My family and I just watched this beautiful film for the first time, and we were all (6 of us: my husband and me, and 4 kids ranging from 2 to 16 - so fascinating all of us was no mean feat) transfixed with delight. I think I sat through the whole thing open-mouthed like a madperson from sheer joy and wonder. Just wanted to say a word of thanks.
I'm a huge, huge fan of "Secret of Kells" and have been showing it to A) the 7th grade students (who are currently studying the Celts and Norse) and B) my Graphic Arts students (who are preparing to make an illuminated book of prayers, hymns and scriptures).
However, I'm trying to figure out something only you can help me with. Is "Secret of Kells" a secular story about a Christian book or ingeniously and insidiously Christian? I tend towards the latter (hidden triquetras, focus on the Chi Rho page, bringing "light into darkness", etc.), but it is absolutely true that there is no overt mention of the Christian God.
Regardless, thank you for a wonderful, wonderful movie!
Hi Tomm, I hope you don't mind my butting in. Just putting in my two cents for The Poor Blogger.
The film looks at Paganism through Christian eyes; and at the same time, Christianity is seen through the eyes of Paganism. (There are instances in the film which support this two-sided view: Aisling is wary of the people in the Abbey, and the Abbot seeks to reform the pagans.) In the end, these two ideas meld into one, with Aisling appearing as perhaps an image of an afterthought inside the Chi Rho Page : a suggestion that she has gone to the back of the mind. I find this to be a reflection upon Christianity itself, because the Christianity we know of is in fact a conflation of many things.
As for God, I believe He is in the fibre of Brendan's artistry and mission. I love that God and the Book wasn't mentioned at all. That would destroy the discreet nature of the film. For eventually, it is how things should be done in the Name of God, and also how we use His gifts, which matter. The film knows that open praises to God are only second to these precepts, and that one's best is a form of glorification itself.
Still, the film leaves with a certain kind of warning. Without giving away too much, it would be best to contemplate on what Brendan was actually fighting inside the cave. If the Eye is the symbol of Illumination, taken out of the body, what is therefore left is the mundane.
Friend of mine posted pics of her pangar ban pumpkin - http://alisa5179.livejournal.com/750014.html
ReplyDeleteMy family and I just watched this beautiful film for the first time, and we were all (6 of us: my husband and me, and 4 kids ranging from 2 to 16 - so fascinating all of us was no mean feat) transfixed with delight. I think I sat through the whole thing open-mouthed like a madperson from sheer joy and wonder. Just wanted to say a word of thanks.
ReplyDeleteMr. Moore,
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge, huge fan of "Secret of Kells" and have been showing it to A) the 7th grade students (who are currently studying the Celts and Norse) and B) my Graphic Arts students (who are preparing to make an illuminated book of prayers, hymns and scriptures).
However, I'm trying to figure out something only you can help me with. Is "Secret of Kells" a secular story about a Christian book or ingeniously and insidiously Christian? I tend towards the latter (hidden triquetras, focus on the Chi Rho page, bringing "light into darkness", etc.), but it is absolutely true that there is no overt mention of the Christian God.
Regardless, thank you for a wonderful, wonderful movie!
Hi Tomm, I hope you don't mind my butting in. Just putting in my two cents for The Poor Blogger.
ReplyDeleteThe film looks at Paganism through Christian eyes; and at the same time, Christianity is seen through the eyes of Paganism. (There are instances in the film which support this two-sided view: Aisling is wary of the people in the Abbey, and the Abbot seeks to reform the pagans.) In the end, these two ideas meld into one, with Aisling appearing as perhaps an image of an afterthought inside the Chi Rho Page
: a suggestion that she has gone to the back of the mind. I find this to be a reflection upon Christianity itself, because the Christianity we know of is in fact a conflation of many things.
As for God, I believe He is in the fibre of Brendan's artistry and mission. I love that God and the Book wasn't mentioned at all. That would destroy the discreet nature of the film. For eventually, it is how things should be done in the Name of God, and also how we use His gifts, which matter. The film knows that open praises to God are only second to these precepts, and that one's best is a form of glorification itself.
Still, the film leaves with a certain kind of warning. Without giving away too much, it would be best to contemplate on what Brendan was actually fighting inside the cave. If the Eye is the symbol of Illumination, taken out of the body, what is therefore left is the mundane.