TheLionRampant.net

As I have about 10 books currently open, I thought I’d privilege you all (hehe) with a short synopsis of some of my current reads and a bit of my opinion; hopefully some may pique your interest. Let me know if you have any questions, etc.

The Marble Faun by Nathaniel Hawthorne –
This is Hawthorne’s last novel (published in 1860; his other Romances were published in the early 1850s) written after residing in Liverpool, England and Rome for a number of years. The novel traces three artists (2 women painters, 1 male sculptor) along with their Italian companion, Donatello, who resembles a statue of a faun (hence the title). The story is as much about art and the ethics of art (the narrator mentions at one point: ‘Let the canvas glow as it may, you must look with the eyes of faith, or its highest excellence escapes you’), mythology and like most Hawthorne novels is concerned with innocence and experience and ultimately questions surrounding the Fall. Don’t be looking for too much interiority in the characters, however it is a beautifully orchestrated novel with lots of light and shadow to ponder. I have since bought his novel, The House of Seven Gables and a collection of his early short stories (having previously only read The Scarlet Letter).

The History of Emily Montague by Frances Brooke —
This book is written by a Canadian woman in 1769 and for its age, is surprisingly accessible as a transatlantic epistolary novel. Whereas the British epistolary novels of the time (such as Clarissa - which I have as yet to read - and Julia de Roubigne - which is also highly recommended) become slightly claustrophobic in the characters’ obsessiveness, Montague retains a certain width (partly because of the topographical width of the landscape of Canada the letter-writers describe) that their British counterparts do not. On one level the book is light-hearted in content concerned with pairing everyone off (a la Jane Austen about 50 years later) while on another level (like its precedent, Pope’s poem “The Rape of the Lock”) maintains a subtle irony in its critique of the current British-Canadian and British-French political relationships as well as social commentary on things such as women’s place in a predominately patriarchal society. It also establishes several tropes that we automatically connect with America: the American Dream, North America as the land of (infinite) progress, and the landscape as sublime. It is quite interesting in its transatlantic crossings; the writers in Canada are quite literally testing out (usually French) theories of social progress and writing to their friends in Britain and so the New World becomes a conversation and something to piece together in a similar manner to the narrative being pieced together by the reader.

Most of the books I read aren’t really of interest to the average reader (being very theoretical/critical), however these two I’ll recommend for easy and informative reading:

From Puritanism to Postmodernism by Richard Ruland and Malcolm Bradbury –
I’ve actually just started reading this book and I find it quite readable and a resource where everything is densely (and yet quite easily) packed in to every sentence. The section on the American Puritans (the only one I’ve read so far) details writings by figures such as Bradford, Winthrop and Cotton Mather while also explaining their significance to what the authors describe as innovative and ‘modern’ characteristic of all American literature. They generalise but in a way that seems to ring true with more detailed synopses.

Dangerous Pilgrimages: Transatlantic Mythologies and the Novel by Malcolm Bradbury — (NB - used at Amazon for under a buck!)
Again quite readable and one that argues for a mutual trade between myths and legends across the Atlantic regarding ‘America’ and ‘Europe’ within literature. Thus looking at American literature through a transatlantic lens, Bradbury exposes the often insular way in which American literature is understood (very nationalistic and exceptionalist) and instead points to ways in which American and Britain are created through fiction. Bradbury starts with early transatlantic novels with Cooper and Irving and discusses Hawthorne, Melville, Twain, James and more modern writers, Stein, Lawrence, Hemingway and Waugh (among others). Highly recommended even for those very familiar with any of these authors, and yet also a great starting point for those who want to know more.

I want to draw your attention to Amy Loves Books, a blog I found through Manders’ cool sidebar. Amy is a high school English teacher and an honest, lucid writer. I love entering into her stories on a regular basis. However her current series is something different. She tells her readers ‘the tale that I don’t tell” - of postpartum psychosis after the birth of her first child. She tells a story of vulnerability, the depths of sin and estrangement and finally of hope and present compassion for those currently suffering. Please read it. Here is part one, part two: birth, part three: all we need to know of hell, and the final part, the end: monster.

I think, sticky toffee pudding may just be the world’s best dessert. Warm gooey toffee sauce over a super moist cake - really I can’t do justice to the taste by trying to describe it. And according to Kay (one of our Scottish friends) the Udny Arms Hotel outside of Aberdeen has the “world’s best”. And lo and behold, their recipe has been posted on the internet. Bryce was one happy guy to discover this as I think he likes it better than I do. So do yourself a favour (your tastebuds, not your waistline!) and go make some sticky toffee pudding right now! (This recipe is huge; please cut it in half; there’s also a different version here. I sort of referred to both in making ours tonight. And don’t forget to get dates that have been pitted :)).

Well, I seemed to get by with my first post on predestination without upsetting too many people. In that post I explained why Christians should attempt to understand what the Bible says about predestination (or, rather, why we shouldn’t avoid thinking about it). I’m now going to attempt to define predestination according to how it is used in the Bible. I really think that the meaning of the word is pretty obvious, and if you do too then I guess you can come back in a couple days. But just to make sure we’re all on the same page, I’m going to define it before moving on.

