.

We have seen the seed of a movement in which the Church turns the greatest crisis on our planet into the greatest opportunity to show the love of Jesus Christ. You may not be able to change the whole world, but you can change the world for somebody. God is looking for people He can use. 0 RICK WARREN is founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and author of The Purpose Driven Life (Zondervan). He and his wife, Kay, will host a Nov. 29–Dec. 1 conference for churches willing to run the “Race Against Time” of HIV/AIDS ministry. For information, visit: www.purposedriven.com/en-US/HIVAIDSCommunity/Welcome.htm.

STATEMENTS: RICK WARREN

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turning WHAT IF into WHAT IS

february 22â&#x20AC;&#x201C;23, 2007 fellowship church, grapevine, texas ed young mark driscoll | dr. ed young | craig groeschel

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day and you aren’t sick, that is stealing. If you say bad things about your manager to someone other than your manager, you are stealing, because you are stealing his ability to lead, cutting productivity, and worst of all, you have become just another boring gossip.

DAVE RAMSEY GETTING TO ROOT ISSUES OVER THE YEARS

of giving financial advice, I’ve learned a few things about the problems that people have with their money.

Very often money problems aren’t the culprit at all; they are just symptoms of deeper root issues. Many times it’s not a money problem, it’s a marriage problem; it’s not an issue with savings, it’s an issue with integrity; it’s not a lack of income, it’s a lack of character. These are the uncomfortable truths that people in society don’t talk about because it’s much easier to walk through life concerned about you and only you.

THE BEST POLICY The reason many people have trouble prospering is a simple lack of integrity, a lack of truthfulness. Think about it for a minute: We have all told lies; we have all struggled with whether to take the heat that being completely honest will eventually bring. Being honest means reporting all our income at tax time, communicating openly with family, not stealing from the office and following through on appointments and promises. The Bible talks about “the little foxes that spoil the vines” (Song of Solomon 2:15, NKJV). The small violations against our government, our family, our employer and our relationships begin a pattern of dishonesty.

I am not saying that you must be perfect; no one is. But you have to watch the little things.

If you goof off at work, you are stealing; that is a lack of honesty. If you take a sick

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GETTING PERSONAL The concept of digging in the graveyard of your past to find what caused your faults has some merit when used to identify wounds and heal them, but too often we are taught to blame our lot in life on others. It was our mean, nasty old parents; it was that we weren’t firstborn; it was our brother who tortured us; it was our sister who got all the attention. Bull! Thousands and thousands of people who had horrible childhoods thrive and even prosper in relationships and wealth. Why do they prosper? Because they made a decision that their fate was up to them, that it was their own personal responsibility.

Enough whining. Whining is a sign of a lack of character on your part. If you don’t like the way something is, do something about it. Finger-pointing, blame shifting and whining, while they appear to have merit, are not doing something. There is tremendous energy in positive activity and in providing a solution. That activity, while it may not solve the problem, moves you from being self-centered to solution-centered.

TAKE CONTROL Clifford G. Baird tells a story about the power of personal responsibility. He was a fighter pilot in Vietnam and after flying several missions was shot down and taken captive by the enemy.

His captors used a bamboo tiger cage to imprison him. The cage was not tall or long enough for him to be able to stretch out at all. He was made to walk daily carrying the cage with his feet through the bottom bars as the patrol went from place to place. This man spent four and a half years in this cage.

When asked how he maintained his sanity for all those years and how he finally escaped, he said each night when his captors would go to sleep, he would count to 4,000. By waiting for their deep REM sleep, he was then able to check the bars, every single bar on the cage, every single night for four and a half years. Can you imagine the night a bar finally moved? Can you imagine how much focus it must have taken in that moment of excitement to have the patience to pack mud around the bar so the breaking sounds would not be heard? He broke free and stumbled through the jungle, hiding for another week, until he found American troops. The doctors examining him said he would have died from the harsh conditions of his captivity in just another 90 days. That man took responsibility for his circumstances, knowing that no one else was coming, and that he had to get out.

Take control of your life by simply realizing that it is worth the trouble to become the person you know God made you to be. The aphorism goes like this: “Work like it all depends on you and pray like it all depends on God.” Taking responsibility not only for your mistakes so that you don’t repeat them, but taking responsibility for making whatever change is necessary to get where you should go is of vital value in becoming a person who prospers. 0

DAVE RAMSEY is host of the nationally syndicated radio talk show The Dave Ramsey Show and the author of

Financial Peace (Viking Adult). www.daveramsey.com

STATEMENTS: DAVE RAMSEY

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9/20/06 5:30:12 PM

MARK STEELE THE LAST NEXT BEST TWICE A WEEK,

the ritual occurs.

My sons, who are 5 and 7 years old, brace themselves on either of my knees, and we male-bond over the faint green glow of the Microsoft Xbox. Having the early revelation that my sons had a proclivity toward gaming, I decided to inextricably link the machine to father-son time. I have set aside 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday that I am in town since they were infants. They have no frame of reference for gaming as a loner activity. In their minds, it is something you do with your brother and father, yelling at the television and running around the room vicariously as the character on the screen.

So vicariously, in fact, that for a season, my son asked that I (seriously) call him Jackson Pacman Pacman Mark Steele. Yes: Pacman twice. It was very important to him.

The only real challenge to this sort of structure is that now, our week is divided into two periods: 1) the four hours of Xbox time, and 2) the 164 hours I am asked how many more hours remain until Xbox time. This second period begins at 4:07 p.m. on Sunday.

And it is a period that can only be described as obsessive.

An actual conversation last year: Who can tell me what Saturday is?

JACKSON: XBOX TIME! ME: Well, yes. But Saturday is also Christmas.

JACKSON: Oh. (pause) Do we play Xbox on Christmas?

ME:

As I said, obsessive. Every action throughout the “non-X 164” is merely an obstacle to overcome in order to get to Xbox time. But who am I to judge? Whether or not

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I realize it daily, I have a tendency to base my actions, expectations and (gulp) even my faith on what is forthcoming instead of what I am currently giving attention toward. As much as I would like to think I am one who thrives on the current experience, I tend to ignore the experiential moment in favor of the expectation of the next.

I wonder what it is about humans that we crave a better next.

Why do we tend to focus on the less thans? Instead of finding the miracle and hidden joy in the moment, we dwell on the worry of lack, the frustration of not yet or the dissatisfaction of have not.

Certainly this attitude is most prevalent in those who reside in the modern subculture of faith. We have given that term a connotation equivalent to the expectation of gift baskets. We treat faith as an oncoming Christmas bonus rather than what it truly is designed to be: a challenge. A dare that leads to truth. The risk to live beyond what is tangible and clear but to live in that place right now. To live in the place of trusting that God’s plan is beyond the confusion in the difficult right here. Instead, we thrive on idignancy: Why don’t I have a better job? Why don’t I make more money? Why doesn’t my spouse meet my needs more? Why doesn’t God answer my question?

It rarely dawns on us that the better job might actually be a different perspective on the current job. That we may need to manage our spending instead of make more money. That we may not be meeting our spouse’s needs.

That God is trying to answer our question through our current situation, but we aren’t paying attention. We’re too busy daydreaming of the upcoming imaginary utopia.

Hardships will always stimulate personal growth the exact moment we begin to plow through them. But the unfortunate truth is that we don’t want to grow and change as much as we simply want to be comfortable. The only way to be comfortable is to pretend.

Pretend that today’s bad is yesterday’s news and instead wile the hours away in the fantasy of the next best. But God is not the God of someday maybe. He is the God of deal with it now. Why? Simple. Because later is about me, and now is about everyone else.

It is the nature of the human condition to be completely overwhelmed with our own well-being. To be afraid of going without or accomplishing little. But neither of these fears has anything to do with what truly fulfills us or causes us to grow. It is only through the way we deal with the other people in our lives that our calling is made clear. That our character is refined. That our questions find answers. That our future intersects with our present. But we cannot deal with those around us who are hurting if we are only focused on the hurting version of ourselves that lives in the near distant future.

Of course, there are days that I would much rather daydream of the afternoon three days hence that I will get lost in the soft glow of the Xbox. There are some days so difficult that I could practically live in those daydreams. The only problem is that my true future grows further away with every now I waste imagining what could be.

Instead, I choose to observe where, who, when, why and what I am right now, dealing with the present tense before the tension mounts even higher. At least, I will after one last imagination.

Call it a motivator. A brief vision of what it might be like some day in the near future when I am able to live and learn and grow through the hardships of each day as they come.

If you don’t mind, I will take that moment now.

I’ll call it my last next best. 0 MARK STEELE is the president and executive creative director of Steelehouse Productions. He is the author of

Flashbang: How I Got Over Myself (RELEVANT Books).

STATEMENTS: MARK STEELE

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THE NAKED TRUTH ABOUT

LOVE, SEX, AND DATING “Jason Illian tackles dating issues from the desperate to the dicey….This isn’t a stiff ‘expert’ opinion, but a hip voice from the dating trenches.”

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A fellow foot soldier from the trenches of love and romance helps you face lonely nights and find joy by asking yourself:

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• Is there really a Mr. Right, or should you just settle for Mr. Right Now?

Available in hardcover wherever books are sold | Read an Excerpt Online at www.faithwords.com | FaithWords is a trademark of Hachette Book Group USA

BY WILLIAM PILGRIM

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BEN KWELLER

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BEN KWELLER IS A NICE GUY. So nice, in fact, that it seems impossible to imagine the genial 25-year-old getting riled up about anything. His music is infectiously optimistic, his live shows are engaging, and his general demeanor is warm and amiable. So what does make Kweller angry?

“Injustice gets me angry,” Kweller says. “I get angry about corruption and people with power that use it [negatively] or are selfish. There’s plenty of stuff that makes me angry.”

But Kweller is not interested in making angry music to reflect these things. Nor is he interested in making his music a platform for his anger. “I don’t need to start preaching about oil companies and how our environment is going to get destroyed by the time our grandchildren are adults,” Kweller says. “That stuff [bothers] me when I hear about it, but there’s plenty of good people already on those issues.”

And, while he wouldn’t label himself a Christian, Kweller has a kind of self-crafted spirituality and is angered by people with a spiritual stance he would deem “closed-minded.” He especially feels that faith can be closed-minded when it discounts science.

“I’m a very spiritual person, and I believe in God,” Kweller says. “But I’m also very much into science, and I believe that the two totally coexist.”

Kweller says he sees beauty in the scientific processes of the universe and believes they sprang from God’s design.

“I believe that God created the beauty of a flower blooming from a seed,” he says. “I believe that science is of God. That everything is of God. People just forget. They try to separate the two. That sort of stuff bothers me. When people are closed-minded, I get bummed out.”

But, once again, Kweller does not make a point to combat these things in his music. Rather, he prefers to stay positive.

“I talk about my basic humanitarian beliefs,” he says. “You know what I mean, like treat others the way you’d want to be treated.”

Kweller has had a long time to craft his musical message.

He has veritably grown up in the music industry. At 12, he formed Radish, a grunge punk band that signed to a major label and went so far as to perform on The Late Show with David Letterman. At 20, he began his solo career, signed to ATO Records.

“The biggest challenge I think is to try to have a normal life while being someone who has to travel around the world,” Kweller says. “Just trying to remain calm and centered. That’s the biggest challenge.”

As Kweller has matured, so has his music. His last two efforts, 2004’s On My Way and his new eponymous release, lack the playful hedonism of his debut album. Instead, they find a more introspective Kweller ruminating on his relationships. Many of the songs, such as the intensely emotional ballad “Thirteen,” came from a very personal place. Kweller feels that “Thirteen” in particular has a great

deal of personal significance.

“I had a baby on the way,” he says. “I just had a big fallingout with my best friend after eight years. My wife, Liz, has been by my side through many years, and I was just thinking about all the relationships and all the things we had been through and friends that had come and gone.

“I ended up working on it for five days in the studio, and we finally got the take that we wanted,” Kweller adds. “It was the 13th take that I did.” He goes on to explain the bizarre coincidence. “The reason that the song is called “Thirteen” is because we got married on Sept. 13 and Liz’s birthday is Oct. 13,” he says. “The fact that it was on take 13 was really creepy. That’s very supernatural.”

Though openness has always been a part of his music, the more mature introspection he has exhibited of late is a new development. Kweller believes that this musical genesis is all part of growing up.

“Getting older and wiser and experiencing more definitely goes into the things you create,” he says. He draws an interesting comparison to growing as a musician. “When you’re a teenager, you know how to make some really good nachos, but as an adult you might know how to grill a filet mignon perfectly. I’m definitely growing up, and so is my songwriting; it’s just sort of the same thing.”

Growing up has meant taking on new responsibilities musically. On his newest release, Kweller played every instrument, giving the album an exceedingly personal feel.

“It feels so personal, it’s scary,” he says. “It’s kind of hard to listen to really.” But he feels this was the right decision.

“There’s just something really cool that happens when one person plays everything. The same hand that played the high hat is strumming the acoustic guitar, so the groove is perfect. Everything sort of locks in a certain way.”

Growing up has also meant new responsibilities on a personal level. Kweller’s growth is, in large part, due to his role as a husband and father. His son, Dorian, was born in May of 2006.

“I’ve always been very nostalgic in my songwriting,” Kweller says. “I’ve always admired my father and my grandfather. So I’ve talked about being a father even before I knew I was going to have a baby. This is more like a dream come true.” Kweller relishes this dream come true, turning much of his creativity toward his son. “Since he was born, I’ve written like 30 little children’s songs for him,” he says.

“They’re all called ‘Dorian,’ and they’re all different.”

This fall, Kweller and his wife will take their son on tour as Kweller plays around the country. At a young age, he seems to have adapted well to the role of being a family man. And, as Kweller and his music grow and change, one thing remains the same. Ben Kweller is a nice guy. 0

“I’M DEFINITELY GROWING UP, AND SO IS MY SONGWRITING.”

ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to read the full interview with Ben Kweller.

BEN KWELLER

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THIS WOMAN IS TRANSFORMING A NATION ONE VILLAGE AT A TIME

BY ADAM SMITH

CHRISTIANNA ATARRAH SPEAKS SLOWLY, her deep voice seeming wistful. “I am a pediatric nurse,” she says. “I have been with the children as long as I can remember.” At 64, she is working to change the quality of life within the villages of Sierra Leone, a country astounding in its beauty and profound in its destitution.

This small West African nation is inextricably entwined with sorrow. One of the poorest countries in the world, Sierra Leone’s average life expectancy for a man is 38 years. Because 160 out of every 1,000 infants will die before the age of 5, many parents will not even name their children for several months after they are born, operating under the assumption that the child will die before a name is necessary. The country itself shows physical signs of sorrow as it recovers from a decade-long civil war that ended just four years ago. Its effects are obvious: Buildings are still pockmarked with bullet holes, and people missing limbs are a common sight. It is hard to reconcile these harsh realities with the joyous people of Sierra Leone. Their warmth and innate positivity are obvious in all they do.

It’s especially true for Atarrah, whose tireless work seems amazing considering her age in this culture. Atarrah lives in the Ngolala village in the chiefdom of Banta Mokelleh. Three

hundred miles away from any town of substantial size, Atarrah travels from village to village conducting health surveys to learn about the villagers’ access to food, water and medical care.

Atarrah rarely shows signs of fatigue. She is constantly building relationships, thinking of ideas to make her village a safer and better place to live and implementing new strategies to make the villagers healthier both physically and spiritually. All of this is even more impressive given the fact that Atarrah is completely blind.

Her status in the village is clear. Everyone treats her with deference and respect. At the

PHOTOS BY MELISSA SMITH

TRY: R HER COUN A VISION FO h ra ar At a nn Christia

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open-air school, the men stumble over themselves to help her to a chair. She carries herself with the air of a matriarch who has lived in this village her entire life. Everyone—children and adults—calls her “Auntie Christie.”

Observing Atarrah’s status in the community, it is easy to believe that she has always lived here. Yet Atarrah came to Ngolala only a year ago from Freetown, the crowded capital where half of the nation’s 6 million citizens live. The name seems ironic given the cramped, squalid conditions. The air is thick with car exhaust mingled with the fumes of decaying garbage and open sewers. There is no infrastructure to speak of, and most residents have no working utilities. The streets are constantly choked with people and vehicles, a continuous rush of activity.

During Sierra Leone’s civil war, Atarrah looked for opportunities to help others. She sought out clinics that would let her tend to the wounded. “There must have been 15 families in the building,” she says of one of the clinics. “No food, no medication. The children would all get sick. I said, please let me work there. They said, you won’t have any pay. I said, I don’t care. Let me share my expertise.”

She experienced the war firsthand as she cared for those affected by it. “I was head nurse for looking after war-wounded,” Atarrah says.

“Each time I took care of a patient, I thought, God, I could have been like this. It became very real to me.”

Atarrah began to lose her sight to glaucoma while working for the Red Cross in Freetown. Ironically, she found little medical help. “One day I had a huge fall on the street,” she says. “I went straight to the

“IT IS DIFFICULT TO CHURCH PLANT WITH ADULTS BECAUSE WE ALL HANG ON TO SOMETHING.” hospital, and they would not say what it was at all. They just gave me eye drops.” At first, it was difficult for Atarrah to deal with. “When things like this happen, you have lots of questions,” she says. “Am I not praying hard enough? Where did I go wrong? Is it because of my past life that You are punishing me? Things like this.”

While continuing her work as a nurse, Atarrah enrolled in a pastoral theology degree program through a local church. Upon completion of the program, she was recruited by a Christian organization, Children of the Nations, to help plant a church and aid a school in the village of Ngolala. Her work with children gave her a sense of purpose. “It became [apparent to] me that maybe my life was important,” Atarrah

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says. “Maybe I was there to look after small people, people I would not get anything from.”

In the idyllic countryside where she went to work, beautiful and impenetrable palm forests cover the miles of rolling hills; dotting this landscape are villages where life seems to go on as it must have for hundreds of years before. And yet, these villages are not utopias. Death and disease are common. Clean water is scarce, and proper medical care is virtually nonexistent. Idyllic though it seems, life is just as

“IT BECAME [APPARENT TO] ME THAT MAYBE MY LIFE WAS IMPORTANT.” dangerous here as in the urban cities. However, Atarrah is working to change this, starting with the children.

Children are Atarrah’s passion. She says this is because of their openness. “It is not difficult to church plant with children,” Atarrah says. “It is difficult to church plant with adults because we all hang on to something.”

In fact, much of her current standing in the community stems from her work with the children. “At first [when I arrived in Banta], the people looked at me with suspicion,” Atarrah says. “They said, why have they brought an old woman here?” However, the children of the village welcomed her. “As soon as I got here, a group of children befriended me,” Atarrah says. “They would sit with me all day even though I had nothing to give them. Some of them would pick me pawpaw fruits and oranges. My heart went out, and I thought, thank you, God. It is not a mistake [that] I am here. At least I have children that need me.”

She has plans to build a youth center in the village to provide housing for orphaned children. Moreover, she herself has adopted three children from the village. Her goal is to see the children of the

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village grow up to be the leaders of their chiefdom, their church and their country. Atarrah also has immediate plans such as coordinating work to dig wells and build a community farm. Her resolve seems staggering, and her impact is obvious. When she arrived in Ngolala, the village was 90 percent Muslim. Today it is 70 percent Muslim.

Angie Miles, the director of Children of the Nations in Sierra Leone, tells a story about Atarrah’s tenacity. “Christianna called me and asked for me to get her galoshes, a raincoat and a life jacket,” Miles says. “I understood the first two, because it was the rainy season. But I asked her, what do you need a life jacket for? She said, ‘I am going to wade across the river so I can do my surveys in the villages there.’”

As much as Christianna Atarrah serves the people of Ngolala and ultimately the country of Sierra Leone, she desires to do more. She speaks passionately about her vision and plans for the village, hoping for a time when they are fulfilled. When thinking about her role in the future of the village, she smiles and says, “I long for the day when I will have some sighted assistant that I can work with so that I can give and give and give.” 0 ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to see more photos from Sierra Leone.

ADAM SMITH is managing editor of RELEVANT magazine. He recently spent two weeks in Sierra Leone.

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CFGPSF UIF MPSE PG UIF SJOHT B TJNQMF IPCCJU IBE IJT ESFBN DPNF USVF Jim Ware, coauthor of the best-selling Finding God in The Lord of the Rings, unlocks the mysteries of Middle-earth with insightful reflections on the scenes and characters of The Hobbit.

Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll discover the deep connections that link this fantasy world to our own, and unveil the mysterious workings of the Author of the Tale in your own life.

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A CAUSE WORTH FIGHTING FOR

BY ERIC HURTGEN

A TYPICALLY COLONIAL TWO-STORY BUILDING SITS ON THE edge of Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., its thinnest corner subtly pointing toward the Supreme Court. Restaurants and businesses occupy the street level, while politicians and their interns fill most of the apartments above. One of the apartments, however, is inhabited by interns on a completely different kind of political mission: praying for the country and the rights of the unborn.

The group, made up mostly of Christian college students and twentysomethings, strategically prays in shifts six days a week. For eight hours each day, prayer emanates from the second-floor apartment. Then, in two-hour shifts, groups of six to 10 gather directly on the steps of the Supreme Court to pray with red duct tape covering their mouths. On the tape, the word “LIFE” is scrawled in large, black letters. The entire group stands in silent prayer, with one member appointed as a spokesperson for any passersby who want to ask questions.

Matt Lockett is a leader in this countercultural prayer movement, which currently employs 30 to 40 volunteer interns. “Prayer and fasting brings change and shifting in the government and in moral values,” Lockett says. “These things can’t be decided in earthly ways ... that’s why these young people are praying. They’re praying for God’s kingdom to come in the earth.”

DREAMS IN DENVER AND PRAYERS IN D.C. Lockett wasn’t always so focused, or so radical, about prayer—or anything else.

There was a time when he still lived in Denver, Colo., that his life was the picture of suburban stability. “I had a good career, wife, kids,” he says. “I was a volunteer youth pastor, and life was chugging along; I really thought that’s the way things would always be.”

Lockett always thought of prayer as a side issue. “I knew it was something I was

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Lou Engle at a rally in Washington, D.C.

supposed to do. But for me, it was a nagging responsibility.”

A vivid dream changed that.

“In September 2004 I had a dream about God ending abortion in America through day and night prayer,” Lockett says. “My whole life and mental understanding completely changed after that.” Soon after, Lockett and his family sold their house and moved to Washington, D.C. to support The Cause, a prayer movement that was then still in its infancy.

Shortly after the Locketts’ move to the nation’s capital, the “Justice House of Prayer” on Pennsylvania Avenue was established. The little apartment was meant to be ground zero for a certain kind of prayer that exists only on the fringes of the mainstream American Church. Unlike the reverently subdued benedictions of the more popular liturgical-style services, The Cause began to experiment with a fervently raucous style of prayer that lasted from sundown to sunup and back again. And it was manned by mostly 18- to 30-year-olds who, like missionaries, raised their own financial support to focus on prayer for one year.

On the opening day of the Supreme Court session in October of 2004, the team first began their prayer movement on the court steps, the now-familiar red tape covering their mouths. The group of 50 young people stood in silent prayer, a stark contrast to the throngs of chanting pro-choice protesters. Such a stark contrast, in fact, that a leader of the fervently pro-choice National Organization for Women approached the group, telling them, “What you guys are doing is brilliant strategy.”

THE POTENTIAL OF HEAVEN If there is a biblical prototype for these radical young Christians, Lockett points to the figure of Daniel. “Daniel was a guy who had zero compromise in his life. He was right smack-dab in the middle of the university of Babylon, yet God had made him 10 times better than his peers.” Lockett maintains that, in the ancient Middle Eastern culture, “Daniel was a pacesetter; he set the standards in the middle of a foreign culture.”

“How did he do that?” Lockett asks rhetorically. “Daniel would go into his room and pray and fast.”

If the prayer interns look to Daniel as their model, it’s because they were influenced by The Cause’s founder, Lou Engle.

Previously, with pastor Che Ahn, Engle had spearheaded The

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Call—a massive one-day prayer gathering on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. that attracted more than 300,000 participants in September 2000. After that, Engle organized seven more regional gatherings that focused on engaging young people in a day of prayer and fasting for their cities and nation.

Following the regional gatherings, Engle felt that God gave him a much more specific job to do: pray for the illegalization of abortion in America. “I had been reading about the anti-slavery activist William Wilberforce, and I just had a real strong sense that I was called to stand up in a similar fashion on behalf of the unborn,” Engle says.

Nevertheless, he understood the implications of a career spent defending the pro-life position. “When you bring up the issue of abortion, in many ways you become persona non grata. It’s not a politically correct issue, but I believe it’s an issue the Church needs to grapple with.

“The Bible says that before a child is formed in his mother’s womb, God knows him. It’s a life, a dream of God—which means that, since 1973, there have been 47 million dreams of God shattered in this country alone.”

Of course, this begs the question: If Engle and his group are so passionate about ending abortion, why choose prayer as a main vehicle of protest? Why not get in the picket line or, better yet, lobby for new legislation?

Simply, he feels prayer is a more powerful vehicle to enact change.

“I read this book, Engaging the Powers by Walter Wink, that contains one of the best chapters on prayer that I’ve ever read,” Engle says. “[Wink] says prayer is the most powerful force for justice in the world, that it releases the potential of heaven into the grinding atmosphere of the earth. So God thrust me into praying for justice, specifically for the justice of the unborn.”

Lockett agrees. “We’re into prayer and fasting because we think that decisions are made first in the heavenly realm,” he says. He also believes that prayer is effective because it goes far beyond politics.

“We’re not Republican, and we’re not Democrat,” he says. “We’re for righteousness and justice.”

PRAYER AS A LIFESTYLE The Cause is centered around the idea of prayer as a dynamic action rather than a passive event. This is why the movement calls interns to leave their homes, live in community and pray in an outwardly

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“PRAYER IS THE MOST POWERFUL FORCE FOR JUSTICE IN THE WORLD.” —LOU ENGLE demonstrative manner. “God has called us to put feet to our prayers,” Lockett says.

“My understanding of prayer is this: Stop living the American dream and live God’s dream.”

It’s obvious that Lockett and those who have connected with this movement of prayer and fasting have found their lives consumed by the cause of intercession.

Young people like Jonathan Mills, 23, have traveled extensively in order to see God change their nation. “I’ve seen God do some amazing things as a result of prayer,” he says. “That’s why I’m praying now.”

