The type of art that one would die for

I had a conversation with a friend about a month or two ago. We were talking about the movie the Dark Knight at the time. We were talking about Heath Ledger's acting of the role "the Joker". My friend (who is into acting more than myself) said a really thought provoking comment. He said something along the lines of "[Heath Ledger] dying to play the acting role of the joker, now that's good/worthy art". The essence of what he said stuck with me. While I don't think that actors should die for their acting roles, the lingering comment in my head started to make some parallels in my spiritual life.

Christ calls us to "deny ourselves" and "lose our lives" to follow him (Luke 9:23-24). Now Jesus is clearly not telling his followers to commit suicide, or annihilate themselves. He is telling his followers (aka his "imitators") to die to their own selfish will and life for God's will, or in Dallas Willard's words, to "no longer live to get one's own way, but live for God's way".

Think about actors engaging in the art of acting. These professional actors who specialize in imitating characters of different roles are engaging in something that is more than mere behaviour modification. They really have to "become" the character from the inside in a way. The don't just enter the world of the character. You can say that the world of the character also enters them.

http://submittedforyourperusal.com/2008/03/01/did-the-joker-kill-heath-ledger

Notice the excerpts from the Rolling Stones obituary of Heath Ledger commenting on him "entering the role" of the Joker:

1. “He couldn’t seem to disengage; the inexactness bothered him.”
2. “Ledger had no formal training, and there’s this to be said for acting school: it teaches you to approach a role as foreign, as a language you’ll temporarily speak. Ledger didn’t appear to have that. He needed to dig for (and inhabit) the part of himself that was the character. ‘Performance comes from absolutely believing what you’re doing,’ he said. ‘You convince yourself, and believe in the story with all your heart.’ It didn’t always shut off when a production did, and I think it ground him.”
3. “As The Joker in next summer’s The Dark Knight, he will appear as a man severed from all connection. A ‘psychopathic, mass-murdering clown with zero empathy,’ is how he described it to the New York Times. On set, Michael Caine said the performance sometimes turned so frightening he forgot his own lines.”

I also heard that Heath Ledger locked himself up in a room for month(s) to really enter into the character to play his role as crisp, natural, and authentic as possible. One can say that he not only became the Joker. The Joker became him.

I am reminded by an excerpt from a book called "I told me so" by Gregg Elshof (a book primarily about self-deception). He is very insightful when he talks about us "imitating" Jesus:



Jesus was down on hypocrisy - he didn't seem to have much room for it at all. As followers of Jesus, we're called to live lives of authenticity and candor. At the same time, though, we're called to a lifestyle of imitation. We are imitators of Jesus.

Think about imitation.

When I imitate something or someone, I adopt patterns of being that are external to me, foreign, and unnatural. The presumption of the New Testament is that I do not presently have the character of Christ. Instead, I am twisted and broken. My present opportunity is to play at having the heart of Christ - to imitate him - in an attempt to cooperate with the Holy Spirit as Christ is realized in me. With the help of God's Spirit, I put off the old self, that which is authentically me at present, and put on the new self, that which is authentically Christ. Over time, that which was at first artificial, foreign, and unnatural takes root, and I am transformed. I begin by blessing those who curse me, even though everything in me is pushing a curse through my lips. I'm playing. I'm imitating the one for whom the blessing comes naturally. Over time, with the help of the Holy Spirit, that which was once forced and unnatural becomes the reflex response I begin by deciding to give when my heart is selfish. I'm playing. I'm imitating the one for whom generosity is instinctive. Over time, with the help of the Holy Spirit, that which was once opposed to my nature becomes natural for me - as it was and is for Jesus. We play at being Christ's followers in order to become his followers.

But this whole process of transformation through imitation is unavailable to the hyper-authentic. They will bless only when they feel a genuine desire for the well-being of the other. They will give only when they feel generous. Hyper-authenticity rules out the possibility of imitating anyone other than yourself - and so it rules out the possibility of cooperating with the Holy Spirit in your own spiritual re-formation by imitating the Master.

When I was in college, I picked up the guitar. I played for years without formal instruction before I finally decided to get some lessons. By that time I had settled into some pretty bad habits. At my first lesson, my teacher positioned my thumb differently on the back of the neck of the guitar. Suddenly, I was completely incapable of playing even the simple things I had played before. I felt awkward and unnatural. But the teacher assured me that if I stuck with it, I'd get used to it and, in time, this new position would free me to reach chords I could never have reached using my old method.

Insofar as I am not yet perfectly like Christ, the imitation of Christ will, at times, feel false, unnatural, and insincere. But if we trust the Master, we'll obey even when obedience isn't what comes naturally - even when obedience runs contrary to what we're feeling at the moment. This isn't hypocrisy; we don't act contrary to our impulses in an attempt to fake anybody out. We act contrary to our impulses because we wish to be re-trained. We wish to be something other than what we are today. We wish to be putting off the old self and putting on the new.

Imitation, then, can be perfectly authentic. It can be the outworking of an authentic intention to take on the heart and character of Christ. But imitation precludes hyper-authenticity. So if you want to be a student of Jesus, beware of hyper-authenticity.



I think us Jesus followers can learn a lot in a modified channeling of Heath Ledger's death due to his engagement (at least partially) with his assigned acting role as the Joker.

If secular actors can physically die due to turning into the characters that they wish to imitate through art, us Christians can and should spiritually die to ourselves in our pursuit the "art" of imitating Jesus and becoming like him.

I should imitate Jesus in the attitude of a professional actor so much to the extent that not only I enter the role of Jesus, but Jesus enters the role of me, and in some mysterious way, becomes me as I aspire to become like him.

Dostoevsky said something along the lines of "First art would imitate life. Then life would imitate art. Then life would find its very meaning for existence from the arts."

Oh Jesus, allow me to devote my entire life to "acting" and entering the role of a 21st Century North American incarnation of you as I try to imitate how you would literally walk, speak, sleep, eat, interact with others, serve others, and relate to the Father through the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. So much to the extent that my old self is dead, remains dead, and the world sees you alive through my dead self.

Shanghai Noon illustrating new wineskins

"No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins."
-Mark 2:21-22

There is a time when an old "system" of doing things has to go. There was a time when the old system of doing things had a relevant place, was an honourable and God-glorifying ritual, and brought people closer to God under specific conditions. However, times keep changing, and and therefore methods and means need to keep changing as well. The substance of Christianity ought to never change. But the the vehicle/methods/vessels/containers or "wineskins" must change from generation to generation. If we look across biblical history and extrabiblical church history, we will see the Holy Spirit always changing things up, finding new ways of doing things, all the while retaining the non-changing substance of the Kingdom of God.


I like how Shanghai Noon illustrates this. We can learn a lot from it.

In the parable of Shanghai Noon:

Being Chinese represents being Christian. An ongoing question in this parable is: What does it mean to be Chinese in the current generation? Is it only a matter of following preexisting rules, regulations, and rituals that were relevant for the last generation? Or is there more to being Chinese than only the cultural roots? While the cultural roots and traditions of the Chinese culture should be valued, commemorated, and respected, is being Chinese merely following these roots and traditions? What does it mean to be Chinese in contemporary times?

Similarly, what does it mean to be a genuine Christian in the current generation? Is it only a matter of following preexisting rules, regulations, and rituals that have previously blessed the previous generations of the Church? Or is there more to merely following the traditions and cultural roots of Christianity? While the cultural roots and traditions of the Christian culture should be valued, commemorated, and respected, is being Christian merely following these roots and traditions? What does it mean to be a Jesus follower in the 21st Century?

The traditional Chinese Imperial guards represent the previous generation of Christianity (20th century North American Christianity let's say). There is a rich culture and tradition of practices, values, and customs in it. It worked in a certain time and place, and many people benefited and were blessed by it.

