Soundtrack for a Senior Year

This is a qualified apologia for not allowing children to quit music lessons, particularly if they show any hint of musical ability. Active Son would have quit playing piano several times over if we had let him, but mean old parents that we are, we didn't. (I told him that if he could produce even one adult that said they were glad their mom let them quit piano then maybe, just maybe I would listen to his pleas to quit. He never did find one.) It gets worse. We made him sit for piano exams, endure a theory course, and "pushed" him to play for people. I guess our strategy could have back-fired, but knowing this particular son as we did, we sensed that it wouldn't.

Our long term goal was never to produce a concert pianist or the like, but to give Active Son a gift, albeit a gift for which he would have to work diligently, that he could enjoy throughout his life, and in turn, a gift that he could give to others.

The two YouTube recordings are pieces that Active Son is working on for his senior recital--he isn't the musician in these videos; he says he still has lots of work to do but I think the pieces are sounding pretty good. Good enough to inspire me to write this apologia and good enough for Artist Son to break into spontaneous applause when Active Son finished practicing the Rondo Capriccioso this afternoon.





But what makes my heart sing (and my heart sings much better than my voice) more than hearing Active Son play these beautiful pieces is watching him enjoy playing the piano and keyboard with other musicians in their youth band and to hear him tell his older sister that he is looking forward to jamming with her and his brother when she is home for Christmas.

Best (Easy) Appetizer Ever~Garlic Feta Spread

It's not fancy but it's good. I know it's good because every time I make it people ask for the recipe. I took it to a party tonight and four people asked me for the recipe. I only take credit for recognizing a great recipe when I see one.

There are various online recipes for this great spread; here is how I make it:

Garlic Feta Spread

8 oz (225 g) feta cheese
8 oz (225 g) cream cheese
1 scant cup sour cream
approximately 3 cloves garlic, minced (depends on how spicy you like it and how big your cloves are)
1/2 tsp. dried dill
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and cream together. I use a whisk to break up the feta chunks. Tonight I piped it onto small crackers using a icing bag/decorating tip but usually I just spread it on crackers and serve. Delicious, and so easy.

Jerusalem Doors~The Garden Tomb

The Garden Tomb site, located a few blocks from Damascus Gate, is the more contemporary Protestant alternative to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher as the location where Jesus was buried and resurrected on the third day.

Door to the Garden

From a Brief History on the Garden Tomb website: "As early as 1842 a German Theologian named Otto Thenius proposed the idea that the outcropping of rock known today as "Skull Hill" could possibly be significant in the identification of the site of the crucifixion." This site is now a bus station, with the walled garden backing up against it.

In 1867, an ancient Jewish tomb was discovered near Skull Hill, adding to the speculation that this was the location of Jesus' crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. Furthermore, a cistern and wine press discovered near the tomb seemed to indicate that the tomb was located in the garden of a wealthy Jew--Joseph of Arimathea perhaps? Perhaps. But even the articulate, Christian guides working in the garden are careful to note that no one really knows if this is the tomb of Jesus.

Doorway of a (the?) tomb

A Quilt as Metaphor

Just before heading back to school this fall, Oldest Daughter casually mentioned that she needed another blanket for her dorm bed this winter. And I casually responded that I would make her a quilt, reminded that I had intended to make her a quilt of recycled denim when she went off to college, but somehow never did. I planned to make this quilt and send it with a dear friend who was traveling to the States the first week of October.

The next couple of weeks found me working purposefully and unrelentingly on this quilt; though I used to sew frequently, I hadn't worked on a sewing project in years, many years. I had a small stash of recyclable denim but needed more, so for a couple of weeks rose early on Friday morning and headed to Amman's used clothing market to hunt for just the right jeans. Besides traditional blue I found pink (two identical pairs!) and turquoise jeans. The purple fabric is from a men's cotton shirt.

Sometime around the second week of working on this quilt, en route for the second time to the used clothing market, I realized that my crafting of this quilt had gone beyond enjoying-a-new-creative-outlet to near-obsession level. What was up with this?? Once I began thinking about it it didn't take me long to realize that this quilt was a metaphor for my mother love for Oldest Daughter, a surrounding, protecting love, and a love still being perfected and righted by a gracious and loving Heavenly Father.

