June 9, 2010

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June 13, 2010

Ecklian Reviews: Gran Torino

Mark Eckel, Director, Mahseh Center, Lake Bruce, IN

I hope Clint Eastwood never stars in another movie.  “Capstone” to a career is not a fair depiction of the credits due his name for Gran Torino.  For a man whose signature ideal throughout most of his film career has been justice, individual sacrifice to attain rightfulness is the ultimate exclamation point.  It has been a long time since I have been so smitten by a film or its lead’s performance.  Walt Kowalski (Eastwood), his Ford truck, Michigan factory neighborhood, and his American pride are not what they seem.  Like all of us, there is more to us than meets the eye.

I have heard and read the negative responses to Gran Torino.  They are all wrong.  Some have ridiculed the cast for its immaturity; newcomers who have no acting experience.  Balderdash.  Who better to play everyday people than everyday people?  Others are concerned that racial epithets spill into every scene.  Like those who want to quarantine Huckleberry Finn I have only one response: if you have no concerns over “Jesus” being a profanity in every scene, chill out.  Every racial group jilts every other, rather than a categorical repudiation of one specific ethnicity.  Still more do not like even the hint of vengeance: weapons are no answer to violence.  My response: y’all need to leave your gated communities.  And then there are those who think this a heavy handed sermon.  Those who think they are being preached to have not been reading The New York Times or The Washington Post who believe the last six months of White House press releases are to be taken as real news coverage.  I can’t help but think that Clint’s Libertarian political views rise closer to the surface in this movie based on these baseless attacks.  The fact that the freedom-loving, America-honoring Hmong People are chosen as his character’s foils speaks volumes.

There are no frills, only straightforward storytelling in Gran Torino. In some senses the facial snarl says it all.  Here is a man who has lived a long life, has deep regrets (not the ones we think, either), and bears the emotional scars of real battles.  He is impudent, unnervingly angry, and believes everyone else beneath him.  By movie’s end everyone believes that “crusty” was only a thin veneer.  This “hero” story has been told a hundred times before and we cannot take our eyes off the screen.  A well told tale will be vindicated by open wallets.  Gran Torino grossed $150 million in theatres.

What pleases me about Gran Torino is the “enveloping” of the story: the end goes back to the beginning.  The Church and Clint’s antipathy toward it drive the tale.  If one looks closely at the body of Eastwood’s work, there is sensitivity toward Christianity that should not be missed.  The verbal jousting between newly minted priest and uncooperative antagonist creates lesson after lesson.  Clint’s symbolic gesture in the climactic scene is a sober moment considering Eastwood’s past movie pedigree.  Dirty Harry, William Munny (Unforgiven), and Frankie Dunn (Million Dollar Baby) share their sense of justice with Walt Kowalski.  But as Walt says, “nothing’s fair.”  We need to learn that getting justice may only be won by giving ourselves.

Rated R for constant racial epithets, pervasive profanity, and violence.

Mark Eckel, Director, Mahseh Center, Lake Bruce, IN 

Lt. General James N. Mattis, USMC, commander in the battle for Fallujah, November, 2004, raised the ire of the news media for enjoying his work too much.  “Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight…I’ll be right up front with you, I like brawling.  You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil.  You know, guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway.”[1]  Is it wrong for a man to enjoy his work, no matter what he does?  

Martin Luther wrote a booklet entitled, “Whether a Soldier Too Can Be Saved” arguing, God had appointed earthly rulers to restrain sin and given them the authority to “bear the sword.”  Gifted by God in this life, soldiers can know Scripture legitimizes their place.  Luther said the soldier should think, “it is not I that slay, but God and my prince, for my hand and my body are now their servants.”  Humble and reserved before God, soldiers should “smite [the enemy] with a confident and untroubled spirit.”[2]  Shouldn’t we be glad some have the calling to shoulder arms against evildoers?  Aren’t we pleased that our physical safety is helped by people dedicated to the task?  All people, no matter who they are, what they do, how old they are, have a calling. 

Over the more than 25 years teaching junior high through master’s level students, this idea that students have a calling has been pressing on my mind.  I have been struck by the implication that Christian views of vocation or “calling”[3] seem to be left for later in life, after schooling is complete. But I would contend that from the earliest period of their lives, young people can practice their vocation as “student.”  Christian school teachers must help students to see they should learn, then live. 