Similarly there is a rich culture and heritage of previous generations of Christianity. There was a certain time and place for it and many people were blessed by it. Hence it is tempting to universally prescribe these relative cultural traditions to all future generations while confusing the substance (what does it mean to be Christian?) with the forms (how did previous generations live out the Christian life in their culture?)

The Princess (Lucy Liu) represents a daughter of the Emperor of the Universe (God), who has nevertheless strayed from the Kingdom of God although once walking in it. She has been disillusioned with the traditional North American 20th century Church. While it had a time and a place, and she previously was blessed by it, there was also hypocrisy, rigid rituals, inflexibility, and a lack of creative/dynamic/organic freshness in it. Therefore she has strayed from the Kingdom, because the "system" of outdated wineskins of Christianity has left her disillusioned. Lucy Liu wants to stay in the West, not because she hates China. She respects her cultural heritage and does not want to cut it off, but prefers to stay in the West and explore what it means to "be Chinese" in the West. (Because "being Chinese" is not a matter of where you live and what you do. It is a state of being that finds novel expressions in new settings. [e.g. CBCs and ABCs])

The bad guy Chinese guy in black represents Satan, who holds the wayward Children of God hostage. Certain children of the Emperor of the Universe have been wayward and strayed from the faith over the years and Satan has tried to take them prisoner again.

The gold represents Jesus' blood that has ransomed the wayward Child of God.

Owen Wilson represents "the neutral culture". There are some things that are neutral in the culture which have the potential to benefit the Kingdom. Some stuff in the West include individualism, free/creative expression, cultural diversity and tolerance of different traditions and viewpoints, Western music genres, democracy etc. These examples and more are neutral cultural characteristics of the West which should not be "shunned" by Christianity, but embraced openly with the potential to even enrich the Christian experience particular to one's time and place in the West.

The bad guy Cowboy represents the evil things in the culture. Some things in any culture are just plainly evil. In the West, this includes but is not limited to: adultery, "gang" murders, vanity, blatant narcisissm, lack of respect and submission to authorities, lack of respect to elders/the older generation etc. These things are plainly evil and should be shunned by Christianity. While we should love those who practice this stuff, we should avoid the practices ourselves.

Jackie Chan represents a genuine spiritual journeyer who, for a limited time, "stepped outside the system" of cultural Christianity. He has explored a foreign culture that has allowed him to understand his own cultural bias as well as strengths by temporarily getting an objective bird's eye view of it. He respects and cherishes his roots and heritage, but he does not think that his roots and heritage is "all" it means to live Chinesely/Christianly. Exposure to a foreign culture via Owen Wilson has helped him to do this. He discovers the deep "essence" of things. After stripping away all the extraneous cultural, geographical, temporal garb/fashion of what it means to be Chinese/Christian, he is on a journey to discovering what is the essence/core of what it means to be Chinese/Christian.



A couple comments on the clip:

1)When Jackie Chan tries to keep the princess in the West (because the princess herself desires to), he is confronted by one of the imperial guards reading the official "decree"/document of the Chinese culture. He has been so used to not questioning this traditional decree over the years and just unhesitatingly submitting to it because that's what he was taught. But then he has changed this time. This time, he realizes that being Chinese is not ultimately what that decree/document says. It is a state of being, open to new expressions in new cultures, environments, and generations. Therefore, although he doesn't disown/disinherit the decree, he is not controlled by it.

Satan: "Do you see? He will always be a slave."

Jackie Chan: "This is the West. Not the East. And the sun may rise where we come from. But here is where it sets."

In the same way, I see more and more of generation of Jackie Chans in the North American church who are really searching and are on a journey. What is the essence of Christianity? Surely it has to be more than just how our parents specifically expressed their Christianity in their time and their age. Christianity is more than the mere customs and rituals of going to Church on Sunday, doing inductive Bible Study, tithing, singing Western worship songs, going to Friday fellowship etc. What is the essence of Christianity? While I don't want to disrespect and disown my previous generation's roots, Christianity is a state of being, not ultimately a matter of doing things my mom and dad did.

The attitude of some (but not all) previous generations of North American Christians consciously (or subconsciously) believe that: "If a practice, belief, or way of thinking is not in the Bible, throw it out. it is unbiblical and has nothing to do with Christianity."

A lot of modern day Jackie Chans are learning not to be enslaved to the previously generation's way of thinking and doing things. Slowly rising up from the ground. Respectfully but firmly saying in response: "This is the 21st Century. Not the 20th. If a practice, belief, or way of thinking is not prohibited in the Bible, we remain open to it, for all truth, goodness, and beauty is God's truth, goodness, and beauty and can be used to glorify Him."


2)Both the Imperial Guards and Jackie Chan are ultimately on the same side. They ultimately have the same goals of "rescuing the princess" and ensuring her wellbeing. Although they have disagreements on the best way of what that looks like ultimately they are fighting for the same purpose and would sacrifice themselves for her. Immediately, this means saving her from Satan destroying her at all costs.


3)There is one part of the clip where one of the Imperial Guards fights Jackie Chan with "tools" that China has used for centuries. These include the spear, sword, and special nunchucks. In their disagreement of how to save the princess and ensure her wellbeing, they engage in battle with these tools. In the Christian world, these 3 tools of spear, sword, and nunchucks represent the biblical tools of "exegesis", "hermeneutics", and "application". The Imperial Guard tries to use these tools to defeat Jackie Chan's new beliefs and way of thinking. In the same way, the traditional Christian may use exegesis, hermeneutics, and application to try to defeat the new wineskin Christian, using the tools to conclude things such as:

-the Bible says that when we pray, we should be respectful. Therefore it should be formal
-the Bible lays out a model of Acts, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. We should always follow that model in prayer
-the Bible never talked about modern psychological concepts. Therefore there is no room for taking modern psychological concepts in prayer.

The modern day Jackie Chan will use the same tools of exegesis, hermeneutics, and application to defend himself and counter the attacks with ideas such as:

-the Bible says that we should be respectful, but being respectful does not mean being formal. One can be respectful and casual/informal at the same time. One can use slang/colloqialisms/and talk about "small things" with God the way a friend does while remaining respectful.
-the Bible lays out the ACTS model of prayer, but it does not prohibit any other methods and means of prayer. Therefore, if the Bible doesn't prohibit it, we have freedom to use it. Therefore, we can pray while implementing the various dimensions of our being including our physical body movements (i.e. "feeling God in our legs" when we walk), our sense of humour (i.e. sharing inside jokes with God), and our will in addition to just using our mind in the ACTS model.
-all truth is God's truth. Therefore if modern day psychological discoveries help us concentrate and focus on God better throughout the day, let us use it. One way to help oneself get into another person's imagination is to try to "imagine your consciousness" in the geographical location of another person's head since the body and the mind are connected, and how the state of one's mind is interconnected with one's physical environment and one's sensory information with the 5 senses in it. Therefore to imagine our own consciousness in the first-person consciousness of Jesus inside us helps us interact with him better. Also, using our imagination to "pray" with Jesus while taking into new accounts of psychological phenomena is effective. Therefore, sometimes I will creatively pretend that I have "divine multiple personality disorder" where sometimes it's my consciousness inside of myself, and where a few moments later, it's Jesus inside my consciousness, and it's a back and forth feedback loop because Christ does not call me to annihilate my personality, but doesn't cause me to worship myself as well. Therefore, since the Bible talks about "me being in Christ" and "Christ being in me" there is room for both, and creatively implementing the knowledge of modern day psychological discoveries can help me engage with Jesus through prayer.

4)The evil part of the culture saying "Nice to see we're all churchgoers".

LOL