[steve collins]
some questions to ponder:
is jesus too fat for the catwalk?
should we ban size zero saints?
do they encourage christians to develop eating disorders?
what is a healthy weight for a christian?
why are we worrying about people being too thiin in a society in which people are too fat?
does the one create the other?
if the poor are fat and the rich are thin, what does that say about the food we eat?
is there a connection between the health of our bodies and the health of the planet?
can christians have cosmetic surgery?
why don't evangelists look sexy, if sex sells?
how come friar tuck isn't in the latest version of robin hood?
what happens when the you of you isn't the you you see in the mirror?
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bodies - imperfect and perfect
broken/damaged/disfigured bodies
when bodies break down - how do we deal with it?
disability/death
acceptance of brokenness in old traditions/societies
now we expect to cure
ageing - how we deal with loss of youth - legislation against ageism reveals how we are prejudiced for youth
does scattering/dissolution of extended families rob us of models for ageing?
no more nurturing grandparents - they are busy unlocking equity, spending, having a second youth! they want to be young now, rather than embracing the traditional roles of the old.
do extremes of thinness and obesity reveal inner problems as well as physiological? ie the person is an agent in making themselves that way
exposure to images of beauty - there is a narrow range of aspiration - too narrow for most to achieve - not just about sexual beauty - bodies display values such as self-discipline
the old christian cycle of fast and feast - has become binge and detox - detox written up as a 'spiritual' thing as well as physical
diet books - getting you to believe in new values diet wrapped in a lifestyle package that motivates you - the prospect of a 'new you" gets you through the boredom
but christian discipleship is not in our own strength - whereas a lot of body discipline in the world is about our own control and strength
the images we are sold - link into innate biological preferences that are hard-wired into us, but now are pandered to all the time
[it's similar to how we are built to like sugar, but only to get it rarely - now we get sugar all the time and it makes us ill]
fashion - how does it affect us beyond biological preferences?
is it a matter of sex or a matter of power in society?
makeovers and makeover programmes - 'would like to meet' etc
can be redeeming if they go deep enough
there is a connection between how you look/dress and who you are, who you perceive yourself to be
[which is neglected by world-denying forms of christianity]
a change of appearance can be transformative in other ways
it's about expressing/discovering who you are at all levels
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the theme running through all our discussions is how we connect the physical with the spiritual
the issue for our service is how do we connect the practical and conceptual
what to do/take away from service?
many christians have suffered from a spirituality detached from body - in head, or emotions
"bodies as living sacrifices" was a positive evaluation of the body
religions that govern the body are not necessarily anti-body
but are making the point that spiritual and physical discipline go together
religious rules are a statement that what you do with your body matters
[religions that say 'do what you like with your body' are actually saying that the body is worthless]
we need to dig out the stuff in the traditions to explore for the service:
praying with body
fasting/feasting
jewish stuff which doesn't have the dualism of some christian thought
is there any helpful monastic material?
we need to concretize our thoughts into things people can do and take away, not abstracted discussions
can we look at pictures of different shaped bodies
maybe different ethnicities/types
to see varieties of human possibility and widen our consideration away from the usual western media images in our heads