Preparing to write--by reading

Tuesday last was heavenly, truly a day off. I had to report to neither of my day jobs, the weather was a sunny 80˚ with blue sky and no humidity, and I read several hours away. The next book I will write is in the conceptualization stage (in that “mental crockpot,” as I recently heard someone describe), and reading is a fine and fun way to move that process along. The Gendarme by Mark Mustian (2010, Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam. Available everywhere) is serving well to stimulate and inspire—and help me keep in mind what good writing is.

How can I develop a character like Mustian’s Emmett Conn/Ahmet Kahn, who is immediately intriguing, human, entertaining, and sympathy-inducing despite—even because of—his flaws? How can I develop a story that is this electrifying and filled with mystery, even for the main character himself? How can I change scenes and travel back and forth through time crisply and clearly like this? How can I write dialogue that sounds this natural as it crackles with meaning?

At the 2010 Lutheran Festival of Writing, Mustian recounted “the making of” The Gendarme, drawing us into the horrible history of the annihilation of one million Armenians in Turkey at the beginning of World War I. His Armenian ancestry was part of his reason for writing the book, though none of his immediate forebears were directly involved, having immigrated to the United States long before. Again, in response, I entertain the possibility of using other times and places and perhaps my own ancestry in my novel. Right now, I don’t think I will do that; nevertheless, I appreciate being opened to bigger, broader vistas. I also prize this model of compelling composition that is bold to tell the truth, even the hard and ugly truth. And, most importantly, perhaps, I am affirmed in my passion for using humor and surprise and artistry to weave bright threads of redemption throughout. Thank you, Mark--and all other writers. Each of us has something to teach.

Phantasmagorical surprises at volunteer appreciation day

I halfway didn’t want to go to the volunteer appreciation breakfast at the senior retirement center, expecting the event to be dry and perfunctory. My expectations were undeniably shaped by a reading I had given there the week before. I had to fight the giggles at one point when I looked around the circle and seven of eleven of my audience were asleep. I maintained composure and focused on the four lively, interested listeners, but couldn’t help asking myself, “What in the world am I doing here? Surely this is a poor use of my time.” So when the breakfast began with a Bloody Mary and ended with an eye witness story about Janis Joplin, I was surprised, delightfully so.

The main delight was fun with the three other volunteers at my table. Our little group was graced with that rare moment when all present are as interested in each other as they are in themselves. And so, we enjoyed scintillating conversation balanced equally among us. Over scrumptious veggie quiche and homemade biscuits, connections sparked and popped. Hardy is involved through his church in collecting gently-used children’s books and distributing them to schools along South Carolina’s infamous Corridor of Shame. Shelley is employed by the public library system to deliver reading materials to people whose mobility is limited. Marvin helped establish Columbia’s Jewish Community Center and has lived all over the country, working in community organization. They were interested in my writing enterprises. Hardy is going to recommend me to the activities director of his congregation. Shelley accepted a set of Sunday by Sunday in large print with confidence that some of her readers would like them a lot. Very cool.

The program was cool, too. The Life Enrichment staff presented each of us with a certificate and then invited us to describe what we do. The descriptions were straight from the heart and humorously humble, and then staff members added appreciative and often amusing comments and anecdotes. A dear friend I have made there gave a fine endorsement of the Sunday by Sunday series. This amazing woman is herself a volunteer and shared the moving information that she sings, upon request, for people who are dying, 21 people so far. Another resident volunteer serves as librarian for the center, and I happily contributed an LP set--and she wanted to know where people could purchase them, if so desired. Great connections.

And then, there was icing on top of all that cake. As I said, Marvin has been around and told this story that occurred in California in 1967 at a camp for kids he was directing:

He had worked with Peter, leader of Big Brother and the Holding Company which was featuring Janis Joplin at the time. He gave the group a week of room and board at the camp in exchange for them giving a concert. After hours one night, the musicians were swimming in the pool. When Marvin and his wife got there, Janis was the only one still swimming, and his wife asked if she could take her picture. Janis hopped out of the pool in the buff, shook the water off, and said, “No. I don’t think my agent would allow it.”

Wow, what a story—and what a good adventure, this volunteer appreciation occasion. Hard to believe that I actually considered skipping it!

Rose Harris helps to form and nuture future preachers

If Rose Harris, protagonist in my Sunday by Sunday series, were a real person, she would have gloried in being with a classroom full of seminarians yesterday. She would have, I believe, enjoyed the laughter when I read one of her phone conversations with granddaughter Stephanie Rose from book one--the conversation where the pregnant and emotionally fragile Stephanie had fixed herself a vegan delight Dagwood sandwich and set it on the patio for a minute and a raccoon ate it.

She would have also understood the change of mood in the classroom to sober silence upon the recounting of her Sunday afternoon in Sam Benshaw's room in the nursing center from book three. Rose was totally unprepared for Sam's stunning confessions. How could this kind and dignified 100-year-old friend and poet ever have done those things? And then, Rose would have been deeply gratified by the students delving into that story based in the lessons for the third Sunday of Easter and connecting her and Sam's encounter with suffering and joy and resurrection.

As the author, I was surprised and delighted by the students' discoveries. Some of their insights I had never considered, so their obersvations were great examples of the writing coming to the writer from beyond. Yes, 'twas a precious and sparkling time. I fiercely admire the courage of these seminarians, these people of faith willing to pray and do their best to proclaim the Word of God for and with the people of God.

Speaking at LTSS again

Dr. Shauna Hannan, homiletics professor at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary has invited me to speak to one of her preaching classes as she did last year, and I am, once again, delighted. Dr. Hannan wrote the Foreword for Sunday by Sunday III which I deeply appreciate and consider perfect to the purpose. She also introduced the book at its debut last All Saints Day at Incarnation Lutheran, Columbia. Playing on the main character’s name, Rose, she declared that any pastor would love to have “a dozen Roses” in the congregation. Fun and gratifying!

The class is tomorrow and is made up of people preparing for public proclamation of God’s Word, people diverse in many ways and all committed to that goal, among other tasks of ministry. The topics/themes Dr. Hannan has asked me to address are Preaching and the Christian Year and Scripture and Preaching. ‘Tis a great joy and a deep honor for me to use my works of fiction in this way, a satisfying whole circle kind of experience, as the writing is always meant to glorify God and build up the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. My prayer is that our time together tomorrow will do that.

Very cool surprise about my book

My 5-year-old grandson excitedly reported over the phone last Saturday, “Grammy, when we went into the library we saw your book. It was right there on a table!” Very cool, especially his excitement! My daughter wasn’t sure why Sunday by Sunday III was on an exhibit kiosk. Maybe a display of local authors?

Excited myself, I took a Sunday afternoon stroll to the main Richland County Public Library in downtown Columbia to behold my work. As I entered, however, my mind was centered on a book I was seeking, and I forgot to look for my own. But after finding and checking out Joseph Cardinal Bernadin’s The Gift of Peace, I remembered to check for S by S.

Not there anymore. So I checked the catalog and found that it was checked out with one person waiting. And book I was “In transit,” which means en route to a branch where it had been requested. Book II was also checked out. Yee-haw. What fun to know that they are circulating.

In the challenging and oft frustrating context of marketing and promoting, this development was a nice and needed boost. Other welcome boosts lately include a couple invitations to speak and notes from readers, including this from Sandra Penrod in Melbourne FL:

Cristy,
I just finished reading Sunday by Sunday III. I wish I could have read your books as intended, Sunday by Sunday, but once started I just couldn't wait for Rose's next journal entry. I looked up some verses as I went along but mostly read them as novels. I've marked special sections to use as devotions. Our Adult Sunday School Class is studying Mark and I got a new and enlightening look at some of the scriptures we are studying… Thank you for your delightful and thought provoking insights and for Rose.

Wow. Thanks so much, Sandra! Doubts and anxieties concerning my writing enterprises are common and powerful—and, I think, typical of the writing life. The affirmations are equally powerful, though, and how grateful I am for any and all encouragement!

Reflections upon the command to sacrifice Issac

Advisory: I invite you to read the preceding blog to make the reading of this entry more meaningful.

