Third Way Archive

The Voice, Revisited

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March 28, 2014 Third Way

I’ve tried to stop using the phrase “guilty pleasure” to justify liking things that friends or critics may consider mundane or uncreative. I really like Three Dog Night and the movie Short Circuit, and while I will tell you that my favorite TV shows of all time are The Wire, Sports Night,and Friday Night Lights, I will readily admit that these days the only show that I watch with any regularity is NBC’s reality singing show, The Voice. I’m pretty sure my happy cells increase by 15 percent during the fall and spring when The Voice airs. I like the […]

U.S. Aid Should Support Peace in Colombia

March 28, 2014 Third Way

Peace looks at what comes next and how to work towards healing and justice for all.

The Wind Rises

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March 21, 2014 Third Way

Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese film director, animator, manga artist, illustrator, producer, and screenwriter whose career has spanned six decades. He is best known here for his films Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away (which I consider a masterpiece).A clear theme of the film is the tension between an artist who wants to make something beautiful and those who use his talent to make machines used in war.

Son of God

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March 14, 2014 Third Way

A year ago, the History Channel featured a 10-hour miniseries called The Bible. The brainchild of Roma Downey and Mark Burnett, The Bible was so successful that the episodes about Jesus have been adapted for a feature-length film, which was released on February 28. As predicted, Son of God, with its built-in Christian audience, has done very well at the box office, though it remains to be seen how fast it will fade. The major film critics were not impressed with the film (i.e., they panned it), and the response from the average viewer has also been on the negative […]

Building Bridges with Iran

March 14, 2014 Third Way

A bridge in Isfahan, Iran. MCC photo by Cheryl Zehr Walker.

Rachel Ries

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March 7, 2014 Third Way

Sodak RecordsI have listened to your music for almost 10 years and I still enjoy the old ones, and I’m sure these tunes will build new ones.

Two who work for peace: peacebuilding as Gods vocation

March 1, 2014 Third Way

To achieve peace, Chang said he envisions a “world free of nuclear power plants and weapons.” Since the last WCC assembly in India in 1961, Chang pointed out that the number of nuclear states in the region has more than doubled.

US Food Aid to Reach More People

February 28, 2014 Third Way

First, the new farm bill authorized up to $80 million per year for purchases of food closer to countries in need.

Medals (from a Mennonite) for Olympic Coverage

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February 27, 2014 Third Way

NBCpaid $775 million dollars in hopes that the U.S. would care about curling. Or maybe skeleton. Or maybe some other event that we only hear about every four years, if at all. Viewership declined significantly from the 2010 Vancouver games – which makes sense given the time difference in Sochi, Russia compared to North America – but NBCstill ran away with the ratings for two-plus weeks thanks to the Sochi games.Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira are actually formidable anchors, but when they respectively filled in for Costas, it was like trading in your HDTV for an Etch A Sketch.

The Monuments Men

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February 21, 2014 Third Way

When we think of the destruction wreaked by war, we usually think of the human lives lost, the loss of infrastructure, such as buildings, roads, and rail lines, maybe even the environmental cost. But we don’t often consider the destruction of art or historical artifacts.The film is worth seeing, beyond its enjoyment, for the information it provides and the questions it raises. Too few of us know about this fascinating chapter in the war.