When teens whine, “We have to go to school!” the suggestion becomes academy work is an imposed tyranny.  The proper attitude would be to accept the responsibility and fulfill the gifts of being a student.  The teaching of providence-God personally plans and oversees all events-suggests that our time, place, and opportunity is dependant upon Heaven.  With the command to scatter and multiply in Genesis one came the designation of people by language and territory (Genesis 10:31-32).  “I summon…from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose” God tells His people (Isaiah 46:9-11).  And Paul’s apologetic for “the unknown God” includes the fact that He “determined the times set for [every nation] and the exact places where they should live” (Acts 17:26).  For students to complain about their placement in human affairs is to directly raise a fist toward Heaven. 

Imagine Esther rejecting her providential position to save the Hebrews from genocide?  Mordecai’s question “And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14) suggests truth for all people, for all time.  Students are precisely in the exact moment for which God has ordained their presence.  The Psalmist concurs, “My times are in His hands” (Psalm 31:15).  C. S. Lewis adds, “A man’s upbringing, his talents, his circumstances, are usually a tolerable index of his vocation.  If our parents have sent us to Oxford, if our country allows us to remain there, this is prima facie evidence that the life which we, at any rate, can best lead to the glory of God at present is the learned life.”[4]  The teaching of providence in time tells the class we are to learn, then live. 

The old adage “too soon old, too late smart” suggests youth has the power of strength yet great weakness in wisdom.  Ecclesiastes says it best, “Be happy, young man, while you are young and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.  Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment…Remember your Creator in the days of your youth…” (11:9; 12:1).  So, providence includes our time of life-youth-as students.  There will be things we regret (not standing up for others), things we wish we would have continued (piano lessons!), and things we’ve done we wish we had not (the list is endless).  School days must be among those things for which Solomon encouraged full participation, laden with great responsibility. 

With increased cultural pressure for “career development” it would behoove us to encourage high school students that this may be the last time they have time to study.  Young adults need to read big books, write big papers, and converse about big ideas.  Why?  Not only will everyone spend the rest of their lives working, but each tick of the clock brings us one second closer to death.  “Show me, O Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life…each man’s life is but a breath” (Psalm 39:4-5).  As the old rock song says, “Time keeps on ticking, ticking, ticking, into the future.”  Students must be pressed with the understanding that preparation for the rest of life begins with our time as students. 

But some may ask, “How much time is necessary for life preparation?”  The providence of time gives ample example.  John Mark, in Paul’s mind, needed over a dozen years to be “helpful” to the apostle’s ministry (2 Timothy 4:11; cf. Acts 15:36-41).  And for his part, at least thirteen years preceded Paul’s first missionary journey.  Paul’s pedigree was second to none (cf. Philippians 3:1-6) but he needed preparation for his new ministry (cf. Galatians 1:13-2:1).  After killing the Egyptian, God gave Moses forty years of leadership training prior to the Exodus (Exodus 2-4).  And our Lord was thirty before his ministry began as recorded in The Gospels.  If time is important even in the development of Jesus, how much more for students preparing for life? 

The providence of time for students to grow in their thinking is buttressed by the teaching of place in God’s economy.  As evidenced in Genesis 10, Isaiah 46, and Acts 17 where we live is important to The Creator.  Students must learn to appreciate the place they live that encourages learning.  Many children throughout the world work to support their families from the earliest years.  We Christian school teachers must point out the privilege of providence in allowing students to learn, then live.  Often teenagers are anxious to “get out” or “get away” from hometowns without understanding what they have or what they give up.  “All the days ordained for me were written in your book” (Psalm 139:16) encourages gratitude for a student’s time and place.  Instructing now for the acquisition of knowledge that will be lived later is the underlying premise of Christian school teaching. 

The comment most rehearsed from students over my years of teaching is “I wish I had paid better attention in class.”  Yet some are anxious to learn.  In Afghanistan today young women are going to school for the first time.  Often their meeting place is a hovel-the trailer of an 18-wheeler in some circumstances.  But the smiling faces looking at books in their hands explain they are taking full advantage of their opportunities.  The teaching of providence in opportunity is summarized well by James.  “What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes…you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that…” (4:13-17).  Everyone lives at the behest of The Sovereign of the universe.  What is a student’s responsibility?  To buy up every opportunity (Ephesians 5:16).  Many reading this article live in the most prosperous, peaceful regions of human history.  Students should thank God for their providential opportunity to learn in this place and time. 

In eighth grade I couldn’t wait to go to high school.  During ninth to twelfth I anticipated college.  Collegiate experience prompted dreams of grad school.  You know what I learned?  Don’t wish for time to go faster.  The clock seems to race against itself.  Applications to life today abound.  I will suggest three.  (1) Time is a commodity; don’t waste it, (2) place is community; don’t take it for granted, and (3) gratitude is a mark of character; give it.  Students must thank parents, administration, teachers, and of course their Creator for student life afforded them now.  

I’m personally indebted to Lt. General Mattis for his vigorous execution of his calling to be a soldier.  Indeed, I revel in the business of every person’s gifts.  As a teacher, I have come to learn that vocation is not something that we wait for later to pursue.  Calling in the earliest years of life is to be a student.  Preparation must precede ministry.  Study must come before work.  Learning must set the stage for living. 

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[1] Gene Edward Veith, “Onward Christian Soldiers,” WORLD 26 February 05, p. 28.

[2] Ibid.

[3] “Calling” is a supernatural, sovereign direction in a believer’s life based on the gifting of The Holy Spirit, local church guidance, and providential circumstances.

[4] C. S. Lewis, “Learning in War Time,” The Weight of Glory, p. 58.

This article has been adapted from an article I first released in 2005.

Mark Eckel, Director, Mahseh Center 

“You’ll be happy that I’m taking these pictures!”  My mom whips out her camera whenever the family is together.  And I am grateful that she has been so insistent over all these years.  Mom makes her own greeting cards, always with a print of a picture she has taken.  My study has many of the mementos mom has sent over the years for any celebratory day you could recount.  

Every family has a story, and every member’s story is worth preserving–certainly for the living family even more so for future generations.  Experiencing history through the lens of another person’s life can offer unexpected insight into your own.  It gets you to think: What sort of mark will I make?  How will I be remembered? . . . Annie Dillard tells of a note found in Michelangelo’s studio after he died. . . . Scribbled by the elderly artist to an apprentice, it reads: ‘Draw, Antonio, draw, Antonio, draw and do not waste time.’[1] 

Jay Leno’s tenure on The Tonight Show may be over, but his brand of humor-showing us American’s how much we don’t know about the past-will resonate for some time.  Man-on-the-street-interviews asking low-level questions (i.e., “Who was our nation’s first president?” or “Who wrote the Ten Commandments?”) would find Jay in his hunched over giggle pose after hearing absurd answers to easy queries.  Head shaking aside, our collective historical amnesia may suggest a more serious dilemma.  Can a family, a nation, a social group, or a church have a future without a past?  Is it possible to say why we exist without remembering what brought us to this place? 

The 2008 Bradley Project on America’s National Identity[2] should sound alarms across America’s schoolrooms.  The general tenor of “blame the U.S.” or dwelling on national sins is a drumbeat heard throughout educational corridors.[3]  So the report maintains 

Schools should not slight their civic mission by giving students the impression that America’s failures are more noteworthy than America’s achievements. They should begin with the study of America’s great ideals, heroes, and achievements, so that its struggles can be put in perspective. A broad-minded, balanced approach to the American story best prepares young people for informed democratic participation. . . . The teaching of American history should be strengthened by including more compelling narratives and primary texts, such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the great speeches and debates.[4] 

There is a reason why Cubans, for instance, have attempted the treacherous 90 mile journey to Miami, Florida in small water craft over the past half century.  The choice is between freedom in America and continued repression under Castro’s communism on their island country.  In our own land, to the media’s shame, we are not allowed to see the events of 9-11 consistently replayed on our television screens, reminding us we are at war with an enemy who wants our destruction.  To consciously forget the past is to give no purpose for the present. 

The Church, too, is at risk in every generation if it fails to teach its own history.  The decline of mainline Protestantism, can be seen in the microcosm of The Episcopal Church.  Falls Church in Falls Church, VA has recently seceded from denominational headquarters in the west, instead, allying itself with the more conservative Nigerian Episcopalian conference on the African continent.[5]  Why?  In large measure, Episcopalian leadership in The West gives little foundation for their faith.  Gone is a literal Genesis, a physical Incarnation, or historical resurrection of Jesus from the dead.[6]  Without documentation establishing past roots, little interest can be generated in future responsibility. 

