"Ave Maria"

A few days ago, just before Christmas, I was in the car on my way to finish up some shopping.  The car radio was on a station that plays all Christmas music from Thanksgiving to Christmas.  I was struck by the hauntingly beautiful but almost mournful tone in which a female soloist was singing "Ave Maria." 

As I listened to these strains, I rounded a corner onto a street where there is a small private nursing home.  At the curb, an elderly gentleman was getting out of his car...slowly and with obvious discomfort.  He had a newspaper under his arm.  As I drove by, I watched him teeter around the car and head towards the nursing home entrance.

Although that was my last actual glimpse of him, a video clip began to play in my mind, accompanied by the mournfully rendered "Ave Maria."  He slowly ascended the stairs into the building and painfully walked down a corridor.  In my mind, the corridor was much longer than could have been contained in the actual building.  It was dimly lit, and I watched his silhouette become smaller as he got further away.  Then I saw him, the image of loneliness, enter a room.  In the bed was an elderly woman...his wife....who no longer recognized him.  He kissed her brow, and then sat heavily in the chair and opened the newspaper.  He would spend his day there, although his wife wouldn't appreciate it.  He had nowhere else to go and nothing else to do.

The last sad note of the "Ave" was sung and my private little mental video faded to black.
It has replayed in my mind numerous times since.

The Seven against Thebes by Aeschylus

Eteocles is King of Thebes and son of Oedipus (he of the infamous complex).   A messenger arrives with news that an army prepares to attack Thebes.  Seven of the invaders’ champions have been assigned to storm each of seven gates into the city.  Eteocles must decide which of his mighty men to post at each gate to repel the onslaught.

The chorus in this play is comprised of a group of Theban women whom Eteocles considers to be more or less hysterical.  He chides them for their carrying on, since it may cause others to lose courage.  They, of course, don’t see things that way.  They believe they are offering legitimate prayers to the gods.  Chauvinist that he is, he eventually tells them, “These be men’s matters…your business is submiss silence, and to bide within.”

After some interaction between Eteocles and the chorus, he gets around to deciding which soldier to post at each gate.  He is especially grieved that one of the gates is to be attacked by a man for whom he has great respect.  He bemoans that, “’Tis unhappy chance that couples oft the just with many wicked!”  When he finds that Polyneices will attack the last of the gates, he decides to confront him himself.  The chorus protests that Polyneices and Eteocles are brothers….both sons of Oedipus.  It is not fitting for brothers to be fighting each other to the death.

Eteocles and Polyneices end up killing each other.  Both of their bodies are brought into the city.  As their sisters, Antigone and Ismene, grieve, a herald arrives and announces that the Governors have declared that while Eteocles is to be buried with pomp, Polyneices’ body is to be thrown to the dogs.  Antigone is prepared to defy this order and carries off the body of Polyneices.  Antigone is not into submissive silence. Ismene leaves with the body of Eteocles.  The chorus of women splits, some going with Antigone and others with Ismene. 

In addition to the tension between men and women in the play, a strong current running throughout is that the sins of the fathers are visited on their children.  Many references are made to the wrong-doing of Oedipus, who killed his father and married his mother.  Now the sons of this union are both dead.  “O curse of Oedipus!  O malison dark…unrelenting…damning all his line!”

My husband once told me that as a young man, he avoided some temptations by thinking that he couldn’t bear the idea that wrong-doing on his part might harm his future children.  The world would be a better place if more young men and women gave that notion some consideration.

Immanuel

If I choose a sign for myself,

It will be....

Mundane,

Unimaginative,

Trapped in convention,

Restricted to the possible.

But, God....

If you choose a sign to give me,

It will be....

Unique,

Creative,

Infinitely exciting,

Past the limits of my mind.

Immanuel,

Immanuel,

Born of a virgin,

God with us!

God with me?

God with me!

O come, O come, Immanuel

Faith, Reason, Truth

Faith and Reason are twin lenses through which we can look at the fascinating world in which we live.  They are equally important filters through which we can pour the never ending stream of information which is available to us in a quest to shake out the nuggets which are Truth.

The person of Faith should not ignore Reason.  If one believes in God as Creator, he should recognize that God gave man a mind quite purposely, expecting him to use it.  Not pouring information through the filter of Reason results in a shapeless mass of disjointed emotion, totally impractical for surviving the world.

The person of Reason should not ignore Faith.  Believing in order, logic and science is all well and good, but it has limitations.  Much of what is beautiful and connects with our spirits is not easily explained by Reason alone.  A sunset or a symphony can be explained in scientific terms, but how and why do we appreciate their beauty?  Not pouring information through the filter of Faith results in a rigid structure not suited for real life.

Exercising Faith and Reason together allows a rich and never-ending appreciation for all that swirls around us.  It allows us to grasp what is trustworthy and solid out of chaos and information overload.  It is man’s only shot at finding Truth.

The Persians by Aeschylus

This play is written from the perspective of the Persians, but Aeschylus was, of course Greek.  Since the story that unfolds describes the defeat of the Persians by the Greeks, one might wonder about its objectivity.

