What are the texts (sacred and secular), poems, songs, art, short stories, videos and movies that you would include into the canon that give expression of what it means to be human, to live fully, and to explore the meaning of life? What additional human expressions would you add to make sense of the Jesus experience?
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Lift every voice and sing, till earth and Heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of liberty; Let our rejoicing rise, high as the listening skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea. Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.
Stony the road we trod, bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet, Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered; Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.
God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou Who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou Who hast by Thy might, led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray. Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee. Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee. Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land.
"The Creation" by James Weldon Johnson (God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse, 1927)
And God stepped out on space, And he looked around and said: I'm lonely - I'll make me a world.
And far as the eye of God could see Darkness covered everything, Blacker than a hundred midnights Down in a cypress swamp.
Then God smiled, And the light broke, And the darkness rolled up on one side, And the light stood shining on the other, And God said: That's good!
Then God reached out and took the light in his hands, And God rolled the light around in his hands Until he made the sun; And he set that sun a-blazing in the heavens. And the light that was left from making the sun God gathered it up in a shining ball And flung it against the darkness, Spangling the night with the moon and stars. Then down between The darkness and the light He hurled the world; And God said: That's good!
Then God himself stepped down - And the sun was on his right hand, And the moon was on his left; The stars were clustered about his head, And the earth was under his feet. And God walked, and where he trod His footsteps hollowed the valleys out And bulged the mountains up.
Then he stopped and looked and saw That the earth was hot and barren. So God stepped over to the edge of the world And he spat out the seven seas - He batted his eyes, and the lightnings flashed - He clapped his hands, and the thunders rolled - And the waters above the earth came down, The cooling waters came down.
Then the green grass sprouted, And the little red flowers blossomed, The pine tree pointed his finger to the sky, And the oak spread out his arms, The lakes cuddled down in the hollows of the ground, And the rivers ran down to the sea; And God smiled again, And the rainbow appeared, And curled itself around his shoulder.
The God raised his arm and he waved his hand Over the sea and over the land, And he said: Bring forth! Bring forth! And quicker than God could drop his hand, Fishes and fowls And beasts and birds Swam the rivers and the seas, Roamed the forests and the woods, And split the air with their wings. And God said: That's good!
Then God walked around, And God looked around On all that he had made. He looked at his sun, And he looked at his moon, And he looked at his little stars; He looked on his world With all its living things, And God said: I'm lonely still.
Then God sat down - On the side of a hill where he could think; By a deep, wide river he sat down; With his head in his hands, God thought and thought, Till he thought: I'll make me a man!
Up from the bed of the river God scooped the clay; And by the bank of the river He kneeled him down; And there the great God Almighty Who lit the sun and fixed it in the sky, Who flung the stars to the most far corner of the night, Who rounded the earth in the middle of his hand; This Great God, Like a mammy bending over her baby, Kneeled down in the dust Toiling over a lump of clay Till he shaped it in his own image;
Then into it he blew the breath of life, And man became a living soul. Amen. Amen.
From The Heath Anthology of American Literature, Volume Two, Second Edition, 1053-1055.
David Perkins
The work for which Johnson is most remembered is God's Trombones, which caused a sensation when it was published in 1927. Impressed with the power of the imagination and speech of the Irish peasantry, Johnson wished to create a similar monument—and literary movement—for his own race. God’s Trombones consists of seven sermons by a black preacher. Though Johnson did not use dialect, his free-verse paragraphs are in the rhythms of this indigenous oratory and his imagery caught the simplicity and grandeur of the preacher's imagination, nurtured on the Bible:
And now, O Lord-- When I've done drunk my last cup of sorrow— When I've been called everything but a child of God When I'm done travelling up the rough side of the mountain-- O--Mary's Baby— When I start down the steep and slippery steps of death— When this old world begins to rock beneath my feet— Lower me to my dusty grave in peace To wait for that great gittin' up morning.
The use of the redundant auxiliary ("done"), the biblical, concrete imagery ("cup of sorrow"), the anaphora ("When I've . . . When this . . ."), and the allusion to well-known spirituals ("Mary Had a Baby, Yes, Lord" and "In Dat Great Gittin' up Mornin’") are typical of Johnson's style in this work. In an actual church sermon the last line would be a signal to the congregation to break into singing the spiritual.
Dylan included this on his 1985 album Biograph. In the notes to that album he said, "That was an inspired song that came to me. It wasn't really too difficult. I felt like I was just putting words down that were coming from somewhere else, and I just stuck it out."
This was partly inspired by the following lines from William Blake's Auguries of Innocence: To see a World in a Grain of Sand And a Heaven in a Wild Flower Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour.
