In part II of the Ransom Trilogy, Ransom again makes a voyage through Deep Heaven, this time to Perelandra, or as we know it, Venus. This time he goes on purpose, being sent for a task. He encounters a paradise unfallen, beautiful, pristine, and innocent., its only inhabitants its queen and king, long separated, searching for each other. As Ransom befriends the queen, he quickly discovers that all is not well, for a tempter lurks amidst the waters - it is Ransom's very own rival from earth - Professor Weston! Now Ransom draws on every bit of wisdom and determination he can find to persuade the Queen to disregard the words of the Tempter, for if he fails, then ANOTHER world will be lost!
Word and Journey is a community dedicated to encountering the great stories and letting them shape our lives. This channel is made possible by generous financial and media-visibility support from its listeners, patrons, and fellow readers. Please subscribe, share, review, and donate on behalf of the show so we can continue reading together with you!
Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com
Rousseaux can be reached at ousseaux@gmail.com. Also, his books can be found on Amazon, and anywhere else good books are sold.
Welcome to Part I of the Ransom Trilogy by C. S. Lewis!
And we say the "Ransom" Trilogy rather than its other common name, "The Space Trilogy," because, as we find as we read, outer space is not really empty space at all, but, being the "heavens," is full of the weight substance of the Creator!
Moses and Rousseau team up again to follow the adventures of Dr. Ransom, an English philologist, as he is captured by the devious and opportunistic Weston and Devine and finds himself in explicably on a voyage from Thulcandra to Malacandra(what we would call, from Earth to Mars). There on Malacandra, Ransom encounters its three great races, and the mighty and eternal beings, the oyarsas, that caretake them all. But more than merely exploring a strange new world, Ransom finds himself entering into a cosmic struggle between spiritual forces that engulfs all the worlds of our sun and has been raging since the beginning of time. Could it be that a lowly Human has a pivotal role to play?
Follow our discussion - and better yet, read the book! - and find out!
Word and Journey is a community dedicated to encountering the great stories and letting them shape our lives. This channel is made possible by generous financial and media-visibility support from its listeners, patrons, and fellow readers. Please subscribe, share, review, and donate on behalf of the show so we can continue reading together with you!
Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com
Rousseaux can be reached at ousseaux@gmail.com. Also, his books can be found on Amazon, and anywhere else good books are sold.
"The story [of Frankenstein] is nothing like the costume; it's much better."
Here we come to the conclusion of the classic novel Frankenstein, where we learn the fates of Dr. Frankenstein, the Fiend, and friends. We talk about betrayal and vengeance, misery and morality, the nature of humanity, redemption, the devastation of loneliness, and the pitfalls of hubris
We ponder what is the moral cliff that over which our characters tumble head over heels. Can the monster be redeemed? Could Dr. Frankenstein find redemption? Or are they like the classic "Addict" who becomes obsessed, acts in secret, and whose behaviors escalate beyond their control?
We learn that keeping secrets is bad. Loneliness is untenable. Messing around with trying to improve upon humanity tends to have results we don't want. Redemption only comes to those who seek it.
Listen along and let us know what you think!
The Word and Journey podcast is made possible by financial support from our listeners, collaborators, and friends. Please like, rate, review, and share this show with a friend who will love it!
For more information, and to join our community, visit patreon.com/wordandjourney
Moses can be reached on instagram at @mosesbernabe and at mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com
Joel can be found on instagram at @joelhere
Caleb can be found at https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net
We'd love to hear from you!
Moses, Joel, and Caleb are back with Dr. Frankenstein and the Fiend!
We continue discussing Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein. Here we deep dive into the story of the Fiend. We discuss class consciousness, empathy, nature versus nurture, and how a being is formed by community, or deformed by the lack thereof! "The Monster had potential!" But then we see what happens when he encounters exclusion, rejection, betrayal, and biased hatred.
We ponder the question of what it means to be human. Turns out the Fiend more closely resembles Lt. Commander Data then a raging, hungry zombie.
We note the horror experienced by the Fiend as he encounters the purposelessness and isolation of his own experience. We also contemplate the deep transgression of Dr. Frankenstein to have brought a being to life, then abandoned him, and how this affects our concept of God.
Do we need more science and reason? Or do we need more human connection?
We definitely need the support group "Mad Scientists Anonymous."
Listen along and let us know what you think!
