Here are five things worth paying attention to this week. These are designed to expose you to a perspective you may not normally come across in your daily lives.

1. Vice. A biography of Dick Cheney that follows headlines as a troubled young man is reformed through a sharp intervention by his ambitious wife, finds a mentor in congressman Donald Rumsfeld and rises through the ranks to become vice president, perhaps de facto president of the United States. Although it fails to get at the ideology of political movements and focuses on ego, self-interest and personal conflicts, it does reveal a range of keen insights into personal, social and systemic evil. “I was inspired by evil,” Christian Bale explained his amazing performance. That is a line deserving our careful thought.
2. Creating a Scene in Corinth. What could be more appropriate than a study of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians? Partisanship, deceit, immorality, rivalry and idolatry—all current issues in our government and all problems in first-century Corinth. Our congregation, Peace Mennonite, Claremont, California, is using the excellent book by Reta Halteman Finger and George McClain to relive events and reconsider the keen insights that address our daily news. See Creating a Scene in Corinth: A Simulation (Herald Press, 2013).
3. Me Too and Oscar. The roles of women in this year’s most outstanding films address authentic issues women face. The Wife explores male entitlement, Roma social status, Vice depicts a woman who saves her man from ruin by strict intervention, Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a survival story of a woman who did not feel loved, The Favourite is a story of desperate women in a male-dominated world, If Beale Street Could Talk of black women caught up in a rigged justice system.
4. “Racism is Satanism.” This is the clear word of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s powerful and prophetic speech at the conference with Martin Luther King Jr. It has come back for our discussion during these shame-faced, black-faced, troubled last two weeks. Look it up, read it, feel the righteous anger and zeal.
5. Galentine’s Day. February 13, the day before Valentine’s Day, is a day women designate to celebrate women friends. This gets the jump on the exclusivism of Feb. 14 and calls us to remember the special friend who does not have a formal partner to say what needs to be said often and clearly—“you matter,” “you are loved.” Check up on it, and it will offer creative options for giving affection a chance to be seen and heard. Perhaps we should change our understanding of Valentine’s Day to include all those we love. “I haven’t gotten a valentine in 20 years,” the clerk confided as I found my favorite for my wife. “That is when my husband died,” she explained. “Go to See’s Chocolates and buy yourself a 30-year treat,” I suggested. She beamed. “Never thought of it. I will.” “There are many ways to say yes to life, and this is a good one to try.” Find out more about Galentine’s Day