Bob Dylan
"Every Grain of Sand"
In the time of my confession, in the hour of my deepest need When the pool of tears beneath my feet flood every newborn seed There's a dyin' voice within me reaching out somewhere, Toiling in the danger and in the morals of despair.
Don't have the inclination to look back on any mistake, Like Cain, I now behold this chain of events that I must break. In the fury of the moment I can see the Master's hand In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand.
Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear, Like criminals, they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer. The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay.
I gaze into the doorway of temptation's angry flame And every time I pass that way I always hear my name. Then onward in my journey I come to understand That every hair is numbered like every grain of sand.
I have gone from rags to riches in the sorrow of the night In the violence of a summer's dream, in the chill of a wintry light, In the bitter dance of loneliness fading into space, In the broken mirror of innocence on each forgotten face.
I hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea Sometimes I turn, there's someone there, other times it's only me. I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand.
Miranda words the late night counter In a joint called Betty’s Diner Chrome and checkered tablecloths one steamy windowpane She got the job that shaky fall And after hours she’ll write til dawn With a nod and smile she serves them all
Chorus: here we are all in one place The wants and wounds of the human race Despair and hope sit face to face When you come in from the cold Let her fill your cup with something kind Eggs and toast like bread and wine She’s heard it all so she don’t mind
Arthur lets his earl grey steep Since April it’s been hard to sleep You know they tried most everything Yet it took her in the end Kevin tests new saxophones But swears he’s leaving quality control For the Chicago scene, or New Orleans Where they still play righteous horns
Jack studies here after work To get past high school he’s the first And his large hands seem just as comfortable With a hammer or a pen Emma leaned and kissed his cheek And when she did his knees got weak Miranda smiles at Em and winks
Chorus
Bridge: You never know who’ll be your witness You never know who grants forgiveness Look to heaven or sit with us Deidra bites her lip and frowns She works the Stop and Go downtown She’s pretty good at the crossword page
She paints her eyes blue black Tristan come along sometimes Small for his age and barely five But she loves him like a mamma lion
Veda used to drink a lot Almost lost it all before she stopped Comes in at night with her friend Mike Who runs the crisis line Michael toured Saigon and back Hair the color of smoke and ash Heads are bowed and hands are clasped One more storm has passed
Singer Gives Tour Cut to Charity October 11th, 2007 by Andrew McGinn
Singer gives tour cut to charity
Audio: Listen to Newcomer sing "Betty's Diner" By Andrew McGinn Staff Writer Thursday, October 11, 2007
SPRINGFIELD — As a Quaker activist first and foremost, Carrie Newcomer would prefer if people stopped sowing their wild oats.
But she's at least making it easier to live a purpose-driven life — just attend one of her gigs.
Playing Kuss Auditorium on Friday, the Indiana singer-songwriter has given a cut of her tour sales to charity since the '90s.
The Second Harvest food bank network has been on the receiving end of tour receipts in recent years.
Newcomer also leads workshops on everything from creative writing and songwriting to faith and "living with intention."
She'll present a creative writing and songwriting seminar from 7 to 9:30 p.m. today at the Glen Helen Building, 405 Corry St., in Yellow Springs. Call (937) 475-7357 for reservations.
Musically, Newcomer released "Regulars and Refugees" in 2005, marking her 10th album for Philo/Rounder.
A concept album, the songs are set inside Betty's Diner, a fictional greasy spoon in southern Indiana.
And if you're a Nickel Creek fan who thinks her name looks awfully familiar, they covered her song "I Should've Known Better" on the 2003 disc "This Side."
Newcomer also has toured Europe with Alison Krauss.
"Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting — over and over announcing your place in the family of things."
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting — over and over announcing your place in the family of things.
Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0060692294, Paperback)
"In a little while, when the sky showed grey behind the rooftops and I could see the shredded curtains hanging out black windows, the Rgaman came upon a girl whose haed was wrapped in a bandage, whose eyes were empty. Blood soaked her bandage. A single line of blood ran down her check. Now the tall Ragman looked upon this child with pity, and he drew a lovely yellow bonnet from his cart. 'Give me your rag,'he said, tracing his own line on her cheek, 'and I'll give you mine.'"The stories, meditations and allegories in Ragman together explore the power and meaning of love within an often inhumane urban landscape. Walter Wangerin's vivid depictions touch our deepest pains with rays of joyful healing.
This is an Open Source project for all who seek to make the world a better place.
We live in an evolutionary world that continues to evolve and change. Humanity is the universe becoming conscious of itself. For good or ill, we are the co-creators of our world. If the world's philosophical and religious traditions are the inheritance of all humanity, what are those sayings, quotations, readings, etc. from every discipline that will help humanity build a new way of living in peace with the planet and one another?