And here is a glimpse into God's beautiful providence: soon after Oldest Daughter arrived back on campus, pressures came to bear on her that caused my mother's heart to ache. I was challenged by the irony of the word "mother" being contained in the word "smother" as God gently, though painfully began working on my smother love, refining it into a more fitting mother love. (With three more children to send off into the world, something tells me God will have more refining to do in the future.)


I stitched and prayed, stitched and prayed, thanking God for his loving care of me, giving this quilting project as a gift to me so that I could give Oldest Daughter a tangible gift of my mother love at this particular time, reminding her that she is ever surrounded by my love and prayers, and for his loving care of Oldest Daughter, strengthening her in all Truth to bear the pressures that had come her way.

Spiced Fish

Other than canned tuna, we endured an approximately 16 year period of fish-less fare, the main exception being grilled salmon when we visited the States every other summer. It's not that we didn't like fish; in the days of meager imports, the Jordanian market just did not offer economical, easy to obtain, easy to prepare fish options. Thankfully, the times have changed and now we are enjoying a meal of white fish fillets (only a humongous scientific name on the package, which none of us can pronounce) about once a week. Indeed, fish is now less expensive than chicken or beef in the Jordanian market!

Below is my favorite fish recipe. It's not my quickest, easiest fish recipe to prepare--I hope to share a couple of those recipes later--but I think it is the most delicious. And, it makes a beautifully colorful company dish as well. I've tweaked my recipe from



Women's Weekly Middle Eastern Cooking School Class

to make a company size portion so you can halve it for a smaller family or enjoy the leftovers for lunch. I serve it with quinoa (when I have it) but it can also be served with couscous or rice.

Spiced Fish with Chickpeas

2 kilos or 4 to 4 1/2 lbs white fish fillets
7 tsp. ground turmeric
7 tsp. ground cumin
5 tsp. ground cardamon
3 tsp. sea salt
canola oil
About 3-4 cups vegetable stock
3 cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
4 sliced red and green bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro/coriander leaves
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1. Combine the spices and salt in a dish and coat the fish with the mixture.

2. Heat some oil in a large pan--rather than a skillet, I use my large teflon-coated cooking pot. I begin with about 1/4 to 1/3 cup oil(a lot less than I thought I'd need to fry fish) but have to add a bit more as I continue to fry the fish. Add the fish, cooking until browned on both sides and tender.

3. Remove fish from the pan and keep warm--I put it in a baking dish in a warm oven.

4. Discard any leftover oil and wipe out pan.

5. Add stock, chickpeas, peppers, coriander, and lemon juice to the pan, simmer, covered about 10 minutes or until peppers are soft.

6. Serve fish on a bed of quinoa (my pick), couscous, or rice with the chickpea mixture. Garnish with more chopped coriander leaves.

Jordan Rocks

That's the name I thought of for Artist Son's latest artistic and commercial venture. He's not so sure, though. The double meaning is a little cheesy in his opinion. Jo-Rocks doesn't work for him either, so for the time being his venture will remain nameless.

Desert Monitor

Sinai Agama

Artist Son has long been combining his love of nature, wildlife, and art, and I think his latest project, painting indigenous Jordanian lizards on Jordanian rocks, is the perfect combination of these loves. In the past months he has sold a couple of his painted rocks to individuals and given a few more as gifts, and now they are available for sale in the local market.

Turkish Gecko

From the Earth, and industry business which exports products from the Middle East to the United States and Europe, also maintains a growing presence in the Jordanian market and will be carrying Artist Son's lizard rocks at their showroom.

Lebanon Lizard

Northern Fan-Footed Gecko

Artist Son is also experimenting painting Jordanian insects and scorpions on rocks. Stay tuned...

Amman International Marathon/10K

Approximately 12,000 participants from 71 countries, unseasonably hot temperatures of about 35 degrees C--over 90 degrees F, and a race route that took runners and walkers through downtown Amman streets lined with traditional old-city dwellers and shop keepers all combined to make the first Amman International Marathon/10K Run an event rather than a race. Why, His Majesty King Abdallah even sent his regards by way of four special planes to swoop down over the start of the race, twice, in perfect formation.

Dear Husband, Active Son, Artist Son, and I ran the 10K along with a couple of friends. Tayta ran the was-supposed-t0-be-4K-but-was-really-only-about-2K Run with a couple of her friends.


