John B. Carpenter

@AreopagusActs17 @BreeSolstad You're the one who literally bows to images. You are an idolater because you believe in a self-serving sect instead of Jesus and so do what the self-serving says even though the Lord says not to bow to images.

@CovenantReform2 @BreeSolstad

“I saw clearly that it was the Virgin Mary. My finger, which was to be operated on for gangrene the next day was instantly healed the moment I pointed at her.” - Farouk Atwa Our Lady of Zeitoun, pray for those who bless your holy name and for all those who blaspheme you.

@HorrorGorl Actually, leisure time was a byproduct of industrialization.

Capitalism stole the time we’re supposed to spend with each other.

@NPWhite717 @tweets4twits comment is so incredibly dumb. Like look at a map, notice the a sea and a huge desert between Greece and black Africa and consider the difficulty of ancient travel (even if there wasn't a sea and a huge desert in the way). Then, he calls others "illiterate."

"Greeks aren't white" is one of those positions which you are somehow just as likely to hear from a 21st century leftist as from a 19th century nativist. (This is not a statement about Odyssey casting; do not argue about that in the comments.)

@tweets4twits That's so incredibly dumb. Like look at a map, notice the a sea and a huge desert between Greece and black Africa and consider the difficulty of ancient travel (even if there wasn't a sea and a huge desert in the way).

Greece is closer to Africa than Dallas is to Austin, but illiterate C students who barely skimmed the Cliff Notes version of The Odyssey in HS, who wouldn't be able to point out Greece on a map, and who fundamentally don't understand the concept of artistic license, are triggered

@DavidLescalleet Yeah. I haven't seen it yet but from your telling and others, the biggest flaw of it maybe, ironically, that it is too Christian.

@CovenantReform2 I don’t disagree in theory, it’s just that Nolan doesn’t do that in his films. Because he is the one interpreting the material, he appears to view the world through a Christian-influenced Western humanism. Robert Eggers or Mel Gibson would have been better suited for accuracy.

We just came out of the movie. If you’re looking for an accurate Odyssey (no changes to the poem, pagan morality, etc.), then you should definitely skip this one. I think it’s safe to say that Pageau read too much into the film with his analysis. I doubt that Nolan was playing 4D chess with this one, and the film is marred by its woke elements. The movie is unsurprisingly (if you understand Nolan) a modernist Western interpretation. On that front, the movie is incredible. Nolan can’t help but inject a humanistic (and in some cases Christian) worldview into this film. If you have seen The Dark Knight or The Dark Knight Rises, then this shouldn’t be a shock. Overall, as a film, I thought it was amazing and definitely worth checking out. There is more to say on understanding art in today’s day and age, a problem that continues to plague the political Right, but I’ll save that for another time.

@pj_schreiner #6 is just false. Paul obviously isn't serving the Lord's Supper to a bunch of pagan Roman soldiers.

@pj_schreiner It doesn't. The phrase is used at least 2 other times in the NT simply for eating, when context shows it cannot refer to the Lord's Supper.

@Mark91387269 @RonSCantor Indeed. They killed Thai guest workers who just happened to be in Israel. They killed anyone.

@RonSCantor Not only every Jew, but every Israeli.

Do you agree with this statement? "The Hamas terrorists who murdered 1200 Israeli's in just a few hours on October 7, given the means, would have killed every single Jew in Israel." And if so, there is a word for that!

@DennyBurk They deserve free admission for that.

Two guys sneak into the Odyssey movie in a Trojan Horse. Thus proving the old adage that those who don’t study history are doomed to repeat it. (I’m looking at you, ticket-taker!)

@RonSCantor Yes.

@SamuraiFlare @michaelwhittle I don't think he was criticizing its excellence but the fact that it is "woke."

@michaelwhittle Just because Keanu doesn't have range doesn't make The Matrix not a masterpiece. It will be a cult classic for the next 100 years, as so many concepts it touched on will be brought forth by AI.

Dudes won’t watch The Odyssey because “it’s woke” but spent 20 years telling everyone Fight Club and The Matrix were masterpieces and changed their life.

@lukestamps @jake_stone89 elephantinroom.substack.com/p/this-eminent…

Here's @jake_stone89 showing Williams' influence on Backus. elephantinroom.substack.com/p/this-eminent…

Some folks (even some Baptists) love to point out, as a way of undermining his articulation of the Baptist ideal, that Roger Williams was only a Baptist for a short time. But his biblical and theological arguments were demonstrably Baptist and influenced many Baptists thereafter.

@mark_joubert @lukestamps elephantinroom.substack.com/p/this-eminent…

@CovenantReform2 @lukestamps "Played no role" is an utterly nonsensical and unserious take and suggests you don't know much of Baptist history.

@David_Fairchild Interesting, thoughtful review. The problem with making Odysseus seem Christian is that that suggests that Christian ethics are widespread and innate in humans, rather than the specific gift of Christianity to the world. I plan to see it.

After seeing The Odyssey last night I have some thoughts: I think folks should see it for two reasons. First, because it’s outstanding filmmaking. Second, because it’s the kind of movie that’s worth arguing about afterward. Great art isn’t just meant to be consumed. It’s meant to be examined and discussed. That said, it isn’t without its flaws. Some of the casting choices felt wildly off. The Page one in particular felt forced and never clicked, even when ignoring the chatter surrounding that choice. There were moments where the supporting cast was flat, like they were circling the story without ever landing in it. Which made the main performances stand out even more, because the leads were excellent. They carried the weight of the film which kept everything grounded. Nolan excels at scale and atmosphere, but he’s never really been known for his fight choreography, and that shows here. The action sequences were clunky and underwhelming, especially given the source material. You expect something more visceral from a story like this. However, the pacing is nearly perfect. For a 3 hour film, it neither felt rushed nor bloated. That’s an incredible achievement in itself. For all the handwringing over whether Nolan would modernize Homer, I walked away thinking his moral vision felt more Christian than pagan. The Homeric world is built on honor, glory, vengeance, and making sure people sing your name long after you’re dead. Nolan doesn’t abandon those themes, he just keeps asking a better question: What kind of man are you becoming? Odysseus doesn’t get to hide behind following orders or simply doing what warriors do. Instead, he’s haunted by his choices. His victories don’t erase his guilt. And by the end, the story feels less like a celebration of glory and more like a cautionary tale reminding us that power and glory will never save you from yourself. That’s not a very pagan way to tell the story and you can see in Nolan’s version how Christianity has fundamentally changed the West’s understanding of greatness. The greatest man isn’t the one who crushes his enemies. It is the one who has the humility to repent, the courage to do what’s right, and the wisdom to know those aren’t signs of weakness to avoid but strengths to embrace. The film also manages to avoid one of the dumbest debates around this film. Both the identitarian left and the identitarian right treat the Western canon like its ethnic property. Nolan ignores both camps because the Western tradition is great because it tells stories that are true about human beings. I think Homer’s survived for so long because great stories don’t care what century you live in or what you look like. They expose your pride, your failures, your loves, your losses and your need for redemption. The West is worth defending not because its heroes are flawless, but because it preserves stories willing to expose their flaws. Civilizations secure in themselves don’t need propaganda because they can handle honest self criticism. A rare feature of today’s broader culture. Surprisingly, the film felt more like a pagan epic written through a Christian moral imagination. It’s most certainly not a Christian film, but Christianity has so shaped the moral instincts of the West that even when brilliant storytellers like Nolan set out to retell pre-Christian stories, they instinctively gravitate toward repentance over revenge, responsibility over blame shifting, and restoration over raw power. Go see it (or don’t) because it’s beautiful filmmaking. Then ask yourself what kind of hero the film actually admires. The answer is far more interesting than I expected. #TheOdyssey #Review #ChristopherNolan #FilmandTheology

@JoshDaws There was graphic sexual content in Oppenheimer precisely to add excitement that its story otherwise lacked because he was too "woke" to make the obvious point that the A-bomb was necessary to stop Japanese atrocities immediately.

Where was all this conservative backlash over Oppenheimer with its graphic sexual content?

@BlakeClarensau @JoshuaBarzon Have you seen it?

@JoshuaBarzon Better question, name one that isn't better than The Odyssey.

Name a movie that is better than The Odyssey.

@Banks1999 @jake_stone89 A member of a Baptist church. Williams was never a member of a Baptist church.

@CovenantReform2 @jake_stone89 What is a Baptist?

How do we assess the legacy of Roger Williams among early American Baptists? The career of Isaac Backus provides a test case. Williams was not the inspiration for Backus. Yet, Williams became a key part of Backus’ arguments. I try to explore that here: open.substack.com/pub/elephantin…

@AreopagusActs17 @BreeSolstad If you believed in Jesus, you would not be bowing to icons in violation of the second commandment just because your self-serving sect tells you to.

@CovenantReform2 @BreeSolstad If you believed in Jesus, you would be Catholic youtu.be/qWBUNh0bKmE?fe…

@AreopagusActs17 @BreeSolstad You're an idolater.

@CovenantReform2 @BreeSolstad You’re in a cult youtu.be/FLGCRyKDMzY?fe…