Signs & Sightings

Holy Week and Easter were generally amazing this year. However, there were a few stories that brought the resurrection to life. My internship this year is for a college campus ministry. Our Easter Vigil went from 11pm-1am. Around midnight we processed out of the chapel onto the Old Campus quad for the Litany of the Saints. We began our rather fancy procession with the appropriate smells, bells, and whistles. Not long after we started walking, a throng of clearly intoxicated college students entered the scene. The best part was they were dressed in 80's gear. They also appeared to be dancing to synchronized dance moves. There was one catch - no music. Or so we thought. They looked possessed, weaving in and out of our procession. We later found out that it was a dance party (which has a particular name that is not familiar to me,) for which the students had created identical play lists for their i-pods. So they were dancing to the same song, we just couldn't hear it. It was like stepping into an 80's music video, without the music. [I really can't describe the full brilliance of the scene. Whatever you're imagining, make it slightly more ridiculous, and you might be close.] I was laughing hysterically at the time, and also mildly worried about our safety. The more I've reflected on it though, the more I have realized that it symbolizes both my experience with campus ministry and encounters of the resurrection this past year. Working with students often requires otherwise unfathomable creativity - such as finding beauty in an incredibly chaotic Litany of the Saints. But, I think it symbolizes where the church ought to be headed, lest we want to become truly irrelevant. I also saw a glimpse of  the resurrection, as our 70 students continued to process around the quad, in the face of the very real risk of being ridiculed by their peers. It took nothing short of courage and faith on their part. As usual, I was taken aback by the faithful witness that my students have demonstrated throughout the year. 

Another resurrection experience came from my mom of my grandmother. My Grandmother is in a nursing home and can't get out like she used to. The two things she asks most about are the foliage outside and the happenings of church in every liturgical season. As my mom was recounting Holy Week and Easter for her on Sunday, my grandmother told my mom about her Easter. Despite her inability to get to church on Easter Sunday, Easter happened as her caretaker bathed her on Holy Saturday, singing through every Easter hymn that my grandmother could remember, of which there were many. The joy she expressed when relaying this story to my mom is not describable. Suffice it to say, I now understand the importance of touch in the resurrection story in a new way. 

Not for the Faint of Heart

I enjoyed yet another of Jodi Piccoult's novels, Change of Heart. Piccoult is known for taking situations that are strikingly similar to cases in the news, altering the details, and creating a spectacular novel. For example, Nineteen Minutes was written based on research the author did of various school shootings, including Columbine's. However, the novel was written from the hypothetical perspective that the shooters had suffered from PTSD after a life of being bullied. Change of Heart is no different, with its provocative plot and convincing characters. 

The main character of the novel is accused and convicted of killing a young child and her father, a police officer, after committing sexual assault. It isn't until much later that the convict, who is sentenced to death, starts performing miracles, bringing people and animals back from the dead, and prophesying, that the entire town of Concord starts to think twice. The novel follows the convict's spiritual advisor, a Catholic priest struggling to stay faithful, his lawyer, an overweight, disenchanted ACLU opponent of the death penalty, and his various inmates throughout this one man's tango with life and death. There's one catch, upon his execution, convicted murder, Shay Bourne, wants to donate his heart to the sister of the little girl he killed 11 years ago. Does a convicted felon deserve the right to religious freedom when sentenced to death? And is it truly religion if beliefs and practices are truly individualized rather than institutionalized? Would the mother who lost her child to this man, want his very heart beating in the chest of her remaining child? 

I really enjoyed Piccoult's latest venture into the all-to-familiar with the safety of fiction in between me and the characters. For my friends who refuse to read Piccoult, this one is no less heart breaking than the others. But, all the more necessary to confront, in my opinion. 

Sub-Par Rowing: Sub-Par Journalism

With the start of the racing season, comes the onslaught of "feel good" articles from a variety of sub-par rowing programs. I don't share to poke fun of the teams. Rather, I wonder, from a literary or journalistic perspective can't we do any better, even on the University level? Please note: When your team loses, just say so. Below are short excerpts from the teams we've beaten the last couple of weeks that I've found highly amusing. [Blue notes are my comments.] 

Syracuse Shows Speed in Cayuga Cup 

4/3/2009

"The Syracuse Orange women's rowing team placed second in three races and improved on all of its times from a week ago on Friday evening. The top-ranked Yale Bulldogs retained the Cayuga Cup for the sixth consecutive year by winning all five of the races in which it competed, including the varsity eight." 

"Even though we did not beat Yale, today was a good day for Syracuse rowing," said senior coxswain of the varsity eight Katie Todd. "We rowed a hard, fast gutsy race and accomplished our goal. We will take the momentum from this weekend into our race with Penn and Northeastern next Saturday." 

"The Orange finished third in the second varsity four heat with a time of 7:56.7. The Yale B shell was first at 7:29.1 with the Yale C boat finishing second at 7:36.0. Syracuse's time was 29 seconds faster than its time at Boston a week ago." 

Comparing results from one week to the next, much less one day, or even hour to the next is not something that is done. Conditions are too variable on the same river from one day to the next, much less on different rivers. Thus, saying that a boat "got faster" based on a comparison of the two times is completely arbitrary! 

"Syracuse finished third in the novice eight race with a time of 7:04.37. Yale was first at 6:49.72 and Cornell placed second at 6:52.91. SU was 10 seconds quicker than it was last week at Boston." 

"Women's Rowing Headed in Right Direction Despite Struggles vs. Yale and Penn"

Pelham, NY, March 28, 2009 

"It's enough opening your spring season against Yale's defending national champions. Throw in difficult weather conditions including a thick fog, and Columbia women's rowers could be excused if they were unhappy with their northern spring opener in the Connell Cup on Saturday, March 28th." 

So, was Yale exempt from the bad conditions? To the best of my knowledge, we weren't rowing in a bubble. 

"The head coach said, 'I'm happy with the direction we're going in. We're doing really good things." 

"The Lion novices rowing in the Varsity "A" Fours race, were impressive in beating Penn by 6.9 seconds." 

"Columbia won one race, the Novice Fours against Penn, and fell to powerful Yale in five others." 

Just to clarify, Yale wasn't in this race - we couldn't have won.