"Poetry does not speak to us in the same way as prose. Poems 'are always a personal 'take' on something, communication not just from head to head but from heart to heart' (JI Packer). A poet can often touch us, move us, and unsettle us in ways that prose cannot. Job is a blend of the affective (touching our feelings) and the cognitive (addressing our minds). And poetry is particularly suited to this balanced address to the whole person. But poetry does not lend itself to summing up in tidy propositions, bullet points, neat systems, and well-swept answers. Poetry grapples with our emotions, our wills, and our sensitivities. We cannot just sum up a poem in a bald statement; we need to let a poem get to work on us – we must immerse ourselves in it."
~Christopher Ash, Job: The Wisdom of the Cross
My Bookbag This Week:
Devotional: Job with a commentary: Job: The Wisdom of the Cross (Ash)
Theological or Christian Living: The Christian Life: A Doctrinal Introduction (Ferguson)
AO Book Discussion Group: Beowulf
AO Book Discussion Group: Beowulf
On Education: How to Read a Book (Adler), A Philosophy of Education (Mason)
Topic of Special Interest: Galileo's Daughter (Sobel)
Novel/Biography/Memoir: The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag: A Flavia de Luce Novel (Bradley)
Read-Alouds with the Children: The Last Battle (Lewis), Pilgrim's Progress (Bunyan)
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So true!!!! :)
ReplyDeleteExcellent. I'm reading a book about Old Testament Wisdom Literature and am looking forward to the help with the poetry in that literature. This fits well, too. Thanks for sharing!
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