Winter Issue 7
Our posture of waiting does not deny the horrors of the night, but it bets on the morning to come. - Tish Harrison Warren
Click here to download a PDF of this issue.
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Our header image this week is “Dreaming”, a photograph by Jocelyn Worster.
Composing Beauty Inside the Box
By Edmund Evanson
Although every kind of poetry deserves its own recognition, I find the poetic structure of a traditional sonnet to be especially poignant. There are strict requirements as to how long the sonnet should be by line or stanza, and what kind of rhyme scheme or rhythmic structure is needed.
While these rules might put off many modern free-poets, poets like Shakespeare and Spenser have utilized this restrictive format to write brilliantly-expressive works of art, forcing them to learn word-economy and to take extra care in composition to strike the right chords in their readers. Every word needs to count for resonance, and great creativity is needed to shuffle them around (like a problem-solving puzzle) with coherent grammar despite the lack of adequate legroom. But, ultimately, all these contribute to the making of a masterpiece we can wax lyrical about.
A sonnet is typically divided into two parts: a “proposition” and a “resolution.” The sonnet first proposes a problem of sorts, then shifts tones midway by way of the volta (or turn) to present a solution to that problem. Similarly, the current confines of our earthly life are rife with conflict, and it is up to us creation-caretakers to implement conflict resolutions as best we can. We ought to participate in the redemption of God’s groaning creation.
Of course, there are many other conventional poetic structures like villanelles and haiku that follow intricate restrictions. And there is a beauty in all these restrictions that allow us to exercise greater creativity in making the most of what little we have, especially in light of this ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This is the crux of the matter: stifling submission. A fitting subject during our current climate when all we can waste time doing is flaunting our health to protest the seizure of our liberties by “oppressive” governments for “the greater good.”
When I hear of throngs taking to the streets (or to social media) in sheer defiance because of inconveniences imposed by medically-advised governments such as lockdowns, quarantines, physical distancing and face-mask wearing, it makes me wonder how many of us are willing to embrace and exercise our imparted liberties via the Imago Dei. Are we losing our grip as image-bearers? Does not the God who created out of nothing for our benefit expect us to make good use of the ability to create out of the many things He created, regardless of whether we are religious or not? Despite our less-than-ideal human natures, did not God still choose to redeem His groaning creation by commissioning His own image-bearers to be fruitful and multiply with regards to stewardship and earth-tending?
The brilliance of the human spirit is that we strive to overcome our obstacles with our imagination, our knowledge, and by using what is around us; similarly, sonneteers utilize their imagination with imagery, their language skills, and the poetic form to transcend the structural boundaries while working within them. Constraints can be good as they force us to think outside the box while within it. By way of an analogy, pressure and procrastination, when taken in tandem, yield surprising results with deadlines; it has been said when an animal is cornered, it can be capable of mystifying feats.
I suppose, within my own fence-sitting prison of lacking structured sonnet-skills and disliking unstructured free-verse poetry, I try to find ways to strike an appropriate balance of restriction and freedom in my own poems; you could say I wish to wander the prison grounds unshackled to my cell wall. There is no such thing as freedom in this world where we can live a completely independent yet wholesome life; the more I try to make a run for it, the more I yearn for restraint that keeps me in check. Why do you think, for instance, a democratic government has a system of checks and balances? Or why do you think laws still need to be enacted and enforced for a democratic society?
I am reminded of a profound exchange in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring:
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
In the increasingly autonomous world we live in today, extremes are often taken because society’s understanding of freedom means doing whatever it wants, even if it might mean harming itself in the process (like adrenaline junkies). We yearn to exercise our own independent rights (since it is already available), sometimes even if it means infringing on others’, and sometimes not thinking three steps ahead about the consequences of our actions.
The irony of freedom is that it can indirectly also lead to a sense of oppression upon others when abused and taken too far; when narcissism gets in the way, it becomes all about what I want to do for myself at any cost, even if that cost might well be at someone else’s expense. We are simply taking advantage of people, blaming their misfortune on their lack of proactiveness. Perhaps our freedom should instead cause us to reorient ourselves to be “in-dependents” of God, as His good and faithful servants. Freedom is indeed important as God gave us free will – I use the term well aware of theological debates surrounding it – and we should use it in whatever we do. But our freedom should ultimately point back to God, to magnify His name and deeds in all our brokenness and beauty as His image-bearing creation.
Malcolm Guite (himself a sonneteer) wrote that “all poetry … avails itself of the wider symbolic reach of everyday experience which is the basis of any parable, and poetry is especially fitted to point towards and deepen that experience of paradox …” (Parable and Paradox).
So, how might we flourish during this time of lockdown and quarantine? The answers are all around us, meaningful and edifying activities waiting to be discovered so we can pass the time within our homes’ confines. Exercise our creative imagination, and do what we never thought to do before (within reason) to transform our lives and transcend the boundaries. To quote the character Dr. Ian Malcolm from the first Jurassic Park film, “Life … finds a way.”
Life is a sonnet, for we—the image-bearing human poets—can still compose beauty inside this box.