However, the basic theme is that of pride.  Xerxes, son of Atossa and Darius (who is deceased and appears in the play as a ghost) is not satisfied to rule Persia.  He wants to expand his boundaries, and so, he attacks Athens.  When word of the slaughter of his army reaches Queen Mother Atossa and the Persian Ministers of State, great sorrow is expressed and the consensus is reached that pride was his downfall.  “…proud thoughts are not for the worm called man.”  When man is guilty of such, he will find God willing to help him along to his demise.  “…when man, shod with haste and girt with pride, beckons his own doom, God is on his side.”

The desire for material possessions is also critiqued.  “Possessions must not be revered save as men use them; yet they that have none, how poor!  To them what luster hath the sun?”  Apparently this is an age-old problem.  Abundance does not buy ones happiness, but poverty is certainly not pleasant either.  The you-can’t-take-it-with-you notion appears as:  “Where dead men lie, wealth nothing profiteth.”

The play ends with Xerxes and the chorus of ministers of state exchanging laments…many, many laments.  I can picture the Greek audience rising to their feet in applause as Xerxes exits inconsolable and in utter defeat.

What was Aeschylus’ objective?  Did he just want to puff up the Greeks regarding their victory?  Or, did he hope that using the Persians as an example would cause the Greeks to examine their own tendency toward pride?

It is always easier to see pride in another than in oneself.  Pride has a way of infiltrating the mind and sneaking up on us.  It muddies up our objectives and priorities.   Thank you Aeschylus for the reminder.

A Season for Reason

Apparently a billboard sponsored by atheists reads, "You know it's a myth...this season, celebrate reason."
Seriously????  This statement is not a logical and well-reasoned argument.  It is an appeal to the emotions. No one wants to be duped into believing a myth.  That would be stupid, and no one wants to look stupid!


One of the things that really makes my blood boil is when atheists imply that their beliefs are a product of logic and intelligence, which is absent in persons of faith.  If they are so logical, why don't they put one of their "well-reasoned" arguments on the billboard?  They have no way to prove that the Christmas story is a myth.  Their promotion is clever, but it doesn't exactly reek of intelligence.


This season, I will celebrate reason.
It is reasonable to believe that intelligence is derived from intelligence.  Man was made in the image of God.
It is reasonable to believe that the orderly universe in which we live was the plan of an intelligent being and not a random accident.
It is reasonable to believe that man is creative, because he is the product of a Creator.
It is reasonable to believe that giving man a choice means that some will choose to do what is wrong.
It is reasonable to believe that a God who is personal and cares about man on a personal level would have a plan to lift man out of the mire he creates for himself.
It is reasonable to believe that the best way to communicate with man would be to become one.
It is reasonable to believe that only a perfect man could die for the misdeeds of another.
It is reasonable to believe that Jesus existed....that He was a real person.  (If he is a myth, he is the most powerful myth in all of human history.)
It is reasonable to believe that the man Jesus, being also God, can bridge the gap between God and man.


I celebrate the birth of God's son....deity temporarily clothed in humanity.
I celebrate His life of good deeds and kindness...an example to follow.
I celebrate His sacrificial death which purchases my redemption.
I celebrate the comfort of a personal relationship....I am His child.
I celebrate the fact that I do not have to segregate my intellect from my beliefs.


I grieve for people who don't recognize that it is NOT their intellect that prevents them from believing.  It is the inability to admit their need and the fear that they might have to change their behavior.


"For unto you is born this day, a Savior."
CELEBRATE!

Living Lyrics

This week I have been attending the ECHO Agricultural Conference, a gathering of people from all over the world who are interested in the development of third world countries through agriculture.  What a fascinating group of about 250 people are assembled from all continents!

Presentations to the entire group have occupied the mornings, while dozens of educational sessions have been offered during the afternoons and evenings.  My background is not in agriculture.  (I am tagging along with my husband who has been making presentations on drip irrigation.)  However, there has been plenty to stimulate my curiosity, from a hands on workshop in use of fruits and vegetables not typical to the American diet, to a presentation on the nutritional benefits of trace elements.

I have greatly enjoyed lectures which focused on big picture concepts.  As Americans our hearts are moved with compassion by a disaster we hear of in another country, and we open our wallets.  Too frequently we do not consider that we may do harm through aid that goes on too long, and that does not morph into development.

The benefit of this conference to me, however, has gone beyond the intellectual.  I have met real people who grapple with real issues, and who are expending their lives in service to others and to God.  While not all attendees share the same commitment to Christ, most do.  The morning devotional time has been very moving.  One morning included a tribute to the man whose vision brought ECHO into being.  Another morning included a tribute to a young woman, who had been an intern at ECHO, and who was killed in northern Afghanistan this past year while serving the people there.

It was humbling to stand in this group and hear them sing these words together:

You are the God of the broken

The friend of the weak

You wash the feet of the weary

Embrace the ones in need

And I want to be like you, Jesus

To have this heart in me

You are the God of the humble

You are the humble King

Oh, kneel me down again

Here at Your feet

Show me how much You love

Humility

Oh spirit be the star

That leads me to

The humble heart of love

I see in You

It is one thing to hear these words sung by a group of Americans who live a comfortable middle class life.  It is quite another to hear the words from the mouths of those who have actually been in difficult circumstances living out the lyrics.