Deflection

[Dr. Cambridge]

Holiness was mine and sinless perfection always my intention,
Wisdom and knowledge were well within reach,
Integrity and discernment accompanied my every move,
And I knew the purity of compassionate love.

Excellence in attitude crowned my behaviour,
Truth and justice were firmly adhered to,
Mercy and kindness had their home in me,
And I made many sacrifices to benefit others.

Honours and tributes were bestowed on me,
Reverence was given, homage was paid,
Respect was shown, admiration made known,
And I was held in high esteem.

They were in such awe of me that their worship became idolatry,
My greatness was refined and magnified,
The tales of my achievements were embroidered and multiplied,
And now because of this deflection I must surely oppose them.


"The hilltop, the cool air of the night, the company of the great monuments, the sight of the city under his feet, with its hills and valleys and crossing files of lamps, drew him by all he had of the poetic, and he turned that way; and by that quite innocent deflection, ripened the crop of his venial errors for the sickle of destiny."

Tales and Fantasies by Robert Louis Stevenson.

[PrinceMyshkin]

There is a problem for me in accepting - or knowing how properly to read - the last stanza. In the stanzas before it there was such bravura, even I might say bgaggadochio, that according to the laws of irony, I expected a turnaround, a fall from grace; but instead, as I read it, your persona turns out to be even more admirable at the end.

Earlier, he might have been accused of self-idolatry...

After you've allowed for other interpretations, perhaps you'd set me straight?

[Dr. Cambridge]

There is a problem for me in accepting - or knowing how properly to read - the last stanza. In the stanzas before it there was such bravura, even I might say bgaggadochio, that according to the laws of irony, I expected a turnaround, a fall from grace; but instead, as I read it, your persona turns out to be even more admirable at the end.

Earlier, he might have been accused of self-idolatry...

After you've allowed for other interpretations, perhaps you'd set me straight?
You have scored very highly and your post is right on target PrinceMyshkin.

I have been exploring the possibility of a person like Christ functioning in society unopposed and able to be exalted without becoming corrupt, as we would expect of any mortal.

The whole piece is built around the word "deflection", with this example being one of many to which it could apply. I am hoping readers will identify the "deflections" that have altered the course of their destiny, but I expect some of these may be too personal to print.

Theologically there is the scenario from the biblical Revelation of Saint John the Divine, Chapter 17, in which a woman known as MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH sits on a scarlet coloured beast full of the names of blasphemy, this being a figure of the apostate church supported by corrupt political power.

Instead of following Christ, it is prophesied that a global combined established institutional church will consist of doctrine and worship that is a confused mixture of Paganism, Judaism, and Christianity; and because of the pride and haughtiness of it, its tyranny and cruelty, and its sorceries and idolatry; both this church and the political system that supports it will be defeated by the Lamb who is the Lord of lords and King of kings. (Revelation 17:14-18; 19:19-21.)

Actually your poem about "the sheer face of destiny" (Final Exam), and the RLS quote I included about deflection and the "sickle of destiny", as well as my own understanding of theology combined with a few other concepts of fantasy and delusion, all helped to bring these 4 verses each of 4 lines, into focus.

Thanks.

[PrinceMyshkin]

I didn't grow up loving or worshipping Christ, but if I had I doubt I'd have thought of him thinking about himself in such self-glorifying terms.

Might not the poem work more as you intended it to if it were in third person?

[Dr. Cambridge]

Good point, PrinceM,

A person like Christ would have an understanding of themself in much the same way as Christ. I have taken poetic licence writing in "the first person", but not without precedence given these 14 "I AM"s of Christ:

John 4:25-26 "The woman said unto Him, I know that Messias comes, which is called Christ: when He is come, He will tell us all things. (26) Jesus said unto her, I that speak unto thee am He."

John 6:32-35 "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. (33) For the bread of God is He which comes down from heaven, and gives life unto the world. (34) Then said they unto Him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. (35) And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall never hunger; and he that believes on me shall never thirst."

John 8:23 "And He said unto them, You are from beneath; I am from above: you are of this world; I am not of this world."

John 8:52-59 Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that you have a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and you say, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. (53) Are you greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: who do you make yourself to be? (54) Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honours me; of whom you say, that He is your God: (55) Yet you have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know Him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know Him, and keep His saying. (56) Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. (57) Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? (58) Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (59) Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

John 9:4-5 (Jesus said) "I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night comes, when no man can work. (5) As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

John 10:7-9 "Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. (8) All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. (9) I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture."

John 10:11-14 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd give"s His life for the sheep. (12) But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep, and flees: and the wolf catches them, and scatters the sheep. (13) The hireling flees, because he is an hireling, and cares not for the sheep. (14) I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine."

John 10:36-37 (Jesus answered) "Say you of Him, whom the Father has sanctified, and sent into the world, You blaspheme; because I said, I am the Son of God? (37) If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not."

John 11:25 "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:"

John 13:13 "You call me Master and Lord: and you say well; for so I am."

John 14:6 "Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me."

John 15:1-2 " I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (2) Every branch in me that bears not fruit He takes away: and every branch that bears fruit, he purges it, that it may bring forth more fruit."

Revelation 1:8 "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."

Revelation 1:17-18 "And when I saw him, I fell at His feet as dead. And He laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: (18) I am He that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."

Later...

