Be prepared to read. And read. And read. And don't forget to click the link to the pictures, because you will enjoy them.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Huge Long But Surprisingly Interesting Report on the Chestertonian Adventure to Birmingham last week
Be prepared to read. And read. And read. And don't forget to click the link to the pictures, because you will enjoy them.
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One of them promptly assured us that she was a big Howard Dean fan and how it was voting women who helped insure a woman's “right to choose”, and how offended she was that not only had Chesterton said this about women, but that Dale Ahlquist had repeated it in her presence. This was great fun, and perhaps the best theater we had throughout that whole trip.
ReplyDeleteSo Kevin, HOW DID DALE RESPOND TO THIS???
Yes, I was wondering about this, too. I find it very hard to stay calm when people start being offended by truth.
ReplyDeleteDale was gracious, as was Chuck, and avoided confrontation. After all, none of us knew each other and we had to work together all that week. The girls were in just a few scenes and when not working spent most of their time shoring up their sense of indignation alone together in their hotel room.
ReplyDeleteWe all watched Dale in the audience of "The Journey Home" that first night together, and he quoted Chesterton re. if given enough time, everyone would become either a Catholic or an atheist. This made the one actress just as angry as the "no votes for women" issue - "So, he's saying if I don't become Catholic, I'm an atheist and going to hell?"
I think we sometimes forget that the mass of people out there are not even close to beginning to understand either Chesterton or the Church.
I think this "argument" is an interesting point, and one where we can see GKC (and Dale!) acting as our Lord. There are times when we need to "argue" - that is, defend or explain a point of dogma. There are other times where all we can do is announce it. Some people will walk away - but that happened before, and to a Greater than Chesterton:
ReplyDeleteMany therefore of his disciples, hearing [Jesus' dogma of the Eucharist], said: This saying is hard; and who can hear it? ... After this, many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him. Then Jesus said to the twelve: Will you also go away? And Simon Peter answered him: Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life.
Which is the ONLY reason I (and Dale) bother with Chesterton at all. Yes, he's a good writer. Yes, he wrote about nearly every possible topic. But there is ONLY ONE REASON for us to bother at all about his work: because GKC continues to lead us to his Master, Whom he addressed as the Everlasting Man.
To whom SHALL we go?
The girls were in just a few scenes and when not working spent most of their time shoring up their sense of indignation alone together in their hotel room.
ReplyDeleteThis made the one actress just as angry as the "no votes for women" issue - "So, he's saying if I don't become Catholic, I'm an atheist and going to hell?"
LOL!! Sorry, I can't help myself. This is just so funny and sometimes the only good reaction to such hostility is to laugh. And of course to pray for them. But also to laugh because God has a sense of humor, and the proof of that is that he made me.
Dr. T, you are exactly right. Some people benefit from engaging them in argument, while with others the best you can do is state things plainly and leave it at that: and like or Lord be manly and humble enough to let them walk away. I love Peter's answer to Jesus' challenge in John 6. It implies that the apostles had at least thought about leaving and, concluding that there was nothing better available, decided to stick with Jesus almost as if by default. Also very funny, and maybe ought to be one of the (still unfinished) Humorous Mysteries.
:-)
I forget who is compiling the humorous mysteries, but maybe you can pass this along. I heard a Jesuit (Fr. George Steenken, who died last October, RIP) preach a sermon on the wise steward who lost his job and then went around writing off debts owed to his master. Fr Steenken said Jesus'story would have had His audience "rolling in the aisles." Since then I have not been able to hear this passage without grinning.
ReplyDelete~ JP