In the far right of our after-the-races group picture is our new friend, Jon. We are pleased to stand with him in this picture because besides being a really great guy, he is a really great runner--the kind that runs at the front of the pack. It was a pleasure to cheer him on as he ran--fast--with the best of them. He placed sixth, or ninth, in the Men's 10K Run. Way ahead of the rest of us. We finished, though all of us with slower times than we had hoped for due to the heat. And I'm thinking the distinct intermingling wasit il-balad (city center) odors of garbage, coffee, spices, and oily asphalt had something to do with it too. My excuse only.

Good effort by the race organizers, but runners in Jordan are still waiting for a race run well, with accurate mileage markers, cups of water (instead of hard to drink from environmentally unsound plastic bottles which have to be dodged by runners because they are thrown on the ground--this was downright hazardous when the water met the oily asphalt.), and more participants who are committed to running a fair race--cheaters abounded whenever the opportunity presented itself and many remained in the race until the end. Another suggestion: have the many, many walkers begin the race after the runners; when I wasn't dodging water bottles I was weaving through groups of walkers, at least at the start of the race. And then there were the walkers who were playing soccer with the water bottles...

Jerusalem Doors, Jewish Quarter

While Christianity and Islam are both represented in Jerusalem's Old City by well known shrines and places of worship which have walls, roofs, and doors, Judaism has no such ancient edifice. Instead, Jewish (and some Christian) worshipers pray at the Western Wall or, as it is also known, The Wailing Wall.

Judaism's most sacred spot, the Western Wall is the section of the western supporting wall of the Temple Mount remaining after the destruction of the second temple in 70 A.D.

Dazzling Dahlias

Planting dahlias in the garden was Tayta's idea. She is still learning the names of all the garden flowers so she called these daffodilias for the first half of the summer.

Let Them Eat Bread

And eating bread is what we are happily doing since I have madeThe Discovery That Revolutionized Home Baking and started baking Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. Now, I would tend to suspect any book which makes such grand claims in its title and subtitle, however some online friends were chatting about the success--and bread--they were enjoying, baking by this new method and I knew that I had to give it a try; even if it took ten minutes a day it would be a worthwhile investment of time and money.



Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day

I was pleasantly surprised--no, make that close to ecstatic--that this book delivers on its claims one hundred percent. The recipe and method couldn't be easier and the bread couldn't be more delicious. Developed by pastry chef and baker, Zoe Francois, and scientist, Jeff Hertzberg, the basic method calls for storing a pre-mixed, high moisture dough--no kneading or rising required. They couldn't be serious! I began with the Master Recipe:

The Master Recipe: Boule (Artisan Free-Form)
(one should master this basic recipe before moving on to all the other great recipes in this book)
Makes four 1-pound loaves. The recipe is easily doubled.
3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 Tablespoons yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt (I use sea salt. Don't use regular table salt--it really does matter.)
6 1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose white flour
Cornmeal for the pizza peel--or just a plain baking sheet, which is what I use.

Directions (in my own words)

I mixed the four ingredients in a large Tupperware container* with a wooden spoon--this doesn't even get the mixer or the counter dirty: first put the warm water in a large container and add the yeast and the salt. Add all of the flour and mix thoroughly with a large wooden spoon--my choice, or your hands. Make sure you've mixed in all the little pockets of flour. You don't need to knead the dough--really! The mixed dough should be wet and loose enough to conform to the shape of the container. Loosely cover the container with a lid.


Once the dough rises and and begins to collapse (about one hour in Amman September weather) it can be stored in the refrigerator--still loosely covered-- for up to two weeks (though we bake bread so often that a double batch of dough never lasts more than a couple of days.) The dough is now ready for use, though it is easier to handle after is has been refrigerated for a few hours.

Baking the Bread (again, in my words)

The authors of Artisan Bread recommend using a wooden pizza peel and a baking stone but I have neither and no opportunity to purchase them in Amman so I forged ahead with my trusty metal baking sheets. Not a problem. So, my method varies a little from the book here. I spray my baking sheets lightly with vegetable oil and sprinkle them with cornmeal.

Next, I sprinkle the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour, and with floured hands, pull out a one-pound piece of dough (about the size of a grapefruit). The dough is quite sticky so I continue to add a bit of flour--just enough so that it won't stick to my hands. Then, stretching the dough a bit I gather up the ends of the dough underneath, forming a ball. Don't worry about smoothing up all the underneath ends. This process takes about a minute.

