The RenaissanceChristian

If you caught my post at the end of the year you know that one of the things I’m setting out to accomplish in 2012 is to read a good sampling of Shakespeare’s plays. So, I found a website with a “Shakespeare’s Top Ten” or something like that, and then I went into my calendar and set aside 10 evenings in 2012 for reading Shakespeare.  Last Monday evening, started with Othello. There’s no reasoning behind that – it was just #10 on the list I consulted, so I’m starting with Othello and working my way to Hamlet.

So, here are a couple of my thoughts after reading Othello last night:

• Othello is made up of Five Acts. It took Act I for me to re-acclimate to reading Shakespeare. There’s a rhythm to it, and it just takes about 20 minutes for me to get it.
• I cheat. I read an act, then read the synopsis in the Wikipedia entry to make sure I’m “getting it.” I’m glad that I do this, because I miss some stuff.
• I was listening to a podcast the other day and they just happened to be talking about Iago. They were saying that usually Shakespeare gives his villains a dose of humanity – where he pulls back the curtain a little and lets you identify with the villain – to see the reason for his pain. But, there’s none of this for Iago – he’s evil through and through. In fact, you never even get a real explanation of his hatred for Othello. Clearly he’s upset about being passed over for promotion and there’s a hint that he believes that Othello slept with Emilia at one point, but it’s vague. But, in life, I think that’s true. Some people we just don’t like – and there’s no reason for it. Hopefully we don’t go all Iago on them though…
• I think when you read a tragedy there’s generally some moral of the story.  After finishing Othello I found myself contemplating the nature of advice. Othello does what he does in the end because he puts absolute trust in the words of Iago. He refuses to believe Desdemona, he won’t listen to Emilia, he dismisses Cassio – he almost acts as if under a spell of Iago. We do this sometimes. We get enamored of a person, writer, pastor, talk show host, etc., and they become our all-in-all for advice and counsel. And we stop listening to everyone else. And it almost inevitably leads to us making bad decisions. Reminds me of the repeated command in the Proverbs to get wisdom – no matter what it takes.

Well, next month I’m reading The Taming of the Shrew, which I’ve seen performed, but it was during college – almost 20 years ago. I remember the general idea but none of the particulars. In the meantime, for you Shakespeare fans – I’d like to watch Othello. Do any of you have any suggestions? Has anyone watched the 1995 version with Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branaugh? Is it good?

Oh – one last thing. If you’re interested in reading Shakespeare, and you have an iPad or iPhone, I recommend the Shakespeare App. It’s excellent – even in its free version.

If you haven’t seen it, Rachel Held Evans just posted a thoughtful post titled, 2 Reasons Mark Driscoll’s popularity doesn’t discourage me in response to the many questions she apparently receives while on speaking tour.

And while it’s specific to Mark Driscoll and his strong views on women, effeminate men and the like, it could be about anyone that we see as “other.” It reminds of the Psalmist who cries out in various places, “why does evil prosper?” Here’s her setup to the 2 reasons (no spoiler here, you’ll have to look at her post to see how she answers):

And at one event, during the question and answer time, one man pointed out that if I had been Mark Driscoll, there would not have been enough room in the church building to accommodate the throngs of people eager to hear his message about how real men can beat up their enemies, real men make fun of effeminate guys, real men would never attend a church in which women are allowed to speak, real men always lead, and real women always follow.

“And yet you seem so positive,” he said. “Doesn’t this discourage you?”

What do you think of Rachel’s answer? Is is enough to keep getting out of bed every day?

Over at Skyebox, the blog of Skye Jethani, he’s talking about young adults and their disappearance from the local church, and how churches seemed geared to families, and how the biggest issue for most single 20 & 30 somethings is vocation.

With more young adults delaying marriage longer, and with most churches implicitly or explicitly designed to serve families, there is little reason for a single 28 year old to engage. Realizing they cannot rely upon family felt-needs, but still wanting to reach young adults, some churches reach for the only other tool in their box- mission.

We’ve been told that Millennials are the “activist generation.” They want to make a difference in the world by wearing (red) products, singing U2 songs, and going to banana republics as short-term pigeonaries. So we try to engage them in our churches with missional rhetoric and projects. And at times this can be effective, until compassion fatigue sets in and securing social justice proves to require more than a text donation.

Read the Full Post Here

He goes on to talk about the church’s silence regarding vocation and I think he’s right – we don’t talk enough about vocation…

Btw – the two books that I always recommend when it comes to discussion of vocation: Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer and The Call by Os Guinness.