untitled
Anguish-- the death of
one's child. A blessed gift from
a loving God.
Despite appearances, and the fact that I am an atheist, this poem is in no way meant to be sarcastic or disrespectful. Please do not comment until you have gone away (no pun intended, lizard) and thought seriously about it.
one's child. A blessed gift from
a loving God.
Despite appearances, and the fact that I am an atheist, this poem is in no way meant to be sarcastic or disrespectful. Please do not comment until you have gone away (no pun intended, lizard) and thought seriously about it.
posted by Hannah at 8:27 PM
5 Comments:
It was the possibility of sarcasm that prevented me commenting at first - although that didn't sound at all like you, Owl. With that cleared up, I agree.
As one who has witnessed death, and as a one-time Atheist and now-professing Christian, I offer this considered comment.
First, I relate to the poem. It brings to mind some painful memories, most of which was my own unfeeling at the time. A set of twins miscarried (our first of three boys that later came along fine), and the ex may still grieve over that event.
Second, the gift. I see life itself as a gift, and most often, I go about it thankless to have it. I am, of course, but acknowledgements from me are few. Ah, more guilt to contend with, eh.
And then there is the gift of a child that seems to be snatched away, without any apparant regard or remorse from the Giver.
What a rotten deal that appears to be. I can relate. But yet I trust that someone (with a capital ess) knows more than I, and so I relax my fury and let it go. How cavalier that must sound to some, but it is true and well with my soul.
Thanks for allowing us those brief lines, Owl.
Thank you for sharing, Harry.
To me, it represents the sacrifice God made for man-- to give up his only child. Only those whom He loves the greatest would He ask to do the same.
Then of course, is the idea that Christ died in unspeakable agony. Again, only those whom He loves the greatest would be allowed to share in that agony to such an extent.
This is mostly a Catholic idea, and I was admittedly curious as to how Protestants would react to the idea. I had never heard anything similiar in my years as a Protestant, but then I was a member of UCC, which isn't often very good at getting deeply into theology.
The main reason I posted this was because a few days ago, someone in the chat room was asking why God would allow something awful to happen to him. The man never really specified what the awful thing was, but this is the only answer I could possibly give, from a Christian perspective.
If I've overstepped my bounds, I apologize.
I am a Christian and, if you have to categorize me, I would have to be put into the Protestant camp, I suppose. It is not that Protestant thinkers do not understand the matter (although I can't see them actively seeking martyrdom as some Catholics have done in the past) but rather that they do not wish to talk about it too much. I do agree that this has brought about a situation where the mass of Protestants do not clearly understand the blessing of pain, however.
No apology necessary at all, Owl. And had I understood the ref to Christ, I might have added more, but slow me missed that completely. How do you express yourselves so well and so easily, is what I wonder most.
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