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Some interesting links and God-talk

I’m trying a new approach in compiling links for this category by sifting through the ones I’ve tweeted and pulling out the ones I thought more interesting. If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen many of these before, but that assumes you actually read my tweets, heh. For what it’s worth, then, here’s a list of links and blogs I found particularly worth reading this week—and most of which brought God-talk into open spaces.

1. Fav-series-of-this-blog Caprica, the prequel series to Battlestar Galactica (another fav of this blog) made the list of Entertainment Weekly’s Top 10 Best TV Series Right Now along with yet other fav of this blog, Lost. (If you want to more about the fav shows of this blogger, go here.) Hat tip @CapricaSeven.

2. Speaking of Lost, this week’s episode “Sundown” produced a good collection of musings and analysis. King-of-all-that-is-Lost Doc Jensen gives his customarily brain blowing recap complete with religious, biblical, literary and philosophical connections. I thought Alan Sepinwall’s review included an intriguing description of "Smokey's army" that is also an apt sketch of the ways we flirt with and step down the path of darkness. io9’s reviewer observed that "Sayid doesn't seem evil, just easily led”—and I couldn’t help but think that is yet one more common route into darkness. On a more general note, Damon Lindelof on the Lost finale. On a more random note, Jorge Garcia (aka Hurley) gives a rather unusual view of the temple on his blog, Dispatches from the Island. And if you’re interested, I posted some thoughts on the contrast between the “bargains” offered by Jacob and MiB and choices made by Dogen and Sayid in “Sundown.”

3. Christianity Today posted It's the End of the World, and We Love It - We're flocking to movies about the last days. Mark Moring compiles some interesting theories which dovetail nicely with my own attraction to disaster flicks—and I love the image with which he ends his piece. (Hat tip @CTEntertainment.) In a similar vein, Brett McCracken explores the deeper reasons film moves us at Relevant Magazine. (HT @RELEVANTmag)

4. Lit prof and blogger Beth Rambo half-jokingly posts a list of essential pieces of literature that if read “a person could be prepared to analyze almost any work of English or American literature, television or film”—and then proves her point by connecting items on that list to a recent episode of Lost.

5. Jason posts a review of the British original Life on Mars on his blog, NonModern. (For my thoughts on the American version and the God-talk it brings into open spaces, go here.)

6. Another-fav-series-of-this-blog Smallville has been confirmed for a 10th season. That means at the end of next season I will have watched this series for an entire decade (and blogged on it for half of that). Gads.

7. Arts & Faith updated its list of Top 100 Films.

8. New Testament scholar and prolific blogger Scot McKnight and his colleagues were busy as usual, blogging on The Fall and the Gospel, defining legalism, and musing on “Mark Driscoll and the chickified church.”

9. And on a personal note, I would like to announce that I made my very first pasta and pesto. Why include food or cooking on a God-talk blog? Because it brings God-talk into open spaces--at least, it does so here.