Okay. At first the above title seemed a little harsh. But since the book, Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot, has been the number one best seller for a number of weeks, it must be appropriate, perhaps even fashionable, to say such things.
Why, recently a radio “shock jock” (or should it be “schlock”?) was invited to “entertain” the press, which he did make by making vulgar jokes about the Clintons. Now, political humor and satire have long been part of the American system, and while all politicians must avoid taking themselves too seriously, no one elected to the highest office of the land should be subjected to public sewage spewing from the mouths of so-called comedians.
But whereas the outrageous may be designed to capture public attention (what does that say about the public?), the affirmation in the title of this article is based on Scripture, not sensationalism. Amy Irving is, by her own admission, a pig.
What would you think if you saw this title above a four-paragraph article in, say, last Saturday’s Record Chronicle: “Boyfriend directs lover’s movie sex”? Sounds like some sleazy guy and his live-in operating out of an apartment, doesn’t it?
But, no. In this case it’s a sleazy Hollywood director making a big-budget movie with his live-in lover. “Since it’s art, that justifies it.” One might ask, “How could a man with any self-respect even allow his wife to have sex with another man, let alone film it for anyone in the world (who enjoys seeing such filth) to see? Amy says that having her lover direct her in making love to another man is an “extra-ordinarily exciting, erotic, wonderful experience” (11A).
Apparently concepts such as honor, integrity, morality, fidelity, and shame have been discarded by Miss Irving, as well as others in Hollywood. She thinks that indecency, ungodliness, nudity, and who knows what else comprise a “wonderful experience,”
But why is she a pig? Proverbs 11:22 says: “As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.” Let’s put it to the test. Is she a lovely woman? She and her “boyfriend” would probably insist that she is. Does she lack discretion? Are you kidding? Then she is as incongruous as a ring of gold in a swine’s snout. When you see her picture, visualize a pig’s face wearing a gold ring in its nose.
What Is Parade Magazine?
As sordid and seedy as the facts of this situation are, one wonders why they were trumpeted in the March 24th Parade. Isn’t it supposed to be a family magazine? They include features for teens as well as adults. So what is Amy Irving, the swine (by her own admission and God’s definition), doing on the cover?
As an enticement to read the story, the blurb above the author’s name, Dotson Rader, says: “The actress Amy Irving talks about love, raising children, passion and change: ‘I Feel Very Lucky.'” Once the reader has read the article, he is thinking that she knows nothing about love and that most courts would have declared her an unfit mother not too many years ago.
To be sure, the article contains some factual information about her: the ex-Mrs. Steven Spielberg; five feet, four inches tall; personal history, movie portfolio, but the disturbing part of the interview is the smugness and self-satisfaction with herself. In huge letters across the picture of herself and Brazilian director Bruno Barreto are the words: “I Have a New Life” (4), and most of her conversation has to do with Self. A sampling?
“I fell in love,” “I’m much more liberated now,” “Now I’m in a world where I’m an equal partner,” “I have a new life and a new family,” “I always dreamed of being a poor, starving stage actress,” “I wanted my own identity,” “that felt good to me,” “it was the last film my father saw me do,” “I’ve moved on, and I’ve met the man of my dreams,” “I’d seen a picture of him, but I didn’t know I’d be so attracted to him the minute I met him,” “I’m not a subservient woman,” “I’ve never indulged in anything too much, because I have to do my duties,” and “I’m blessed” (4-5) are just a few of the comments that reveal intense self-absorption.
But consider the egotism of the final paragraph of the article: “I had great parents, and I grew up on that kind of love. It gave me a belief in myself, to be able to achieve what I want to achieve, the courage to do whatever was asked of me even if it scared me. Through it all, I’ve never lost touch with the fact that I’m an actress. I have never, ever faltered from that” (5). Whoopie! Bring out Frank Sinatra to sing another chorus of “My Way.” Pigs probably are pretty self-centered.
Create Your Own Morality
When a person like Amy rejects the Bible, she has freed herself to create their own subjective system of morality. “While not legally married, the two celebrated their union in 1990 in a private ceremony, and Irving always refers to Barreto as ‘my husband.'” You can call a swine a princess, too, but that doesn’t make it so. Irving is no better than the woman at the well before she met Jesus (John 4).
Commenting on her “husband” Bruno, Amy says, “He’s very evolved and just understands human nature and continues to grow” (5). Jesus understands human nature, too. He knows how destructive sin can be (and what the penalty for it is); that’s why he told the woman taken in adultery to go and sin no more.
Rader queries: “Was she at all uncomfortable with the film’s degree of sexual explicitness?” “We’re not making porn films here.” Oh, really? “We’re expressing human nature in a very real, very strong, moving way. As a mother, it is a statement about human nature in which I feel no shame. Eventually my children will see this film…” (5). If they do, perhaps they will experience the shame their mother should have felt.
“Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed; nor did they know how to blush” (Jer. 6:15). Just because someone has seared her conscience does not prove that her actions are all right. As for the excuse of “expressing human nature,” how about substituting the phrase “human depravity” instead? No matter what the movie is about, she and the director who are so much in “love” with one another have demonstrated some of the depths of human depravity. They may clean themselves up afterward, but like the sow that is washed, they will but wallow in the mire once again (2 Peter 2:22).
It might prove helpful if several people wrote to Parade Magazine and expressed disappointment with this article which exalts such depraved behavior. Let them know how sad it is to see such ungodly conduct glorified, especially in a day of rampant venereal disease among young people. Their address is 711 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017.