Senior Quote

Live so that when others speak evil about you, no one will believe it.
-unknown.
actually, i just don't know who wrote it right now. i gotta check this one place so i'll know later tonight. but just in case you need my quote like this second...here it is.

Slice of America[n Pie]

The song American Pie by Don McLean, although references God, does not actual claim the theory of God as truth. He uses it more as a basis for listeners to relate to, because it is a concept that they would all be familiar with, whether they believe it or not. He mocks the idea of God in his lines "And do you have faith in God above/ If the Bible tells you so?" He also reveals the absence of God when he states that "The father, son, and the holy ghost,/ They caught the last train for the coast." There is no God in control of the universe presented in American Pie. For Humanity and Identity, humans are regarded as material, not spiritual. We live, and we die. There is nothing more. Music is what sustains our lives, portrayed through the sorrow of the "good old boys" singing "this'll be the day that I die," once music has left. All conflict and suffering began with the death of music. It does not mention any flaws before music had left, but gives the idea that everything was perfect before. Again, this is revealed through the lines "The day that music died...This'll be the day that I die." There is no hope and redemption for mankind now that music has taken a vacation. Comparing faith in God (which he mocks) with "music sav[ing] your mortal soul," he shows the hopelessness in life. There is no salvation. What you see is as good as it can get. There aren't really any values emphasized in this piece of music. Party until the end is a better way of describing the mindset in this song. Once music had died, and they thought the world was over, they drank away their blues. ("Drinkin' whiskey and rye") Party until the lights go out, basically. Finally, the only truth present in this piece that I could find is that music is essential to life. Without it, there is no meaning. "But I knew I was out of luck/ The day the music died." American Pie is written from the Secular Humanist standpoint. God is a mere reference, not an actual being. Life has no meaning, other than the immediate results of our efforts. Therefore, as far as I can tell, this piece is atheistic and relates a shallow existence.

Oz vs. Narnia Worldview

In The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe, it portrays the Christian worldview. Aslan is symbolic of Jesus, the kids are the "sons and daughters of Adam and Eve", and the witch is Satan. This is all stuff we should already know. In the movie, the kids go through a closet into a new world. The world in which they enter has the same type of conflict as the world today. It has a constant battle between good and evil, in which good will ultimately win. The reality is that these kids have the chance to make mistakes or follow Aslan (or God). They sin, and need a Savior.
In the Wizard of Oz, the main chunk of the movie takes place in Dorothy's dream, so it obviously isn't reality. because she's asleep. But basically the characters have been living in a way thinking that they cannot help themselves, but need someone higher in power to help them. In the end, they realize that they create their own happiness by looking into themselves for the power. They can fix themselves and make their circumstance better on their own.

Materialistic Mammon

Mammon is the leader of a demonic army. He is obsessed with worldly treasure. Even before being cast out of heaven, it is said that Mammon looked more to the gold “pavement” in Heaven than he did at the God who created it. He commanded his army to tear apart the earth in search of its riches. Mammon is an extremely greedy character who cares for nothing but himself and the treasure that he thinks will bring him happiness.

Wizard of Oz

The Wizard of Oz is created from the Cosmic Humanist view. The Wizard ends up not being an all powerful being at all. He is no greater than any other average person in Oz(if you can consider the people of Oz average). The moral is that the power was within them the whole time to get what they wanted/needed: the tin man-a heart, the lion-courage, the scarecrow-a brain, and Dorothy-to go back home. Essentially every person had their own power, and just needed to realize it in order to get what they wanted. (Just like Cosmic Humanists believe everyone is deity, some just haven't realized it yet, limiting them from reaching their potential)