Sing God a simple song:
Lauda, Laudē.
Make it up as you go along:
Lauda, Laudē.
Sing like you like to sing.
God loves all simple things.
For God is the simplest of all.For God is the simplest of all.
from Mass, Leonard Bernstein
My pre-dawn stroll yesterday brought the sight of two more Persied meteors. Fifty miles closer to home (at 38,000 feet), a FedEx 777 hauled cargo from Memphis to Seattle, and a Southwest flight out of Indianapolis was bound for Love Field.
Later, Miss Smudge rushed a toad and flushed a doe. A young cottontail emerged from the brushy lower level onto the driveway — believe it or not, the first rabbit I’ve seen that close to the cabin.
The sky drew my gaze, as usual.
The feeling right now is one of isolation, and I mean that in the most positive sense. Much of my peace flows from being apart. I interact and involve by choice.
It’s so quiet here.
The quote that opened today’s post, from Leonard Bernstein’s Mass, probably has longtime readers scratching their heads. Where the hell did that come from?
First of all, I consider Bernstein’s work a masterpiece. I studied it personally back in the ’70s and wrote about it academically.
The lyrics (by Stephen Schwartz) are from Mass‘s opening movement, performed by the central protagonist, known as The Celebrant. We hear a young man of simple faith before he’s corrupted and cast into crisis by dogma and doctrine, liturgy for its own sake and the trappings of religion.
Listen:
Several well-known American “faith leaders” have died in recent weeks. Public reaction among the “faithful” began respectfully enough before devolving into apologetics, debates over Calvinism versus Arminianism and other theo-intellectual muck.
It put on full display the reasons why many who believe have left the church or reject religion entirely. Thus the quote from Mass.
The Celebrant had it right at the start. Simple.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable