Growing Up with Music

 The Great Passion by James Runcie is a book of historical fiction.  The setting is the composer Bach's era--18th century. The major character is Stefan Silbermann. His father sent him to school in Leipzig, for music.  The Silbermann family makes organs, so Stefan knows how to play keyboard instruments and quite a bit about organs.

The story begins with the news that Johann Sebastian Bach has died.  Stefan reminisces--that's the story.  It is a good story.  I read it like I read War and Peace.  I skipped the war and read the story.  In The Great Passion, there is music galore.  I am not a music person.  I didn't know what they were talking about. But I thoroughly enjoyed the story.

Since this is the 18th century, schools are places of terror.  Since Stefan was singled out by Bach, who taught at the school, as someone with promising talent, he was bullied.  In fact, he ran away from school.  Bach, who had a household of children, had Stefan live with him.  What's one more?  

Stefan had a crush on Bach's wife, Anna Magdalena, who had a beautiful voice, but in those days, women weren't allowed to sing in church.  She and Stefan made beautiful music together.  Stefan also made good friends with Bach's oldest daughter, Catharina. 

Bach was a demanding teacher, when it came to music, but a loving father and wise.  He saved Stefan's school career.  I guess you can say, Bach made Stefan the man he became.  

Oplatek

It's interesting that the first meaning morphs into another, but both make sense.  Many things catholic are "both" and "and".

The old custom is that the pope breaks off a piece for his bishops, who in turn bring it to their home diocese, where they break off a piece for their priests.  

Also, watching the Mass celebrant break off a piece of the Body, and drop it into the Blood, unite the two into One.  I think that's a beautiful image.

It is also reminiscent of my own Lithuanian heritage.  Where the father of the family takes unconsecrated communion and breaks off a piece and passes it on, to the rest of the family.  
 

Human Sacrifice

 You know how we're all appalled by Abraham's sacrificing his son--ALMOST.  We can't believe that God would request that.  Even after God stopping the sacrifice, we're relieved.  Still!!! 

Well, it turns out that human sacrifice was not all that uncommon, for the times.  People hearing this story, for the first time, would not react like we do.

Also, remember Jonah?  He was sacrificed to appease the storm god.

You just can't judge different eras and cultures by our own sensibilities.

      Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington D.C.

Original Sin and St. Agustine

 My "cloistered brothers" and I were doing some Lectio Divina on Psalm 51.  We focused in on verse 5.

Surely I was sinful at birth,

    sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

Most of us, I know I was, thinking of the first sin committed by Adam and Eve, called "original sin."  Steve, leading the group, said that wasn't possible to be in David's mind, when he wrote the psalm.  It seems that the term was used and promoted by St. Agustine, much later.  

Original sin is an Augustine Christian doctrine that says that everyone is born sinful. This means that they are born with a built-in urge to do bad things and to disobey God. 

It explains our desire to choose the bad, the wrong choice.  Original sin affects individuals by separating them from God, and bringing dissatisfaction and guilt into their lives.

That's exactly what happened to Adam and Eve.  They were separated from God.  So, I think that affect, separating oneself from God, was there from Adam and Eve, but there was no name to it.  I think everyone just accepted the fact that we are born sinful.  Agustine gave it a name.  

Grief is Not the End

 Argonauta Book Club is reading Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.  I finished it in two days!  Yes, it's an easy read, but it's much more.  The characterization hooked me.  Grief is the glue that holds the characters together.  There's Tova, whose husband has recently died.  But she is still grieving over her only son's death, from 30 years, ago.  She is now alone and wondering about living alone.  

Cameron is another major character.  He is still grieving over his mother, who took off when he was a child.  He never knew his father.  I guess he is constantly grieving the fact that he never had a normal childhood.

Lest I forget, Marcellus, the Octopus.  The star of the story.  He's the fulcrum.  Both Tova and Cameron are maintenance workers, in Marcellus' aquarium. The story is how they are related.  Marcellus manages a revelation.  

Everyone moves on.  Grief is dealt with, understood, and even embraced.  Life is what you make it, and grief is not the end.

Constant Conversation

 When you have the desire to improve, to get closer to Jesus, you need to start with prayer.  Luke 18:1, reminds us that we must pray continually and not get discouraged.  Jesus told his disciples in a parable, to pray and not give up. 

    1Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, 2saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. 3“There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ 4“For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, 5yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.’” 6And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said; 7now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?

 Prayer is the foundation of any endeavor.  In order to get closer to Jesus, one needs to be more contemplative--keep Jesus in the forefront of one's mind. Try to maintain a constant conversation with Jesus.

If you forget, go back to Him.  Wouldn't that prove how serious you are in establishing a relationship with Jesus?

Decisions Take Wisdom

 
Life is full of decisions.  My fourteen-year-old granddaughter and I have many discussions.  My favorite occurs when we discuss our decisions. There are a couple of generations between us.  That means different life experiences.  

I am amazed at her boldness.  She does not just accept authority.  She speaks right up and/or refuses to obey.  She would refuse to obey her teacher, and she would confront her, right in him/her face.  I would obey, then go report the teacher to the principal.

Other decisions, we agree on. However, she things money is the most important thing, now, at this time in her life.  But that's because she doesn't have any.  She sees many things she wants but can't purchase them.  She doesn't even get an allowance.  She wants a job and would even quit school, if she could, to work.  See how the immature brain works!  She doesn't have the wisdom to make a good decision.  Yet!  Come Holy Spirit!