The Word and Journey podcast is made possible by financial support from our listeners, collaborators, and friends. Please like, rate, review, and share this show with a friend who will love it!
For more information, and to join our community, visit patreon.com/wordandjourney
Moses can be reached on instagram at @mosesbernabe and at mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com
Joel can be found on instagram at @joelhere
Caleb can be found at https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net
We'd love to hear from you!
The novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, is routinely included among the top 10 most important works of literature in the last thousand years.
Now Moses has read it for the first time, and invited Joel and Caleb to join him!
Here we discuss monsters. What is a monster? Who is a monster? What makes a monster a monster and why is that monstrous? What about Dr. Victor Frankenstein was so very monstrous?
Here is where we will find out about all of that. We will also discuss the worldview of the story, in which one man presumes to make the world better through science. His approach is to build "The ideal man," through science, assembling human parts together. But what is a human really? Just a collection of parts? Or must he or she have a soul?
Word and Journey is made possible through the support, shares, likes, and reviews of its listeners, fellow readers, and friends. Please lend your support and join our community!
Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com
Joel can be reached at www.joelhere.com and @joelhere on instagram
Caleb can be reached at www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net
We'd love to hear from you!
To commemorate Labor Day, here’s an episode about a slave uprising gone glorious!
Mike Savara is a good friend and extraordinary social worker, government worker, addiction counselor, and the one who introduced me to the Red Rising series by Pierce Brown.
Today we talk about Lightbringer, book 5 of the Red Rising series. This is book 5 of 6, and there’s tons of spoilers, but we highly recommend you read the whole series because we really love it.
We start off owning that we are mental health professionals and not literary experts…but feel ok with that because we believe that reading good books and thinking carefully about them is a discipline that is good for everyone, and certainly a good way to connect with good friends.
Lightbringer itself is a majestically grand fantasy epic set 700 years in the future where humanity has colonized every sphere of the solar system, and stratified all of human society into a strict caste system based on colors. The higher colors are genetically bred to be super strong, super smart, beautiful, and rife with corruption. The lower colors are genetically bred to perform all the basic functions that society needs done to function.
Our protagonist, Daro of Lycos, is a Red, a miner from underground Mars, and of the lowest caste. Over the last 5 books, he has risen from the mines to infiltrate Gold society(the highest caste) to influence, to govern, to conquer, and to break a tyrannical empire.
But empires don’t die easily. His chief rival is Lysander au Lun, a true Gold, a descendent of the most powerful Sovereign to ever live. Through Lysander’s story, we’ve seen him grow from a somewhat innocent boy into an eager and idealistic young man. We’ve seen him come to a junction where he can hold to his ideals and become a hero, or give in to the corruption that so dominates his color. Whichever he chooses, though, Daro and everyone he loves are in the crosshairs of the Gold.
What will happen? Who will these characters become? Are heroes made through might or through mercy? Is strength in guns and armaments, or rather in love and kinship?
We tackle these questions and more in this discussion of Red Rising.
This episode of literary analysis and cultural commentary is made possible by generous support from our listeners. If you find this helpful, or at least entertaining, please like, share, and review, as well as supporting us through patreon.com/mosesbernabe!
Moses can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe
Mike Savara can be found at mike.savara@gmail.com
Thanks for listening!
#books #novels #epic #fantasy #sciencefiction #sciencefantasy #space #redrising #piercebrown #empire #castesystem #heroes #villains #war #relationships
Moses and Matt are back with the last half of Wheel of Time, the show, Season 2. Here we discuss more of the themes.
The Wheel of Time show follows a pattern of developing morally ambiguous characters who have great powers, great ambitions, and blatant fatal flaws. We discuss implications of a story world lacking both a clear good and a clear evil, and the challenges this poses for story writers.
We discuss character arcs, and whether these characters are becoming the best or worst versions of themselves. As our heroes go about their adventures using much the same methods as their enemies, we conclude that the end does NOT justify the means because who we are as people also really matters.
We draw on our experience as counselors, and our spiritual practice to examine the role of fantasy and imagination in the show, particularly through the vehicle of the Three Arches of Tar Valon. We note that when we get caught up in fantasy, we get stuck and lose our lives. By the same token, when we focus our imagination, we can develop insight into the world. Fantasy and imagination are only useful insofar as they find and speak of something true.
