Art, Music, Pilgrimage, Rock and Roll, Theology and Life2 Comments

Elvis–tragic hero, addict, mystic

Gary Furr

Just finished a bio of Elvis Presley I picked up a few years back and had sitting on my shelf by novelist Bobbie Ann Mason.  Elvis is one of those figures whose presence is culturally ubiquitous, so the danger is greater that we think we “know” him, only to discover that we do not know this person at all. I felt the sadness that so many musical biographies have evoked in me in recent years—bios of Johnny Cash, Bill Monroe, the Carter family, Eric Clapton, the great blues singers and Hank Williams.  One common thread in this tapestry is the … Continue reading Elvis–tragic hero, addict, mystic

Uncategorized3 Comments

Dog Shoots Man–and so it begins

Gary Furr

Without the internet, there would be no Justin Bieber, no way to spread our urban legends so quickly, and no way to keep up with the Kardashian-ization of civilization.  Wednesday Yahoo news had among its usual stories a new turn on the “Man bites dog” archetype.  “Man is accidentally shot by his own dog.” Apparently, a 46 year old man in Brigham City, Utah “got a behind-full of birdshot courtesy of his loyal canine companion when he was out duck hunting over the weekend.”  He and the dog were traveling in a boat and the man stepped into a marsh … Continue reading Dog Shoots Man–and so it begins

Christianity, Ethics, Suffering8 Comments

Do Dogs Go to Heaven?

Gary Furr

While we were away for Thanksgiving with our two daughters who live in New York, our middle daughter, Erin, called with the drastic news that her 13 1/2 year old white lab, whom she named Hannah Marie Furr-Yeager (any other dogs with hyphenated names?), passed away from kidney failure.  Her husband just called her, , “Good Girl”.   She got Hannah as a pup when Erin was 19 years old.  Erin wrote on facebook, “She was the “mascot” of our entire group of friends in our 20’s. She has been with me through college, roommates, first job, first love, heart break, … Continue reading Do Dogs Go to Heaven?

Children, Culture, Economics, Ethics, Suffering, Thanksgiving1 Comment

A Case for Thanksgiving Eve

Gary Furr

So it is Thanksgiving Eve.  If Halloween (All Hallow’s Eve) can be an elaborate anticipation of the solemnity of All Saints’ Day and Fat Tuesday a wild and wooly welcome to the austerity of Lent, there should be a similar welcome mat to Turkey Day, something to usher it in, not stomp it out a la “Black Friday.”  Thanksgiving Eve should be something of an antonym to carry true to “Eve-ness” (Christmas Eve, naturally, being the all-time great, with it’s dark sense of Herodian murder plots, shivering shepherds, and wandering wise men).  It should be a day of shameful reminders … Continue reading A Case for Thanksgiving Eve

Culture, Economics, Ethics, Justice, Poverty2 Comments

Bad Moon Rising–or, “Am I One of the 99%?”

Gary Furr

I don’t understand the debates going on about wealth and taxes.  People aren’t asking THE question–am I one of the 1% and why not?  If you want a seriously disturbing thought about this, listen to the NPR story yesterday by Tim Dickinson.  If you want an unseriously disturbing thought, stay with me. I don’twant to be one of the 99%, because even in the Bible, the only 99 mentioned is sheep left in the sheepfold.  And, as we know, all we like sheep have gone astray.  I want to be a 1% if they get all the good stuff.  But … Continue reading Bad Moon Rising–or, “Am I One of the 99%?”