Search
TEXTS AND TUNES
-
Things will get heavy soon enough—it’s time for a bit of a break. To start this off, I refer to a text my cousin Tim sent me, that the problem with people is that they don’t read enough science fiction. Herewith, and in no order of importance, I offer some choice options—enjoy!
A Canticle for Liebowitz, by Walter Miller. Set in a period centuries after a MADD nuclear war, a Dark Ages style monastery tries to preserve ancient (= our times’) knowledge. It moves to centuries later, a Renaissance time, and then centuries later “modern times” again. Will we repeat the mistakes of the past? All three sections are tied together by the presence of a character who is none other than that Lazarus raised from the dead by Jesus!
Out of the Silent Planet, by CS Lewis. The first of his so-called “Ransom” trilogy stories, it is a voyage to Mars in which we learn the shocking truth that Earth (Tellus) is actually the only place in the cosmos where sin exists, and what is being done to remedy the situation.
Lord of the Flies, by William Golding. This is a devastating allegorical novel about the darkness of the human heart. Boys marooned after a war-time crash try to hold things together; the “Beast” in them is too much for them. [FYI—I used this book in conjunction with some of the Narnian stories when teaching 9th grade Theology.]
The Time Machine, by HG Wells. Similar in thought to Golding’s book, and similar in technique to Miller’s, but with the deus ex machina (sorry—pun intended!) of a mechanical device to fling the rider into the distant future.
Macbeth, by William Shakespeare. Not what you’d have expected from me, but still—who can resist the double-dealing of the witches, the ghosts everywhere, and at least the hope of a positive ending? [FYI, again—the “hero” of this play, Malcolm, actually married the woman who we know as St Margaret of Scotland. Other figures are historical; the storyline, not so much.]
As for music, let me be brief and say that I’ll name some wonderful works but will highlight specific movements for special attention:
Magnificat, by JS Bach. Listen for the “Suscepit Israel.”
Gloria, by Antonio Vivaldi. The “Et In Terra Pax” movement is worth the whole CD.
Dialogues of the Carmelites, by Francis Poulenc. With libretto by Georges Bernardos, this tells the story of the nuns executed during the Reign of Terror following the French Revolution. As one friend and very respected critic said, it is a religious experience.
Les Miserables—it MUST be the 10th anniversary concert performance with a dream team cast, on DVD. I saw this live in Mobile back in the 1990s (a traveling cast), and I was (and still am) convinced it is the most life-affirming work of musical theatre in the last hundred years.