Kachinas

Among Native American traditions from the southwestern United States, Kachinas were spirit beings who inhabit all aspects of the world around us. Members of the tribe also dressed as Kachina to dance in religious ceremonies, and carved dolls were given to their children. Dave Shaddix presents three LEGO Kachina from the Hopi pantheon: from left to right - Talavai, who sings at the break of day, Angwusnasomtaka, or Crow Mother, the mother of the Kachina, and Palavitkuna, who participates in traditional footraces.

Happy Ramadan

Okay, maybe one of my Muslim readers could help teach me the proper greeting for this month (Blessed Ramadan? Peace be upon you?), but we are in the midst of the month of Ramadan. Muslims fast during the days of this month, remembering the initial revelation of the Qur'an to Mohammed. 1wave posted this mosque at the start of the month, and says it is the start of an upcoming diorama. So watch his account for the fuller creation to come. This is also a good place to note that GodBricks got a great review on PhiloSufi, a blog by two Canadian Muslims. Thanks to Deborah for the great review and also for pointing it out to me.

What would Jesus wear to a fan convention?

Long time readers of this blog might remember that I wrote an essay on WWJB?, or 'What Would Jesus Build?'. Someone at the recent BrickFair fan convention produced this t-shirt. Personally, I think I should get some royalties if they were selling these. Or maybe someone should send me a shirt. :) Photo credit to OmahaMH.

Biggest Buddha

HKLug members have really helped to increase the number of eastern religious MOCs on this blog. In the Hong Kong LEGO contest I've recently covered here, there were two versions of the Tian Tan Buddha overlooking Lantau Island. Schfio has a larger version of this statue, that was shown as part of a HKLug display of several MOCs highlighting Chinese culture at ACGHK 2010, the Animation Comic Game Hong Kong convention.

Evensong

Another creation on display at BrickFair 2010 was Barbara Barry's Choral Evensong (photo credit to Danny316p). Her explanation card reads: "Sung evening service. Talented and diverse minifigs perform the sublime works of composers William Byrd, Thomas Tallis, and Herbert Howells."

Solomon's Temple

Tbone tbl's rendition of Solomon's Temple was also on display at BrickFair 2010 (photo credit to Richard Schoonover).

Flight to Egypt

It looks like Mike Ripley also displayed his Flight to Egypt mosaic at BrickFair (photo credit goes to Jeremy Schultz).



From the explanation card, it appears that, like his Luther Seal in the last blog post, this was also a family fun night activity, with over 50 participants building sections that were then assembled into the whole mosaic. The subject is a woodcut by Elisabeth Reuter, 'Flight to Egypt', depicting Joseph and Mary escaping from Herod's men with Jesus and fleeing to safety in Egypt, as recounted in Matthew 2:13-15.

Luther's Seal

BrickFair 2010 was held this weekend near Washington, DC. Among the many creations on display at this gathering of LEGO fans was Mike Ripley's rendition of the Seal of Martin Luther (photo credit goes to Andrew Albosta).



Designed for Martin Luther in 1530, this seal contains many symbolic elements. The cross in a heart symbolizes Christ's sacrifice and a belief in this 'from the heart'. The white rose symbolizes joy, comfort and peace. The blue field is for a heavenly future surrounded by a golden ring symbolizing eternity. This seal has become a symbol for Lutheranism. A little bit of digging led to this explanation by Mike Ripley.



As he explains, this mosaic was designed by him as a group activity for a family fun night at his (Lutheran) church. Over 50 participants, including many kids, made 16x16 squares, that then got assembled to make the whole seal. From the video footage it looks like this was a great event, and the result is quite striking.