C.S. Lewis described four kinds of love (based on the four Greek words): affection, friendship, romance, and charity (unconditional love). Since I’m about half as smart as him, I’ll say that, at the root, there are two kinds of love: love that requires something, and love that requires nothing. In this break-out session at the upcoming Mockingbird Conference (Friday, April 20th at 2:30pm), we’ll look at these two loves through the celluloid eyes of Hollywood.
In their effort to get us to put cash on the barrelhead at theaters across the country, the movies often tempt us with stories of love. Much like the love (or “love”) that we see at the multiplex, the love we encounter in the world can be confusing. We don’t always know what’s meant when someone says, “I love you.” Is that period for real? Does it actually end the sentence, or does it hide an ellipsis and the phrase, “…as long as you grow up a little bit,” or something similarly cutting?
We’ll look at examples from several films and television shows as they describe love, and attempt to understand (in light of God’s several covenantal agreements with us) how God loves us. He seems, in Scripture, to both have requirements of us and to offer to love us unconditionally. Which is it? So join us; laugh, cry, fall in love, and figure out if our relationship with God is as much like Dr. Sheldon Cooper‘s relationship with his neighbor, Penny, as it often seems.
So does God love us? Or does he now require “a gift of commensurate value, representing the same level of friendship” as the gift he’s given us? We’ve got to know.
COMMENTS
11 responses to “Mockingbird (Conference) at the Movies: Hollywood’s Love Affair with Love”
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I’m not going to be able to make it to the conference. Are these sessions going to be recorded and posted on the website? If not I’ll have to solicit someone to call me from their cell & just let it ride.
Hey Jason –
Yeah, the break-out sessions are recorded and posted. Mine are always a bit hard to translate, with the movie clips and all, but the audio from the clips usually comes through all right. Wish you could make it!
Awesome. I’m really looking forward to the discussion on unconditional love vs seeming requirements. It’s a tension I ponder frequently and can’t seem to get beyond.
Really wish I could be there for this; this is a great breakout!
Link to the conference info seems to be broken? Can I get more details on the where and when?
Just fixed the link. Sorry about that! All the conference info is over at:
http://conference.mbird.com/
Nick, sadly I won’t be at the conference this week and will definitely miss your stellar movie themed break out sessions. I know there will be audio but is there any way you could post the clips you use too? Hope you are doing great, grace and peace. Jonnyk
Hey JonnyK – I’ll miss seeing you again! I’ll try to figure out a way to post the clips that makes sense. Sometimes, there are copyright issues…we’ll see what we can do!
great thank you Nick – have fun this weekend!