Also I hate to bring Ren up again but, a pop culture freak like me has a duty to bring up Footloose whenever and where ever I can.
"Ecclesiastes assures us that there is a time for every purpose under heaven. A time to laugh and a time to weep. A time to mourn and there is a time to dance. And there was a time for this law, but not anymore. See, this is our time to dance. It is our way of celebrating life. It's the way it was in the beginning. It's the way it's always been. It's the way it should be now."
Now that I got all THAT outta my system, lets get to the reading.
This book was apparently writen my Solomon in disguise, choosing the pen name The Preacher.(does that also sound Tarintinoesque? whats that a character in one of his movies or am I crazy?)
The Preacher doesn't seem to be a happy camper to me. He seems sorta gloom and doom. one generation dies the next comes, the sun rises, the sun sets, the wind blows, the oceans never fill, nor do our eyes and ears. The last I do like however. I like to think that I may never get my fill of seeing interesting things, and hearing happy sounds. I don't want to ever feel like there's no where else I want to go.
I also agree with the last line in chapter 1 "for in much human wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow." I do think ignorance is bliss. Butt you have to be truly ignorant in order for there to be true bliss. I know the more I learn about any topic, the more confused I feel and the more I yearn to learn. (Rhyme not intend). Again the never full eyes....ears.....ocean....
"I said of laughter, It is mad, and of pleasure, What does it accomplish?" I can say that for me, laughter accomplishes a lot. There are times when if I didn't laugh, I could have never gotten through it. This reminds me of a quote (imagine that) from my fav book Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth is speaking with Miss Bingley "``there are such people, but I hope I am not one of them. I hope I never ridicule what is wise or good. Follies and nonsense, whims and inconsistencies do divert me, I own, and I laugh at them whenever I can. -- But these, I suppose, are precisely what you are without.''
Laughter...good
The writer talks of all he has done and learned. He becomes frustrated in realizing that he will die, just as a fool dies, regardless of what he has done, seen, built, created, learned. And he then hates life. He decides then, why not eat, drink and be merry.
Then we get the song.....see above
Then we get a bit more upbeat. The preacher decides that we should enjoy the fruits of our labor, now I'm not positive if this includes laughter?
3:19 is oh so Native American....so I went looking and I found this "The air is precious to the red man, for all things share the same breath ... The air shares its spirit with all the life it supports ... All things are connected like the blood that unites one family ..." and this "All things share the same breath - the beast, the tree, the man... the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports."
these were said by Chief Seattle, chief of the Suquamis. Because they were said in the 1850s I wonder if he had read the Bible?
Being alone is not good, people need people. And as Babs put it so beautifully in song "people who need people are the luckiest people in the world" Seriously though folks, we need each. We need friends to lift us up, and cheer us on, and cry with us and laugh with us. None of that is fun by yourself. Everything means more when you share it with someone. What good is your favorite book if you can't talk about it with a friend? How funny is the funniest movie if you can't laugh with someone?
Then is gets all proverbial. 5:12 is similar to yet ANOTHER of my favorite quotes. The reason I continue to point all of this stuff out is because I am constantly amazed at how much the Bible has penetrated every area of our lives. Even though people may think of it as bologna, we sure pull from it tons.
5:12: The sleep of a laboring man is sweet,whether he eats little or much, but the fullness of a rich man wil not let him sleep"
"A well spent day brings happy sleep" DaVinci
1 comment:
I wanted to bring up the point that the notes make of this reading. That is man's wisdom is not God's wisdom. And to lean on our own wisdom and understanding inevitably leads to dissatisfaction and ultimatley to more questions than answers. I also think it has something to do with knowing you have a higher purpose; that there is more to our existence than just this life. Because, regardless, of what you accomplish here on earth in our short life span's it just seems like it's unsignificant. I think most of feel like we were made for something greater...like this can't be it; in that, nothing we could do here on earth could justify our existence.
Although, he does say some good things in here. I think mostly, like the notes seem to infer, that this is a book [more] of what not to do or think.
Post a Comment