I place the ball of dough on my prepared pan and let it rest for 40 minutes--Hmm, a 40 minute rest sounds nice. 20 minutes into the resting time, I pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees F. (Place an empty broiler tray for holding water--mine is under the bottom rack.)

When the dough has rested for 40 minutes I dip a serrated knife into flour and score the loaf. After placing the loaf in the oven I quickly pour a cup of hot water into the boiler pan and shut the oven door to trap the steam. I bake the bread about 30 minutes or until the crust is browned well. I've over-baked a couple of loaves but because the dough is so wet, the bread has never been dry. I cool the bread on a cooling rack but often we are cutting into it before it is completely cooled.

My First Loaves

I've baked a few loaves that didn't turn out quite as beautiful as the ones in these pictures--a couple loaves flattened out a bit more--but the bread quality was just as good as in the pretty ones.

The Master Recipe makes such delicious bread that I haven't yet ventured to try the other wonderful recipes in this book--though I have substituted some whole-wheat flour (5 of the 13 cups) and added ground flax seed and olives**. I had to add a more water to the recipe--about a cup-- when I used whole wheat flour.

Whole Wheat Olive Bread

I've also used the Boule' dough with or without a little olive oil added to the dough to make a pizza crust, with the added benefit of not needing to rest the dough before adding toppings and baking. So, I'm trying to keep sauce and cheese on hand so that a pizza can be in the oven just five to ten minutes after the thought.

For more ideas and recipes, check out the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day site. And, buy the book. You won't regret it. Oh, and buy a big bottle of olive oil for dipping--we haven't used butter on this bread yet.

Edit~
*The book recommends using a 5 quart container for a single batch of dough. I use a 6.7 liter--about 7 quarts--for a double batch (picture above)
**When I add olives I set the dough down on the oiled baking sheet, flatten it out just a little, sprinkle the olives over the surface, roll it, and form the ball of dough.

The Form of Cuteness

Snickers

According to Plato, these kittens are both cute...and ugly. In his famous explanation of how we know what we know, which includes his Divided Line simile describing the different degrees of knowledge, Plato says that some sense perceptions 'summon' thought while others do not. When I see these kittens frolicking in the garden or sleeping together in one big intertwined ball of fur I am not compelled to ask if a kitten is at the same time the opposite of a kitten. However, what about their bigness? Their smallness? And what about their cuteness?? Now, Plato says, my understanding has been awakened, or summoned, by the perception of these qualities. Big compared to what? Small compared to what? Cute compared to what??

Compared, of course, to the Forms, the perfect, intangible, objective, transcendent First Principles which Plato believed exist independent of any object and can only be known by the reasoning soul. Thus, the Form of Cuteness. And while these kittens, as physical beings, can only represent the Form of Cuteness I just have to think that they must be in one of the very highest categories of things cute. And sweet. And adorable.

Guinevere

What to do?

The young miner, Curdie, on a yet undisclosed mission in the service of his king:
"At last in a gorgeously painted gallery, he saw a curtain of crimson, and on the curtain a royal crown wrought in silks and stones. He felt sure this must be the king's chamber, and it was here he was wanted; or, if it was not the place he was bound for, something would meet him and turn him aside; for he had come to think that so long as a man wants to do right he may go where he can: when he can go no farther, then it is not the way. 'Only,' said his father, in assenting to the theory, 'he must really want to do right, and not merely fancy he does. He must want it with his heart and will, and not with this rag of a tongue.' " p. 142



The Princess and Curdie, by George McDonald

Jerusalem Doors: al-Haram ash-Sharif

al 'Aqsa

This is just one of he doors of al 'Aqsa Mosque, the second oldest mosque and the third holiest site in Islam. al 'Aqsa Mosque and the Islamic shrine, The Dome of the Rock, make up the "Sacred noble Sancuary, or al-Haram ash-Sharif. Islamic tradition holds that the prophet Muhammad, after his miraculous night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem, made his ascension to heaven from the rock which is now covered by the a golden dome.

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The al-Haram ash-Sharif is one is one of the most sensitive sites in Jerusalem as this Islamic compound is built on what Jews believe to be the Temple Mount or the site of the second temple; the site of the Dome of the Rock is considered by some to be the traditional site of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac and the Holy of Holies of the Jewish temple. Jews are forbidden from praying on the compound and instead pray at the Western Wall, which borders the west side of al-Haram ash-Sharif.

