World Without End

Guest Post: Why I Love Zombies by Julie Eadie

One of the things I love about the internet, blogging and social media is the friendships built. I ran into Julie through a mutual friend and online conversations about worship. Julie is a worship leader and director of children's worship arts at Lynn Haven UMC in Panama City, Florida. She is also a mother of three AND a zombie lover. I asked her to contribute to the blog and she came through with flying colors. Thanks Julie!

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From George Romero's, "Night of the Living Dead," to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," video to the recent hit series, "The Walking Dead," I have had a fascination with zombies as far back as I can remember.

There are many reasons why I like to watch movies, TV shows, and read books in this genre. Do I like the tingle on my spine that I get when a tense moment comes in a film or book? Sure. Do I get a kick out of watching the inventive ways that desperate people come up with to take out zombies? Uh....Yes! Do I like the way my heart races when I am rooting for a hero or heroine to get out of a tough jam that is seemingly insurmountable? You'd better believe it!

But, the reasons I love the art that comes out of this genre go beyond the entertainment that I get when my husband and I settle in for an evening with our netflix account and a good walking dead flick. The themes running through these struggles to survive resonate with,
I would venture to say, EVERY person.

 

There are so many themes that run either intentionally or unintentionally through many works in this genre, we could spend hours talking about the themes in just one movie. But, for the purposes of this post, I will just focus on the themes that seem to run through many of the works in this genre and why they resonate with me, and hopefully with others.

 

Zombies are creatures that we love to hate, but tend to empathize with because they represent our fear of death and our fear of a life not lived. They are immortality, unrealized. They are a walking metaphor of a life lived without the beauty of Christ in it.  All that is ugly, rotten and depraved about our human nature is personified in the depiction of a Zombie. (insert pic of rotten ugly zombie?) :)

 

These are creatures that have a hunger that is never filled. Many of us go through life hungering and thirsting for something, but filling ourselves on things that just won't satisfy. For zombies, it is an endless pursuit of human flesh. They shuffle around, seemingly alive, but they are dead and never filled. For the rest of us, it might be our pursuit of fame, money, power, or anything else that will rot as quickly. These things give us the temporary satisfaction that a small intestine might give a zombie, but rot just as quickly. This theme in the zombie genre reminds me what matters most...to fill my cup with eternal things.

 

We also see the darkest and the brightest sides of our human nature come out in many of the movies and books from this genre. There is almost always a character in these films and books that is willing to sacrifice him or herself for the good of many. On the flip side, we generally always see the one man or woman who will do whatever it takes to survive, no matter what the cost in human life or personal integrity.

 

This always gets me thinking, "Which kind of person am I and which of these people do I want to be?" I really hope when the time comes, I will make the right choice.

 

Until then, I will continue to enjoy many of the works in the zombie genre, for fun and thought.

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Thanks Julie!!

Why Zombies: Monsters in America

My friend Ryan Kocak pointed me to this video earlier today. In it, we hear some great ideas about how zombies just fit our culture. Scott Poole wrote Monsters in America and has a great perspective on the subject. I enjoyed the video and I hope you will.

 

Why Zombies: Because people are talking

Earlier this week I asked the questions "Why Zombies?" and offered a few brief reflections. While it might be obvious, I think the first answer is because people are talking about them. We play games on our cell phones, kids have cartoon t-shirts, adults are watching "The Walking Dead" and they have entered some level of cultural popularity.

While it might be cliched for churches and pastors to talk about zombies just for popularity's sake, they should recognize some level of conciseness is manifesting. Zombie's are popular because they allow us to casually work out some fears and internal commentary regarding society.

For secular society, zombie movies let us joke about deep fears. Categorically, zombie fiction best inhabits a true secular eschatology in how it analyzes destruction and the human nature. In many zombie movies and stories, there is the idea that the disease/virus is the result of divine judgement and the survivors either recognizing or at least mentioning it. Inside of this judgement, humans are allowed to completely consume themselves. It is as though God as stepped away, reversed the incarnation and took away prevenient grace. 

The desires of materialism, lust, power, food, and other flaws have disintegrated society and turned us into consumptive monsters that have reached the ultimate of sins. In our final grasp, we begin to literally feed on each other, and the remaining few metaphorically understand the ills of society and run from being consumed by them.

To best understand why people are talking about zombies, we need to best understand the emotions that make them relevant.

Next we are going to look at how the story of the church can offer an alternative to the story of destruction and consumption.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall ever be, world without end.

Why Zombies?

This past Sunday, great television returned to primetime. I, along with plenty others, watched the 2nd season premiere of The Walking Dead (I wrote about the first season here). The western world is taken up with Zombies, they are a pop culture phenom. 

Over the next couple of days, I want to look at the topic "Why Zombies", especially in relation to the way Christians interact within the world. The quick version is that zombies provide a place for our culture to both recognize own our destructive nature while maintaining cooperation in what we see is a flawed society. Zombie fiction inhabits a true secular eschatology, and analyze destruction and human nature. For the church, we must understand how our story functions as an alternative timeline to the story of the world.

So stay tuned over the next week and lets think about zombies together. Till then, check out this post from the past.

3 Reasons the Church should understand the zombie apocalypse

 

Zombie Truck of the Week: The Point Vehicle

When running in a multiple vehicle caravan, you have several different types of vehicles needed. A couple of self sufficient larger trucks. An armored school bus for carrying people. An RV can serve as the mobile command center. You might want to lash a few motorcycles to the back of the bus for recon missions or to gather supplies. To think that a random assemblage of running cars and trucks will work sounds like a quick way to become one of the undead.

In the infancy of WWZ, one of the key pieces to any successful roving tribe of the alive is the point vehicle. You have to have one. All anyone needs to do is watch the Road Warrior to see what a carefully driven post apocalyptic hot rod can do.

This prime example sits in my favorite used car lot, where several of our Zombie Trucks of the Week have been found. I secretly think the owner is doing some pre-planning.

When choosing a your point vehicle, several qualifications need to be looked for.

1. Popular model. You don't want to be scavenging for parts for a Ford Pantera while evading the undead. It simply isn't a good decision. The popularity of the mullet mobile in America probably is linked to the popularity for Bon Jovi. Wherever there are rednecks, you will find plenty of Trans Ams. Trust me.

2. Easily accessible engine. A mid 80's Nissan 300 ZX could fit most of the bill. But good old fashioned American Heavy Metal means an engine compartment that can actually be accessed. Unless your tribe resembles the carefully selected cast of Discovery's The Colony, you probably won't have an automotive engineer and three grease monkeys back in the armored bus.

3. Heavy Frame. You will want some options here. Attaching a cattle guard to the front of your point vehicle allows it to clear a path for itself. It doesn't need to be massive, just enough to easily get in and out.

4. T-Tops. This Trans Am doesn't have them, but any mullet mobile with a poor mans convertible will help you gain several shooting positions in case you get into a hairy situation.

With all this in mind, what vehicle would you choose to run point in YOUR zombie caravan?

Zombie Truck of the Week 4.7.11

Ford Diesel F350. The sleeper....no one knows how valuable this truck will be until it is needed.

The basic work truck...seen around countless farms, work crews and rural communities. It isn't immediately threatening, but its abilities for offroad driving, hauling and general transportation on Z day make it a handy thing to keep around.

The 4x4 really doesn't need to be mentioned, but the hauling capability of this truck really takes it up a notch. What other truck would be best to pack that armored parade float designed to mow through hordes of the undead?

So I present The Sleeper.

Zombie Truck of the Week: March 11

VIntage Pickup..check
Buckshot tires...check
Easily accessible storage...check
Carburetor...check
Precomputer...check
4x4...check

This guy has to be the best hillbilly zombie truck I have seen. It fits the bill for postapocalyptic survival in varied terrain.

Zombie Truck of the Week: March 3

Part of the nutjob apocalyptic and separatist community is having a "bugout vehicle". I think these follow in the grand tradition of the armored caravan that you see in some post-apocalyptic movies (think the chase scene in The Road Warrior and the travelers in Resident Evil 3). Don't we all need a vehicle prepared to both escape and then take out the undead?

I love finding vehicles that I think would fit the purpose. I try to do a "zombie truck of the week" on twitter, and this is a shot I took today. I was driving in rural Kentucky and stumbled upon a camper built on the frame of this tractor truck. I think this has amazing possibilities.

Church Leadership and the Zombie Apocalypse

 
A few of us have been thinking about how the scenario of the Zombie Apocalypse speaks to the future of the Church in America.  This might seem a morbid analogy, but it is not based off of a sci-fi geekery (well...maybe a little).

In the catalog of books and movies of the zombie family, one of the biggest threats is "being overrun", when the masses of undead overwhelm the living. A critical mass no longer exists, and the possibilities of demise are soon.  There is only a matter of time until nothing is left.

For those that serve and attend thriving churches, this might seem odd. Christian life and worship is thriving! But a drive through the interior city or a rural location will show plenty of churches that are for sale, have bare minimum of attendance or are just simply vacant. The numbers tell us that Christianity is in decline.

This is not a situation of popularity or participation, but of existence!

What this means is that we need creative leadership strategies.  A frequent response in several zombie tales is the armored schoolbus.  This creative solution finds the answers to several problems (transportation, protection, etc..) in a single innovation.  Survivors abandon what might have previously worked, and understood that they needed to transform to fit the situation. We need to learn to identify what no longer works in our ministry and leadership and fix it.

Adaptability will be the king.

What would be the wrong answer is for us (the church) to simply hole up and wait for our time to end.  Instead, we need to start finding these places of transformation. In the last 50 years, the conservative American church has followed the lead of the Liberal Protestant Paul Tillich, allowing culture to inform the Gospel message, and this has contributed to our decline. This mindset brings the devil of conformity into every conversation. Our methods might change...but our message does not. As a United Methodist, the wesleyan distinctives of Repentance, Faith and Holiness serve as a ruler as does the Gospel that has been proclaimed for 2000 years. Christ is always the same, yesterday, today and forever.  Our homebase is the word and message of God made manifest in the Son, Jesus Christ.  We have the Holy Spirit as the person of God among us and empowering us in these tumultuous times.

Related Posts:
3 Reasons the Church Should Understand the Zombie Apocalypse-Chad Brooks
In the Zombie Apocalypse You Defend Diminished Territory-Rev. Aaron Mansfield

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall ever be, world without end.

A Very Zombie Holiday

I found this link through Erudite Mess. A great little instructional video for the dealing with the undead during the holiday season