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Gordo,

I think that fellow there been imbibing the corn squeezin's!

J-

John,

You wrote:



That helps. Particularly the last 4 sentences.

Thanks,

Jason

A little too much Mountain Dew!

Gordo

Here is an interesting quote on "Inculturation" from the Pontifical Biblical Commission and its document The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church:


http://www.ewtn.com/library/CURIA/PBCINTER.htm

GORDO:

Speaking of Mountain Dew, I didn't know how much caffeine the stuff contained until just the other day. I have a fund raiser coupon booklet for a sandwich shop that allows for a sandwich and a fountain soda of any size. Since I don't drink the stuff and didn't want to leave anything on the table, I've been taking a 32 oz Mountain Dew back for one of the other members of the staff who doesn't drink coffee for almost two weeks now. I noticed him twitching yesterday. When I asked him what was up, he said he'd been wired for almost a week and couldn't sleep. BUT HE'S STILL WILLING TO DRINK THE STUFF.

BOB

Bob,

Yes - very, very potent stuff. I have never enjoyed it personally...

"Moutain Dew", BTW, is also an old euphemism popular in Appalachia for moonshine.

Happy B-day!

Gordo

Jason,

So, you'd prefer this:

http://www.cmt.com/videos/misc/2028...21&sid=24233&eid=128231&did=

Over this:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?d...0&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

My wife loves the My Big Redneck Wedding show on CMT.

Jason and all,

Of the range of adaptations I gave, this -- chant, singing -- is an intermediate one and is a good "test case". How important is this to the Southern ethos?

I didn't say it before, but what we're talking about here is really evangelization: proclaiming the orthodox -- Byzantine in this case -- expression of the Gospel to the un-baptized, and to other Christians. It should not have to take form as being Russian, or Greek, or any other ethnicity, but rather be from elements of the indigenous culture that are compatible with the Gospel.

I had heard of the Sacred Harp and just reacquainted myself with it, and I see how it, as one example, could function as you said. Would singing the Troparion etc. to tones/modes based on Sacred Harp melodies really click with you, with the people? Would it be a good vehicle for evangelization by allowing the people to worship through a familiar medium with which they identify rather than one which, even if acceptable at best, is still someone else�s.

This is just one �for instance.� Speculate: what would a Southern Byzantine-orthodoxy liturgy be like.

Dn. Anthony

ROFL! That's terrific!

Well, good Doctor, I admit, the Redneck wedding is more "comfortable" to me...the Greek is certainly more "pretty".

But...Redneck is not the same as Southern. There are "rednecks" in Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, etc. My personal definition for a redneck is "someone who prefers camouflage to all other prints, who thinks beer really is better than champagne, bathes at least once a year and thinks women with big hair are beautiful beyond words."

Southern culture is descended from the cavaliers and is genteel, refined and "cultured".

Jason

Dn Anthony:



I would say it is VERY important. Music is the poetry of a culture and springs from it's very heart.(That says worlds about modern music, does it not?) Our traditional musical forms have played a tremendous role in shaping who we are...particularly spiritually. It is not unusual for total pagans to sing these songs just for fun...if they are from the south. I've even observed atheistic JEWS sing this stuff.



It would certainly click with me. And I believe it would click with anyone here who is inclined to a more profound form of worship than found in Protestantism. For all the laid-backness of the south, there is a deep contemplative strain that flows through our traditional music conveying a sense of wonder and awe. There are, in every town, groups who get together on a regular basis to learn and sing these songs. It is still a living tradition...frankly, the only thing that has caused it to wane is the tremendous influx of northerners to the south over the past 40 years. But there seems to be a real rebound and attempt to preserve these musical traditions in the past decade or so.



Well, and I say this jokingly, the words of institution are just an apostrophe away from using the word "y'all". "Drink *ye all* of it."

I would suggest Elizabethan English and the Coverdale Psalter for starters. The KJV is beautiful, but not so good for chanting. Also, perhaps the use of English plain-chant could be used. This is quite traditional in the South as is the "morning-prayer" tradition.

Monasticism even fits the southern ethos. There is a Jerusalem Patriarchate Greek Orthodox monastery in Resaca, GA...just south of Chatanooga...they receive frequent visits from the local Baptists who seem to hold them in high regard and do not feel threatened by them...why? Because the monks are all southern boys!

As much as I appreciate both Roman and Byzantine vestments...they are just too fancy for us. Something less dazzling would be better...but not along the lines of the garbage you see in some novus ordo parishes...kente stoles...rainbow vestments...BARF! Traditional silk or brocade is fine...just toned down a bit. Hank Williams Jr notwithstanding...we don't all wear sunglasses indoors!

Jason

That sounds like every one I know from back home.

Thought you might like this:

[Linked Image]

What a cute couple me and Amber made, Jake was the Dog of Honor.

< Stunned >
Well what can I say ?

Oh dear...how did that get on the net? I guess my ex wife is out to get me! Jake, you were a good dog!

J-

The Byzantine Church and Culture
By Archbishop Joseph Raya

http://rumkatkilise.org/rayabyzantium.htm

As many of you can see, I contribute nothing to this topic.