We Need Orthokardia

I got this in an e-mail today from my father, and it really spoke to me.  The e-mail stresses the necessity of poetry; and more specifically how poetry is infused and intertwined in the books of the Bible.  I have been speaking to one of my colleagues at Glendale quite a bit about poetry.  He and I believe that poetry is so necessary, but that very few people read poetry.  Within the category of poetry readers only a handful, we think, actually read and drink up the poems--and probably merely peruse or glance at them.  Poetry makes us human, it is the highest expression of language--logos.  Philosophy sits in awe of the word, of Poetry.

-PB

Sydney Anglican Network
You need to read poetry
by Michael Jensen
December 29th, 2009

I would lay money on the fact that poetry is not one of your great
interests. For most people, reading poetry is about as fun as going to
the dentist.

Yet I have been thinking about some great words from my good friend
Justin Moffatt recently, in a blog post entitled ‘We Need the Poets’:


The Bible is not just facts, and it’s not just history. It’s not all
argument, and it’s not all logic. It’s not a manifesto, and it’s
certainly not a tract. It is full of wisdom, poetry and songs. If we
desire to be true to the Bible, then we need to re-find the poets, the
wisdom writers, and the prophets.

It is one thing to say: ‘Be faithful to your wife’. But it is another
to muse with the writer of Proverbs: ‘Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe.’

So we need a few things: We need wonder, not just exegesis. We need
awe of God, not just exposition. We need insight, not just
information. We need wisdom, not just your points. We need to wrestle
with the Psalmists, and not just proclaim their certainty. We don’t
just need to ‘think Christianly’, we need to feel it too. We need
Orthokardia.


Justin’s point is that poetry is trying to do something very similar
to what preachers are trying to do. Poetry overlaps hugely with
theology. Reading great poetry sensitizes us – and makes us better
readers of the Word of God, no doubt.

Two books I have been reading have reminded me of the power and the
blessing and the necessity of poetry – especially for people who would
be good readers of Scripture.

First, "The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker." It is a terrific novel about a mediocre poet and
collector of poems. As he narrates his own story, he also gives us a
terrific lesson in reading and appreciating poetry – and introduces us
to some amazing poets. I had never heard of Louise Bogan before, for
example.

Second, E.D. Hirsh’s book How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love with Poetry might be just what you need to get going with poetry. It’s a
magnificent introduction to poetry, but it is so much more than a
‘dummie's guide’. He introduces the reader to the whole world of poetry
– perhaps you’ll start a life-long love affair with a poet’s work, at
Hirsch’s invitation?

http://www.sydneyanglicans.net/life/culture/you_need_to_read_poetry/