And The Lord Said, "Let There Be Lego": Part Three

The Brick Testament: "Jesus Is Born"

Fig. 1. Gathering together all the chief priests and experts on the Law of Moses, King Herod asked them where the messiah was to be born. They said to him, 'At Bethlehem in Judea, just as it was written by the prophet.' Matthew 2:4-5

Fig. 2. Then King Herod summoned the magi. He sent them off to Bethlehem, saying, 'Go and search for the young child. When you have found him, let me know, so that I may also go and do him homage.' Matthew 2:7

Fig. 3. Having listened to the king, the magi set off. The star that they had seen rising went on before them until it came to a stop over the place where the child was. Matthew 2:9

Fig. 4. They came into the house and saw the young child with his mother Mary. Matthew 2:11

Fig. 5. They bowed down and did him homage. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:11

Fig. 6. But the magi were warned in a dream that they should not return to King Herod, and so they traveled back to their own country by a different route. Matthew 2:12

Fig. 7. When the magi had left, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, 'Get up and take the child and his mother. Flee into Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for King Herod will be searching for the child to destroy him.' Matthew 2:13

Fig. 8. Joseph got up that night and took the child and his mother, and went to Egypt. Matthew 2:14

Fig. 9. When King Herod realized that he had been tricked by the magi, he was furious. Matthew 2:16

Fig. 10. He sent out soldiers to kill all the male children two years old or younger throughout Bethlehem and the surrounding countryside. Matthew 2:16

Fig. 11. After King Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in Egypt in a dream, saying, 'Get up and take the child and his mother. Go to the land of Israel, for those who sought to kill the child are dead.' Matthew 2:19-20

Fig. 12. But when he heard that Archelaus, the son of King Herod, was reigning over Judea, Joseph was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee, and came to live in a town called Nazareth. Matthew 2:22

Fig. 13. The child grew and became strong and filled with wisdom. Luke 2:40

Fig. 14. And God's favor was with him. Luke 2:40

Your Ears Will Orgasm #18: If We Must (MixPod Player)

A Sides:

1. The Ramones - Merry Christmas
2. Lemmy Kilmister - Run, Rudolph, Run
3. Fall Out Boy - Yule Shoot Your Eye Out
4. Reverend Horton Heat - We Three Kings
5. The Kinks - Father Christmas
6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - All I Want For Christmas

B Sides:

1. Morphine - Sexy Christmas Baby Mine
2. Bright Eyes - White Christmas
3. The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl - Fairytale Of New York
4. Death Cab For Cutie - Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
5. Taylor Hollings - Christmas Blues
6. The Joy Formidable - My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder Than A Hundred Dead Christmas Trees

And The Lord Said, "Let There Be Lego": Part Two

The Brick Testament: "Jesus Is Born"

Fig. 1. Being an upright man, and not wanting to disgrace her in public, Joseph had decided to leave Mary quietly. Matthew 1:19

Fig. 2. But as he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. The child in her is of the Holy Ghost. She will give birth to a son. You will name him Jesus.' Matthew 1:20-21

Fig. 3. About this time, Caesar Augustus ordered a census of the entire Roman Empire, and so everyone went to their own towns to be registered. Because he was a descendant of King David, Joseph set out from Nazareth to the town of David, called Bethlehem, to register with his pregnant fiancée Mary. Luke 2:1 & 3-5

Fig. 4. It happened, while they were there, that the time came for her to deliver her child, and Mary gave birth to her firstborn son. Luke 2:6-7

Fig. 5. She wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them at the inn. Luke 2:7

Fig. 6. There were some shepherds out in the nearby fields, keeping watch over their flock at night. Luke 2:8

Fig. 7. An angel of the Lord appeared before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. The shepherds were terrified. Luke 2:9

Fig. 8. But the angel said, 'Don’t be afraid! Listen, a Savior has been born to you today who is Christ the Lord. Here is your sign: you will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.' Luke 2:10-12

Fig. 9. Suddenly a multitude of the heavenly host was there with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men he favors.' Luke 2:13-14

Fig. 10. So the shepherds left in a hurry. Luke 2:16

Fig. 11. And they found Mary and Joseph, and the baby was lying in the manger. Luke 2:16

Fig. 12. Having seen the baby, the shepherds made known what they had been told about this child, and all who heard it marveled at the things that the shepherds told them. Luke 2:17-18

Fig. 13. After eight days passed and it was time for the child to be circumcised, he was given the name Jesus. Luke 2:21

Fig. 14. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the days of King Herod, some magi from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose, and have come to do him homage.' Matthew 2:1-2

Fig. 15. When Herod the king heard about this, he was disturbed, as was all of Jerusalem with him. Matthew 2:3

Addendum: Elvis Presley - Blue Christmas (1968 Comeback Special)

And The Lord Said, "Let There Be Lego": Part One

The Brick Testament: "Jesus Is Born"

Fig. 1. This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth. Matthew 1:18 & Luke 1:26

Fig. 2. [To] a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, who was descended from King David. The virgin’s name was Mary. Luke 1:27

Fig. 3. The angel came to her and said, 'Greetings, highly favored one! The Lord is with you.' Luke 1:28

Fig. 4. Mary was greatly troubled by his words, and wondered what this sort of greeting might mean. Luke 1:29

Fig. 5. The angel said to her, 'Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a child. You will name him Jesus.' Luke 1:30-31

Fig. 6. Mary said to the angel, 'How can this happen if I had not had sex with a man?' Luke 1:34

Fig. 7. The angel answered, 'The Holy Ghost will come upon you.' Luke 1:35

Fig. 8. And the angel left her. Luke 1:38

Fig. 9. Shortly afterward, Mary got up and hurried off to the hill country. Luke 1:39

Fig. 10. She entered the house of Zechariah the priest and greeted his wife Elizabeth. Mary said, 'My soul exalts the Lord in praise!' Luke 1:40 & 46

Fig. 11. 'He has wrought mighty deeds with his arm. He has scattered the proud and arrogant.' Luke 1:51

Fig. 12. 'He has cast down rulers from their thrones.' Luke 1:52

Fig. 13. 'And has raised up the lowly.' Luke 1:52

Fig. 14. Mary remained with Elizabeth for about three months, and then returned home. Luke 1:56

Fig. 15. Mary was found to be pregnant by the Holy Ghost. Matthew 1:18

Addendum: Happy Tree Friends - Christmas Smoochie

The Games We Shouldn't Forget To Play: Part Two

Japanese Toy Illustrations (7 to 12 of 30)

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'Work and play are words used to describe the same thing under differing conditions.'

Mark Twain

Addendum: The Argument For The Indefensible

Michael Palin and John Cleese in The Argument Clinic - Monty Python's Flying Circus

The Sunday Six: Part Five (When Art Intimates Life)

Fig. 1. Rosalie Gascoigne - Metropolis, 1999

Fig. 2. Rosalie Gascoigne - Traffic Snarl, 1999

Fig. 3. Rosalie Gascoigne - Southerly Buster, 1995

Fig. 4. Rosalie Gascoigne - Medusa, 1998

Fig. 5. Rosalie Gascoigne - Fishbowl, 1999

Fig. 6. Rosalie Gascoigne - Rain and Shine, 1998

'Yes it's got a formal rigour, because I think you've got to ... you've got to attach yourself to the classical. Art doesn't come from nowhere; it comes from a long line of human experience, and I like to think that I can pare things down to conform with a sort of classicism.'

Rosalie Gascoigne

Rosalie Gascoigne - National Gallery of Victoria, Ian Potter Centre (19th December 2008 - 15th March 2009)