Friday, January 01, 2010

Rusted From the Rain



In the late 80s and early 90s, I lived in New York and make frequent trips to Ottawa and Montreal. In the latter, there was a radio station called CKMF in Montreal that played mostly French-language pop/rock. There is nothing quite like being bundled in a parka tooling along the icy 417 headed from Montreal to Ottawa (Mrs. H's hometown), aiming between the snow drifts in a little Ford Escort, listening to the curious blend of 98% rapidly-spoken French with perfectly articulated English words thrown in. And there is a good bit of music that is largely unheard in the States, by both English- and French-speaking Canadians. CKMF always came in loud and clear, and had quite a mix of music.

In those days, the CKMF radio announcer would frequently identify the call sign of the station in a high-energy, loud, gravelly, manly voice (not unlike the stereotypical American promoter of "monster trucks"): "Quatre-vingt-quatorze, virgule trois, C-K-M-F, Montréal!" The station's frequency is 94,3 (with the comma replacing the period in our convention).

The announcer would really emphasize the first syllable of "virgule" (comma), "VIR-gule!"

I can just imagine the coaching that went on in the studio to get the right sound. If the "VIR-gule!" guy from CKMF is a Fr. H. reader (and my actually winning a million British pounds is more likely), I would like an exclusive interview...

Anyway, thanks to the Interwebs, we don't have to be in a Ford Escort in Québec to listen to CKMF 94,3. You can go to their site here and click on the little arrow and stream it in. They even have a little graphic of the particular music that is playing now. They don't seem to have the same announcement of the station, and in fact, they are pushing their corporate persona more than their call letters these days (NRJ, which means "énergie").

While listening to a little of the countdown yesterday, I ran across the above video of the tune Rusted From the Rain by the Canadian band Billy Talent.

It's pop music. It's nothing of an eternal or deeply profound nature, but I enjoyed the performance and the musicality of it. I thought the video was interesting, and (I might be wrong about this) I suspect that this band is much better known in Canada than in the U.S. Maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't - but you can watch for free right here.

And if you're a student of the French language, a Canada-phile, or just looking for something a little different to listen to musically, keep CKMF in mind. And again, if you are the VIR-gule guy, shoot me an e-mail and let me know how things are going in La Belle Province.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Father Hollywood:

This question is totally unrelated to "Rusted From the Rain." I just want to squeeze it in here:

Question: How does a literalist like yourself interpret the following Bible verse?

Jesus: "Is it not written in your law, 'I have said you are gods?'"
(John 19:33 & Psalm 82:6)

New Year's Blessings!

Theophilus, "Follower of the Way"

Unknown said...

Correction!

John 10:33-34 & Psalm 82:6

Rev. Larry Beane said...

Dear Theo:

Happy New Year!

I'm a literalist? I'll have to add that to the resume. ;-)

My reading of Psalm 82 and John 10 is the traditional way Israel/the Church have always read it.

There is only one God. There are false gods. In English, we give a cue by using the upper- and lower-case "G". Hebrew and Greek do not make such distinctions explicitly, they are inferred by the context.

Obviously, the unity of the True God is a theme that runs throughout Scripture, and yet, Scripture also speaks of gods (plural) - usually in derision.

In Psalm 82, these "gods" are not idols, but neither are they the True God. The Psalmist ties the concept of the "Sons of the Most High" to "godship." The "sons" (creatures) of the True God, having been created in God's image are "gods" insofar as they carry some of God's characteristics.

Jesus was being charged with blasphemy for calling Himself God's Son. Jesus retorts that the charge is ridiculous, that simply using the term is not blasphemy, since the Psalms use the same expression.

But Jesus is not merely a "son" or a "god" - for He is the True Son of the True God. He was born of the virgin and is the biological Son of God (not of Jospeh or any human father). His miraculous works also show that He is God - not merely a "god".

Jesus doesn't just fulfill the Ps 82 passage, He goes beyond it.

And as St. Athanasius said: "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God." Jesus fills the gap between man and God (thanks to the fall) by uniting man and God (thanks to the incarnation).

I hope this answers your question. And again, a blessed New Year to you and yours!

Unknown said...

I know my French skills are rusty (from the rain??), but wouldn't "quatre-vingt-quatorze, virgule trois" translate to 94,3? Seven is sept, n'est-ce pas?

Unknown said...

Father Hollywood:

"The 'sons' (creatures) of the True God, having been created in God's image are 'gods' insofar as they carry some of God's characteristics." THIS MAKES SENSE TO ME! Thanks.

It also makes sense to me to view Jesus in the very same light, since he brought up Psalm 82:6 in connection with his name, "Son of God," as though his name derived its meaning from Psalm 82:6, as the Judeans (Jews) should have understood. Then Jesus is truly like us in every way.

Yes, you then went a step further with Jesus' name, "Son of God," by appealing to tradition (St. Athanasius). I am not able to take that extra step with you. Nevertheless, I consider you to be a brother in Christ while carrying the label, "Heretic." And I continue to appreciate our interesting exchanges.

New Year's Blessings during this Season of Christmas!

Theophilus

Rev. Larry Beane said...

Dear Warren:

Absolument!