We consider the characters through the lens of IFS parts and look for who is driven by fear, by lust of power, or by genuine desire to protect others.
We do all this and more. You, the listener, are invited into a more mindful and contemplative viewing of the show along with us.
This episode of literary analysis and cultural commentary is made possible by generous support from our listeners. If you find this helpful, or at least entertaining, please like, share, and review, as well as supporting us through patreon.com/mosesbernabe!
Moses can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe
Matt Rensi can be found at his profession profile here -
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/matthew-t-rensi-morgan-hill-ca/870502 or email him at mtrensi@gmail.com
Thanks for listening!
#wheeloftime #wot #robertjordan #fantasy #epicfantasy #reading #writing #books #novels #tv #tvshow #film #filmadaptation #plot #characterization #character #fantasy #imagination #internalfamilysystems #ifs #spirituality #christianity
Moses Bernabe and Matt Rensi return to discuss Amazon Prime’s adaptation of Robert Jordan’s epic fantasy series Wheel of Time as the show plods through its second season. As counselors who study people and readers who are long time lovers of sci-fi and fantasy, we had a great time being drawn into the story world, then pulling it apart for themes, lessons, and great moments.
From a storytelling standpoint, we discuss the challenges of adapting a long book series(and a series of long books) into the tv show format. We note the hazards of getting caught up in the “Flash bang,” of spectacle at the expense of a good plot. We talk about characterization, what makes for interesting characters, and the impact of a fractured storyline. We talk about showing versus telling and why motivation is key.
At a deeper level, we examine themes evident in the show. In the fight against evil, does the end justify the means? Are people really people, or are they just pawns? What is the value of the inner struggle? How should men and women interact together?
All along, we compare the show back to the book and talk about which we liked better and why.
This episode of literary analysis and cultural commentary is made possible by generous support from our listeners. If you find this helpful, or at least entertaining, please like, share, and review, as well as supporting us through patreon.com/mosesbernabe!
Moses can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe
Matt Rensi can be found at his profession profile here -
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/matthew-t-rensi-morgan-hill-ca/870502 or email him at mtrensi@gmail.com
Thanks for listening!
#wheeloftime #wot #robertjordan #fantasy #epicfantasy #reading #writing #books #novels #tv #tvshow #film #filmadaptation #plot #characterization #character
The Wheel weaves as the wheel will! Welcome back to our discussion of the Wheel of Time!
Originally, when the Wheel of Time show came to Amazon Prime, I started a series of discussion in which I had watched the show, Matt Rensi had watched the show and read the books, and Aaron Esparza had watched the show, read the books, and play the game. We started out to compare our experiences of the show. Along the way, a whole variety of life circumstances came up along the way, and one whole episode was lost, and this one was much delayed.
Never fear, though - I have brought you the lost final episode of our discussion series on Wheel of Time season 1, just in time for us to launch into our commentary on season two!
Here, me and Matt talk about the aesthetics of the finale of Season 1(just in time for Season 3! We talk in depth on the character of Rand Al-Thor, and what his story says about heroism.
What is the most heroic thing that Rand does? He is young and in love, well infatuated really, with Egwaine, one of the powerful five. But he also suspects there is mutual love between her and Perrin, another of the five. Rand is given to jealousy, to hot-headed impetuosity, and rash judgment. He's quicker to draw his sword than use his words, and when he speaks, it's with bedrock conviction.
The way he is depicted in the show, he is a boring character for most of the season. He loves a girl, does what he's told, has nightmares about dark figures haunting him, and broods all day long. All his companions begin manifesting their magic abilities long before him, and he remains loyally ordinary...until the end when it is revealed that he's been channeling all along...he just hasn't realized it.
At least he's cute.
He's not particularly remarkable as a swordsman or a tracker or a healer or a wisdom. So what makes him a hero?
Rand is an ordinary hero in the way he steadfastly journeys with his friends. He is a quiet and reliable friend, and persistently able to struggle through with those he loves. He comes to his final showdown being tired and haggard, having gone through loss and fear, and still found a reason to persist.
His final confrontation with the Dark One is an internal one. The Dark One gets in his head and challenges his character. Is he the type of man who will take power for himself, to serve his own ends? Or is he the type of man who will resist power, struggle against desire, and consider the needs of others over his own?
