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Remember the story of the elephant and five men? Five blind men approach an elephant, one at the trunk, one at the feet, one at the tail, one at the ears, and one at the belly. Each blind men describes to the others his own representation of what he felt—the man at the trunk describes the entity as a hose, another believes that the ears are a sail, the third speaks of tree trunk features, the next describes the tail as a rope, and finally, the last man said the belly was a large boulder—none of them are exactly wrong in their descriptions. Yet none of them are correct in their conclusions, in knowing the entire animal. Each person perceives a different reality, and has a different explanation of our metaphysical state. And whether we agree with these alternate perceptions of reality or not, we must consider them. Because
without these beliefs, we lose the human spirit. Now, I cannot simply make a claim that the human spirit is lost in ignorance. But the story of the blind men and the elephant presents a metaphor for how we are all born blind into this world, conditioned through family, through our settings, and through life experiences in what we believe and do not believe. Whether we choose to accept or reject presented philosophies and theologies is a matter of human will; our will being the single most powerful deterrent in every situation. And yet, there is no way for a person to reject everything imparted to them. Likewise, it is impossible to avoid choosing, because in doing so you have already made that choice. Influence is just as powerful as will because reaction and choice are inevitable. Every choice you make, by action or
inaction– whether you should go to the movies before dinner or after dinner, if you should acknowledge the commercial asking for help for children overseas, or if you should marry the person you have been in a relationship with for the last four years—is heavily affected by all the influences of our lives. If we choose not to consider the views of others that may seem ridiculous to us, then we are setting ourselves on a pedestal of superiority. Some my call this liberal thinking, but it really falls in the category of consideration and respect. Culturally speaking, North Americans– most notably in the youth– lean towards seeing ourselves as invincible, whereas European and Middle Eastern countries often view Americans as high-handed, rude bullies. And plenty of other nations view other nations disproportionately
as said example does. I challenge Sense and Mars’ Hill readers to appreciate and understand the differences of each person you come in contact with, and especially those that you disagree with—in art, in musical preference, in political debate, in philosophical argument, in theological and spiritual contention. It’s a wonderful thing to have an intelligent debate with a person who vehemently disagrees with you, yet still each walk away sympathetic to their viewpoints. When this happens, it could be said that we have circled to the other side of the elephant and felt what the other described.
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February 8, 2006 | Leave a Comment
Picture an 11-year-old boy dressed up like a nurse, playing DJ with his own cheesy electronic music to his audience of parents and friends. What do you think happens when this kid grows up a little bit, almost dies a few times, and realizes how much he appreciates life, music, and God? Cran happens. Cran is Jonny Hughes, now one of Trinity’s own, a 1st year Art major, and a musician who has come a long way since his “DJ Nurse” days. Since he started Cran about three years ago, he has stimulated quite an attraction, locally and beyond, to his music. Aside from his trumpet player Neil Zubot, who often plays with Jonny, Cran is a solo act. It has been an intense journey for Jonny, yet he humbly treks on, smiling, trusting God, and of course, making music. Jonny’s style of electronic music, combined with unashamedly
vulnerable vocals, is influenced by artists such as Atron Family, Soul Junk, and Carol King, among others. On describing his style, Jonny says, “If someone’s really into the whole underground or indie scene (Jonny finger quote-unquotes ‘indie scene’) they could understand if I said like indietronica… or glitzpop; but normally people aren’t really into that and I don’t want to sound snobby so I just say, ‘Have you heard of Björk or Radiohead?’ It’s sort of like that.” The name Cran started out as an inside joke, as many good band names do. Jonny found amusement from writing meaningless words on message boards, and the word cran came out as an evolution of words like cranberry, rad, and the expression “keep it real.” He ended up thinking, “If something was really true it should be called cran