An interesting bit of Jordanian and Al 'Aqsa history: On July 20 1951, King Abdallah I of Jordan was assassinated while attending Friday prayers at Al' Aqsa. As the story goes, King Abdallah traveled to Jerusalem with his grandson, Hussein, but when they arrived it was discovered that Hussein had left his military uniform in Amman so King Abdallah insisted it be sent for. (Jerusalem is only about 45 miles from Amman but modern day border crossings make the trip take about three to five hours.) When King Abdallah was shot, Hussein who was at his side was also hit but the bullet deflected off a military medal he was wearing, one which had been worn at his grandfather's insistence. Hussein was enthroned as the monarch of Jordan in 1953 and reigned until his death in 1999.

Dome of the Rock

An interesting bit of Jordanian and Dome of the Rock History: The gold leaf which covers the now aluminum dome--it was once all gold--was donated by the late King Hussein of Jordan.

Turning to Learn

While many ceremoniously began the school year last week with special breakfasts, school orientations, and new uniforms, our efforts at education commenced inauspiciously: I overslept and by late morning we were still taking stock of the supplies we needed to purchase at the nearby maktabi (office supply store).

As I did last year, I began our season of study by reading aloud this essay by George Grant. Just slightly different than the Knowledge is Power philosophy that I was raised on, Mr. Grant's essay reminded us that the beginning of true and right learning is repentance, a humble turning of ourselves away from ourselves, towards community and the pursuit of truth:

"At the beginning of every academic year I like to remind myself and my students that true education is a form of repentance. It is a humble admission that we've not read all that we need to read, we don't know all that we need to know, and we've not yet become all that we are called to become. Education is that unique form of discipleship that brings us to the place of admitting our inadequacies. It is that remarkable rebuke of autonomy and independence so powerful and so evident that we actually shut up and pay heed for a change.

C.S. Lewis said it well: "The surest sign of true intellectual acumen is a student's comprehension of what it is he does not know; not what he does know. It is a spirit of humility that affords us with the best opportunity to grow, mature, and achieve in the life of the mind. It is knowing how much we do not know that enables us to fully embark on a lifetime of learning; to recover to any degree the beauty goodness and truth of Christendom."

Likewise, G.K. Chesterton asserted: "I am always suspicious of the expert who knows he is an expert. Far better to seek the wisdom of the common, the ordinary, and the humble--for God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble."

Active Son, Artist Son, and I are beginning our year with readings and discussions from Plato's Republic, which by the way, should be read and discussed, at least in part, by every high school student. As we considered Plato's proposals for the desired education of philosopher/kings, i.e. the idea rulers, we again found this idea of turning:

Socrates: Then here is how we must think about these matters, if that is true: education is not what some people boastfully declare it to be. They presumably say they can put knowledge into souls that lack it, as if they could put sight into blind eyes...But here is what our present account shows about this power to learn that is present in everyone's soul, and the instrument with which each of us learns: just as an eye cannot be turned around from darkness to light except by turning the whole body, so this instrument must be turned around from what-comes-to-be (things we know by our own senses) together with the whole soul, until it is able to bear to look at what is and at the brightest thing that is--the one we call the good. Republic 518b:5

Plato's Republic

Jerusalem Doors, Christian Quarter

Awladuna Akbaduna

As Oldest Daughter prepares to return to college this week, I am feeling the weight of this Arabic proverb:

اولادنا اکبدنا ماشیین علی الارض

Awladuna akbaduna mashyeen 'ala al'ard.

Our children are our hearts walking around outside of us.

(literally: Our children are our livers walking on the earth.)

Jerusalem Doors III, Helena's Cistern

This is not a Jerusalem door, exactly, but rather an entryway; Active Son ducks as he heads down into an underground cistern, located beneath the Armenian chapel of St. Helena, mother of Constantine.

This underground reservoir is also known as the Chapel of the Finding of the Cross as, according to tradition, St. Helena supervised the excavation of the cistern, in which she found fragments of the cross of Christ.

Our visit to the moist, cool cavern was a welcome reprieve from the summer heat above. And, the the acoustics were pretty amazing: Note the lady wearing a headset at the top of the stairway, who was making a recording while we were there.

Got Basil?

We are enjoying a bumper crop this summer. And if you don't have basil, may I suggest that you plant some next summer? It is easily grown by seed and is one of the most care-free plants in my garden. Pretty, too, especially if you intersperse purple leaf with the standard green leaf plants. If you don't have any garden space, basil is happily grown in a pot.


