It is October! The great slide to the end of the year begins! It will be Christmas before we know it. But let’s all take a deep breath and enjoy October. It was 92 degrees yesterday, but that’s all going to change this weekend. Cold front. Rain. You get the picture.
And here’s my favorite oft-quoted October poem from Robert Frost…
Enjoy the first day of October!
(The painting is by Albert Bierstadt, 1886.)
Yesterday was a beautiful day, starting with a lovely sunrise. (The sky was much pinker than this iPhone photo shows.)
After my morning Bible reading and desk work, I got busy switching out my summer clothes for my fall turtlenecks and sweaters. I know I am no doubt jumping the gun, but I was in the mood. Of course, since I re-organized everything last spring, I couldn’t find anything. I made quite a mess tearing various closets apart, which I am sorry to say, I have yet to put back, but c’est dommage.
Yesterday was the anniversary of the day the great Herman Melville died in 1891 and we like to note that.
“I turn my body from the sun. What ho, Tashtego! Let me hear thy hammer. Oh! ye three unsurrendered spires of mine; thou uncracked keel; and only god-bullied hull; thou firm deck, and haughty helm, and Pole pointed prow, death glorious ship! must ye then perish, and without me? Am I cut off from the last fond pride of meanest shipwrecked captains? Oh, lonely death on lonely life! Oh, now I feel my topmost greatness lies in my topmost grief. Ho, ho! from all your furthest bounds, pour ye now in, ye bold billows of my whole foregone life, and top this one piled comber of my death! Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but unconquering whale; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee. Sink all coffins and all hearses to one common pool! and since neither can be mine, let me then tow to pieces, while still chasing thee, though tied to thee, thou damned whale! Thus, I give up the spear!”
Today we also note the passing of Winslow Homer in 1910. He has always been a favorite of mine since childhood.
So a toast to Herman Melville! A toast to Winslow Homer!
I had an entire blogpost written and then something happened and I lost it–poof. I did not have it in me to start over. C’est la vie.
So here’s a poem by Billy Collins, “Books”:
Today we toast George Inness who was an influential American landscape painter, born on May 1, 1825, in Newburgh, New York, and known for his role in the Tonalist movement.
His works often combined elements of realism and impressionism, focusing on the spiritual and emotional aspects of nature.
We have one of his works in the Saint Louis Art Museum…
In the Roman Campagna, oil on canvas, 1873
…and there was one in my college art museum…
Home at Montclair, 1892, oil on canvas, Clark Art Institute
There are several good ones at Yale…
Moonrise, oil on canvas, 1887
I always liked him.
Two Sisters in the Garden, oil on millboard, 1882, Art Institute of Chicago
Inness died in 1894 at Bridge of Allan in Scotland. According to his son, he was viewing the sunset, when he threw up his hands into the air and exclaimed, “My God! oh, how beautiful!”, fell to the ground, and died minutes later. That’s a good way to go–for an artist or anyone, don’t you think?
In other museum news, if you are going to be in Fort Worth on May 22…
The 95th anniversary! Wowee!
Happy May 1st!
As a child and, if I’m honest, long after, I always wondered why it wasn’t called Bad Friday. Because, as Randy Alcorn explains, “out of the appallingly bad came what was inexpressibly good. And the good trumps the bad, because though the bad was temporary, the good is eternal.”
So let us today contemplate the great love of Christ in facing the wrath of God for us. A good place to start is by reading Jonathan Edward’s sermon on Christ’s Agony. Originally preached sometime in 1739, Edwards’ sermon provides a deep analysis of Luke 22:44 and Christ’s agonizing prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. It is really great, but takes a long time to read, so you better get started.
There are two things that render Christ’s love wonderful: 1. That he should be willing to endure sufferings that were so great; and 2. That he should be willing to endure them to make atonement for wickedness that was so great.
…It was the corruption and wickedness of men that contrived and effected his death; it was the wickedness of men that agreed with Judas, it was the wickedness of men that betrayed him, and that apprehended him, and bound him, and led him away like a malefactor; it was by men’s corruption and wickedness that he was arraigned, and falsely accused, and unjustly judged. It was by men’s wickedness that he was reproached, mocked, buffeted, and spit upon. It was by men’s wickedness that Barabbas was preferred before him. It was men’s wickedness that laid the cross upon him to bear, and that nailed him to it, and put him to so cruel and ignominious a death. This tended to give Christ an extraordinary sense of the greatness and hatefulness of the depravity of mankind.
The picture at the top is “Dogma of the Redemption”; Trinity and Crucifix, Frieze of Angels by John Singer Sargent in the Boston Public Library. At the top of this large half-moon lunette, three crowned figures representing the Holy Trinity share a single red robe, the trim of which bears the Latin word Sanctus, or “Holy,” in repeated gild relief. At center in high plaster relief is the figure of Christ on the cross, flanked by Adam at left and Eve at right. At the base of the cross sits a pelican, considered the sacrificial bird in medieval depictions for its tendency to pluck its own skin in order to provide food for its young when no other nourishment is available. Running along the bottom of the lunette is the Frieze of Angels, figures in primary tones holding symbols of the Passion of Christ, including the spear, pincers, hammer, nails, pillar, scourge, reed, sponge, and crown of thorns.
Side note: the image of a pelican is carved into the front of the pulpit of our church.
Have a blessed Easter. Go to church!
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:27
Do you need to preach truth to yourself today? This post addresses this: “I don’t know about you, but despite my best efforts not to get mired down in the election bruhaha, a sense of dread has seeped into my psyche as the day draws near. From political texts blowing up my phone to interminable campaign commercials zipping by as I fast-forward past them and even comic strips, I can’t escape the ever-present signs that the event is barreling down on us.”
