The title of this post might have summarized a satirical faithmouse cartoon a few years ago; now it's a news story. The Motion Picture Association of America has deemed the squeaky clean, evangelistic film Facing The Giants too "heavily laden with messages from one religion" according to Kris Fuhr, vice president for marketing at Provident Films.
The MPAA is advising parents against allowing their children to see Facing The Giants unsupervised, not because of profanity, or nudity, or sexual content...but because a coach talks to a student about Christ, and similar content. That's it. According to this new standard being set by the MPAA, a religious message by itself can no longer be deemed non offensive and safe for the entire family.
Not very long ago, a film devoid of sex and profanity would have been assigned immediately to the G category. If the MPAA knew ahead of time that such a film was being made by an organization such as the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, they would have mailed the film its G. The very definition of a G rating used to be that the film was a Disney cartoon, a Warren Miller surfing/skiing movie, or something Christian.
If Quentin Tarantino was revealed as the director of Facing The Giants I suspect it would have easily acheived its G from the folks at the MPAA, who might have wondered why such a talented director was throwing away his career. More than likely it isn't solely the evangelistic message of Facing The Giants which has earned the PG, but the Baptist organization which made it. The irrational PG rating against Giants may be nothing more than a politically inspired ad-hominem against the product of a religious group which is disliked by many in Hollywood for its very forward stance against same-sex marriage.
What these folks at the MPAA are now declaring is that, by association, every person, church service, televised program, sacred destination, book, film, drawing, mural, play, bumpersticker, T shirt, music CD...ad-infinitem, which presents nothing more offensive than the straightforward idea that perhaps there is a God somewhere who loves us and wants us to be happy (whoever the fiilmakers might profess that God to be), is by nature offensive to those who may not agree with that message, and should be slapped with a warning label.
Now that's offensive.
At our recent Stella blogparty, Mitchell Hadley of Our Word And Welcome To It shared with us some particularly egregious liturgical violations he's encountered here in the Twin Cities Catholic community, a subject I thought might make for a good occasional series. Just by coincidence, our correspondent the original Faithmouse was present at Mary, Mother Of The Church in Burnsville last Pentecost Sunday and witnessed the second reading presented simultaneously and in its entirety in both English and Spanish. Voila, our first 'Liturgical Violation' cartoon, in progress.
I'm finishing the Officer Gilchrist and Sevo memorial portrait begun a little over a month ago. Below is a drawing which I plan to incorporate into the final version. Puppy Sevo will be running into these hands, and then I'll have a 'cameo' of Officer Gilchrist and his current dog Buddy in the upper right corner of the drawing.
As you can see, I'm not concerned about using today's 666 date. If anything, the number is a constant reminder to me as to who gets to claim the final victory (good guys win). To mark the date, I've let it stand prominently in the drawing above. Evil has no hands to use but our own.
You know, I've forgotten all about that cake/bread.
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Have a few revisions in mind for today's new Father Augustine the Cat cartoon, which I'll try to get to later this evening. Image revised 1 A.M. Saturday.
Thanks to Dawn Eden for displaying yesterday's Ben Kessler cartoon. A hat tip to Stella Borealis and Barb at SFO Mom for doing the same. Much appreciated. Big Mike Thompson is displaying the older Chill In The Air cartoon, alongside a link to an interesting story about Christianity and the Colorado Rockies baseball francaise. Angel Queen has posted both the Stella banner I designed a few weeks ago and the report Ray wrote on a recent funeral service at St. Joan Of Arc Church here in the Twin Cities area. Hedgehodge Lover at LiveJournal displays the We're Going To The Hunter S. Thompson Suicide Party! cartoon from last year. Nicole B at As My World Turns has added faithmouse to her blogroll. Eisbrecher at the German bLOGgy (adult content) has posted the Da Vinci Commode cartoon. Thanks!
No new cartoon for tomorrow; however, the original faithmouse and I are hosting the second meeting of the Stella Borealis Northland Catholic Roundtable, which I'll report on with perhaps an embarrassing pic or two. I have a few pieces in progress, including the Armel/Garbarino memorial portrait and the most recent Ms. StarMole cartoon, wherein she deletes a previous version of herself using Photoshop. I also have a Pope Benedict/Rainbow/Auschwitz cartoon in mind, although it hasn't progressed any father than the back of my occipital lobe at the moment...
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A new B16 and Vatican Kitty cartoon.
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A papist after my own heart: Ben Kessler takes a stand - American Papist
Criticized for preaching the truth - Bettnet.com
I've taken the suggestion of Douglas Bass (0f our own mnorgblog, which is currently undergoing a makeover) and added the word 'spiritual' to the The Via Della Riconciliazione Roed cartoon below.
Thanks to Methodist Minister Revabi at her The Vicar of Wadley for posting a few recent cartoons, including the Madonna cartoon which is still in progress.