Basil is the defining taste of our summer, which means that we are enjoying it in some way or another on an almost daily basis. We've discovered that just about any summer sandwich tastes better with fresh basil on it. My favorite, below, is a rice cracker spread first with yogurt cheese, then with an olive tapenade, topped with a slice of tomato and basil. The basil stays put better if you hide it under the tomato but I made it stand out front for the picture.

Quotidian Basil

Below is our favorite-new-recipe and one that I've promised to pass on to several friends:

Basil Balsamic Chicken and Pasta

*the chicken needs to marinate for 1-2 hours ahead of time*

Marinade Ingredients:

3-4 cloves garlic
1 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 Tablespoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Process the garlic, basil, balsamic vinegar, and salt in the blender. Add olive oil and pulse a couple of times until just combined. Pour over 1 1/2-2 pounds of cut up chicken breasts chicken (about .8 Kilo). Marinate chicken for 1-2 hours, or longer, turning occasionally.

The Rest of the Ingredients:
1 lb (500 g) penne pasta
2 cups fresh basil leaves, chopped or chiffonade-ed , if you're really a gourmet cook
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
About 1/4- 1/3 cup pine nuts

Cook and drain pasta. Place in a large serving bowl and toss with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Next, cook the chicken + marinade, simmering on a low burner until the chicken is cooked through.

In a large serving bowl place the pasta, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil, tomatoes, cooked chicken mixture, and pine nuts. Toss to combine.

Serves six

Just as my basil plants really started producing, my dear friend at A Circle of Quiet posted this recipe:

Basil Simple Syrup

3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups basil leaves, cut in half.
Put sugar and water in a small saucepan; heat over low heat until sugar is dissolved.
Remove from heat and add basil leaves, giving a quick stir.
Cover and set aside to cool for one hour.
Pour through sieve, bottle* and store in the refrigerator.

With basil in abundance, I steeped 2 cups of basil instead of 1 1/2. We add a couple tablespoons of syrup (don't forget to stir) and a twist of lemon to a tall glass of ice water. My kids love this since our house is a soda and juice free zone.

Another of our favorite and plentiful summer flavors is canteloupe. Using the Basil Syrup recipe above I came up with:

Basil Cantaloupe Sorbet

Ingredients:
About 12 cups 1-inch pieces peeled, seeded, cantaloupe
1 cup basil syrup, chilled

Puree canteloupe in the food processor until smooth. As the canteloupe is processing, slowly add the basil syrup, processing until blended.

Freeze in an ice cream maker or simply pour into a covered dish (I prefer a larger, shallow dish), cover and freeze.

Some sorbet recipes recommend breaking up the frozen sorbet, processing it again, and freezing it a second time, but I find this sorbet smooth enough for our tastes after one freezing. Couldn't be easier. This is the most refreshing dessert we make in the summer time.

Bon Appetite!

Priming the Pump III

Ironies of Faith



I bought this book on a hunch. An informed hunch, however: I have long enjoyed the insightful, eloquent essays of the author, Anthony Esolen, published in Touchstone magazine and suspected that I would enjoy any book he wrote about literature and faith. Bolstering my hunch was the fact that Mr. Esolen is editor and translator of Dante's Divine Comedy, a poem I will be re-reading with my boys this year. My hunch was confirmed: Esolen writes not only on Dante's Divine Comedy, but also Virgil's Aeneid (read this spring), Augustine's Confessions (to be read this fall), Shakespeare, Tolkien, Dickens, and Dostoyevesky. Through these authors' great works of literature he discusses the Irony of Time, the Irony of Power, the Irony of Love, and the Mighty Child.

Since I've been thinking this summer about the relationship between humility, language, and knowing, I was pleasantly not surprised to find that Esolen's introductory chapters were grouped under the heading: Humility & Vision. Before filling out his definition of irony, Esolen illustrates the irony of humility through Robert Browning's, The Ring and the Book. He concludes:

"We judge by what we see, and unless we love deeply, we see ourselves." -and-

"For irony, as we shall see, has to do with what people think they know, or what they think they can expect."

