In a recent Zoom conference with his clergy, Bishop Kevin Brown asked us how we were spending our free time. Most people referenced the latest Netflix or Amazon Prime series, and Bishop Brown mentioned Tiger King (Ruth and I bailed after two episodes.) Then the bishop said that he was reading the novel Middlemarch by George Eliot. Thank goodness, I thought, in our screen-obsessed age, that someone is still reading books.
If you are stuck at home and need something good to read, Middlemarch is recommended, being one of the great English novels. Written by George Eliot (real name, Mary Anne Evans) and published in 1871, it weaves the stories of its various characters into the social and political backdrop of the time. One of Eliot’s strengths as a novelist is her sympathy – she writes compassionately but unsentimentally about her characters. Although in real life she turned away from the Christian faith, her books bear the influence of the Christianity in which she was raised. In an earlier novel, Felix Holt, she has created one her best characters in the humble minister, the Rev. Rufus Lyon.
Eliot would, I think, be at home in our current political atmosphere, although she would dislike the overheated nature of some of our political debate. She was no stranger to political writing. In her uneven last novel, Daniel Deronda, she advocates for the establishment of a Jewish state. So persuasive was her writing that whole paragraphs were taken out of the novel and stitched together for use as a polemical tract by Zionists.
A very different but equally good novelist of the 19th century is the Russian Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Dostoyevsky’s writings are infused with Christian themes, perhaps most explicitly in his final book The Brothers Karamazov. This novel includes a famous deathbed speech by the monk Father Zosima, who gives an inspired testament on love and forgiveness. Karamazov is a long read, but worth the effort.
Both Eliot’s and Dostoyevsky’s writings have, along with a deep understanding of and sympathy with human nature, a solid moral core – another Russian writing in the 20th century who shared those characteristics was Aleksander Solzhenitsyn. As a writer he was once well known, but seems to have faded from view. Yet anyone wishing to have a glimpse into what life was like in the former Soviet Union should read his books. Solzhenitsyn, a former prisoner in the Soviet gulag, wrote these memorable words, “You only have power over people so long as you don’t take everything away from them. But when you’ve robbed a man of everything he’s no longer in your power – he’s free again.” (In the First Circle.)
If heavy Russian literature isn’t your thing, you should seek out C.S. Lewis’s Narnia stories. These appeal to adults and children alike – members of the Early Risers group will remember an excellent study course examining the theology of these stories. Lewis also wrote an excellent introduction to Christianity called Mere Christianity. If you are looking for purely spiritual writing, then anything by Henri Nouwen is worthwhile. This is a field of interest with plenty of choice. I personally enjoy reading Fr Laurence Freeman and St Francis de Sales.
Reading is an enjoyable pastime – as I typed that sentence out, I heard the word “joy,” which reminds me of three books about joy. The first is a compendium of 100 poems, edited by Christian Wiman, simply entitled, “Joy.” Another recommended read is The Book of Joy, which showcases the wit and wisdom (and playfulness) of two great spiritual leaders, the Dalia Lama and Desmond Tutu. The third is Between Heaven and Mirth, a survey of joy, humor and laughter from Scripture and Christian life. All three books highlight the connection between laughter and a healthy life. God didn’t make us to be glum but to be joyful. There is a nice quote from Karl Barth, who said, “Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.”
Here is an example of humor from the book Between Heaven and Mirth. Happy reading!
A Lutheran pastor is asleep one night when the phone rings. The fire department is calling to say that someone is about to jump off a roof. The pastor throws on his clothes, jumps into his car, and races to the house. When he arrives, a firefighter points to the man on his roof.
“Don’t jump!” yells the pastor.
“Well, I’m going to!” says the man. “I’ve got nothing to live for.”
The pastor asks, “What about your family?”
And the man says, “I’ve got none!”
The pastor asks, “What about your friends?”
The man says, “I’ve got none!”
The pastor pauses for a long while and then says, “Well, I’m sure we could be friends. I’ll bet we have a lot in common.”
“I doubt it,” says the man on the roof.
The pastor thinks. “Well, do you believe in God?” he asks.
“Yes,” says the man.
“See?” says the pastor. “We have that in common! Are you a Christian?”
“Yes,” says the man.
“So am I!” says the pastor, delighted.
“Are you a Lutheran by any chance?”
“Yes I am,” the man says.
“I’m a Lutheran pastor!” says the pastor. “We have so much in common!” Then he pauses and asks. “Which branch? Missouri Synod or Evangelical Lutheran?”
“Evangelical Lutheran,” says the man.
Then the pastor says, “In that case: Jump, you heretic!”