Before I do that though, I should make a qualification. It is possible to talk about predestination in three different senses. We could talk about cosmic predestination—God’s work in determining everything that comes to pass. I’m going to avoid this sense as much as possible. We could also talk about reprobation—God’s action in predestining some to death. Though I won’t be able to avoid this entirely, it will not be my primary focus. The third way the word predestination can be used is to describe God’s work in appointing some to eternal life. In this sense predestination and election are synonyms. This third sense will be what I have in mind in what follows.

Now that we have that under control, let’s take a look at what the Bible has to say about predestination. I’d like to first consider predestination as a general theme in the Bible. Out of all the people of earth, God selected the descendants of Abraham, the nation of Israel, to be a chosen people for himself. This he did for no other reason than because of his own freely given love (see, for instance, Deuteronomy 32:8-9 and Deuteronomy 4:37-39). Yet this general election of Israel did not save every individual Hebrew. The history of the Old Testament shows this in abundant clarity. Among the people of Abraham, whom God elected in a general way, he more specifically elected some individuals and rejected others.
(more…)

The Meaning of the Lion Rampant –

I bet you thought from reading this title, that somehow I was going to delve into the mysteries of our blogging lives and give you reasons why we exist - maybe I’ll get to that another time. For now, I’ll just tell you about what ‘the Lion Rampant’ is and why we chose it for our domain name.

‘The Lion Rampant’ is the ‘unofficial’ flag of Scotland and traditionally has been used by the monarch as the privilege symbolising he or she is the king or queen of Scots (as well as of England, Wales and Northern Ireland).

Here’s some interesting trivia (plagiarized from other sources of course):

William I of Scotland ( 1165 - 1214 ) was known as ‘The Lion’, after he introduced the lion symbol into his coat of arms. The Scottish lion has always been shown, on the royal shield, as being Rampant, ie: shown standing erect on the hind legs with the head in profile and forelegs extended. There is a suggestion that perhaps the Kings of Scotland kept a real lion when in residence at the castles of Stirling and Edinburgh. Both castles have a building within the walls known as ‘ The Lions Den’.
(more…)

For the last few years, for some reason, I’ve had an unexplainable amusement with Canadians. I don’t know why, I just think they’re hillarious.

So you can imagine my exictement when we went to see a play last summer during the Edinburgh International Festival that was described as a “dark Canadian comedy”. I mean, seriously, what could be funnier than that?

Then, in about September, a young Canadian couple (the Urminskys) without kids started coming to our church. Bonus: more friends, and they’re Canadians.

The Urminskys are having some friends visit, and they have another couple of friends that live in Edinburgh that we hadn’t met. That is, until last night, when the Hays, Elizabeth (of Benjamin and Elizabeth) and Ash and I went to dinner with 6 canucks. Man, so cool. After dinner we all (sans Elizabeth) went back to the Hays’ to hang out, leaving to walk home about 2:30. A good time was had by all. I’m working on trying to use words like “eh?” and “hosers” more often.

I thought I’d share with you my top five pictures (in no particular order):
1. Bryce and Jonathan rocking out
2. A toss up between the bookstore and the red boat in Greece
3. The Hales family running down to the beach and then another shot a second later, when Oliver ran a bit too quickly.
4. The pensive sheep in Achmelvick, Scotland
5. Bryce’s picture of me at Trafalgar Square, London

Thy way, not mine, O Lord
However dark it be!
Lead me by Thine own hand;
Choose out the path for me.
Smooth let it be or rough,
It will be still the best;
Winding or straight it leads
Right onward to Thy rest,
I dare not choose my lot;
I would not, if I might;
Choose Thou for me, my God,
So shall I walk aright.
The kingdom that I seek is Thine;
So let the way
That leads to it be Thine,
Else I must surely stray.
Take Thou my cup,
And it with joy or sorrow fill,
As best to Thee may seem;
Choose Thou my good or ill.
Choose Thou for me my friends,
My sickness or my health;
Choose Thou my cares for me,
My poverty or wealth.
Not mine, not mine the choice,
In things or great or small;
Be Thou my Guide, my Strength,
My Wisdom, and my All.

–Horatius Bonar

P.S. Today is World Book Day! That is so great - a whole day devoted to books! So in honour of WBD what book do you happen to be reading? (I just finished The History of Emily Montague, post forthcoming.)

So I finished my essay on Calvin’s Doctrine of Predestination just in time to turn it in. I went considerably over the word limit, but what can you do when you’re up against the clock? Any who care to read it may do so here. It’s not a terribly inspiring essay, mostly because the assignment was to sketch Calvin’s view, not to set forth my own. Nevertheless, I am reasonably happy with how it turned out.

Ash has been after me to post something thought-provoking, and since this essay has been provoking many of my thoughts lately, I figured I’d post something on predestination. In fact, I think this will be the first in a series of posts on predestination.
(more…)