HOPE FOR AMERICA As a response to the Washington, D.C. movement, Justice Houses of Prayer have begun to spring up around the nation. In Boston, interns pray against secular humanism at the gates of Harvard University. A number of former interns are preparing to open houses of prayer in Australia, South Korea and China. In San Francisco, a movement was started at the edge of the seedy Castro district to serve in prayer for the homosexual community and to show compassion to the homeless and destitute. Monique Mervin, a 21-year-old San Francisco native and Cause intercessor, says it’s the connection between prayer and practice that seems to resonate most strongly with the twentysomethings that sign up with The Cause. “I don’t think we can pray without doing acts of justice, without moving in it,” she says. “I want my life to be prayer, and from that I want to go out and to see justice come in the earth, whether that means being a mother to an orphan or helping a pregnant homeless woman get off the streets.”

Lockett, now a director for The Cause, understands the high cost of surrendering to a life of prayer. “I sold my house and moved my family to Washington, D.C. We’ve given our lives to this thing. We have given ourselves to massive prayer and fasting ... so that God’s kingdom might come to this nation.”

Has the sacrifice been worth it?

Lockett pauses. “I was flying across the country recently, and I was seated next to an elderly woman on the plane,” he says. “She was asking me about my life, and I was trying to explain to her what I do when she stopped me and asked very bluntly: ‘Is there hope for America?’

“I said yes ... because I live with young people who pray and fast for this nation daily. And it’s because of their lives that I know that God has a purpose for this nation.” 0

INTRO PHOTO BY ALASTAIR STERNE. OTHER PHOTOS BY ANDY McMILLAN.

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TROUBLED ARTISTS: (L-R) Tim Rice-Oxley, Tom Chaplin, Richard Hughes

KEANE FACES THEIR DEMONS

BY JESSE CAREY

WHEN I SPOKE TO KEANE’S LEAD SINGER Tom Chaplin in early August, he sounded OK. His band had just released one of the most anticipated rock albums of the year, was getting critical praise for what some were calling a new “darker” direction and had once again become MTV and mainstream radio darlings.

Our interview was rescheduled three times; after all, the guys are busy. Keane had just landed in L.A. earlier that day from the U.K. and had a schedule packed with management meetings, tour updates, photo shoots and photo reshoots. But all things considered, Chaplin was taking it in stride. A day before the tour started, Chaplin was already prepared to fight burnout.

For someone who was once again on top of the pop-music world, he was surprisingly down to earth. He seemed genuinely excited to discuss the album and upcoming tour plans and eager to dispel rumors, including ones about his new dark side ... but just weeks later, the headlines popped up: “Keane Singer Admits Drug Addiction,” “Keane Singer Enters Rehab; Tour Postponed.”

Maybe Tom Chaplin has a dark side after all.

In a press release, Chaplin told fans, “I’ve been having to deal with an increasing problem with drink and drugs, and the time has come to get the professional help I need to sort myself out. I feel desperately disappointed to be letting down our fans, but I want to get myself right ...”

The same optimistic guy I had chatted with just weeks before wasn’t, in reality, doing OK.

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When we talked before the news surfaced, Chaplin addressed the band’s rise to fame, and how at times, life as a famous rock star has taken its toll, though he seemed careful to remain gracious and appreciative of the life he has chosen.

“Well, on the surface there’s nothing at all to complain about in terms of the chances and opportunities and the privilege it is to be in a successful band,” Chaplin explained. “It’s great to travel the world and to have fans and make records and to have your record in the shop and to hear yourself on the radio. I mean, those are the things that every kid aspires to be able to do.”

As Chaplin spoke, I could hear a sense of disillusionment behind his words. It could have just been exhaustion from a long day of celebrity obligations, but maybe his tone reflected something deeper. He went on to explain how personality differences began to cause deviation in the band, and how under the stress of success, a once-tight group of friends were becoming each other’s own worst enemies.

“Inevitably, human beings are kind of all the same really,” he went on. “We fight, and we have our differences of character.

I think what happened with us in terms of the band and being under so much pressure and doing so much was that we began to allow those kind of bad characteristics and bad things about us to grow.”

It’s not hard to see how Chaplin and his band mates would feel pressure. Just two years ago, their debut album was everywhere. After almost 10 years of relative obscurity, Keane had become a rock sensation hailed as “the next Coldplay” and the next big thing from the U.K. They even opened for U2. On the outside—back then, as well as when we spoke—everything seemed like it was going really, really well. When 2004’s hugely successful Hopes and Fears became a smash hit, the group toured non-stop, and the world was watching.

But behind the scenes, things were unraveling. After months on the road, the gossip-happy U.K. music press printed stories of rivalries with other British bands The Darkness and The Libertines. One over-zealous journalist even claimed that the group had been manufactured by music industry insiders in an effort to cash in on the piano-pop sound.

Soon the negative aspects of overnight stardom began to catch up with Keane. Rumors of a breakup began swirling, and many assumed that the band’s fall would be as quick as their sudden rise. That’s when the three friends decided to deal with their problems the only way they knew how; they returned to the studio.

“I think Under the Iron Sea is a complete reflection of the way we were all feeling,” Chaplin said. “You have to write completely honestly and personally about what you’re feeling, and the performances on the record are the same. The way you sing or the way you create a sound or the part that you play. They all have something to do with what’s inside you and the way you’re interpreting the feeling of the song.”

Retreating to the studio proved to be just what the band needed, and the sessions sparked a new creativity. Under the Iron Sea resonates fresh sounds and reflects a new spin on the signature richness the group had become known for.

But between poppy tracks like “Is It Any Wonder?” and “Put It Behind You” are more solemn tunes, each laced with a certain sadness that becomes prevalent when listening to the album.

In the song “Crystal Ball,” the melancholy takes the form of a lonely man, lost in a search for purpose. I don’t know where I am/And I don’t really care/I look myself in the eye/There’s no one there/I fall upon the earth/I call upon the air/But all I get is the same old vacant stare.

“We didn’t say, ‘We need to make a darker record; it needs to sound dark.’ We were just in a dark place, and that’s what came out,” he explained.

But this “dark place” Chaplin described to me was supposedly behind the group. They had re-emerged after seeking creative sanctuary, with fresh musical direction and an exciting new album to show for it. Chaplin and his fellow band mates had therapeutically reached a new, less conflicted place. Right?

Soon after the release of Under the Iron Sea came an announcement from the band. They had planned a promotion for fans to get a taste of the record and have access to their latest music video for free. Keane had collaborated with writer Irvine Welsh (best known for his novel Trainspotting, about the seedy world of drug addicts in England) to direct a music video for the single “Atlantic.” The video was posted on their website, and eager fans downloaded away. But what they got was not so much a music video, but a black-and-white short film that used a haunting piano-fueled soundscape as its backdrop. The six-minute film shows a scraggly figure wandering a beach as he encounters several individuals, each in their own strange predicament. In the end, they all meet a personified image of death.

In hindsight, the video and collaboration almost seem ironic, but Tom Chaplin claimed that he and the band were very hands-off when it came to actual creative process of the film. However, he was thrilled to have worked with Welsh and offered his own interpretation for the film.

“I see it as this kind of Jesus figure coming out to the ocean, and instead of being accepted and talked to, he’s shunned by everyone that he meets,” Chaplin said. “And in the end he meets the grim reaper and travels off [with] these people on a weird journey.”

The track used for the video is one that Chaplin could explain more definitively. Unlike the video and imagery, he knows exactly what the song is trying to say.

“I guess the song itself is very much about loneliness and the fear of ending up alone and dying alone and all the things that the prospect of the band breaking up brought about in our heads, in our minds,” he said.

Chaplin’s personal interpretation for the video—seeing Christ being shunned by people He encounters because they are too consumed by their own situations—may just be his loose idea of what Welsh was trying to say. But maybe, deep down, it shows that he is dealing with something deeper within himself.

Maybe Tom Chaplin finds himself on that lonely beach, looking for something more, trying to find his way out of a dark place. 0 ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to read the full interview with Keane.

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TONY HALE GETS SERIOUS ...

SORT OF.

“I DON’T CONSIDER MYSELF A WISE

or enlightened Christian,” actor Tony Hale says.

Hale, who played Buster Bluth on the critically acclaimed television show Arrested Development, is not comfortable with being lifted up as a sage. In fact, he’s uncomfortable with the idea of Christians being esteemed merely because they are celebrities.

“I think sometimes in Christianity we find someone and try to make them a poster boy,” Hale says.

At the outset, Hale may seem like an unlikely poster boy. His character, Buster Bluth, a one-handed, neurotic momma’s boy, was one of television’s oddest, albeit lovable characters. “Buster was just so tweaked,” Hale says.

But faith has been a central focus in Hale’s life. As an actor in New York, before he landed his part on Arrested Development, he helped found The Haven, a prayer and fellowship group for artists, actors and other performers. When asked about The Haven, Hale shows his characteristic self-deprecating humility. “I started The Haven out of very selfish motives,” he says. “I didn’t have a lot of friends, and I wanted people to hang out with.”

Yet his motives seem clearer as he talks about faith and the artistic community. “A lot of artists weren’t feeling any support from their churches,” Hale says. The Haven became a place that encouraged artists in their faith.

Hale believes that many people in the Church shun artistic expression that is not overtly Christian, and he warns against such division between the sacred and secular. “It creates an ‘us [versus] them’ mentality,” Hale says. “I think it comes from fear. We put our faith in a box, and it’s pretty and it’s safe and anything outside the box seems scary.”

BY ADAM SMITH

He points to an episode of Arrested Development in which a married fundamentalist Christian woman becomes infatuated with the show’s main character, Michael. “It seems like the word secular is used 50 or 60 times in that episode,” he says. “They talk about her falling for that ‘horrible secular man.’ I wish every Christian could see it. Christians use that word far too much, and it becomes a synonym for bad or evil.”

A comedy that pulled few punches in the social, political and religious issues it lampooned, Arrested Development lasted three seasons before it was canceled by Fox. But in those three seasons it managed to garner six Emmys and a Golden Globe, as well as build a fan base almost cult-like in its devotion.

Though Hale played one of the most memorable characters, he is quick to redirect praise to the rest of the cast. “I was surrounded by so many talented people,” he says. “I sometimes felt like the impostor.”

He points out that the brilliance of the show was largely due to series creator and writer Mitch Hurwitz.

“The word genius is thrown around a lot in Hollywood, but I really believe Mitch Hurwitz has a touch of it,” Hale says. “Something wouldn’t be working, and he’d come on set and spout some comic gold off the top of his head.” Though the show was filmed in such a way as to feel natural and spontaneous, Hale says the writing was exceedingly well thought out. “There wasn’t a lot of ad-libbing because the writing was so good that if you suggested something, it was never as good as what was written,” Hale says. “You just felt stupid and said, ‘Oh, this is way funnier.’”

Since the conclusion of Arrested Development, Hale has stayed incredibly busy. He and his wife, Martel, recently had their first child, Loy. On the professional front, Hale is currently working on a

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“DOES THIS TASTE FUNNY TO YOU?”: Will Ferrell and Tony Hale in Stranger Than Fiction.

new television comedy, Andy Barker, P.I., with comedian and former Arrested Development guest star, Andy Richter. In it, Richter is an accountant who takes over the lease on a private investigator’s office.

Soon he finds himself inundated with cases meant for the private investigator and decides to try his hand at detective work. Hale plays a geeky video store clerk who tries to use his movie knowledge to help solve the capers.

Hale also co-stars opposite Will Ferrell in the upcoming film Stranger Than Fiction, where he plays Ferrell’s quirky best friend.

Quirky characters are becoming a staple for Hale, but he doesn’t mind. “I think there’s a through-line of neurosis in my characters,” Hale says. “What a lot of young actors don’t realize is that you’re going to be cast to your type. As you gain a greater platform, you can take more diverse roles, and I’d love to do that someday. For now, I’m happy playing the neurotic characters.”

In his experiences with these projects, Hale breaks down Hollywood stereotypes of conceited, prima-donna celebrities, saying both Ferrell and Richter were two of the kindest people he’s met. “I’ve been fortunate to have worked with a lot of nice people.”

So has Hale’s faith presented any problems for him in Hollywood?

“For the most part, I haven’t received much hostility for my faith,” he says. “When asked about my beliefs, a lot of what I try to do is dispel people’s misconceptions about Christianity. I try to take it away

from the political hot-button stuff and bring it back to Christ—who He is and the things He taught. What Christ has meant in my life.”

Hale tries to live an undivided life. He likes open dialogues about faith rather than monologues geared toward conversion. “We can’t change anybody,” he says. “No person has that control.” Hale also believes that listening should always be a prominent trait of Christianity. “I have a friend who is very into Kabbalah, and I love to talk to her about how her faith has shaped her life and about how my faith has shaped mine.”

Another prominent trait is his simple unconditional love. He is involved in a project in Los Angeles known as “Homeless Karaoke.” Volunteers go to downtown Los Angeles and set up a stage, building relationships with the homeless by allowing them to perform.

Hale feels that this helps give validation to people who often feel like invisible members of society. “We have this one girl who always sings Kelly Clarkson,” Hale says. “We all clap and cheer and sing along. For one night, she can leave there feeling special.”

A far cry from the hung-up Buster Bluth, Hale seems down to earth and focused. In a city that has a reputation for shallowness and superficiality, Hale stands out.

Perhaps he’s wiser than he gives himself credit for. 0

“SOMETIMES IN CHRISTIANITY WE FIND SOMEONE AND TRY TO MAKE THEM A POSTER BOY.”

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ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com for a review of Stranger Than Fiction.

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THE NEW FACE OF POLITICS

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BY J. CHRISTOPHER LATONDRESSE

IMAGINE THE UNITED STATES as a giant political felt board.

Instead of monochromatic gray, picture a patchwork of contrasting reds and blues—primary colors with little room or patience for purple.

This is the divided America that Washington, D.C. imagines, the talkshow circuit promotes and politicians fight for. These actors—Red and Blue, Republicans and Democrats—are the new characters of our real-life felt-board storyscapes. So what happens when we combine faith with politics? Remarkable players emerge, ready to engage the story.

Enter Mara Vanderslice and Jim Banks, two young activists representing a whole new generation of evangelicals learning what it means to be both political and prophetic in America today.

FLASHBACK: PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 2004 BOSTON, MA—A twentysomething evangelical takes the pulpit.

Young and articulate, she explains to the church crowd what’s at stake if her candidate doesn’t win. While watching evangelicals engage in politics is common—particularly if they’re Republican—this story involves a twist. Mara Vanderslice is a card-carrying Democrat, both deeply religious and as blue-state as they come.

Crackles of applause break out in the room. It’s the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Religious progressives from around the country have come to this special event to show their support for a prochoice presidential candidate who’s also opposed to a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. Mara Vanderslice is there to introduce a speaker who, later in the program, will introduce her boss: presidential hopeful Senator John Kerry.

In the lead-up to the election, Kerry’s campaign team hired Vanderslice as its national religious outreach coordinator, hoping a strategy including religious voters would help take him all the way to the White House.

Vanderslice’s mission was simple, broad and ambitious: rock the religious vote in America, in all of its denominational diversity and political complexity. In order for this to happen, she needed to accomplish three things. She would attempt to woo the evangelical vote away from George W. Bush, reach out to moderate Catholics and Mainline Protestants, and maintain the decades-strong relationship between historically black churches and the Democratic Party.

Meanwhile and elsewhere, another political activist—also twentysomething, also evangelical—works tirelessly on a similar political strategy, but for opposite political ends.

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO—Barely out of college, Jim Banks of Focus on the Family Action addresses 1,000 women at a church in Dothan, Ala. His two-pronged message rings loud and clear. Register to vote. When you do, cast your ballot for President George W. Bush.

Nearly a year before the election, senior White House political strategist Karl Rove wagered that the key to unlocking an electoral victory for Bush in 2004 would be found sitting in the pews of evangelical churches across America. By focusing on bread-andbutter issues like gay marriage and abortion, and working alongside groups like Focus on the Family to get the message out, he would drive evangelical voters to the polls.

To this end, Jim Banks stood strong, one example among dozens of other young, conservative evangelical activists striving to fulfill Rove’s strategic vision. Having been president of the College Republicans at Indiana University, he graduated a couple of years before the 2004 presidential election with strong conservative credentials.

After graduating, Banks followed his girlfriend (now his wife) to Colorado Springs, where she immediately became the Federal lobbyist for Focus on the Family Action, the political arm of James Dobson’s evangelical mega-empire. He quickly found employment as one of its national grassroots coordinators, often traveling three weeks per month leading up to the presidential election, working with evangelical churches in key battleground states to turn out the evangelical vote.

With 22 percent of American voters saying “Moral Values” was the final factor determining their presidential choice—80 percent voting for Bush—the 2004 presidential election proved the connection between religion and politics still runs deep in this country. Indeed, 2004 was rightly dubbed “The Year of the Values Voter.”

“TWENTYSOMETHING EVANGELICALS WANT A DEEPER KIND OF POLITICS THAT DOESN’T CONFORM TO LEFT OR RIGHT.” —JIM WALLIS Additionally, evangelicals voted 27 million strong during the 2004 presidential election, 78 percent for President Bush. At the time, many were in favor of Operation Iraqi Freedom, strongly endorsed marriage amendments introduced as public referendums in dozens of battleground states across the country, and continued to support prolife candidates without any hesitation. For the most part, these same voters did not perceive the environment or poverty as major issues.

AMERICA IN 2006 Just two years later, the political winds are changing. Some religious voters are second-guessing their political commitments. In particular, twentysomething evangelicals are tuning in to issues related to social justice, fighting poverty and protecting the environment. And it’s starting to affect how they think about politics.

With the stakes higher than ever, Republicans and Democrats alike are doing the political math. In both camps, one realization has crystallized: Their candidates need our support. And win or lose, they’re fighting for our votes in unpredicted ways.

Since 2004 both Mara Vanderslice and Jim Banks have founded political consulting firms aimed at helping their respective partisan clients form new strategies to attract religious voters.

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Currently Vanderslice’s group, Common Good Strategies, is working on the ground in four key battleground states, including Senate races in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Believing in the untapped potential of a new wave of evangelical activism, Vanderslice cites U2’s frontman Bono: “He talks about the American Church as if it’s a sleeping giant, one that—if it wakes up, if it starts caring about deeper issues—will literally change the landscape of the whole country, and therefore, the world.

“Not on a partisan level at all—but on a broader moral level—I don’t understand how you can look at the world and not see the growing gap between richest of the rich and poorest of the poor as one of the greatest moral questions of our time,” she adds.

Echoing this sentiment, former six-term Congressman Jim Slattery (D-KS) laments, “There’s a vast gulf between the message of Jesus and the political agenda of the conservative movement in America.

Young evangelicals need to look at the message of Jesus and count the number of New Testament references to homosexuality and abortion and compare those passages to Jesus’ teachings about caring for the poor. I believe that if we dealt with poverty in this country, we might actually dramatically reduce the abortion rate.”

These beliefs are now sung by a whole new chorus of Democrats beginning to “get” religion in 2006. Many political strategists think it’s starting to pay off.

Take for example, Senatorial candidate Bob Casey Jr. from

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Pennsylvania. He’s a pro-life Democrat running a tight race against fellow evangelical Catholic and incumbent Rick Santorum (R-PA).

Casey speaks openly about how his personal faith compels him to address poverty, social injustice and environmental reform. Bob Casey proves that Democrats can compete—not just in spite of, but because of their faith.

In a similar move, Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) addressed more than 500 religious activists at Pentecost 2006, an event hosted by Sojourners/Call to Renewal, a progressive religious organization trying to put poverty on the map in time for the 2008 presidential election.

More than 200 of those who attended were emerging evangelical leaders between the ages of 18 and 35.

Even former presidential candidate John Kerry remarked in a September speech at Pepperdine University that he regretted not being more vocal about his faith during the 2004 election.

On the other side of the spectrum, many Republicans are embracing a more compassionate, socially conscious form of conservativism.

George W. Bush’s recently retired speechwriter Michael Gerson—a Wheaton graduate responsible for the president’s national address following 9/11 and the famous “Axis of Evil” speech—is one such Republican. In an interview with Christianity Today in August, Gerson observed: “There is a Christian view on human dignity and on the responsibility of government to protect the weak and on making sure societies are not just organized for the benefit of the strong. Those are consistent teachings that have relevance in every time, and they motivate people across the spectrum.”

Compassion and social consciousness are becoming a focus of evangelicalism. In the spring of 2006, thousands of evangelicals across America participated in dozens of rallies demanding the U.S. government bring an end to the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. On the National Mall in Washington, D.C., hundreds of young evangelicals blended into a diverse crowd of conservatives and liberals, Jews, Muslims, Christians and those professing other faiths or no faith at all. Bottom line: Young Evangelicals care deeply about this issue.

Genocide must end.

These are the same evangelicals whose National Association president, Ted Haggard, recently admitted that global warming is a problem and called for a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Not long after, Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth was marketed to church groups and Christian private colleges across America. Amazingly, even ultra-conservative Pat Robertson—once a Republican presidential candidate—has proclaimed himself “a convert” on this issue. Robertson now agrees with Gore, Haggard and thousands of young evangelicals. Global warming is a serious problem.

Finally, these are the same twentysomethings who fuel the fire behind evangelical megachurch pastor Rick Warren’s P.E.A.C.E. Plan to confront extreme poverty, disease and illiteracy in the most vulnerable parts of Africa.

Do these trends mean the conservative hold on young evangelicals is loosening? Jim Banks—now the executive director of his own political consulting firm helping Republicans stake out multiple elections around the country—doesn’t think so. “The verdict is still out on that,” he says.

THE FUTURE: OUR COMMON FELT-BOARD NATION Smack in the middle of 2006’s political season, much remains unclear (except that you should vote, if you weren’t planning to already). And further beyond that horizon, the 2008 presidential

THE NEW FACE OF POLITICS

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election looms like a storm of thundering reds and blues.

One thing is certain: Right or Left, Republican or Democrat, Red or Blue, young evangelicals will continue to engage political issues and attract the attention of politicians along the way.

On the giant Red and Blue felt board we call America, Jim Banks and Mara Vanderslice still occupy the edge of the cloth, representing the poles rather than the center of our generation’s political vision.

In reality, most of us find ourselves somewhere in the middle of our felt-board nation, not on the extremes. According to Jim Wallis, lifelong evangelical activist and author of God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It (HarperSanFrancisco), our generation has largely shunned political labels and overt partisanship. “[Twentysomething evangelicals] are certainly turning away from the politics of conservative religion and the Religious Right,” Wallis says.

“But they’re not necessarily becoming Political Left. They actually want a deeper kind of moral politics that doesn’t conform to left or right, but that challenges the selective moralities of both.”

Gerson echoes these sentiments. In Christianity Today, he remarked, “There are lots and lots of young people, in their 20s to 40s, who are very impatient with older models of social engagement like those used by the Religious Right. They understand the importance of the life issues and the family issues, but they know the concern for justice has to be broader and global.”

Both of these elder evangelical statesmen know our generation is hungry for something fuller and deeper. We are tired of the status quo. We want a better conversation. 0

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ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com for a full interview with Jim Wallis.

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MUSE

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BY JOSEPH CLEVINGER

PROBING THE UNKNOWN WITH MUSE

“AT ONE POINT IN THEIR LIVES, EVERYONE has [wondered] what happens when we die,” Muse bassist Chris Wolstenholme says. “Some people think nothing.

Some people think life after death. Some people are just completely unsure.”

It’s this dark uncertainty that helps defi ne the British rock trio’s music. A fear of death. A fear of the unknown. The cold loneliness of space. A desire for the apocalypse.

As teenagers, Wolstenholme, lead singer Matthew Bellamy and drummer Dominic Howard competed in a local battle of the bands contest in Devon, England. Their act was a display of raw emotion and violence that climaxed with the destruction of everything on stage, including the rented sound equipment. The judges liked what they saw.

In the decade since then, Muse has built a huge following throughout England, and more recently in the United States.

And throughout, themes of the eternal and the unknown have been pervasive in everything the band has done.

“It is possible to make music that goes beyond everyday

MUSE

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I TOLD MATTHEW NOT TO WEAR THE V-NECK: (L-R) Chris Wolstenholme, Matthew Bellamy, Dominic Howard

life and beyond life in general, something timeless that speaks about existence,” Bellamy says. “I think it is possible to fi nd something on a more spiritual level.”

The band’s success and the deep connection that they have found with their fans beg the question: What is it that draws people to Muse’s often-pessimistic, always deeply literate ponderings? Why do people connect so deeply with doubt and fear?

Wolstenholme sees this struggle as central to human nature. “I guess we are just curious as human beings to know what else is out there,” he says. “I’m curious and frustrated at not knowing.”

This frustration was particularly prevalent on the band’s 2003 release, Absolution. “The carnage runs through the album lyrically and musically,” Wolstenholme says.

For the band’s newest release, Black Holes and Revelations, Muse intentionally stayed away from weaving a common theme or tone throughout the album. “This time around, it doesn’t really sit in any one place for too long,” Wolstenholme says. “Musically and lyrically it does kind of jump around a bit.”

While the album does not have a unifying theme, apocalyptic overtones are still evident. The album makes reference to Muse’s obsession with the book of Revelation and the apocalypse, merging these with imagery of alien civilizations and cosmic events. Even the album art feeds this motif. It features four figures, ostensibly the Horsemen

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of the Apocalypse, seated at a table with the backdrop of a Martian landscape.

While many might say that the new album’s lack of a unifying element is a new experiment for the group, Wolstenholme feels that this kind of openness to change has always been Muse’s philosophy.

“It’s always been experimental,” he says.

Many have called the album politically charged, but Wolstenholme insists that Muse is not trying to make an overt political statement. He warns against taking defi ned political stances in music. “In order to write in that way, you obviously need to be pretty queued up on your politics,” he says. “You can’t get things wrong when you start singing about that.”

Wolstenholme claims that Muse does not attempt to have this kind of galvanizing and well-studied message. “I don’t think we’ve ever been like that. [Our songs] always come from a much more emotional angle.”

Bellamy agrees that the album’s take on political events comes from a largely emotional level. He says that he personally feels “mistrust for the people in power. [I have] feelings of extreme mistrust of the media, government, secret government—that feeling of helplessness, that’s where the more extreme moments of fear and panic and apocalyptic feelings are coming from.”

This doesn’t seem to stop fans from reading messages into the group’s work. Many fans have developed an emotional

MUSE

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attachment and devote a lot of time to interpreting the a story of hanging a bike from a bridge, obscured in the band’s often-cryptic lyrics. But Wolstenholme says undergrowth, one night after a show. The band posted interpretation is largely up to the listener. Each song may some clues on their website and went to sleep. “We went take on different meanings to different listeners, and this on the message boards the next morning to see if anyone is entirely appropriate. “Personally I think that’s the way had cracked it,” he says. “Some guy had driven for like five lyrics should be,” he says. “It’s nice if you can listen to a or six hours, got a speeding ticket, got the bike, got back in song and feel [that it’s] being sung to you personally, even his car, went home and before we’d even woken up the next if it takes on a whole new meaning.” day, there were pictures of this bike in this guy’s bedroom Of course, the band has their fair share of responsibility in a city that was about 300 miles away.” in fans reading Yet, for all the meaning into fun and games, their lyrics. In an Muse still has an interview with Q aura of darkness Magazine, Bellamy swirling about admitted that them. The same his often bizarre sense of existential infatuations with woe permeates their — CHRIS WOLSTENHOLME conspiracy theories, music. This kind of science fiction and hopelessness and spirituality lend to this intense analysis. “Some things fear of the unknown recurs again and again. The band’s that I say get taken out of context,” he said. “But they are outlook seems to be summed up best in their song “The real feelings. I think a lot. I ponder stuff. I like to construct Thoughts of a Dying Atheist.” answers from unanswerable things.”

Wolstenholme explains the questions the song raises. “Is As a result, deep and cryptic meanings have even been it possible to live your life without any kind of religion or read into the band’s song titles. Muse has twice led fans any kind of afterlife and know that when you die, there’s on scavenger hunts through clues hidden in their set lists. nothing afterward?” he says. “Can you actually do that Set lists for their live shows have contained alternate song without being scared? Is it possible to comfortably go titles that were anagrams for email addresses, passwords without believing in anything?” and locations that led fans to concealed prizes—bicycles The implication seems to be that it’s not. That, on some on one tour and a signed guitar on the next. deep level, Muse feels the fear so many do of reaching the Wolstenholme says that the band was not trying to build end of life with no hope of something beyond. up a mystique. “It was all just a bit of a laugh, really,” Is Wolstenholme, like the character in the song, like he says. “It was just an excuse to get rid of the bikes.” the ideas suggested by so much of the band’s work, afraid Wolstenholme and his band mates were surprised to see of dying? “I think we all are because we don’t know what fans take the contest and puzzles so seriously. He tells it means.” 0

“WE ARE CURIOUS AS HUMAN BEINGS TO KNOW WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE.”

WILD MUSE CHASE

MUSE ANAGRAMS

Muse has been known to pass their free time on tour by creating elaborate treasure hunts for their fans. Here are a few codes that Muse has used.

Cold Aqua Tomatoes = Des At AOL Dot Com (des@aol.com).

This email address became the moderator for all the anagrams and puzzles to come.

Obtain Drowsy Powders and Starship Crowds = Write Password On Body and Password Christ. The guy who sent a picture of himself with “Christ” on his body eventually ended up with a guitar signed by the band.

PWHK NMNM HHHZ KDQB NHHT HYSO JAZF YMUB IVBG EHAJ FJDR PKPW OBYK BDRM HJP = Near Four Seasons Austin Under The Bridge Containing Millions of Bats. Translated using Reverse Alphabet. A bike was found here.

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SERVING IN THE ARMY OF FUNK: (L-R): Rez, Mr. J. Medeiros, Stro

THE PROCUSSIONS STAYING POSITIVE EVEN WHEN IT DOESNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T PAY

BY AARON CARUTH

FOR EIGHT YEARS, THE PROCUSSIONS have been making positive hip-hop that is both intelligent and infectious. Hailing from Colorado, the trio of Stro, Rez and Mr. J. Medeiros weaves faith and hope into their lyrics while delivering a challenging message. RELEVANT asked Stro and J. Medeiros about staying positive, their inspirations as a band and what drives them to connect with their culture.

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What’s the most difficult thing about making positive hip-hop?

Stro: It’s easy to put that stamp on the music even when you’re creating it. It’s hard sometimes to really be honest with yourself because you don’t always feel positive. I think as we grow older and even as we create music, we realize that we’re not going to always be in the mood for making positive music, but we’re always going to try to put a positive spin on things. We’re all Christian guys. We study the Bible. The thing that seems to stand out whether in Old Testament stories or New [Testament stories] is that there was always something that you could learn from. We try to focus on that. To make sure that we’re not just complaining on the microphone and talking about bad things, but also hopefully we can help somebody in their own struggles.

J. Medeiros: Well, it’s [also] not really selling. We want to give people a different option. You turn on the radio, and it’s like sugar water. It tastes good, but it doesn’t last very long. It’s not really good energy.

Whether it’s the Black Eyed Peas singing about junk in the trunk or all this other stuff that you can dance over, we want to give people another option that’s deeper and stays with them and really makes them think about their life and not just dancing.

Why does positivity seem so rare in the hip-hop scene?

J. Medeiros: Hip-hop is street music. It was born in the street, and it continues to be street music. If you are wondering why there’s a lot of talk about guns, girls, drugs and violence, it’s because unfortunately in a lot of these areas that’s predominant.

Wherever you go, you have people who were born in this lifestyle, people who were born in cities where, because of —MR. J. MEDEIROS poverty or a lack of education or bad schools, you have these people growing up and seeking alternatives to make money and fulfill some sense of purpose. If you grow up and all you see is thugs, you feel like you’re supposed to be a thug.

That’s what makes being positive more relevant to [the culture], because they can relate to you.

What other artists are communicating a positive message in the hip-hop scene?

J. Medeiros: I like Pigeon John. I like the idea of not being afraid of this religious construct that we’ve created and that everyone is afraid to talk about. The church, things that Christians do. He really uses satire and humor to a level that makes people feel uncomfortable. I think it’s about time that believers realize the stereotypes out there.

That we realize what the world is saying about us and realize that a lot of it is true.

What inspires you in the music you write?

J. Medeiros: The first thing that kind of kicked off this album for me was reading this book by Renee Altson called Stumbling Towards Faith. It really was an eye-opener. It was a wound-opener, you could say. I didn’t really grow up in church; in fact, The Procussions, all of us didn’t grow up in church. We didn’t really become Christians until almost halfway in our career. When you read a book like that, it really does open you up that life is really just searching for a safe place on earth, and it’s not there. This poor girl couldn’t find a safe place at home with her Christian father, who was a deacon in her church. She couldn’t find a safe place at church.

So our source for inspiration among all of this is our undying hope that beyond all of this stuff is agape love, and it’s for all people regardless of creed and religion and sexual orientation. There is a love out there that’s not based on judgment.

It’s based on drawing people in and allowing them to feel complete regardless of where they are. I think we make too many things in this world religious or not religious. To tear somebody down and make them follow a law or a rule doesn’t breed a sense of freedom.

“YOU TURN ON THE RADIO, AND IT’S LIKE SUGAR WATER. WE WANT TO GIVE PEOPLE ANOTHER OPTION THAT’S DEEPER.”

How do you communicate hope and values to a culture like that?

J. Medeiros: You have to be real careful, not just in the message but how you present it. It needs to be real, and it needs to be relevant. If you want to push a positive message or a message of love, it has to make sense to them. You need to be courageous. Love needs to make sense, and it has to relate to that area. You can’t come in speaking a different language, because it won’t be understood. Hip-hop has its own language. This world is not really conducive for people to be positive or hopeful. It’s really just meant to break us down until we submit to anything. I think people relate to something that is real.

Hip-hop is a real culture. It has a deep history that people don’t even know about. You need to know where you’re coming from. When you fully understand it, it’s almost like you are speaking the language.

Where do you hope to be as a group in five years?

Stro: It’s hard to focus five years down the line. I think that we’ve learned a lot from each other in terms of how we create music and how we approach our own pieces of the craft in making it a Procussions sound. We’re trying really hard to create a strong foundation now without getting lost in what is going to happen five years from now.

We realize that the industry moves really fast, and I think that if we try to think that far ahead, we are going to lose focus on what’s going on now, and we’ll probably drop the ball. In another five years, I just hope that we are still relevant, like the name of your magazine! 0 ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to read the full interview with The Procussions.

THE PROCUSSIONS

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DANIEL NEGREANU PLAYS IT STRAIGHT

BY FRED BURROWS

DO NOT CALL WHAT DANIEL NEGREANU DOES “GAMBLING.” At 32, the professional poker player has amassed an estimated $8.3 million fortune in live tournaments, but he eagerly refutes that this money was earned by gambling.

“To call me a gambler would be to say that a man who sells stocks for a living is a gambler,” Negreanu says. “Somebody who opens a restaurant not knowing how much they’re going to make, that’s what I call a gamble. Getting married? Hey, there’s a gamble!”

So what do you call a person who plays in high stakes card games, winning and losing more in a night than many make in a year?

“What I consider my profession to be is a skill,” Negreanu says.

It would certainly be hard to challenge that assertion. For seven years Negreanu held the record as the youngest bracelet winner in World Series of Poker history. He is consistently ranked among the top players in the world. The easygoing, affable Canadian, nicknamed “Kid Poker,” is one of the most beloved figures on the professional circuit, and his skill has garnered him enough attention to earn him a starring role in his own video game as well as a book deal.

All of this success comes along with pitfalls for Negreanu, whose Christian faith often stands in stark contrast to his profession.

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DANIEL NEGREANU

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DANIEL NEGREANU

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WHAT WOULD JESUS DO? Chris “Jesus” Ferguson is one of the more visible players on the World Series of Poker Circuit. What advice does he have for novice players?

NEVER BET YOUR MEDIUMSTRENGTH HANDS When you have what you think is the best, you bet hoping to get called. When you know you have the worst hand, you want to bet frequently as a bluff, hoping for the better hand to fold. An average hand doesn’t work either way. You can’t get better hands to fold, and your chance of getting weaker hands to call is too slim to justify a bet. Just check it down and hope your hand is good enough to drag in the chips.

ALWAYS RESPECT YOUR OPPONENTS Never automatically assume you know more than your opponents. Many players are too quick to blame bad luck when they lose, and chalk it up to skill when they win. Don’t hastily decide you’re way better than your opponents. No one knows everything there is to know about poker. Thinking you have nothing to learn is the surest way to guarantee you learn exactly that—nothing.

ALWAYS PAY ATTENTION One critical skill is the ability to pay attention. To everything. All the time. Not just when you’re in the hand. Especially when you’re not in the hand.

Every hand your opponents play gives you valuable information about how they think about poker and how they are likely to play hands in the future. If there’s an expert at your table, watch how he plays against your other opponents. See how the expert will push other players around and move them out of their comfort zone. Never let your ego suggest you have nothing left to learn. Paying attention is the fastest way to move up the poker food chain.

“Obviously the poker environment doesn’t lend itself to an easy road or an easy path,” Negreanu says. “You’re here in this environment where there are women, drugs, alcohol. But I feel like this is where I belong. Jesus didn’t hang out with all the clean people.”

Indeed, Negreanu feels as though this environment is his niche. “I feel like my walk is to be around those types of people and possibly be a positive force for them.”

It’s certainly an environment Negreanu has had a long time to get used to. At 17, he left high school to play poker full time, seeking out illegal games around his hometown of Toronto. He learned this kind of self-reliance from his parents, Romanian immigrants who fled communism to start a new life in Canada. They were cautiously supportive of Negreanu, despite his unique career choice. Though his father passed away in 1996, Negreanu feels certain that he would be proud of his son’s success. “I think that my father would be absolutely proud. Despite the fact that I didn’t take the route mainstream society takes, he knew I would be fine. When he was young, he was on the black market selling stuff. He was a self-made man.”

By the age of 21, Negreanu moved to Las Vegas after building a sizable bankroll in backroom games in Toronto. Though he was respected as one of the best young players in the game, his desire to pursue a fast-paced lifestyle led to a lack of focus. He freely admits to struggling with loneliness, excessive drinking and extravagant spending. This all changed when Negreanu met his wife.

Negreanu’s wife had come from a Christian background as a member Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, Mich, where Rob Bell is the pastor. He describes how her spiritual background differed from his upbringing. “My parents believed in God and they taught me to believe in God, but I didn’t really know what that meant,” Negreanu says. “She comes from a much more conservative home, and they were really involved in the church. They had a deeper faith.”

This faith challenged Negreanu to re-examine his life. He describes when Christianity began to make sense to him.

“I read a book called The Case for Christ,” he says. “Because I’m a very facts-oriented guy, I realize a leap of blind faith is a good thing, but that’s not me. The book blew me away.”

After this, things began to change for Negreanu. He returned to the tour with a new focus and determination. But, for all the changes marriage has brought, Negreanu hasn’t lost the easygoing style he’s known for, a style he insists is equal parts personality and strategy. “It’s just who I am,” Negreanu says. “I love playing poker, so I’m going to be myself and enjoy the company of others. At the same time that lends itself to a very good strategy, because I end up [making] the others [feel] comfortable. When people are loose, they play a more freewheeling style, and that’s good for me.”

Easygoing though he may be, Negreanu does not shy away from conflict. “There are a lot of opportunities, especially now, for me to shut up and say the right thing, but I could never be that way,” he says. Negreanu describes some of the difficulties he’s had being a person of faith in the world of poker. “[Poker professional] Barry Greenstein is an atheist. He mocks the idea of a God, so I’ve had some heated discussions with him.”

But Negreanu’s difficulties don’t emanate solely from his peers. Christians have at times questioned Negreanu’s faith based upon his vocation.

“Frankly, I think it’s slightly laughable,” Negreanu says. “One of the things I have a problem with is some people seem to forget [that] one of the key rules is do not judge.”

Many evangelical Christians argue that gambling is ethically wrong. However, Negreanu does not believe such arguments apply to his situation. “Not at all do I think poker and gambling are synonymous for me,” he says. He believes that his skill in the game negates the aspect of gambling, but freely admits that playing poker would indeed be a gamble for unskilled, novice players. However, he disputes that there is anything unethical about his profession.

“I have never read anywhere in the Bible that says it is wrong to play poker, for money or not for money.”

And so, with opposition from both sides, Negreanu attempts to stay his course. Though he faces numerous challenges due to the path he has chosen, he welcomes the fight. “I feel like I am capable of it, otherwise I don’t think God would put me in this place.” The world of professional poker may be a risky atmosphere for a person to live out his faith, but for Daniel Negreanu, it’s one gamble he’s willing to take. 0 ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine.com to read the full interview with Daniel Negreanu.

Excerpted from www.chrisferguson.com.

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YEAR IN REVIEW With the year winding down, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to take a look back at the trends, ideas and fads that made 2006 oh-so-memorable.

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CRAZY The unofficial theme song of 2006, Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” started as Internet buzz and became one of the most popular singles of the year. Like its cross-genre predecessor, “Hey Ya,” “Crazy” became an anthem that united people of all musical tastes. And, no matter how oversaturated the airwaves became with the song, its toe-tapping goodness never diminished.

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UNORIGINALITY From sequels (Superman Returns, X-Men 3, Saw 3) to remakes of cinematic classics (Poseidon, The Pink Panther, When a Stranger Calls) to TV show adaptations (Miami Vice, Strangers with Candy, Borat), Hollywood pulled out all the stops by coming up with very few original ideas. True, the trend has been a filmmaking staple the last few years, but it grew to epic proportions in 2006. Come on, Hollywood!

MOHAWKS

MAYBE IT IS EASY BEING GREEN

In 2006, the faux-hawk gave way to its far more hardcore predecessor, the mohawk.

The hairstyle previously reserved for the punk rock set (or certain Native American tribes) gained mainstream acceptance as people from all walks of life sported strategically shorn domes. And unlike its shaggy cousin, the mullet, the mohawk can be worn without a sense of irony.

With rising gas prices, dwindling natural resources and Pat Robertson’s admission that “maybe there’s something to this global warming thing,” Americans became increasingly environmentally concerned in 2006. Organic foods, hybrid vehicles and even environmentally friendly building standards all gained momentum this year.

HOT NOT

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The Office

Razr Phones

Mohawks

5 O’Clock Shadow

Music Festivals

Charles in Charge

WWII-Era Backpack Phones

Patchy Baldness

Goiters

Star Trek Conventions

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ONLINE VIDEO For all of us who longed to have the “Falling Grape Lady” video at our fi ngertips, YouTube provided a truly valuable service. In 2006, YouTube.com went from, well, non-existence to becoming one of the 50 most visited sites on the Internet. On the more corporate/noncopyright-infringing front, Apple got in the game as well, offering shows from nearly 40 different networks on iTunes. Now, if you’re ever stranded on an island—with Internet access—you won’t have to miss a minute of your favorite show about people stranded on an island.

HOT NOT

Hybrids

The PS3

MySpace

The New Video iPod

Coldplay

Those Bicycles with the Enormous Front Wheel

Pushing a Hoop with a Stick

Actual Social Interaction

Phonographs

Menudo

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SKINNY-LEGGED JEANS Last year, girl jeans dominated the scene for guys. This year, guys fi nally manned up! Sort of. Flare legs and boot cuts became the pants of the past. Straight, tightlegged jeans became the denim of desire for discriminating consumers. With jeans getting snugger, even at the ankles, can tight-rolling be far behind? Let’s hope so.

BLOGGERS BECOME THE NEW FREE PRESS

‘WIKIALITY’ AND ‘TRUTHINESS’

Previously relegated to the world of snarky social commentary, bloggers made a noticeable impact on large news outlets in 2006. Bloggers were responsible for breaking the story of doctored Reuters photos from the Israel-Lebanon confl ict, eventually resulting in Reuters severing all ties with the freelance photographer in question. As the blogosphere grows as a credible news source, many feel that the media is held to a new standard of accountability.

Stephen Colbert made political satire hip again with The Colbert Report, and he stirred up further attention with his speech at the White House Press Correspondents Dinner. Colbert’s influence became so widespread in the cultural landscape of 2006 that “wikiality” and “truthiness,” words that he coined on his show, were voted two of the biggest TV buzzwords by the Global Language Monitor.

SNAKES ON A LAME Snakes on a Plane was important not so much for its strength as a movie or its overblown hype, but for the precedent it set for Hollywood. When bloggers demanded more violence and more action, New Line Cinema responded. Could this usher in an era wherein filmmakers respond to Internet buzz and expectations —a kind of celluloid democracy? Maybe if we all band together and work very, very hard, we can make sure that snakes never appear on a plane again. Ever.

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MAGIC! Since we went to press on this issue several months before the end of the year, we used our powers of pop-culture prediction to bring you what we believe will be the big trend in the last quarter of the year: magic. What with the influence of Arrested Development’s Gob, Edward Norton’s The Illusionist and David Copperfield’s discovery of the fountain of youth, we’re 100 percent sure magicians will come back in a big way! Not only will professional magicians—excuse us, illusionists—become the most revered members of society, but regular folks will get in on the action as well. Magic will become the most popular degree program at American public universities, and sales of Armani’s top hat and cape line will skyrocket before the end of the year. Now, you too will be able to make the Statue of Liberty disappear. If you haven’t already climbed on board the magic trend, do so quickly. It’s the fi nal countdown.

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HYBRIDS

NOT JUST FOR HIPPIES ANYMORE

DESPITE RECENT DECLINES,

gas prices are still steep. And, regardless of prices at the pump, the state of the environment isn’t improving. Global emissions levels are at all-time highs and continue to rise.

But there is some good news: It has been estimated that if every car sold in the Los Angeles Basin was a SULEV (Super Ultra-Low Emissions Vehicle), in 15 years L.A.’s signature smog would be almost completely gone. Green vehicles make a significant difference to the degree we harm the environment. The easiest way to reduce your emissions and that growing pain in your pocketbook is probably to walk, but if that is out of the question (as it is for most of us), the next best thing may be a hybrid car.

Hybrids offer plenty of benefits besides their obvious emissions- and gas-saving traits. You can get up to a $3,400 tax credit on the purchase of a new hybrid, and in certain states you can drive a hybrid in the carpool lane, even if you are alone. By driving a hybrid vehicle, you have the opportunity to take responsibility for your impact on the environment and the impact gas prices have on you.

In case you haven’t been keeping up, here’s a look at several hybrids to fit a variety of lifestyles and budgets.

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TOYOTA PRIUS

FORD ESCAPE

HONDA CIVIC

PRICE: $21,725 FUEL ECONOMY: 60 MPG

PRICE: $26,240 FUEL ECONOMY: 36 MPG

PRICE: $22,150 FUEL ECONOMY: 49 MPG

The Toyota Prius is the granddaddy of the hybrid family. Since its release, it has sold more units than all the other hybrids combined. The Prius has set the hybrid standard: great gas mileage, emissions so low that it surpasses the SULEV standard, funky styling and modern features. This car has 89 percent lower fog-forming emissions than the average new car and gets 60 city miles per gallon.

All this and it’s reasonably priced, starting around $22,000. Unfortunately the average waiting time for the Prius is anywhere from a month to a year depending on what package you are willing to settle for. But if you can find a Prius and are willing to pay now to save later, this might be the hybrid for you.

The Ford Escape hybrid has the worthy distinctions of being both the first U.S.-made hybrid and the first hybrid SUV available on the market. It gets the best gas mileage available for any hybrid SUV at around 36 mpg and has increased capacity for you outdoorsy types. What with your dogs, tents, bikes, climbing equipment and heavy backpacks, you need all the space you can find. It is on the pricier side of things, starting around $26,000, but that is still about $4,000 less than its chief competitor, the Toyota Highlander hybrid. You can even get the Escape hybrid in four-wheel drive, so while you’re driving your SUV at high speeds down treacherous mountain terrain, you can reflect on the beauty that surrounds you and all that you are doing to preserve it.

The Honda Civic hybrid is an almost identical match to its non-hybrid sibling, so you get Civic reliability, comfort and style plus about 50 miles to the gallon. The new model has gotten rave reviews for its unique ability to deactivate all of its cylinders separately to save precious fuel. The Civic hybrid is also a SULEV vehicle, and the newest models have an excellent regenerative braking system—which allows the car to use the kinetic energy of braking to recharge its battery. Though it’s not nearly as difficult to locate as the Prius, you can expect a short wait to get your nature-loving hands on your very own Civic hybrid.

CHEVROLET SILVERADO TRUCK

HONDA INSIGHT

LEXUS RX 400H

PRICE: $29,900 FUEL ECONOMY: 18 MPG

PRICE: $19,330 FUEL ECONOMY: 66 MPG

PRICE: $41,875 FUEL ECONOMY: 31 MPG

The Chevy Silverado hybrid truck sets out to tackle the idea that hybrids cost more than conventional cars and do not earn back the difference at the pump. The Chevy is only about $2,000 more than the non-hybrid version of the same truck, but has about 10 percent better fuel economy than its sibling. Many truck drivers can expect to use up to 1,000 gallons of gas a year, which at the current gas prices would give the driver about $2,000 per year in savings. Couple that with tax incentives, and a vehicle like this might make sense for someone who puts tons of miles on a gas-guzzling truck. Another cool feature of the Silverado is that it doubles as a mobile cleanburning generator. In the bed of the truck are power outlets, which save both the cost of a small generator and the space it requires.

The Honda Insight was the first hybrid car to hit the market in America. Its designers were far more concerned about fuel economy and emissions than horsepower or cargo room, and you can tell. The Insight is really, really small.

The car has next to no leg room, barebones accessories and a horrible-sounding radio. But the Insight has plenty of features that will make the rugged environmentalist inside you smile.

This car gets the best fuel economy available at almost 70 miles to the gallon. Plus, the Insight sells for less than $20,000. It’s a steal as long as you are content to ride along with one preferably short friend who doesn’t like loud music. But you can probably occupy your time praising yourself for all that you’ve done for the environment and waving as you drive by gas stations.

The Lexus RX 400h is the upper echelon of the hybrid family. It has everything you would expect from a top-of-the-line luxury SUV: rugged exterior, lavish interior, fancy features, wood grain, snob appeal, the whole nine yards. All that with one noted extra: the RX 400h gets about 30 miles to the gallon. And this car can go from 0 to 60 in less than eight seconds. It is part of a new generation of hybrid cars that is as much about extra power as it is about extra fuel economy. The emissions are still very low (SULEV low), but the price is what you would expect from a luxury SUV. You can have your very own Lexus RX 400h for around $42,000.

ONLINE BONUS: Check out RELEVANTmagazine. com for more reviews of hybrid vehicles.

HYBRIDS

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BY CRAIG BORLASE

EVER SINCE I RE-FOUND MY FAITH

at the end of my teenage years, I’ve had a group of friends whom I hold dear but who do not share my beliefs. We’ve been through life together; we’ve leaned on each other, annoyed each other and been brutally—and I really do mean brutally—honest with each other. They’ve seen me up close, they truly know me, and there’s no way in which I’ve been able to fake things in order to make my faith more appealing to them. And in spite of this profound friendship, things remain the same as they were 15 years ago. Almost. I guess that by now I’ve given up trying to convert them. But the stats remain unchanged: I’m still a believer, they’re still doubtful. And I’m wondering why.

The last time we did what we often do and talked too long and too loudly in a restaurant, we went around the table sorting out what we saw as each other’s big issues: Andy’s singleness, Liam’s frustrations, Vincent’s work-life balance, my faith. When it came to my turn to take part in the ritual, they wanted to know why I’d been so keen on trying to convert them all those years ago.

“And why did you stop?” asked Vincent.

I’m not sure if I really answered his question. I said something about valuing their friendship, that our relationship was not dependent on their subscribing to my particular set of beliefs. The next question finished me off: “Why would you want to convert us anyway?”

It was Liam this time. Why would I want to convert them? This was like a double Christmas for a budding evangelist, the ultimate opportunity to deliver the truth, close the deal and move on to the issue of tithing before the coffee came ’round. Inside I felt the pressure, the temptation to believe that if I just got the combination of words right, if my answer was pitch perfect, then the boys would be weeping with the joy of salvation within minutes. Of course, I knew that it isn’t that simple, that clever words and neat illustrations are not the magic bullet for the yet-to-be-converted. But I still gave it my best shot:

96

“I suppose that when you’ve found the secret to everything good about life, you want to share it with people you love.”

After two seconds of shrugs and vaguely appreciative nods, the topic was over. I savored my disappointment for a fraction longer, and then shelved it. But the questions remain with me today. Why do they still not believe? Why do I still get tempted into thinking that I can persuade them into faith? Why is my friends’ skepticism about Christ so much fiercer than mine ever was?

Is it my fault? Having seen me for all my failings, has it been my lack of integrity that has kept them at arm’s length from faith? If I’d been a better Christian, would they have been more intrigued?

I’ve been looking in the Bible for answers. I like the book of John, the way he narrates the story of Christ’s life. They say that John’s main aim in writing was to help people overcome their disbelief, that, in the writer’s own words, “you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31, TNIV). And so it seems to me that John pays particular attention to the way in which people responded to Jesus.

In chapter 6 we encounter the only miracle recorded in all four of the Gospels, the feeding of the 5,000. Having trailed Jesus over the mountainous terrain and eaten their free meal of bread and fish, the suitably impressed thousands cease to become a crowd and morph into a bunch of followers. The significance of this major step in their lives cannot be overstated: They’d met with God and had decided to follow Him. Yet the story is far from over, and their commitment to the cause is yet to be tried.

Their decision to follow Jesus is based on their assumptions about who He is. “Surely this is the Prophet?” they quiz, quoting the ancient Scriptures. If they’re right, then Moses had a clear instruction for them: “You must listen to him” (Deuteronomy 18:15). So it seems that things get off to a good enough start, and John is clear that these random few are on their way toward becoming true followers by asking searching

SKEPTICISM AND CHRIST

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questions as well as getting themselves into positions where they can see and hear Jesus. If there’s a sliding scale pinned that has disbelief at one end and conviction at the other, it’s kind of exciting to see these people move along in the right direction before our eyes.

Of course, Jesus knows exactly what it is that they need, and it’s not another fishy roll.

Nor is it another dose of healings, no matter how important and good they are. And it certainly isn’t a genie in a bottle, a Disney servant who could meet their every whim without demanding anything more than warm feelings and pleasant smiles in return. What these people need is faith. They need to believe in the God who is behind the most vital and essential nourishment we can ever hope to get. They need to get over themselves. They need to get over their skepticism that tells them what Jesus isn’t and open up their minds to what He is.

So Jesus spells it out: "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All whom the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day” (John 6:35-40, italics added).

Get the picture? Jesus’ choice of words reinforces the essential truth of His explanation: that this is not about actual bread. All that matters is Jesus. He is at the center of the puzzle, the answer to the questions, the source of all we ever need, not just for our bodies but for our souls as well. It’s about way more than the physical things in life, regardless of whether those things be miraculous signs or tasty snacks. It is simply about taking a risk, about forming a relationship, about falling into line behind, with and in Jesus.

But what does all this mean for us? What does it mean for those we know whose own distrust refuses to budge in the face of the greater truth? If this teaches us anything, it is surely that seeing is not believing. While they saw, heard and felt the physical form of God, it was not enough. Doubt can require more than a visible, tangible, audible miracle to calm its complaints.

I used to think that if I could just get non-Christians along to a healing service, then all would be OK. If they could just get up close enough to have a bit of God’s presence rub off on them, then surely the deal would be done. Of course, it never worked that way. Playing the occasional song or telling a story about the odd miracle is not enough. Nor can we expect to get the results we fancy from simply plonking people down in front of a decent speaker or halfway entertaining evangelistic movie. Being in front of someone talking about the truth counts for nothing if the listener remains a part of the audience.

There’s one final piece of the passage we’ve yet to quote. Jesus asks whether any of the 12 disciples are about to turn away from Him. “To whom shall we go?” asks Peter in verse 68. It’s not a question of where they would go, but to whom: the whole process of belief is intimately connected to someone rather than something.

There are tides of skepticism within us all. Some are stronger than others, some weaker.

At times these waves keep us from home, far from the shore on which we will find safety and security. There are times when the waters drive us toward our God, when skepticism helps.

But for now it is time to pause and ask this: If skepticism was overcome in the disciples by abandoning themselves to a belief based on a relationship with Christ, how does that work for us today? How does that work for my friends and yours, the ones who have heard all the arguments, who know of the miracles yet who still remain bound by a belief that God is simply not for them? How do we play a part in the way that the Spirit warms people’s hearts to God? How do we move on from here?

A decade ago Joan Osborne found society’s pulse by asking, “What if God was one of us?”

That if killed me. How badly have we failed when the idea of God being personally involved in our lives is little more than a three-minute bubblegum daydream? We can do better than this. We can show compassion and commitment to those with the big ifs, while at the same time leaving conversion up to God. We can do better than leaving people with their questions unanswered by the silence. We have to do better. 0 CRAIG BORLASE lives in the U.K. and is the author of God’s Gravity: The Upside-Down Life of Selfless Faith (RELEVANT Books). www.craigborlase.com

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MUTE MATH

MUTE MATH (WARNER BROS.)

IN 2004, MUTE MATH WAS ENJOYING A GROUNDSWELL of critical acclaim for their fresh style, which has been described as a mix of indie, techno-pop and infectious groove. Playing shows to an ever-expanding fan base across the country, they were quickly signed to Word/Warner Bros. and set a street date for their debut album. RELEVANT even featured them on the cover, anticipating the imminent release of their album in the spring of 2005. For the next year and a half until now, disagreements with their label over how the band was going to be marketed (with an emphasis on being a “Christian” band or not) caused a massive delay in the release. Although its journey to arrival has been one of the longest in recent memory, as it turns out, Mute Math was well worth the wait.

And fortunately for the band, the record has retained the buzz it began generating since the beginning of 2006 when the album was available for download through the Internet and sold at shows.

Paul Meany leads the band and sounds a bit like Sting, and if that wasn’t unlikely enough, Meany also plays a keytar. While the songs draw comparisons to The Killers, Switchfoot and Radiohead, as well as U2’s stadium rock anthems, it should be noted that Mute Math isn’t a copycat band. Culling a myriad of influences, they have created an album that blends electronic, new wave, industrial, reggae and even jazz. It’s a creative combination that sounds eclectic enough to keep your attention but accesible enough to keep you from tuning out.

“Typical,” a hard-charging rocker, starts the album and sets the tone lyrically and musically. As the album progresses, they seem content to 100

explore different styles on each track: ethereal space-pop on “Stare at the Sun” and ’80s pop on “Noticed.” By the second half of the album, the band settles into more of a routine with a groovier, introspective feel reminiscent of Earthsuit, Meany’s previous band. “Typical” asks, Can I break the spell of the typical? The rest of the album seeks to answer that question.

Lyrically, the album searches the soul of those stuck in a rut and makes an aural attempt to break the mundane. Mute Math’s self-titled album breaks from the expected and delivers a collection of songs that is unexpected and far from typical. Let’s just hope we don’t have to wait too long to hear from them again. —DANNY MILLER

MUTE MATH MUTE MATH (WARNER BROS.) GENRE:

SYNTH ROCK :LYRICS

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

MUSIC REVIEWS

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ADIE DONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T WAIT (BEC RECORDINGS) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

POP

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Wait is the ďŹ rst solo effort from Adie Camp, former lead singer of South African Christian progressive rock group The Benjamin Gate and wife of Jeremy Camp. Adie has a very emotive voice, at times reminiscent of Frou Frou. The album is at its best when that voice is showcased with sparse musical backing, especially on the track â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Have I Done,â&#x20AC;? which is the highlight of the album. If â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Have I Doneâ&#x20AC;? is the albumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best, then its worst is the albumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s closer, a stale cover of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Turn, Turn, Turn.â&#x20AC;? While a good start to her solo career, the album sometimes gets lost in the sea of predictable lyrics and musical arrangements. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;ANGELA PAPPAS

THE DECEMBERISTS THE CRANE WIFE (CAPITOL) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

INDIE ROCK

Beautifully orchestrated, lyrically compelling and wonderfully diverse, this new release from The Decemberists is one of the best CDs of the last ďŹ ve years. Based loosely on a Japanese folk tale about marital greed, the album has a folksy charm in both instrumentation and production. Modern rock and international poetry rarely share the same bed, but this marriage actually works. The 12-minute-plus â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Island, Come and See/The Landlordâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Daughter/Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll Not Feel the Drowningâ&#x20AC;? is a work of astounding clarity, something you could study in literature class or if you were about to write a new prog-rock opera. Even the song titles are cool: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Yankee Bayonet,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;O Valencia!,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Shankhill Butchers.â&#x20AC;? The Crane Wife is perhaps the ďŹ rst indie album that could be made into a movie. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;JOHN BRANDON

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THE ROOTS GAME THEORY (DEF JAM) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

RAP

If you’ve been longing for The Roots to recapture the energy and focus of Things Fall Apart, your wait is over. Black Thought is arguably one of the best MCs to ever step into the recording booth. Like a street physician, he continually diagnoses societal ills from the symptoms he sees every day. On the title cut, he spits, It wasn’t really that ill until the start of crack/Now it’s a body caught every night on the almanac. The production, as always, is handled in-house and touches levels from soulful and sorrowful to spine-tingling and neck-snapping. The only caveat here is the explicit lyrical content. Apart from that, every ingredient you ever loved about The Roots has been poured liberally into the recipe that is Game Theory.

—GREG OWENS

PILLAR THE RECKONING (FLICKER) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

HARDCORE

Pillar is safe screamo for the clean-cut kids. They rock pretty hard on The Reckoning, their fifth release, and occasionally throw in a few Mexican-flavored guitars just to prove their Southern California cred. Yet, as P.O.D.-light imitators, they never dive full-on into hardcore. The Reckoning sounds like they stopped at Starbucks on the way to the studio for a vanilla latte. Ballads like “Angels in Disguise” and “Wherever the Wind Blows” are too sugary sweet for a band that should be crowd surfing during their live shows.

While Kutless can pull off the mid-tempo tracks and still maintain their hardcore edge, Pillar needs more crunch. “Elysian” sounds like a Santana reunion; “Crossfire” is a Skillet wannabe. Signs of greatness (see “Awake,” the best song on the album) get obfuscated by mediocrity. —JOHN BRANDON

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THE KILLERS SAM’S TOWN (ISLAND) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

FOLK

The Killers still aren’t making original music. They always seem to come to the party about 20 years too late. On Hot Fuss they played the role of latter-day Joy Division. With Sam’s Town the sound is more of a Bruce Springsteen meets The Cars vibe. After accusations of sounding like Brit-pop wannabes, The Killers have set out to make a truly American rock album. That could be a good or bad development. Good if you like lyrics about running to live, crossing the U.S.A. and never looking back. Possibly bad if you were hoping for less Americana rock and more eyeliner pop. This album is very different. The new style may be hard to swallow, but it’s worth a listen, even if only to prepare yourself for their next reinvention.

—ANGELA PAPPAS

LUPE FIASCO LUPE FIASCO’S FOOD & LIQUOR (ATLANTIC) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

HIP-HOP

Lupe Fiasco started the right way. Gathering an unheard-of collection of hip-hop’s best, most sought-after producers (Kanye West, The Neptunes, Mike Shinoda, Craig Kallman, Soundtrakk, Prolyfic, Needlz and Brandon Howard), Lupe Fiasco is the most hyped, most anticipated hip-hop newcomer since 50 Cent and Kanye West. Fortunately for the listener, he delivers. With a fresh style and flows about collecting toys, anime, blogging and skateboarding, Lupe Fiasco is a breath of fresh air for hip-hop.

Food & Liquor is a great album full of smooth rhymes and promise for the future. It’s not perfect though; some very weak tracks hurt the album, and the explicit lyrics will turn some listeners off. But Lupe Fiasco’s talent cannot be ignored. He is the most relevant rapper to come along in a long time. —JOHNNY WEISS

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THE MARS VOLTA AMPUTECHTURE (UNIVERSAL) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

PROG ROCK

The Mars Volta’s ear-shattering vocals and screaming guitars will still melt your brain. But on their latest release, Amputechture, they are taking their time. Unlike Francis the Mute and De-Loused in the Comatorium, Amputechture takes a more indirect path. Still included are classic Volta-style, guitar-driven psychedelia, “Day of The Baphomets” and “Tetragrammaton.” But the newest album from the Kings of Latin Dub Prog Rock (it’s not hard to be the kings of a genre you invented) tends to lean toward a more meandering, less in-your-face style. The Mars Volta employ an even larger array of instruments than on past albums to add to their trademark samples, slashing guitars and powerful vocals. All in all, a worthy addition to The Mars Volta library. —DANNY MILLER

COPELAND EAT, SLEEP, REPEAT (MILITIA GROUP) LYRICS:

MUSIC:

SPIRITUAL CONTENT:

GENRE:

EMO POP

On their highly anticipated third album, Copeland picks up right where they left off musically on In Motion.

However, lyrically it seems Eat, Sleep, Repeat is a product of a detached, emotionally distant life. Paranoid and melancholy, the album is missing the more upbeat tracks found on previous Copeland records.