In a way, he is both. He does end up declining the Dark One's offer, and resisting temptation, and he is able to do this because he loves and knows Egwaine. He wins by being grounded enough in reality, and open enough to her reality, that he can differentiate between the two, even in the depths of his mind. In that realm, he is able to recognize the vast difference between his fantasy of Egwaine, and the reality of the actual Egwaine, and his victory stroke is to prefer the real over the imagined.
In a sense, we could say his motives are still self-serving; he hopes to be with her...but we should moreso say his motives are driven by compassion. He wants her to be her, and to be with her as she is, not as he would shape her to be.
Rand's heroism is one of presence, made up of compassion, of knowing and loving others as they are, and being willing to give entirely of one's self in order that they might live.
#wheeloftime #randalthor #robertjordan #story #fantasy #hero #heroism
Moses and Jake meet up for the finishing touches of The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis. Here we consider the desire for a long and comfortable life and how that may be very dangerous to our spiritual health. We talk about courage, cowardice, and virtues that the demons cannot replicate. We recognize that the spiritual journey is just long and tiring and that we are vulnerable when fatigued. Finally, we come to the end of “The Patient’s” journey and consider the ideal end to the Christian journey.
THEN we get political…because Screwtape gets political. The epilogue puts Uncle Screwtape at a demon banquet, giving a toast, and roasting democracy while he’s at it. We acknowledge that no government is perfect, but some political structures may offer more tools to the dark spiritual forces than others.
In all things, we conclude that the spiritual world is real, is vibrant, and has a direct impact on every aspect of our lives. If we are wise, we will keep this in mind.
Let us know your thoughts, and things you have learned about your own spiritual life! We’d love to hear from you, even if you disagree with us.
Word and Journey is a listener supported venture by Moses Bernabe. To support the podcast, please visit patreon.com/mosesbernabe. You can follow Moses on instagram at @mosesbernabe, and on Youtube by searching “Word and Journey.”
Jacob Schwartz can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz on instagram.
Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time!
#cslewis #christian #christianity #orthodox #orthodoxy #orthodoxchristianity #screwtapeletters #books #book #spirituality #spiritualwisdom #spiritualpractice #church #religion #faithpractice #othering #love #compassion #demons #howthedemonswork #temptations #relationships #perspectives #politics #culture #democracy #history #community #salvation #eschatology #mosesbernabe #wordandjourney
Here we almost finish The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. Screwtape and Wormwood continue to hound the Christian on his spiritual journey. They try to get him to feel entitled to own things. They try to get him to lust after a new girlfriend, then to get bored with her. They poke at his craving for a tribe to call his own, then try to distract him with visions of “the historical Jesus.” They try to send him church shopping. They try to get him bored with “The same old thing,” and try to get him to make his religion political.
Meanwhile, Jake, Steph, and Moses reflect on how these tactics show up in our own lives and in the church cultures around us. Hopefully we come away a little wiser, but let the listener by the judge!
Let us know your thoughts, and things you have learned about your own spiritual life! We’d love to hear from you, even if you disagree with us.
Word and Journey is a listener supported venture by Moses Bernabe. To support the podcast, please visit patreon.com/mosesbernabe. You can follow Moses on instagram at @mosesbernabe, and on Youtube by searching “Word and Journey.”
Jacob Schwartz can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz on instagram.
Stephanie Bennet and her professional editing services can be found at bennettsedits.com and @bennetts.edits on instagram.
Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time!
#cslewis #christian #christianity #orthodox #orthodoxy #orthodoxchristianity #screwtapeletters #books #book #spirituality #spiritualwisdom #spiritualpractice #church #religion #faithpractice #othering #love #compassion #demons #howthedemonswork #temptations #relationships #perspectives #mosesbernabe #wordandjourney
We’re back with more thoughts on The Screwtape Letters by C.S Lewis.
Moses and Stephanie pull out their writer and editor lenses to talk about the writing - and proper reading - of the text. We consider genre, subculture, the narrator’s voice, and share thoughts to consider when writing about the spiritual world in general. Above all, we remember that this book is speculative; we don’t actually know what it’s like to be a purely spiritual being.
Then we cover a few more letters. Screwtape advises Wormwood on how to take Humor, Love, Church Shopping, Gluttony, Sexuality, and False Humility and use them to corrupt our attention and take up our time, all to set us on the slow and gradual trajectory to spiritual destruction. Turns out the Road to Hell is not only lined with twisted virtues, but it is a subtle road upon which one can walk for quite a length before realizing it is too late to turn back!