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Thousands Mourn Slain Detective (Armel) -The Connection Newspapers
Outpouring of Love For MPO Garbarino - The Connection Newspapers
First draft of a Memorial Day Weekend 2006 illustration. Still has a way to go, but the main elements are in place. I'll post the second version of this late Saturday, followed by the finished memorial cartoon late Sunday night.
I had originally planned a solitary illustration for Fairfax County Police Detective Vicky O. Armel, who was slain on May 8 by a gunman outside the Sully, Virginia Police Station, and who was laid to to rest the day before Mother's Day. Her funeral took place at the same church which she had started attending only two years prior, following her conversion to Christianity at the age of 38. The day before her funeral, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in nearby Washington, D.C. held their annual candlelight vigil during Police Week 2006, 'Respecting, Honoring, and Remembering' 466 new names added to the memorial. Many in town to attend Mrs. Armel's funeral also attended this ceremony as well. My original idea was to combine Detective Armel's memorial portrait with a scene of the NLEOM-perhaps something incorporating the candlelight vigil.
Fairfax County Master Police Officer Michael E. Garbarino, who was shot five times in this same incident as he sat in his patrol car outside the Station, succumbed to his wounds nine days later on May 17. I decided the highway flag tribute, which took place over the funeral procession route by members of the Gainesville Volunteer Fire Department, would make for a better theme for a combined portraits of these two brave and selfless officers.
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I isolated a section of the 'Madonna's True Confessional Tour' cartoon (in progress #2) and scooted it off to the affiliates as today's cartoon. I think it works fine as a solitary image, even without knowing it's part of a larger thingamabob which I'm still picking at.
Here's the complete second version of the cartoon, still in progress.
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I'd like to add some figures on the sides of the road watching in wonderment as Father Augustine and the confessional pass by. A message will also emanate from the loudspeakers, although at the moment I have no idea where to put it. How about-in a pitch higher than the human ear can hear?
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In response to Madonna's current 'Confessions' tour, where she dons a crown of thorns and pretends to be crucified on a giant mirrored cross. I'll try to have an updated version of this cartoon later in the day on Wednesday.
زمكان has posted a hurricane Katrina cartoon on this arab humanist Ladeeni thread. Thanks to Pookie18 for posting the recent Da Vinci Commode cartoon in Monday's Today's Toons thread at Free Republic. On the Italian Cattoblob, scapy chirps in with this commentary -
Hai appena guadagnato un po’ di pubblicità tra i miei amici sei il primo blog di satira schierata bene che trovo in italiano, e il secondo dopo faithmouse.
Grazie!
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Newest installment in our current Father Alldeer storyline...
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Finally got that grass mowed. Now, back to the cartoon.
Not too bad-still working on a few revisions, mainly having to do with visual flow. If you've returned a few times to see the completed version only to be greeted by cartoons in progress, sorry for having pulled your chain. I try not to treat these cartoons like fine porcelain. If I need to flush out this or that in order to get things just right, I'm willing to do so.
Anyway, please come back again later this evening for the full color cartoon. In the meantime I need to sit on this cartoon for a few hours and mull things over...
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Thanks to Dawn Eden for linking to the cartoon above. Jeff The Baptist has full permission to steal my post titles. Audra has added a link to faithmouse on her new The Peace Embroiderer blog. Thanks to God Save America for adding a link to the cartoon. The Canadian Mounties memorial illustration has landed on this Crips versus Bloods forum (adult content). Ragey links to faithmouse on his stupid pic page (adult content).
A pulpy page-turner in its original incarnation as a huge international bestseller has become a stodgy, grim thing in the exceedingly literal-minded film version of "The Da Vinci Code." Tackling head-on novelist Dan Brown's controversy-stirring thriller hinging on a subversively revisionist view of Jesus Christ's life, director Ron Howard and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman have conspired to drain any sense of fun out of the melodrama, leaving expectant audiences with an oppressively talky film that isn't exactly dull, but comes as close to it as one could imagine with such provocative material; result is perhaps the best thing the project's critics could have hoped for. Enormous public anticipation worldwide will result in explosive B.O. at the start in near-simultaneous release in most international territories, beginning May 17 in some countries -- day-and-date with the official Cannes opening-night preem -- and May 19 in the U.S. and elsewhere. - Variety
Sorry to hear link partner Lauri Byrd of the newly renamed LorieByrd.com has left Polipundit. Thanks to Carolina Cannonball at The Crescat for plugging the current favorite character poll and throwing in her hat for Neverborn. Lee from the U.K. at Nine Tenths Full Of Penguins displays the Narnia/March Of The Penguins cartoon beneath the observation 'Penguins are for life not just tenuous Christian allegory'.
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A much delayed cartoon for Father Tom Carleton at www.fetal-pain.com.
