Smorgasbord #13

Straight Edge and Scripture

Hello friends! Welcome to another edition of Smorgasbord, a self-service buffet of ideas. If you’re new here, welcome! It’s good to have you. If you haven’t subscribed, I will make it easy for you to do so.

This week has been packed with good stuff, and I can’t wait to tell you everything about it. For example, I’m participating in

Julie Vick

‘s “One Funny Line Challenge,” where I’m committing to writing one funny line a day for two weeks, following the prompts provided by her. If you’re interested in what I have written so far, check out my latest posts in Notes. Feedback appreciated.

An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.

-G.K. Chesterton

Thoughts

I was watching Shayne Smith’s interview in Pints with Aquinas, and it made me happy to know more about a comedian I like becoming Catholic. If you’re unfamiliar with Shayne’s comedy, I suggest you start with this story from his DryBar special, Alligator Boys.

Without spoiling too much of the interview, Shayne had a pretty rough upbringing, and if you see him, you’d be like, yeah, that makes sense. What caught my attention was that he claims to be part of a hardcore punk subculture called Straight Edge. Straight Edge adherents refrain from using alcohol, tobacco, and recreational drugs in reaction to the excesses of the punk subculture. You could say that Minor Threat’s song Straight Edge is a response to The Ramones’ Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue.

I respect anyone who adheres to the Straight Edge movement, but it’s not for me. I’d much rather follow the fasting and feasting movements of the liturgical calendar. Still, as someone who enjoys punk rock music without the cultural subversiveness of the movement, I think it’s pretty cool there is a subculture based on asceticism without calling that. It reminds me of Brother Andre Love’s story.

photo credit: ericfleischauer.com

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Reads

• My wife,

  Diana Cantu
  wrote Sibling Revelry about watching our children at play. Which is good for me, their father, to stop and ponder these things. Diana is the heart of our home, so reading her point of view about our life gives me a lot of perspective into what’s important.

• For my New Testament class, I read The Historicity of the Gospels, an article that dates back to 1964 and was published by the Pontifical Biblical Commission. This commission ensures the proper interpretation and defense of the Bible. It was interesting to read about the historical method and everything that is taken into consideration for exegesis. I also learned what exegesis is, which is the critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially scripture.

• For my OT and NT classes, we’ve been reading Understanding the Scriptures by Scott Hahn. This book is being used in one-third of Catholic High Schools. I’ve enjoyed reading it. For example, reading about the world of the New Testament gave me a better context of what was happening then. What was the deal with the Pharisees and the Sadducees? The Samaritans, the Romans, and the spread of the Jewish religion across the Roman Empire created the perfect backdrop for Jesus’ ministry.

• I cracked open my Ignatius Study Bible and read Matthew 1-4 with commentary. Remember watching DVDs with the director’s commentary? It felt a little bit like that. Except I have St. John Chrysostom explaining the significance of Jesus’ temptation in the desert with the Exodus and the wandering of Israel for forty years—mind-blown emoji.

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No cocktail this week; all this talking about Straight Edge made me aware of my holiday weight gain and how I need to get back to fasting and working out.

Sobremesa

• Do you have a favorite punk band?

• Do you have any tattoos?

• Have you watched a DVD with commentary?