Grandbaby

Here is my new grandson, Logan William, listening to his grandmother's instruction.

Les Miserables Redux

I’ve slogged my way through all 1,429 pages of Les Miserables, which did not hold my interest as well as The Count of Monte Cristo. A big part of the reason is the frequent monologuing inserted by the author. He launches into lengthy descriptions of people, political movements, or underworld dialect that are—frankly—boring and bog down the plot. These are sections that are, for the most part, missing from the movie version I watched a couple of weeks ago. That movie followed the basic plot quite faithfully, with only slight inaccuracies obviously made in order to condense the mammoth amount of material into a movie of reasonable length.

But I like Cossette and Marius less in the book than I did in the movie. They are just—forgive me for being blunt here—stupid. And selfish. Cossette seems to care primarily about clothes in the book (and dreaming about Marius, of course). In the movie, Marius appears to have convictions; while in the book he seems to be persuaded by every new influence. I thought he was pretty stupid in the movie for not figuring out that he owed his life to Jean Valjean and for forbidding Valjean from seeing Cossette, but he seems even denser in the book. He stops working just to dream about Cossette. Wouldn't you think he'd want to make something of himself and earn some money to support her? And then he starves himself, but sends money regularly to Thernadier in prison after he's witnessed Thernadier's evil character! And he tries to get himself killed in the revolution because he doesn't know where Cossette has gone! I just want to slap him upside the head and tell him to get a clue!

The book is not quite as depressing as the movie. When reading the book, one is at least aware that Jean Valjean does experience some short-term happiness in between the setbacks. The movie crunches all the crises together so that it seems he never gets a break. He basically doesn't, but there are a few short periods of peace before each hammer blow upon the anvil of Jean Valjean.

What I enjoyed most about the book was Hugo’s acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty. While stressing God’s sovereignty, he clearly shows the importance of how we treat others. Although an escaped convict, Jean Valjean is portrayed almost as a type of Christ in his suffering and self-sacrifice.

Les Miserables

On a recent trip to the libraray, I picked up some classics I'd like to read in the (probably) vain hope that I might find time next week. One of them was Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.

Last evening I discovered that we had purchased a DVD of an old movie version out of a discount store bargain bin and had never opened it. I opened it and we watched it for the next few hours.

I'm ashamed to admit that I really knew very little about the plot. I knew that a poor little girl figured largely in the story line, but that's about all I knew. A man unjustly imprisoned for nineteen years figured far more in the movie. The movie was quite good and now I'm eager to see how well it followed the book.

So I guess I'll be tackling that two-inch wide volume of Les Miserables first.

Path

This is the path where I walk most days.

I won't be walking today because, according to the Doppler weather radar, storms will soon be in this area. And since I'll be away from my office most of next week, I have a lot of work that needs to be done today.

Why Ascribelog?

When I was considering and praying about blogging, the name "Ascribelog" came to me. Some of the primary reasons for choosing it: connotation, double-meaning, and sound.

The main reason I liked the name was because I felt that the word "ascribe" properly puts the focus on giving God glory. But I also liked the double-meaning of "a scribe log" or a journal of someone who writes. And then I liked the way the final "b" sound of "ascribe" blends with the initial "b" sound of "blog."

All of which was very likely self-evident to my many readers, but I thought it might bear explaining anyway.

My Small Corner

This morning I was thinking about my small corner in the Christian writing mansion. Many people do so much more than I do, and do it so much better. But I still have to try to keep my feeble candle lit, even though it often sputters and threatens to go out.

The "small corner" analogy got me wondering which children's song that came from and, looking in an old copy of Action Songs for Boys and Girls, I found "Jesus Bids Us Shine."

Do you remember that one?

Jesus bids us shine, With a clear, pure light,
Like a little candle Burning in the night;
In this world of darkness We must shine,
You in your small corner, And I in mine.

Now the author very like meant that each of us, even small children, can live in a way that witnesses for Christ, no matter how insignificant our lives and actions may seem. But I can see how someone could say this little ditty is anti-evangelistic since the concept of hunkering down in a corner seems to preclude any evangelism efforts.

While I had Action Songs for Boys and Girls in my hands, I began looking up other familiar favorites and examining their theology for the first time. I suspected that some of them reflected an Arminiam or Charismatic bent.

So far, it appears that "Behold, Behold" and "One Door" fall into the Arminian category while "It's Bubbling" and "Happy All the Time" could be classed as Charismatic.

The puzzler for me is that I learned these songs in the Sunday school class for three and four-year-olds of a fairly conservative Reformed congregation in the 1950s. What were those song leaders thinking? Was there a lack of Reformed children's songs? What kind of action songs are children singing in Reformed churches these days?

Mornings

If only every hour could be the first hour of the day! Or if I could at least work for eight or ten hours at the same pace I am able to work during the first few.

The trouble is that I have so many things I want to accomplish first thing in the morning, but one can only do so much "first thing."

Sometimes I just can't wait to go to sleep because I so eagerly anticipate the first hours of the next day!

I wonder if I could recreate the productive ability by taking a ten-minute nap or two during the day?

"Safe" fiction

Another discussion of the Faith in Fiction board deals with "safe" fiction.

I'm of the opinion that Christians can write "safe" fiction, but they ought not feel obligated to avoid certain words or situations--if those words or situations are necessary for effectively telling the story. They need to tell the story truly and for God's glory.

I do, however, believe there is a place for "safe" literature. And I think the church library is it. People want the assurance of checking out anything from the church library without having to worry about being either offended or misguided.

As church librarian, I have a responsibility to acquire fiction that can be read by the preteen girls picking up novels from the adult shelves as well as nonfiction that complements the theological positions of the church.

The problem with this, of course, is: How do people learn to discern if they read only safe literature?

As a parent and a friend, I can suggest reading to my children and friends that I might hesitate to place in the church library. My personal relationship allows discussion of questions or issues.

But I am also working hard to find and place in the church library unoffensive and theologically sound material that is of high literary quality. Not an easy task!

Excellence

Can all good fiction be defined as Christian? That's the discussion on the Faith in Fiction discussion board today.

I prefer not to compartmentalize fiction into Christian and non-Christian categories. I would rather think in terms of the worldview reflected by the author.

I'm of the opinion that there's a difference between good and excellent fiction. Good writing may be technically brilliant and demonstrate truth, but it may not be written from a Christian worldview. God can and does use such writing just as He has used people and events from Pharoah to Faulkner.

Excellent fiction, however, is well-written and demonstrates truth from a Christian worldview. The Christian reader will recognize and identify with that worldview no matter how overt or covert its expression. The Christian author intentionally uses God-given gifts for God's glory.

Both types of fiction may be well-written and demonstrate truth, but there's a difference in the author's motivation. And that makes the difference between what is good and what is excellent.