The command to sacrifice Issac in the 22nd chapter of Genesis can be a huge stumbling block for modern minds. I daresay this ancient story discourages many from exploring the Scriptures. Common responses are to ask what is more abhorrent than killing one’s own child? And what kind of monster God would tell a parent to do that?

Even we Christians who trust the witness of our forebears in faith are challenged by this story. Trusting God’s Word, however, can lead us beyond literal interpretation and application of the testimony to diligent digging for meaning as we pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

After some Spirit-guided digging (main sources: many years of reflection in class discussion, Bible studies, and sermons; and The New Interpreters Bible (1994), commentary by Terence E. Freitheim), I do not offer serious commentary or analysis for which I am neither qualified nor prepared, but rather some thinking points:

· As with all stories of faith, this one is not simply about these specific people and this specific situation. The message is far broader and packed with metaphor and symbolism. Abraham represents Israel as God’s firstborn and his personal story is about Israel’s life with God.

· The cultural context included belief in many gods and a sacrificial system to please them that included the sacrifice of human beings. In this story, God puts an end to human sacrifice. Sarah Dylan Breuer expresses this idea: “When humanity’s vision of the world and the powers that made it is in the narrow place of thinking that the gods are as thirsty for human bloodshed as humankind is at our worst, in a culture in which parents sacrificed their sons and daughters so they could be more successful in agriculture, politics, or war, God’s voice speaks to Abraham as he loomed over his bound son Isaac, and God says, "Stop it! That’s enough!" God goes with Abraham to that dark and narrow place and leads him to a wider place, a wider vision of who God is and what God wants from us. ~from sarahlaughed.net

· Also important is understanding this incident as part of the larger story of Abraham and Issac from Genesis 11 through 35.

· Through relationship and revelation, Abraham had come to trust God automatically. Trust in God is not necessarily blind or unthinking but can become a default position, second nature to the believer. Even as he prepared to obey, Abraham trusted God to provide the lamb. Even as we seek to obey through difficulty, we can trust God to provide what we need in this life and beyond.

· God will never invalidate the divine promises but people may choose not to participate.

· Belief in the resurrection connects this story of the Hebrew Scriptures to the New Testament, foreshadowing Jesus giving his life for us.

These reflections probably raise as many issues as they address. Such is the nature of this vast array of testimony known as the Bible. What joy for people who have faith in its witness to explore its deep riches for our everyday lives.

Before delving into the story of "The Command to kill Issac"...

Before delving into story of “The Command to kill Issac,” I want to describe the hermeneutic (principles of interpreting the Scriptures) to which I adhere. To do this, I have quoted the words from Sunday by Sunday I where Rose, my alter ego and main character, explains:

“And I offered my personal hermeneutic (not exclusively personal, I trust, grounded as it is in many years of listening, exploring, reflecting, and living, all within the community of faith, guided by the Holy Spirit) which I state in a formal way here, for self-clarification, as much as anything:

The Scripture, old and new, is the inspired Word of God, a gift to the people of God, to understand the nature of God, and to live according to that divine nature. The Scriptures were recorded by people of faith traveling through time and space, interpreting the divine will and divine action in their own lives as revealed to them. Human, fallible, limited in their powers of interpretation and subject to their culture and history, these people faithfully did their best to express the truth about God. Because Christ is both human and divine, his actions and words most fully reveal the divine nature, so we look at all the Scripture through the eyes of Christ.”

Also relevant from that same book, Rose writes after a Bible study led by Pam at her congregation, St. Timothy:

“Pam offered principles for interpreting Scripture which fit perfectly with my personal hermeneutic. I find them extremely helpful:
· observe “peaks and valleys”—some parts of the Bible are more important than others
· honor tradition—the interpretations and teachings of the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church should guide us and not be changed lightly
· bring experience to bear on how we understand the Scripture—trust the Holy Spirit to allow experiences to move our hearts
· use our God-given brains—ask what makes sense, both in the original and modern contexts.
· look at everything through the lens of Jesus Christ’s teachings”

There. Now you will know from whence I am coming when you read my next blog reflecting upon the story of “The command to kill Issac.”