because someone who is really superficial and has lots of walls up, to see them say the word cranberry, it looks silly. Anyone who says the word cran can’t say it without laughing or feeling silly.” With the music he creates, Jonny recognizes the opportunity to use his gifts for God. “For Cran, it’s all about trying to witness and this is me trying to witness to people who don’t know God and Jesus, and just to show that, or hopefully show, that not all Christian music has to be cheesy.” He often gets opportunities when talking to people about music, to witness about his faith. “I’ve had tons of surprisingly amazing times talking to people who I know are atheists, or don’t know what they believe, say there’s some kind of purity about me that they really like, or that when I play, it gave them a really
weird feeling that I know is the conviction of the Holy Spirit.” Jonny’s authentic, charismatic character combined with the music of Cran has attracted the interest of more than a few people, including many local bands, and some record labels. Last summer, Jonny played at In Medias Res’ homecoming tour show, with Notes From the Underground and The Robosexuals. “I played like four sets in between every band, and it was one of the greatest days ever. There was like 500 people there and everyone sang along to my sing-along-song ‘We’re Gonna Make It’ and it was just…I almost cried. That was one of my favourites.” As far as other favourites go, Hughes says, “Usually every time I have some kind of crazy health problem and almost die, my favourite shows are the ones that I play two days after that. I
really enjoy those.” He’s not kidding, either. Last semester Cran played a show with Starflyer 59 and Maplewood Lane. Two days prior to this show, Jonny had undergone surgery for testicular cancer. He explained to his parents that it would hurt less if he stood up, and he really had to play. Thankfully, Jonny is now cancer-free. “I’m so happy to be alive . . . just feeling a little frustrated at why that kind of stuff has to happen, and just trying really hard to make the best of it and see God through everything.” Cancer is not the only health struggle Jonny has had. Last year he broke both his arms in an accident that should have been fatal. This incident also only encouraged his optimistic outlook on life and God. “I should’ve been dead, but just knowing that by human standards I shouldn’t be alive–
like it doesn’t actually make any logical sense– [I’ve realized that] God has a calling for me so I can’t be sloppy. I need to work hard when I’m at school and work hard at work and put everything into what I have, because God wanted to spare me. It’s the most intense thing ever.” Jonny gets excited because he strongly believes that he’s doing something with his music that the devil doesn’t want him to do, something for God’s kingdom. He moves forward with an optimistic sense of purpose, values each day of life, and puts all he has into his work and music. Having been through so much, Jonny has some last-minute, lifechanging advice to offer to the masses: “If you want to win the heart of a girl, use domain name jokes. It helps.” Look for Cran’s next album, Arms Legs Feet, to be released in the near future.
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February 8, 2006 | 5 Comments
I grew up playing soccer with two guys on the UBC Men’s Varsity Team, and catching up with them over the Christmas break, I found out they literally hate Trinity Western University. And it’s not just them, but the whole UBC team. The main reason for the hard feelings is not that TWU beat them in the CanWest finals last November, but that the behaviour of TWU fans at that game was appalling. TWU has the biggest school spirit of any school I’ve been to and isn’t shy about supporting its sports teams. However, much of the cheering at the CanWest finals consisted of cheering against the other team rather than for our team. It may have little effect on the field – if one team simply plays better than the other– but off the field, a crowd that negatively jeers at the visiting team reflects poorly on the school.
Christians (and students of a Christian school) are ambassadors of Christ. Although we shouldn’t live to please others and look “Christianly” on the outside, our behaviour significantly influences how others view faith in Christ. Heckling and discouragement aimed at individual players on the visiting team (called by name, thanks to the program) is common at varsity soccer games, as is chanting, “Your team hates you” after a mistake. Some UBC players even reported hearing, “God hates you” from the sidelines. As funny as heckling is (I thought it was hilarious at the time), maybe it’s not the best way to cheer. Redirecting our efforts into encouragement for our team, although perhaps not as entertaining, will have visiting teams leaving TWU happy with the game, instead of hating the school, its students,
and the God it represents. School spirit and cheering at sports games definitely makes a difference; it’s one of the best parts of “home field advantage.” In the worst case scenario, refraining from insults and booing the other team may yield a loss for TWU. Is losing the game that important when considering what the sacrifice could be? Take, for instance, the CanWest final against UBC — we won the game, but may have lost hearts for the Kingdom of God. It may sound like this is making a big deal out of nothing, but the world scrutinizes Christians. TWU may serve the homeless in downtown Vancouver, but we treated the UBC Men’s Soccer Team like garbage. Integrity includes being godly in all areas, including our sports enthusiasm. If we don’t have anything nice to say at games, let’s keep our mouths closed and redirect our zeal to building one another up.
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JONATHAN SWIFT SAID, “VISION IS THE ART OF SEEING THE INVISIBLE.” When you’re Cleveland-based artist Derek Hess, nothing rings truer than being able to communicate the unseen through ink visuals. Since establishing himself as commercial artist in the early nineties, Hess has proven himself as a strong catalyst of feeling and thought through his simple and expressive pen and ink drawings. Since then, he has created somewhat of an empire with the Derek Hess name and most recently Strhess Clothing. He also launched StrhessFest (an art and music festival) and The Strhess Tour (a sponsored music tour that has spanned both North America and the UK). I recently had the chance to talk with the 41-year-old Hess about his upcoming year and what he wants to impress his fans next.
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February 8, 2006 | 2 Comments
In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle defines reason as that aspect of the soul that exists in humans and not in animals. Reason can understand and know, and it is this understanding and knowledge that has been the pursuit of the Humanities since the days of Plato. Out of this tradition almost every other university discipline has grown. Even those disciplines that did not arise from what was then simply called “Philosophy” have all been significantly affected by its development.
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February 8, 2006 | 9 Comments
January 23 was a historic day for Canada, and yet for me it was also unforgettably bittersweet. In British Columbia, all the Liberal incumbent MPs were reelected and two other seats were picked up; not since 1968 when Trudeau-mania swept the nation has BC had this many Liberals seats. However, Election Day will also be remembered as the day that Prime Minister Paul Martin stepped down. On election night he declared he would not lead the Liberal Party into another election. Paul Martin was Prime Minister for less than two years, but he and many supporters had spent over a decade working and waiting for him to become the Prime Minister of Canada. As a Young Liberal during Paul Martin’s rise to power, I was able to see Martin as not just the best finance minister this country has ever had, but as a man with an ability to lead and be one with the people. Martin always made time for youth in the Liberal Party, and not just time to smile and shake hands, but time to attend conventions and have open discussions about issues that mattered to youth. The PM would engage in dialogue with you; perhaps that is evidence of his undergraduate study of philosophy. No Young Liberal event was really an event if a hotel ballroom wasn’t filled with hundreds of youth waiting anxiously for the arrival of the Prime Minister, and without the youth breaking out into a revamped version of the Beatles song, “All You Need is Love,” or into the new version, “All We Need is Paul.” As an alum of the Laurentian Leadership Center I was fortunate enough to watch the highly animated, guns-blazing Question Period that occurred everyday. Paul Martin was
relaxed in the government lobby prior to QP, and it gave me an opportunity to see the PM as a regular person just doing a job. On the last day of my internship, a photo-op for me with the PM was arranged. I had him all to myself for a few minutes and he asked me about my studies at TWU, then we smiled for the cameras and I floated back to work on cloud nine. During this past election campaign I spent most of my time working on the Prime Minister’s Tour in BC. When the PM arrived in BC I gleefully stood at the bottom of the steps from his plane, shook his hand, followed him onto his bus with the rest of his staff and off we went in the RCMP motorcade. For the rest of the time that the PM spent in BC I worked on the planning and coordinating of his events. I learned that the PM is definitely a morning person and he
really enjoys a cup of coffee with a bit of cream. The day before Election Day the PM was in BC for three events and a quick stop at Whitespot for milkshakes. I don’t think it would be possible to forget the time on the tour bus when the PM entered and the bus started to drive away from the last campaign event of the 2006 election, as we all cheered loudly. I viewed Election Day like Christmas and on the bus that night it was Christmas Eve. I knew something was going to happen the next day and I’d get at least some gifts, but how many, and would it be more or less than what I got last time? Paul Martin may never be Prime Minister of Canada again, but this is not something that I can dwell on. It is sad to see him step down after all his years of hard work and dedication, but Canada is left with the legacy of his accomplishments. Some of the accomplishments for which he will be remembered are the five consecutive budget surpluses he acquired, and the largest tax cuts in Canadian history that he put in place as Minister of Finance, the many international summits that he was asked to chair because of his leadership, the $42 billion deficit that he erased, the $36 billion in debt reduction, or passing the greenest Budget in Canadian history in 2005, legalizing same sex marriage, reducing wait times for health care services . . . the list goes on, as will his legacy.
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Peace in our time is just around the corner. The Palestinian Authority has just held free elections in their liberated homeland and has elected a responsible party that desires peace with Israel. This party just so happens to go by the same name as a very determined terrorist organization called “Hamas” which has been seeking the complete obliteration of the Jewish people for the last 50 years… hmmm… peace in our time? There might be peace but it doesn’t seem to reside in Israel or anywhere else in the Middle East. Several months ago, I wondered whether a Muslim democracy would work in promoting peace, and the recent evidence still leaves a very big question in my mind [Mars Hill issue 1, fall 2005]. It seems that Israel is a bad ex- ample, since both Hamas and Fatah, the former majority in the Palestinian Authority, have in their constitutions the purpose to destroy Israel. Let us therefore look to another hotbed for Muslim democracy: Iraq. This beautiful nation has problems, the least of which is an occupying army. The Sunni insurgents target Iraqi Christians, policemen, and medics in an attempt to collapse any semblance of stability that happens to form in Iraq. The people who are leading the nation cannot agree to fight the same battle since the Sunni parties accuse the Shiite majority of racial “cleansings.” These two nations seem to suggest something that many of my friends have pointed out to me: democracy is as foreign to Muslims as absolute monarchies are to Canada. If the people in these countries do not want, or are incapable of holding, liberal democracy, we should therefore find a different way to bring about peace. This situation makes me think of the book Peace Child, by Don Richardson. Richardson was a missionary to a tribe in Papua New Guinea. This tribe took war and treachery quite seriously, elevating as heroes those who made friends and then ate them. As the various villages came together to help Richardson, he realized the impossibility of peace in these tribes because of their beliefs. This reached the point where he told the leaders that if they could not have peace he would leave. It was then that he discovered the grace of God in providing the gospel to these villages. One father from one tribe gave his son to the father of another tribe. This son was designated a “peace child” whose life guaranteed a peace that was unbreakable according to their traditions. Richardson then drew whose life guaranteed a peace that was unbreakable according to their traditions. Richardson then drew parallels between this child and the Son of God, who was given to bring peace to all the world. Peace could now enter in, not through American ideals of government, or capitalism, but through the living gospel of Christ speaking to these tribes. Peace cannot come through change in government or through occupation or through change in economy or even the granting of the right of peaceable assembly and freedom of speech. Peace can only come in the Middle East when it is brought by those who care not for themselves, but for their love of God and of others. Every time I read the news and hear people talking about democracy bringing peace I want to cry. Democracy does not bring peace, peace brings self-government. Not the false peace brought by lack of war and fear of war, but the peace that only comes through knowing and submitting to the God of the universe as revealed in the man Jesus Christ. Peace in the Middle East can neither be won nor elected, peace can only come on the feet of a church bringing the good news. My challenge is not to seek new political regimes, but rather, to live a life of light so that the world may see the love of God.