And, the implications of Dante on the humility of knowing:

O Light that swell within Thyself alone, who alone know Thyself, are known and smile with Love upon the Knowing and the Known! (Paradise, 33.124-26)

And now we are primed for Esolen's definition of irony. First, a negative definition:

"Until fairly recently, most writers on irony have defined it as speech that means something other than (or opposite to) what is literally said. The problem with this definition is that it at once too narrow, too broad, and beside the point. Liars mean other than what they say, but the lie is not in itself ironic; and you may, with irony, mean exactly what you say, but in a way that your audience...will not understand. The definition is beside the point, since moments of dramatic irony, or what some have called 'irony of event' may not involve speech at all, but only strange turns of fate." p. 14

For his positive definition Esolen again draws from great works of literature and the truth of God's Word, using examples from King Lear, II Henry IV, and The Apostle Paul's letter to the Philippians:

"What do the cases have in common?...Each involves a problem of knowing. The irony lies in a stark clash between what a character things he knows and what he really knows. This clash is staged to let the reader or the audience in on the secret. We are, then, not merely watching ignorance, but ignorance unaware of itself and about to learn better...The irony reveals, with a kind of electric shock, order where randomness was expected, or complexity and subtlety where simplicity was expected." p. 15

Throughout the rest of this introductory section Esolen continues to draw upon literature and Scripture to make rich connections between humility, irony and the image of the Invisible God, and irony and the providence of God. Just one more beautiful example that I've been meditating on the past couple of weeks, and which I read just after hearing a sermon on Luke 14:

(picking up the story of Abraham and Isaac) "But the providential wisdom does not end there. Examine the celebrated icon of the Holy Trinity by fifteenth-century Russian artist, Andrey Rublev.


The genius of the icon lies in the profound theological insight. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, distinct yet as one, are the three angelic visitors to Abraham, sitting at table, while Sarah prepares the lamb. But the outlines of their robes form, in a kind of absent presence, the negative of the chalice: the cup of wine consecrated to become the blood of Christ, given for all. They are the ones invited to the feast, as Abraham thinks; but the truth is that they are inviting to their feast Abraham and all his descendants in faith. (Wow! italics mine.) And since they are announcing the conception and birth of Isaac, the artist has implied a long arc of providential meaning, extending from this moment under the terebinth trees of Mamre, to the birth of Isaac, to the 'sacrifice,' to the true Passover lamb, the Christ. God give himself wholly to man, that man may rise to enjoy the life of God...They (believers) will enjoy the wedding feast of the Lamb, himself, his own life, given as food to those he loves. (Rev. 19:9)"

And all this in only the first 58 pages of a 400 page book.

Jerusalem Doors II, Church of the Holy Seulchre

Below is the main door leading in (or out) of Christendom's most revered religious site: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of the Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. Though now inside the walls of the Old City, the site on which the church stands was outside of the city at the time of Christ's death and is said to include Calvary and the Joseph of Arimathea's grave.


The site and the church have a fascinating tradition: early Christians were said to worship at this site and though they fled from Jerusalem when Titus attacked the city in AD 70, they later returned to worship at Calvary and the tomb. In an attempt to keep discourage Christian worship, Hadrian had a temple to Venus built on the site, ironically, marking the site for good.

When the Emperor Constantine's mother, Helena, converted to Christianity, she had a church built on the site; the church has been destroyed and rebuilt more than once, with the current church dating back to the time of the Crusades in the 12th century.

Another door, located off the main courtyard of the church

And who is the keeper of this basilica? Talk about confusing. I've heard the explanation several times but I still need to copy it from an old Fodor's travel guide:

"By a tradition established by Saladin to avoid misunderstandings among the different Christian sects, the keys of the Church were kept by the Moslem family of Joudeh, and the opener of the door was a member of the Moslem family of Nuseibah. At Easter, three sects are allowed to have the long, curiously-shaped key. On the Holy Thursday it goes to the head of the Franciscan Monastery; on Good Friday, to the chief Dragoman of the Greek Orthodox Monastery, and on Holy Saturday to the head of the Armenian Orthodox Church. An 18th-century decree gave six churches the right to share the sanctuary: Latin (Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Coptic, Syrian (Jacobite) and Abyssinian. The latter two are allowed the privilege only for special ceremonies during the year. No Protestant sect has the right to share the sanctuary. The status quo and the designation of space within the sanctuary are jealously guarded by each denomination and regrettably have often been obstacles to restoration of the church."

An interior door

Door to the Coptic Chapel

And, here's a fantastic site with great pictures, maps, and in-depth information about the authenticity of the site: Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem.