Jesus the Backpacker

So in 2009, or there abouts, the film ‘The Aquarian Gospel’ will be making its way out of Hollywood to invigorate conversation about the Jesus that Christians do not know and the Jesus that spiritual-seekers can relate to comes to screen. The missing years when Jesus took extended gap-years to travel and thumb it on a spiritual quest to and through India and time spent in Buddhist monasteries etc. The film is based on the 1908 book by Levi Dowling and there is a movement which has emerged from it. The Aquarian age is a term I heard a lot and read a lot about when i was engaged in my pursuit of New Age practice and Idealogy. It is not my place here to go into great detail – read the book or watch the film – but yes, I would love to have more scripture around this period of Jesus’ life as I think it would perhaps reveal more of an understanding of the God who embraces and enjoys the human life and that life’s relationship with creation (encompassing everything from washing up plates to dreaming in our sleep). I am glad the film may provide opportunity to speak about what Jesus may have been doing during that period, like school, work, discovering his identity, making friends, getting sad – you know all the stuff we humans get up to! The film also reveals the popularity within Hollywood for ’spiritual-quest-themes’ in their films. Although this time it is not The Beach and its hedonistic journey into oblivion and then self-realisation but rather the founder of a major faith who finds true identity and meaning thousands of miles from his own community, at 13 years of age! Apparently, the special effects will be similar to that of the recent 300, well that should try and pull people into a film with some digitalized fight scenes if people are not that interested in Jesus.

What More Do We Need?

OK. Just watched ‘chumscrubber’ – a diffusion of teenage angst and dis-connectedness between inter-family relationships. Pill popping culture for avoidance answers, fictional computer characters replacing physical maternal and paternal links etc. Then i thought of camping, the joy of camping – no seriously i can be one in such an experience, my family by my side literally (well at night!), the seasonal clock dictating sleep patterns, the community of fellow campers and the surreal experience of such a community. We share nothing in common but our humanity and ‘hi, are you off today…ok…well take care’. Question to all is, c’mon really what more do you need right now in your life, c’mon what is it? eh eh eh?!?