Thursday, September 05, 2024
Tuesday, May 28, 2024
An "Eggsegesis" of Amos 8:1-12, by Graham McKim
Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Amos 8:1-12, A Linocut Project by Gabriel Oakes
Here is an excerpt from Gabriel's own explanation of the linocut: "The societal connotations of fruit as a sign of abundance are quickly evoked through bold fruits and bright colors in the piece. However, as one looks closer, it becomes clear that all is not well. The background of the image is filled with swarms of bugs, a sign of the imminent destruction and defilement of the fruit. The bugs in the image are a creative embellishment on the text, meant to illustrate the theme of God’ s destruction and the lack of purity in even the seemingly good members of society, who are castigated in the pericope for their abuse of the poor and needy from their positions of community trust and economic power."
Thursday, May 16, 2024
Liturgical Dance: JOB 23:1-17
Four of my Seminarians composed, crafted, and performed this liturgical-dance interpretation of Job 23 as a final exegetical project in my OT-2 course this Spring. Classmates Santana Bartoldos, Maggie Paul, Ellie Singer, and Lydia Arnts collaborated in creating the dance and recording the video embedded below. Music Composed and Performed by Santana Bartoldus; Liturgical Dance Composed and Performed by Lydia Arnts, Ellie Singer, & Maggie Paul.
As the video begins, Lydia enters as Job and lays his legal case before God (vv. 4-5). Job kneels on the ground in rebellion (v.2) and God (Maggie) faces away reflecting Job's sense of abandonment but also God's allowing Job space to vent and imagine. Job's beckoning hand movements reflect his imagined ideal of being able to summon God. As Ellie takes up the part of Job (@ 00:26), she enacts vv. 8-9, where Job looks to every direction in search of God, but cannot see him. Job’s fragility is expressed in broken, echoing F major clusters which pass quickly into a circular triplet motive with an upward-reaching, stretched-thin top voice. The circularity of the gesture conveys a sense of motion and also of futility, as Job cannot catch God’s tail, try though he might. She arises as "gold" (v. 10) at 00:47. Then she proceeds to walk in step with God. Planing octave+third chords convey Job’s steadfastness in keeping God’s way. Verses 13-14 come to life as Ellie embodies God's pumping up God's arms. Job's dread seen in v. 15 comes to life as Maggie, as Job, is covered by darkness (v. 17), yet at the end she raises her head expressing the persistence and defiance expressed in the NIV's rendering of v. 17.
Tuesday, May 14, 2024
ICON on Job 23:1-17, by Kate Mumey
Kate Mumey created this icon as part of her final project in my Spring Old Testament Interpretation course. Here is an excerpt of her description of Job: "This is not an icon of a man who feels himself embraced by the loving arms of a just and true God. This icon is fear, anger, and the most feverish desperation. In Job’s own words, he is in search, and the language [of finding God], reverential though it is, implies the absence of God, and he has searched for this elusive and unresponsive God. There is panicked energy in the arms of Job. You can almost see it shooting out of his fingertips in desperation for confrontation and understanding from his God."
Monday, May 13, 2024
Visual AI Meditations on Psalms 51 and 121 by Greg Williams
For his final project for my Psalms class, Greg Williams leveraged his experience with prompt engineering and design and development of artistic concepts to create DALL-E (ChatGPT) images illuminating Psalms 51 and 121. Below are some of his images and excerpts of his discussion of them: