Quote of the Day:

“Postmodern life could be described as a state in which everything beyond our own personal biography seems vague, blurred and somehow unreal. The world is full of signs and information, which stand for things that no one fully understands because they, too, turn out to be mere signs for other things. Yet the real thing remains hidden. No one ever gets to see it. Nevertheless, I am convinced that real things do exist, however endangered they may be. There are earth and water, the light of the sun, landscapes and vegetation; and there are objects made by man, such as machines, tools or musical instruments, which are what they are, which are not mere vehicles for an artistic message, and whose presence is self-evident”

(Peter Zumthor: “Thinking Architecture”, p.16)

                                                                                           

Jason Marsalis on xylophone

Delfeayo Marsalis

In Washington Park by Music Hall in downtown Cincinnati we happened upon an outdoor concert with two of the Marsalis brothers, a sweet Saturday evening jazz concert in open air. Yes, they were real people playing real instruments.            

The Swiss architect, Peter Zumthor, addresses a vital question in our day and age, and he states the obvious. We have been pushed into confusion about what is real by theorists of language, of relativist thinkers, and lost a grip on the obvious. Without a solid base in language, we have a hard time expressing anything of meaning. It is complex to clearly define values. Words of conviction become mere opinions.  In such a fog there is a cry for a 'strong-man', someone who clearly defines the real. Politically, we may fear despotism. But I believe in one that is stronger: God. Jesus will reign. He judges between us, for He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.