Let us know your thoughts, and things you have learned about your own spiritual life! We’d love to hear from you, even if you disagree with us.
Word and Journey is a listener supported venture by Moses Bernabe. To support the podcast, please visit patreon.com/mosesbernabe. You can follow Moses on instagram at @mosesbernabe, and on Youtube by searching “Word and Journey.”
Stephanie Bennet and her professional editing services can be found at bennettsedits.com and @bennetts.edits on instagram.
Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time!
#cslewis #christian #christianity #orthodox #orthodoxy #orthodoxchristianity #screwtapeletters #books #book #spirituality #spiritualwisdom #spiritualpractice #church #religion #faithpractice #othering #love #compassion #demons #howthedemonswork #temptations #relationships #perspectives #mosesbernabe #wordandjourney
“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel and excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.”
Moses, Jake, and Stephanie are back and reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. Screwtape Letters is the correspondence by the demon Wormwood and his affectionate mentor, the demon Screwtape, and the letters are all about how to destroy a human from the soul outwards, and utterly prevent the soul of “The Patient” from being saved by God.
In volume 1, we read the first 10 letters, and comment on 6. We learn that words matter, but we need to be careful not to get preoccupied with wordiness. We learn that compassion matters, especially when we compare our actions with the intents of others. We learn that a spirituality based on moods is much more fragile than a faith built on consistent spiritual practices. We learn that an intellectual and abstract faith that scorns “The Other,” and never takes action is a sight that makes the demons rejoice.
Let us know your thoughts, and things you have learned about your own spiritual life! We’d love to hear from you, even if you disagree with us.
Word and Journey is a listener supported venture by Moses Bernabe. To support the podcast, please visit patreon.com/mosesbernabe. You can follow Moses on instagram at @mosesbernabe, and on Youtube by searching “Word and Journey.”
Jacob Schwartz can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz on instagram.
Stephanie Bennet and her professional editing services can be found at bennettsedits.com and @bennetts.edits on instagram.
Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time!
#cslewis #christian #christianity #orthodox #orthodoxy #orthodoxchristianity #screwtapeletters #books #book #spirituality #spiritualwisdom #spiritualpractice #church #religion #faithpractice #othering #love #compassion #demons #howthedemonswork #temptations #relationships #perspectives #mosesbernabe #wordandjourney
And the saga of the Nazi hunters finally draws to its end!
What makes a hero? Can a person be considered heroic, even if they do the same horrendous things as the villain?
We wonder if people can really change, or if they never out grow their past wrongs. And if ultimately we can define our enemies by their worst parts, what does that mean about how we see ourselves?
Our heroes will stop at nothing to see Hitler dead. Is this focused passion, or insane obsession? Does this end justify any means to get there? Does the elimination of one super villain heal anyone left standing?
The show ends with the fictitious trial of Adolph Hitler. In one sense, the whole episode could be seen as an attempt at trauma healing. It’s a reauthoring - the trial we never had, but badly needed.
As the trial plays out, the question is posed - what really should we do with Hitler? Do we accord him the same human rights we claim for ourselves? Or deny him what he denied others? We quickly discover that our own souls are on trial as much as his and we will be judged by our capacity for mercy and forgiveness..
“We tell the stories of our past to change our futures.”
This channel relies on the support of its listeners. Please join our community with a few dollars a month at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and by liking, rating, and reviewing the show!
Moses can be found at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and @mosesbernabe on Instagram, and on Facebook as Moses-Rhys.
Jake can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz
We’d love to hear from you!
#wordandjourney #stories #shows #media #bingewatching #historicaldrama #hunters #nazi #politics #justice #holocaust #jew #jewish #jewishculture #intrigue #action #drama
Moses and Jake offer more commentary on the Amazon Prime show Hunters, Season II. This season comes with thick layers of intrigue, drama, lies, betrayals, and dark histories revealed. And as the global adventure continues, the personal lives of the characters just get more and more chaotic.
The show raises questions about identity, integrity, and explores what it means to be family. Much more difficult, we get to wonder - why should we forgive those who wrong us?
This channel relies on the support of its listeners. Please join our community with a few dollars a month at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and by liking, rating, and reviewing the show!
Moses can be found at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and @mosesbernabe on Instagram, and on Facebook as Moses-Rhys.