If By Dull Rhymes Our English Must Be Chain’d
By John Keats
If by dull rhymes our English must be chain'd,
And, like Andromeda, the Sonnet sweet
Fetter'd, in spite of pained loveliness;
Let us find out, if we must be constrain'd,
Sandals more interwoven and complete
To fit the naked foot of poesy;
Let us inspect the lyre, and weigh the stress
Of every chord, and see what may be gain'd
By ear industrious, and attention meet:
Misers of sound and syllable, no less
Than Midas of his coinage, let us be
Jealous of dead leaves in the bay wreath crown;
So, if we may not let the Muse be free,
She will be bound with garlands of her own.
RCSA Academic Symposium
Regent Students! Our annual RCSA Academic Symposium is this Friday!! Come join us as we present the research and writing of six wonderful students at Regent. This year the event will be hosted online in two blocks: 10:30-12:30 and 1:30-3:30. Each student will present for 20 -25 minutes followed by 10-15 minutes of Q & A. Come support your fellow students.
You can join online here: https://zoom.us/j/98969915532?pwd=VgduejhqMnYxYmwrTTVCdnNzY2hxUT09 (Passcode: 424701)
Or find the link on the RCSA wesbite here: https://rcsa.regent-college.edu/symposium
10:30am — David Lewis: "African Christian Spirituality in the Work of A.E. Orobator: A Theological Brew of an African Flavour"
This paper concerns the theological work of A.E. Orobator, a contemporary Nigerian scholar and Jesuit priest. It examines the context of Orobator’s theological work and his characterization of African Christian spirituality, examining four particular themes from this: a consciousness of transcendence, a spiritual sense of community, joyful and expressive religion, and a holistic understanding of life and creation. In response to Orobator’s analysis, it considers the perspectives of two evangelical African theologians in critiquing Orobator’s own work. Finally, it concludes by suggesting insights from Orobator’s examination of African Christian spirituality which are relevant for the global church in the twenty-first century.
11:10am — Zach Gordon: “To God, through the Image of the Other: The Incarnational Theology of Ascent in the Works of Charles Williams”
Charles Williams, perhaps best known as the tertiary Inkling, accomplished a constructive synthesis of Romantic literature and a mystical interpretation of the doctrine of the incarnation to form a unique theology of the soul’s progress by way of ascent. His “Romantic Theology” employs the figure of Beatrice in the works of Dante Alighieri to transform a classical Christian understanding of the via affirmativa (way of affirmation), with emphasis placed on how it may be practiced within interpersonal relationships, especially those that are erotic in nature. This paper seeks to examine Williams’ conception of the soul’s task within his complex and unconventional mystical framework in an attempt to draw out its significance for contemporary ecclesial communities.
11:50am — Tim Wang: “Asian Spirituality through Harmonious Living: A dialogue Between Confucian Spirituality and Christian Spirituality”
This paper engages in a conversation with Confucian spirituality, seeking to understand Asian theology through the concept of harmony. Although not many Asians would call themselves followers of Confucianism, Confucian thought has permeated East Asian culture and has significantly influenced many East Asians — including Christians. By furthering our understanding of Confucian spirituality and the concept of harmony, one can better understand the thought and behavior patterns of those impacted by Confucianism.
1:30pm — Heather Kaufmann: “The Poetic Process and the Spiritual Life: Reflecting on the Common Language of Poetry and Prayer”
The tradition of integrating poetry with Christian spiritual practice is as old as the Bible itself. In this paper, I reflect on how the gift and discipline of (writing) poetry resonates deeply with the gift and discipline of prayer: both call us to pay attention to the particularity of the present, to contemplate mystery, and to find expression for our emotions, experiences, and questions for God. In naming this common language, I hope to encourage us to access the deep well of poetry-writing as a spiritual discipline which has the potential to enrich our knowledge of God and grow us to greater maturity in faith.
2:10 — Matthew Key: “Faith in Churches: the Eucharist, the Church, & the Writings of St. Francis of Assisi”
The relationship between St Francis of Assisi and the church is a debate within scholarship that has continued for over a century. In the popular imagination, too, a diversity of images exists for Francis, from the radical ‘outsider’ revolutionary to the most venerated Saint of all time. Yet, in the question of Francis’ relationship to the church the vital role of the eucharist has been overlooked. For Francis, faith is synonymous with the belief that the eucharistic bread and wine become “the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Thus, when Francis wrote the enigmatic line, “the Lord gave me such faith in churches” in his Testimony, he was speaking of receiving faith concerning the consecration of the elements. It was a faith that could only be realised in the church at the hands of the Priest. In other words, Francis’ relationship to the church was neither primarily revolutionary nor saintly, although it was to include both these things; rather, it was profoundly sacramental.
2:50 — Jerusha Lieow: “Provoking God’s Jealousy: The Dispute Over Food Offered to Idols – Paul, the Early Church, and the Christian Witness”
While modern exegetes may have difficulty deciphering Paul’s rhetoric in 1 Corinthians 8-10 due to the lack of contextual understanding regarding the practice of idol worship, the Early Church understood Paul’s message in 1 Corinthians as a unified argument: do not partake at the demon’s table, not primarily for the sake of those with “weak conscience,” but because it provokes God’s jealousy. This survey of recent studies will demonstrate that scholars have difficulty harmonizing Paul’s coherent teaching on prohibiting food sacrificed to idols because they are missing a key ingredient in Paul’s theological equation: the relationship between the idol-worshiper and the demons.
If you feel like responding to any of this week’s articles, feel free to write a letter to the editor by clicking the link below.