Alzheimer’s disease robs one’s mind of the past.  However, neither this debilitating neurological condition, nor amnesia, nor a simple “lapse” defines the biblical basis for memory loss.  The Hebrew word shakah tells us that forgetting God is an act of rebellion, an ethical choice to ignore.[7]  Christians who remember, celebrate, and teach the past give renewed credence to the reliability, authenticity, and authority of history.  

Three times in Deuteronomy 8:11-20 God’s people are commanded not to ignore their Maker.  Implied in the passage is the process of “forgetting God”: apathy, leads to pride, ultimately resulting in idolatry.  “Being too full of oneself” begins the downward slide of disregarding the Almighty which seems to take very little time.[8]  Ezekiel 16:43-63 explains the outcomes of the active choice of memory deficiency, one of which is the need to fear others.[9]  

I often tell audiences “everyone bows the knee to someone.”  James 1:25 explains that one antidote to forgetfulness is activity.  The Sabbath is a “sign” practiced now through community celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.  Feasts, stones, tassels, table tops, and repositories for Scripture were the premise for active reminders through monuments, holidays, and medallions.[10]  We “make” history live again by singing, pledging, bowing, eating, and drinking with gratefulness to God for who He is and what He has done. 

Since people deliberately forget, we have to be reminded not to forget.  So, the apostle Peter says, we must “recall the words,” getting people to remember for themselves.[11]  Vigen Guroian stresses the importance of teachers to ensure collective memory is passed on, renewed by each successive generation.[12]  Explaining to classroom children why we have “days off” solidifies the reason for any season again and again.  Community commitment to the past reminds us it’s not about us, but it is up to us.  

Perhaps the most vexing problem of indifference and ignorance of history is its insipient state of ingratitude.  Forgetting God and human agents of divine transformation in any country is a slap in the face to Heaven and those on earth who have fostered freedoms we now take for granted.  The teaching of history is a salute to the past and a stabilizing view toward the future.  Remembering history is an active, collective, repetitive, and reflective process.  Memory loss leads to lost motivation.  The future is always dependent upon the past.

Knowledge can be lost. Sometimes this is perfectly reasonable: No one knows how to kill and skin a mastodon anymore, for obvious reasons. And . . . you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who could write a computer program on punch-cards today. But there is something worrisome about misplacing knowledge that is only a generation or two old. And this happens more often than you might think.[13]

For my recent graduation, mom gave me a gift, a labor of love, which is a pictorial history of photographs dating back to my great-grandmother.  There will be many hours spent in gazing over the album, considering my past.  Study must begin by preserving the past, for by it, we know better how to live, we know better what to live for, and we know better what is most important.  Nations, churches, families, and individuals have no future if they forget to study their past. 

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[1] Benjamin W. Patton, “Recovered Ground,” Smithsonian June, 2009, pp. 80-86; excerpt from p. 86.

[2] www.bradleyproject.org

[3] See, for instance, the recent cover story from The Weekly Standard (14:33, 18 May 09) on the negative mantra coming out of many schools of education.

[4] http://www.bradleyproject.org/EPUReportFinal.pdf, pages 4-5.

[5] http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/us/17episcopal.html

[6] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/03/AR2007010301952_2.html

[7] Victor P. Hamilton. 1980. shakah. The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. (Moody): 2:922.

[8] Hosea 13:6; Psalm 106:13.

[9] Isaiah 51:13.

[10] Ezekiel 20:12, 20; 1 Corinthians 15:54-16:2; Esther 9:27-28; Joshua 4:7; Numbers 15:39-40; 16:26-40; Deuteronomy 11:18.

[11] 2 Peter 3:5; 2 Peter 1:12-15, 3x; 2 Peter 3:8; 2 Peter 3:2.

[12] Vigen Guroian. 2005. “On Fairy Tales and the Moral Imagination,” in Rallying the Really Human Things. (ISI): 49-62.  See also the introduction to his book Tending the Heart of Virtue: How Classic Stories Awaken a Child’s Moral Imagination.

[13] Jonathan V. Last, “The Fog of War: Forgetting What We Once Knew,” The Weekly Standard (14:33) 18 May 2009.

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