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aslouie -> Old self vs. New Self: Or Ils Rentrent Quelquefois... (8/21/2008 3:07:48 AM)
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For the Christian life of me, I've been constantly reminded of the NT message of putting on the new self (in Christ), in lieu of the old self, which I don't have to remind anyone here how haphazardly hard it can be. But recently during a Sunday sermon, a couple of art house film analogies comes to (my) mind:
In Shin Jingi No Hakaba (a.k.a. Graveyard of Honor), I am constantly intrigued by the side character's narration of the the protagonist, still living in spite of the fact that his soul departed from him (the latter was supposedly shot dead during the film's climax), yet still clinging on to life, refusing to accept the reality of his (the main character's) death.. only to finalize it in a prison suicide.
On the other side of the world, I came to acknowledgment of some intellectually-French take on the zombie genre (sans the traditional gore factor[:D]), called " They Came Back," not to be confused with the Stephen King "franchise!"[8D][&:] In this story, the recently departed turn-recently resurrected are being fraternized by their loved ones, trying in vain to deny the fact that the deceased are no longer their warm-blooded, living selves: in short, refusing the reality of death.
Film Synopsis below:
http://www.amazon.com/They-Came-Back-G%C3%A9raldine-Pailhas/dp/B00094ARXC
When I factor both films into spiritual focus, I can't help but be reminded of how much my old, sinful self still won't accept the fact that I've moved on, even with some occasional relapses into my old news self, like it's only functioning as at best, a shadow of my former, spiritually cruder self; at worst, a metaphorical walking corpse who won't accept the times definitely have a-changing!*
*No disrespect to Bob Dylan[&:][;)]
Hmmm... I guess that's why at my more, cool-headed juncture of godly living, I've always been leery of my cadaverous old self, trying to come back for more... seconds, thirds, or any other subsequent (self)-helpings to a buffet that no longer exists, much less relevant, like how I relate with my bachelor status, which hence leads to those mundane rituals of self-comparison, envy, rage... the whole rotting platter et al. I don't know about everybody else's walk with God here, but part of me knows that it's going to take more than the proverbial shotgun (or small arm of choice) and put some slugs into that thick skull of that legally-deceased past part of me!
Your thoughts?
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