[lallison]

Seems like you've got an interesting idea here that's unquestionably worth exploring, perhaps even further than what you've already done.

I liked PM's idea about putting it in the third person (or maybe even having one of his followers narrating) because in the first person the speaker can ALMOST seem to be a bit lacking in humility, which takes away from the Christlike effect. That's not to say that the speaker wasn't humble, especially noted from the last stanza, but changing the point of view could really take control of that effect.

Although I'm not Muslim, I have lived in an Islamic country for the past three years and have learned a lot about Islam. The speaker here actually reminds me a lot of Muhammad, who is believed to have many of the qualities you speak about, but is not to be worshiped himself. Just a thought.

[PrinceMyshkin]

Good point, PrinceM,

A person like Christ would have an understanding of themself in much the same way as Christ. I have taken poetic licence writing in "the first person", but not without precedence given these 14 "I AM"s of Christ:

I'm on extremely thin ice here, taking issue with the copious citations you provide but a) Isn't there a serious group applying linguistic and theological criteria in an effort to establish which of the words attributed to Christ were or might certainly have been spoken by him; and which were attributed on the shakiest of grounds or revised from the original? and b) Aren't we always dealing with the mortal/divine dichotomy of Christ? Things that he spoke on earth, prior to crucifixion, as a mortal, ought perhaps to be subject to the same assessments of their objectivity vs their self-aggrandizement?

[Dr. Cambridge]

I'm on extremely thin ice here, taking issue with the copious citations you provide but a) Isn't there a serious group applying linguistic and theological criteria in an effort to establish which of the words attributed to Christ were or might certainly have been spoken by him; and which were attributed on the shakiest of grounds or revised from the original? and b) Aren't we always dealing with the mortal/divine dichotomy of Christ? Things that he spoke on earth, prior to crucifixion, as a mortal, ought perhaps to be subject to the same assessments of their objectivity vs their self-aggrandizement?
You are hitting a number of nails on the head, PrinceM, because your arguments are destined, dare I say even predestined to arise in any intelligent discussion about Christ, and while the canon of Holy Scripture (the Bible) has been subject to Higher (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_criticism) and Lower Criticism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lower_criticism) (technical terms) as well as revisions, paraphrases, alternative translations, and many different interpretations, it remains a fascinating literary work and an inexhaustible source of inspiration.

From the extant text we learn that the Jewish religious leaders of Christ's day, namely the scribes, lawyers, Pharisees and Sadducees, took extreme issue with Christ's claims and resented His authority and popularity to the point that they conspired to have Him executed as a blasphemer. eg.

John 10:24-33 "Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto Him, How long are you going to make us to doubt? If you be the Christ, tell us plainly. (25) Jesus answered them, I told you, and you believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. (26) But you believe not, because you are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. (27) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: (28) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. (29) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. (30) I and my Father are one. (31) Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. (32) Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? (33) The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone you not; but for blasphemy; and because that you, being a man, make yourself God.

Mark 14:57-64 "And there arose certain, and bare false witness against Him, saying, (58) We heard Him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. (59) But neither so did their witness agree together. (60) And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? (61) But He held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? (62) And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. (63) Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses? (64) Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned Him to be guilty of death."

The exploration of these matters continues...hence my poem "Deflection", which I am so glad has attracted such insightful and intelligent replies from yourself and lallison.

[PrinceMyshkin]

Those are the things that were said (reportedly) in a day when such issues were as hot as if not even hotter than the US debate over the Health Care Bill, which were then matters of life or death, spiritual life or death, but you are presenting us a man who speaks, in the age of irony, utterly without irony, and indeed (meaning no offense) with a Donald Trumplike conviction in himself.

Can we hear him in that dualistic way: man'God?

Not altogether apropos this debate, you might be interested in the novel Mr. Golightly's Holiday, by Salley Vickers, at very least an enjoyable read.

[Dr. Cambridge]

Those are the things that were said (reportedly) in a day when such issues were as hot as if not even hotter than the US debate over the Health Care Bill, which were then matters of life or death, spiritual life or death, but you are presenting us a man who speaks, in the age of irony, utterly without irony, and indeed (meaning no offense) with a Donald Trumplike conviction in himself.

Can we hear him in that dualistic way: man'God?

Not altogether apropos this debate, you might be interested in the novel Mr. Golightly's Holiday, by Salley Vickers, at very least an enjoyable read.
I looked at some reviews of Mr Golightly's Holiday and I can see the connection you make. Thanks.

I hoped someone would pick up on the "conviction" aspect. I am gathering material for a treatise titled "THE CONVICTION ASPECT", because to me this is integral to the dynamic of human interactions.

As for the combined humanity and divinity of Christ, if you have the inclination to pursue this thread the word to search is KENOSIS.

I have a strong conviction in the truth of these words which teach both the HUMILIATION and EXALTATION of Christ:

Philippians 2:5-11 KJV "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
(6) Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
(7) But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
(8) And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
(9) Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name:
(10) That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
(11) And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

There are many good theological resources online and for those interested in free downloads here is a link: http://www.e-sword.net/index.html

[PrinceMyshkin]

Thank you again for the generosity of your references and links. My acquaintance with Jesus is pretty much limited to the NT, The Master and Margarita and Jesus: A Life, by A.N. Wilson, and without I hope sounding churlish, I don't intend to pursue further knowledge or speculation.