Jake can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz
We’d love to hear from you!
#wordandjourney #stories #shows #media #bingewatching #historicaldrama #hunters #nazi #politics #justice #holocaust #jew #jewish #jewishculture #intrigue #action #drama
More Nazis, more intrigue, more explorations of human-nature-under-duress, more drama - yes, dear listener, it’s Word and Journey’s commentary on the hit Amazon Prime show Hunters, Season II!
Here we see our favorite heroes, anti-heroes, and outright villains continuing the quest to rid the world of Nazis, one gouged out eye at a time. The action rises when they figure out Hitler is alive and they know where to find him. Will they kill him? Only the full season will tell!
Moses and Jake offer commentary on the story and deeper meanings of the first 3 episodes. They tackle questions on the nature of justice, who owns truth, and whether or not revenge actually accomplishes anything, and why characters living double lives give us anxiety. We wonder if a victim has an added measure of authority simply for having survived something terrible. It’s a grisly view of humanity, but then again, so was the holocaust.
This channel relies on the support of its listeners. Please join our community with a few dollars a month at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and by liking, rating, and reviewing the show!
Moses can be found at patreon.com/mosesbernabe, and @mosesbernabe on Instagram, and on Facebook as Moses-Rhys.
Jake can be found at www.jacobrayschwartz.com and @jacobrayschwartz
We’d love to hear from you!
#wordandjourney #stories #shows #media #bingewatching #historicaldrama #hunters #nazi #politics #justice #holocaust #jew #jewish #jewishculture #intrigue #action #drama
Who are we really? Are we an ethnicity? Are we the horrors enacted upon us? Or could we be the manner in which we respond to darkness....with light? Or with more darkness?
What is justice? What is vengeance? How much "Wrong" is ok in order to do right? And what is the right in a situation like the Holocaust?
Where is God in the evils of the world? Could it be He is made real in the ones who are kind?
How does community help us to survive trauma?
The Amazon Prime show Hunters continues unpacking themes of historical trauma, vengeance and justice, finding community and tribes throuh shared struggles, and initiation into a new threshold of adulthood. We talk faith, trauma, ritual, social justice, and how we find parts of ourselves depicted in a fantastic cast of characters.
This podcast is all about building a community of readers, viewers, thinkers, and creatives! If you would like to join us, consider supporting the podcast at patreon.com/mosesbernabe.
Moses Bernabe can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe.
For more information about Jake, contact him at www.jacobrayschwartz.com or @jacobrayschwartz
Thanks for listening!!
#hunters #tv #show #entertainment #media #jew #jews #holocaust #nazi #nazihunter #history #historicalfiction #trauma #intergenerationaltrauma #legacy #suffering #redemption #vengeance #justice #family #community #ritual #remembrance #remember #memory #memorial #mercy #inheritance
Moses and Jake continue their review of the hit Amazon Prime show Hunters, which follows the adventures of a group of Nazi Hunters in New York in the 1970's. We bring many questions.
Why do we need to remember the painful things?
We need to know where we came from so we don't repeat it.
We need to know where we came from so we know what's driving us, and what we're carrying.
We need to know what we are carrying so we can lay it down.
Why did God command the Children of Israel to build memorial stones? To remember how He showed up with them. Why does the church partake of the Eucharist? To call to remembrance what Christ did - to ritually recreate and participate in the events of our salvation.
Remembrance can be life giving, connective, healing even. I don't see that coming out in Hunters. When they talk about remembrance, there is a sense of remembering heritage, and that seems to be a binding agent. Very much an Us vs Them dynamic. Also a high vengeance component.
We could say that technically the Hunters are holding a grudge on behalf of the Jewish people. But we wouldn't really talk about it that way usually, because we generally think of holding a grudge as bad. Why do we find a way to forgive these folks for what they do? Is it just because of the badness they've gone through? Is one exempted from forgiveness when the atrocities committed against them have reached a certain point?
Compare and contrast The Hunters with Corrie Ten Boom, author of The Hiding Place. She engaged the same enemy differently, and achieved forgiveness.
What is the difference between vengeance and justice.
Vengeance, revenge, is an expression of an anger part. It's a reaction to injustice and boundary violation. I think it's meant to be protective against a feeling of helplessness, and against the gnawing horror of irreplaceable loss and irreparable damage. What was broken cannot be repaired, therefore the only agency I have left is to destroy in return.