“Where’s My Head” and “Control Freak” both deal with a touch of mental instability. “I’m Safer on an Airplane” is a politically tinged, sad, helpless song on an album full of lonely tracks. Using more synth loops and falsetto crooning than ever to back up their tight musicianship, Copeland has managed to produce another solid indie-rock record. They’ve plumbed the depths of the artist’s lonely heart and excavated emotional rock ‘n’ roll gold. —DANNY MILLER

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OUTKAST

STARFLYER 59

IDLEWILD (LA FACE)

MY ISLAND (TOOTH & NAIL) GENRE:

GENRE:

HIP-HOP

DREAM POP

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

How do you follow a Grammy-winning double album? How about a major motion picture and an album by the same name? While Andre 3000 and Big Boi only appear together on four songs, the magic is still there.

No “Hey Ya” size hits here, but definitely worth the price of admission.

However, beware the explicit lyrics. —GO

Finally! Starfl yer 59 gets out of their shoegazing slump that started with 2003’s Old. The scorching guitars on My Island are not quite so sleepinducing and drone-happy, even if songs like “Lifeguard” never get fully airborne. There’s a double-tracked depravity about Jason Martin’s vocals, a Goth-lover’s antihero. —JB

RAY LAMONTAGNE

DEFTONES

TILL THE SUN TURNS BLACK (RCA)

GENRE:

FOLK

NUMETAL

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

Like Damien Rice, Ray LaMontagne catches you with poignant lyrics and the soft patter of absent-minded guitar. Yet the hinges on these well-constructed songs never break under the artist’s own inflated ego.

His sophomore release is both somber and sobering. LaMontagne is like a barstool psychologist, dolling out free advice. —JB

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SATURDAY NIGHT WRIST (MAVERICK)

GENRE:

For many fans, faith in the Deftones has slowly diminished since their self-titled release. Saturday Night Wrist is the final blow. Moreno’s melodies lack sincerity and are unmemorable. There are creative moments reminiscent of White Pony; however, they are few and far between. —AS

9/29/06 3:13:44 PM

HUNDRED YEAR STORM

THE FORMAT

HELLO FROM THE CHILDREN OF PLANET EARTH (FLOODGATE)

DOG PROBLEMS (NETTWERK)

GENRE:

GENRE:

EMO

INDIE POP

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

Bad emo is like going on a date with your sister: It’s sort of pointless, everyone makes fun of you, and it requires no emotional energy. Hundred Year Storm lingers too long in generic “me too” melodies and adds several throwaway songs they sampled from a NASA space audio archive that make you go “what the heck?” —JB

Not only do they have undeniably catchy choruses and toe-tapping melodies, The Format tackle real issues with their music. Beneath the easily digestible pop veneer, The Format has serious depth. From narcissism to compromise, Dog Problems covers the bases. This album is a surprising piece of pop from this surprisingly talented group. —AP

ROBERT RANDOLPH & THE FAMILY BAND STARSAILOR COLORBLIND (WARNER BROS.)

ON THE OUTSIDE (EMI)

GENRE:

GENRE:

BLUES

BRIT ROCK

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

Robert Randolph, unreal slide guitar skills included, is back with his band for their second studio album, and this time they brought along the big guns. Guest performances on the album by Eric Clapton, Dave Matthews and Leela James bring an eclectic element to an album already rife with creativity. —PR

Stick Coldplay and The Cure in a milk carton and shake. What might pour out is Starsailor’s On the Outside, a slippery-smooth, orchestral rock concoction that thumps and emotes in equal measure. It accomplishes the near impossible: fusing melodic intelligence and rockstar indulgence. —JB

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Nyack, NY • New York, NY

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9/29/06 3:34:32 PM

PETE YORN

THE SWIFT

NIGHTCRAWLER (RED INK)

SINGING BACK TO YOU (ROCKETOWN)

GENRE:

GENRE:

ALT-ROCK

PIANO ROCK

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

Maybe this life is like a drug, sings Pete Yorn on Nightcrawler, his third release. As a poster boy for successful alternative rock, Yorn sings like his vocal cords are made of ďŹ ne leather, and the fact that he has the musical chops to play several instruments makes it all seem more spectacular. Nightcrawler is diverse, original and even uplifting. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;JB

The Swiftâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ďŹ rst album on Rocketown Records is a collection of pianodriven, Christian pop-rock ballads. Highlights on the album include another take on the oft-covered â&#x20AC;&#x153;Nothing but the Blood of Jesusâ&#x20AC;? and the aptly titled â&#x20AC;&#x153;Love Song.â&#x20AC;? Singing Back to You is a collection of love songs to the Creator. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;JW

PANACEA

JONEZETTA

INK IS MY DRINK (RAWKUS)

POPULARITY (TOOTH & NAIL) GENRE:

GENRE:

HIP-HOP

POP PUNK

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

The ďŹ rst full length from D.C.-based hip-hop act Panacea is an oldschool â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90s rap throwback. Complete with turntable scratches and bboy beats, Ink Is My Drink is picking up where the great Rawkus acts of the â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90s left off. Like their Rawkus predecessors (Talib Kweli, Mos Def), Panacea doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make bling-ridden ďŹ&#x201A;uff rap. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;AC

File Jonezetta somewhere between The Strokes and My Chemical Romance. That might seem like a wide channel. But the channel isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quite as wide as it once was. Jonezettaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s breath-of-fresh-air style and high-energy live show have created a lot of early buzz. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not all hot air, though; Jonezetta has plenty of substance to go with their style. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;TE ALTITUDE?LOWRES PDF 0-

â&#x20AC;&#x153;That they may have LIFE, and HAVE IT TO THE FULL.â&#x20AC;?

The AIDS Crisis What We Can Do Deborah Dortzbach and W. Meredith Long take you to the ground ďŹ&#x201A;oor of the campaign against AIDS, moving from the devastating global perspective to the hope emerging from the grass roots.

You can help the church change the course of the AIDS crisis. Find out how.

%XPERIENCE THE VISION IMPACT LIVES

Altitude Geneva is an innovative, 10-month learning experience for young Christian leaders who are seeking to learn more about themselves, the healthy practice of Christianity in the world, and faith in a post-Christian society.

For more information on the Altitude Geneva program, please visit: www.yfc.ch/altitude or email: altitude@yfc.ch

Set in Geneva, Switzerland, you will have the opportunity to participate in the life of a multi-national team while working with international young people. With access to all the adventures of the Swiss Alps, you will have the unique chance to be shaped by a place where centers for the United Nations, World Council of Churches, World Trade Organization, Red Cross/Red Crescent, and many more reside!

630.734.4000

reviews_issue23.indd 0108

books.ivpress.com

Available at bookstores everywhere.

Altitude is not for everyone! Are you up for the challenge?

9/29/06 3:36:15 PM

HE IS LEGEND

MEN,WOMEN & CHILDREN

SUCK OUT THE POISON (SOLID STATE)

SELF-TITLED (REPRISE)

GENRE:

GENRE:

HARDCORE

DANCE ROCK

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

The sophomore release from He Is Legend seems to signal a change of direction for the North Carolina-based hardcore-metal act. This album ďŹ nds the band leaning more toward straight-ahead Southern rock and away from the soaring vocals and tongue-in-cheek personality that garnered them praise on their previous album, I Am Hollywood. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;JW

Men, Women & Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s self-titled ďŹ rst album is a textbook example of what happens when you mix post-punk guitar riffs with heavy looping and sampling and a disco-dance vibe. It works, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s catchy, and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be incessantly bopping your head to the beat. This album will be a sure-ďŹ re hit at your next hipster dance party. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;BH

CARTEL

TILLY AND THE WALL

CHROMA (EPIC)

BOTTOMS OF BARRELS (TEAM LOVE) GENRE:

GENRE:

INDIE ROCK

INDIE POP

:LYRICS

:LYRICS

:MUSIC

:MUSIC

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

:SPIRITUAL CONTENT

Poised to ďŹ ll the gap between Fall Out Boy and Copeland with their satisfying lyrical candy, Cartel is on the brink of blowing up. With familiar themes, quality vocals and a solid musicianship, Cartel might not be innovative, but they are an enjoyable, safe bet. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;AP

On Bottoms of Barrels, a collection of songs noted for their viral optimism, Tilly and The Wall seem to have made the perfect upbeat boygirl sing-along album that you didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know you needed until now. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget to take special note of the tap shoe percussion and gorgeous gang vocals. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;LP

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!VAILABLE AT MOST LOCAL OR ONLINE BOOKSELLERS OR DIRECTLY FROM +REGEL AT

reviews_issue23.indd 0109

9/29/06 3:36:46 PM

THE WORLD IS FLAT

THIS BEAUTIFUL MESS

AUTHOR

AUTHOR

THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

RICK MCKINLEY

PUBLISHER

PUBLISHER

FARRAR STRAUS GIROUX

MULTNOMAH

SOCIOLOGY

SPIRITUALITY

THOMAS FRIEDMAN CONTINUES HIS CONVERSATION on globalization that he has previously covered in The Lexus and the Olive Tree.

Friedman hypothesizes that globalization has occurred in three phases: before 1800 when the world depended on nation-states; from 18002000 when multinational corporations ruled the economy and the business universe; and finally his newest phase, 2000 onward, where the brilliant entrepreneurial individual has the opportunity to take hold of the economy. Based on these phases, Friedman argues that America’s global economic influence is shrinking as our global education levels continue to fall from the world’s best and brightest to the middle of the pack.

Friedman has a fascinating take on a myriad of global issues. Take special note of his very interesting theory of modern terrorism, Al-Qaeda and the mutant supply chain. He is a talented wordsmith who weaves a compelling story through the piles of facts, quotes and research.

Elaborating on a quote from Bill Gates, Friedman calls for renewed educational diligence. Graduating from college with a bachelor’s degree isn’t enough anymore; India graduates 1 million more a year than we do.

Each year China graduates twice as many as the United States.

An interesting and worthwhile read, The World Is Flat raises a lot of questions whose answers will play out over the course of the coming generations. Thomas Friedman argues that globalization isn’t a choice, it’s a reality, and if harnessed correctly, it can be hugely valuable.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD, according to Rick McKinley’s new book This Beautiful Mess, is not a reducible theological concept or something that we can only experience when we die, but a forceful present reality that revolutionizes the lives of those who embrace it. The contradiction within the book’s title reflects McKinley’s argument that God’s kingdom exists and even thrives in the complexity and suffering of everyday life and changes it into something remarkable and beautiful. Drawing on stories from the church he pastors, Imago Dei, McKinley hopes to reorient the reader’s concept of the kingdom of God and show him how to recognize and live fully present within that kingdom.

Those who are familiar with Donald Miller’s writing will recognize common themes between the two authors (Miller is a member of Imago Dei and wrote the book’s foreword). McKinley’s writing is refreshing because of the enthusiasm and joy he brings to the subject as well as the subtle way he works to dismantle the reader’s previously held notions. He writes a chapter on wealth that counters the unspoken bias among young Christians against the wealthy. McKinley advocates acquiring wealth with joy to give it away even more joyfully. Also, as a way of stirring action, McKinley asks questions in the third part of the book that challenge the reader to begin practicing the presence of God’s kingdom. Ultimately, the book offers hope that God works within the messiness of life and not despite of it. That hope makes even the worst predicament seem beautiful. —ALECIA STEPHENS

—JOHN BODE

A SHORT HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY

SIDDHARTHA

PRAYER:

AUTHOR

AUTHOR

AUTHOR

STEPHEN TOMKINS

HERMANN HESSE

PHILIP YANCEY

PUBLISHER

PUBLISHER

PUBLISHER

WM. B. EERDMANS RELIGION

MODERN LIBRARYE CLASSICS

ZONDERVAN SPIRITUALITY

Don’t think you can fit the entire history of Christianity into 256 pages? Well, you can. Sort of.

Written from a journalistic perspective, this fast-paced chronicle of Christianity races through the last 2,000 years, covering issues surrounding and created by Christianity. Trying to fit the Church’s history in such a short book does present problems though. Most important figures in the Church are only briefly mentioned before the next important issue is addressed.

And worse, both important women and nonEuropean theologians are completely omitted from this book. —JB

110

Nobel Prize-winner Hesse was a Christian missionary’s kid in perpetual rebellion, yet he couldn’t avoid the big spiritual questions in his novels. Here he marries the classic pilgrimage story with the “What is man’s role on Earth?” conundrum. Young Indian Siddhartha wanders from traditional religion to asceticism to money and sex to a hermitage by a river in his search for true meaning. His internal journey toward emptying himself is keenly focused, though lacking the embracing truths that keep Christianity so relevant today. After all, drawing closer to God should be shouted from the rooftops, not hidden near a river. —KC

DOES IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE?

In Prayer, Philip Yancey offers insight from his own experience as well as research on prayer from a historical and theological perspective.

He asks questions that most Christians think about but few authors willingly tackle, and he joins the reader on the journey, dealing with common issues and frustrations that stem from prayer. The book doesn’t shy away from addressing hard issues like miracles and unanswered prayers, either.

Yancey’s combination of talent, research and openness about his own struggles make Prayer worth looking into if you, too, have ever felt frustrated with your prayer life. —RL

BOOK REVIEWS

reviews_issue23.indd 0110

10/4/06 4:02:45 PM

A former Marine offers biblical wisdom and real-world insights to help those in all branches of military service face and overcome the demands, challenges, and stresses of life in uniform.

Available in bookstores and from online retailers.

112

LAST WORD

LAST WORD_23.indd 0112

9/29/06 4:11:30 PM

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