"a laughing stock, an absent-minded buffoon.... the one who is silly"

Simon Critchley, chair of philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York, attempts to answer an immortal question - what is a philosopher? - in the newest section of the New York Times.

The freedom of the philosopher consists in either moving freely from topic to topic or simply spending years returning to the same topic out of perplexity, fascination and curiosity.

And of course, it takes money to enjoy all that time. Which is why you'd be hard-pressed to find professional philosophers outside academia.

"... he has the coolest style and foulest mouth of any preacher you’ve ever seen."

The NYT Magazine's Molly Worthen examines the ministry of Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill in Seattle. The article is a pretty fair assessment of the Seattle pastor.

Mark Driscoll is American evangelicalism’s bête noire. In little more than a decade, his ministry has grown from a living-room Bible study to a megachurch that draws about 7,600 visitors to seven campuses around Seattle each Sunday, and his books, blogs and podcasts have made him one of the most admired — and reviled — figures among evangelicals nationwide. Conservatives call Driscoll “the cussing pastor” and wish that he’d trade in his fashionably distressed jeans and taste for indie rock for a suit and tie and placid choral arrangements. Liberals wince at his hellfire theology and insistence that women submit to their husbands. But what is new about Driscoll is that he has resurrected a particular strain of fire and brimstone, one that most Americans assume died out with the Puritans: Calvinism, a theology that makes Pat
Robertson seem warm and fuzzy.

At a time when the once-vaunted unity of the religious right has eroded and the mainstream media is proclaiming an “evangelical crackup,” Driscoll represents a movement to revamp the style and substance of evangelicalism. With his taste for vintage baseball caps and omnipresence on Facebook and iTunes, Driscoll, who is 38, is on the cutting edge of American pop culture. Yet his message seems radically unfashionable, even un-American: you are not captain of your soul or master of your fate but a depraved worm whose hard work and good deeds will get you nowhere, because God marked you for heaven or condemned you to hell before the beginning of time. Yet a significant number of young people in Seattle — and nationwide — say this is exactly what they want to hear. Calvinism has somehow become cool, and just as startling, this generally bookish creed has fused with a macho ethos. At Mars Hill, members say their favorite movie isn’t “Amazing Grace” or “The Chronicles of Narnia” — it’s “Fight Club.”

Worthen seems intrigued by Driscoll's unusual preaching style and acceptance of people you probably wouldn't see at a "normal" fundie church service, but repulsed by his embrace of Calvinism and complementarianism.

2008 films

If you pay attention to such things, the New York Times has an excellent section on its website dedicated to the best films of 2008. Two of the slide shows - one on the aging of Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and one on the recreation of a 1970's political campaign for Milk - are particularly fascinating.

The Golden Globes air next Sunday night. You can see the complete listing of nominated films here. I've only seen two on the list - The Dark Knight and Kung Fu Panda.