“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.”
–Martin Luther
(The painting is by Maxfield Parrish)
We had quite a sunrise yesterday, due, they say, to the wildfires out west. (Photo from Fox2)
Red sky at morning, sailors take warning, and all that. But the sun shone all day and it warmed up considerably.
Daughter #1 took the day off for her birthday and we went to the Art Museum where we had not been for quite some time–probably since before Covid, as with so many things. It was fun to walk around without it being very crowded and look at all the good and bad art. When I was growing up we lived five minutes away and we went frequently with our Mother. It was free and we would sometimes go for an hour or so after church. We had our favorites to check out. That is still the way I like to go to the art museum–just to wander through and not look at every single painting, reading each description card. So we did that and then we sat outside at Taco Buddha back in daughter #1’s neighborhood and ate lunch. Lovely.
When I got home I worked a little on my article about Gratz Brown, the governor of Missouri after the Civil War. Here’s a fun fact: His granddaughter was Margaret Wise Brown who wrote Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny! Talk about your small world! File that one away in your Trivia File.
I also toasted all those brave Americans who died on September 11, 2001. In past years I have included this video about a fine young man who died in one of the towers helping others and I encourage you to watch it again. He was a lacrosse player and his initials were WRC. It wrecks me every time. Lest we forget.
*Psalm 16:11
Well, I have finally caught up with my daily Bible reading schedule. Amen. And it has been a pleasure to be in Isaiah, which is always timely.
“Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is my law;
fear not the reproach of man,
nor be dismayed at their revilings.
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment,
and the worm will eat them like wool,
but my righteousness will be forever,
and my salvation to all generations.”(Isaiah 51:7-9)
Here’s Sinclair Ferguson on the Gospel according to Isaiah.
Speaking of revilings, this is a good one by Carl Trueman about our anti-culture of nothingness.
And for some comic relief, Black Bears really are becoming cartoon characters in real life. (Be sure to check out the photos of the wrecked car.)
Cheer up–don’t let the turkeys get you down!
*Isaiah 55:12; the painting is by Eugène Boudin (1824-1898)–Trouville Beach, 1865
It is a sultry day; the sun has drunk
The dew that lay upon the morning grass;
There is no rustling in the lofty elm
That canopies my dwelling, and its shade
Scarce cools me. All is silent, save the faint
And interrupted murmur of the bee,
Settling on the sick flowers, and then again
Instantly on the wing.
–William Cullen Bryant, “Summer Wind”–read it here.
Yesterday I had lunch with two old (and much older than I) friends at the fancy retirement home where they live. It is always a delight to meet with them and talk about what we are reading, re-reading and what we are finding to watch on TV/streaming. One of them walks on the treadmill every morning and recites the Gettysburg Address from memory. I told him about the guy I used to know who recited the lyrics to Abide With Me while maintaining a plank position every morning. We avoid discussing politics but one of them said that the (very liberal) interfaith group he was in fell apart this year following the events of October 7. This is troubling, but no surprise to me I said. It is not the evangelicals the Jews have to worry about. I have no doubt that I am somewhat of a mystery to them, but we respect each other, and yes, even love each other. And that is the way it should be.
So meet an old friend for lunch, read some poetry out loud, memorize something! And here’s a hymn that we heard in church on Sunday that the boy really liked:
Sing to Jesus, Lord of our shame
Lord of our sinful hearts
He is our great redeemer
Sing to Jesus, honor His name
(The painting above is by Winslow Homer, 1878)
In my daily Bible reading I am currently reading Deuteronomy. Moses really has his hands full with those stiff-necked Jews.
And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish.
–Deuteronomy 8:19
Of course, nothing has changed since then and we are worse than ever. Remember what Calvin said about the human heart being a factory of idols. He had read Deuteronomy!
In other news, today we celebrate the birthday of American illustrator and author Howard Pyle (1853-1911). Pyle was widely respected during his life and continues to be well regarded by illustrators and fine artists. His contemporary Vincent Van Gogh wrote in a letter to his brother Theo that Pyle’s work “struck me dumb with admiration.” I had a copy of Otto of the Silver Hand as a child, which deeply effected me. Looking at his art makes me want to watch Captain Blood (1936)–clearly the art director of this film was a fan of Howard Pyle.
Sixty-seven years later Hollywood still looked to Pyle for inspiration…
Today is also the anniversary of the day the great actor William Powell died in 1984. He was in a lot of really good movies throughout his long career, most notably The Thin Man (1934) et al, My Man Godfrey (1936), Life With Father (1947), and Mister Roberts (1961). I recommend watching any of these. Pour yourself a highball first.
This is a good example of sports testimony. “So yes, a missed pop fly did lead to grace — revealed in the instincts of a loving father, the kindness and generosity of a doctor, and a gift that kindled a lifetime of enriching interests. Sometimes the things we fear the most do happen. But that is not the end; there is One who is more. In those panic-stricken and dark moments, grace mysteriously goes to work.”
And speaking of baseball, can you even believe the uniform debacle in the MLB? See-through pants? Mis-matched uniforms? Stupid Nike.
And did you hear that the “British Board of Film Classification has decided to raise the rating on Mary Poppins from U (for Universal) to PG because of racial slurs. At two points in the film the neighbor of the Banks family, Admiral Boom, uses the term “Hottentots,” which some people now consider a derogatory name for one of the indigenous peoples of South Africa. The film has also been criticized for blackface because of the scene in which sooty chimney sweeps dance over rooftops.” (World News Group) The world is a clown show.
Enjoy your Tuesday. Do not forget the Lord.
*D.H. Lawrence, “The Enkindled Spring”
