Bullock's Redemption

About six months ago I gave a rather critical review of "The Proposal," a flimsy romantic comedy. I was disgusted by Sandra Bullock's performance - and her portrayal women. My opinion on that movie has not changed.

Tonight, however, Bullock demonstrated her "serious" side of acting in "The Blind Side." She plays a soccer mom with a high dose of Southern sass. It was great to see Christ's love portrayed in a mainstream movie with high-profile actors.

To be fair, NPR's "Tell Me More" asks if "The Blind Side" isn't really another story about "The Great White Hope" (a black male saved by rich, white people).

But I digress. I still give props to Bullock for a daring and mature performance - she's even up for a few awards.

All Religion Considered

NPR's All Things Considered does a weekly tech segment. This week I was fascinated to learn that it had a religious topic: "Religion finds home on iPhones, social networks." (You can also listen to the three-minute piece).

Reporter Jessica Alpert gave additional commentary on NPR's All Tech Considered blog (which I was able to contribute to throughout my semester at NPR's Social Media Desk).

According to Alpert, there are over 200 bible iPhone apps. And one devoted couple created the iRosary. Another app reminds Muslims of the daily call to prayer.

One of my Twitter friends, Matt Lipan, is a United Methodist pastor in Indianapolis. He's a great example of someone who's engaging people online. He has an active Twitter account, blogs about his sermons, and is launching a video/chat forum called "Outside the Walls."

Can technology bring people closer to faith (and each other) - or does it distract? On the other hand, maybe using technology and social networks can work together to bring believers (and non-believers) into more intimate conversations. That's one topic I'm interested in exploring further.