Justice is to put all things in their proper place. This could include consequences, but could also allow for healing. I would say true justice can be done from a place of compassion, or at least calm. It's not out to punish or destroy, but to simply allot what is meet and right.
We also see the binding power of ritual, the way self-sacrifice makes God real, and a whole lot of trauma.
This podcast is all about building a community of readers, viewers, thinkers, and creatives! If you would like to join us, consider supporting the podcast at patreon.com/mosesbernabe.
Moses Bernabe can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe.
For more information about Jake, contact him at www.jacobrayschwartz.com or @jacobrayschwartz
Thanks for listening!!
#hunters #tv #show #entertainment #media #jew #jews #holocaust #nazi #nazihunter #history #historicalfiction #trauma #intergenerationaltrauma #legacy #suffering #redemption #vengeance #justice #family #community #ritual #remembrance #remember #memory #memorial
"The only difference between heroes and villains is who sells more costumes at Halloween." - Jonah Heidelbaum, Hunters, Season 1.
Hunters is a series on Amazon Prime created by David Weil. The story follows a group of Nazi Hunters based in New York in the 1970's. Moses found it first, then drafted Jake into watching and commenting on it with him.
Is the show any good?
Check out our full commentary and judge for yourself. The show is certainly complex, as it tackles issues of justice and vengeance and explores whether or not heroes and villains are really that different, especially when they resort to similar tactics.
Being a story about the struggles of the Jewish people, we are necessarily brought to revisit the horrors of the Holocaust. Horrors which should never be forgot.
One character says of his experience, - "The only thing you know about the holocaust is what you read in history books. But we lived it. We survived it." In this, we are led to reflect on the difference between what we know in our heads and what we have lived in our bodies. We could say that the embodied truths are the more real, but we could also wonder if having an embodied experience of torture then gives the victim complete liberty to enact vengeance as they see fit. The Hunters certainly seem to think so, and your fantastic show hosts render their opinions on the matter.
This podcast is all about building a community of readers, viewers, thinkers, and creatives! If you would like to join us, consider supporting the podcast at patreon.com/mosesbernabe.
Moses Bernabe can be found on instagram @mosesbernabe.
For more information about Jake, contact him at www.jacobrayschwartz.com or @jacobrayschwartz
Thanks for listening!!
#hunters #tv #show #entertainment #media #jew #jews #holocaust #nazi #nazihunter #history #historicalfiction #trauma #intergenerationaltrauma #legacy #suffering #redemption #vengeance #justice #family #community
Moses and Joel are back, with dad jokes in tow! We read the book Picture of Dorian Gray…and then we watched the 2009 Film Adaptation with Colin Firth and Ben Barnes. Now we compare and contrast.
We comment on the aesthetic of the movie and how, seeing the characters brought to life is cool, but the movie defaults to relying on spectacle, rather than allowing the profound concepts of the story to stand on their own. We discuss how the character of Dorian is altered by making him a victim of childhood abuse, and discuss how the character of Lord Henry is altered by giving him a daughter. We discuss at length the way the movie changed the ending…but you’ll have to hear the whole episode to find out what that change is!
Most especially we discuss the painting - oh, that fateful, grotesque painting! - that saves the body and corrupts the soul. The movie did some creatively creepy things here, and we reflect on how this changed the impact of the the image.
We definitively decide that this is not a kids movie.
And if someone comes up to you and offers to paint your portrait….run away! Really fast!!
This podcast and all our wonderful conversations are made possible through your financial support, and through your rating, reviewing, and sharing of the show. Please do help us continue in this work!
To connect with Moses, find him at patreon.com/mosesbernabe or on instgram at @mosesbernabe.
To connect with Joel, and enjoy fine poetry, find him at www.joelhere.com at on instagram @joelhere
Thanks for listening!
#book #books #novel #classic #classics #literature #movies #moviereview #film #movieadaptation #filmadaptation #doriangray #oscarwilde #portrait #trauma #hedonism #identity ##aging #portrait #spirituality #orthodoxy #orthodoxchristian #existentialism #nihilism #pleasure #novelty #addiction #icon #iconography #identity #persona #mosesbernabe #ifs #internalfamilysystems #exiles #secrets #isolation #downwardspiral #redemption #opium #regret #remorse #shame #confession