Richard Wilbur, God, and Christianity Essay - 1910 Words

Richard Wilbur, God, and Christianity A recurring theme in the poetry of Richard Wilbur is one of God and Christianity. Biblical references can be found throughout his work, even in poems that have little to do with religion. However, this theme is quite prominent as there are several poems contain more than passing references. Wilbur provides in these poems ideas that Christians can identify with, either in the Christian lifestyle or straight from the Bible. Richard Wilbur was raised by a Presbyterian father and an Episcopalian mother. Because his mother was closer to her own faith, they attended an Episcopal church. When Wilburs parents opted to not go to church, a neighbor took him to a Baptist Sunday School.†¦show more content†¦Peter then recalls how he denied Jesus three times before he felt the roosters crow flail him (lines 12-13). All he could then do was weep (line 16). Not only is this an interesting poetic account of what is in the Gospels of the Bible, but it contains dilemmas that many Christians face - failure to be alert to Christs call, selfish motives in serving Him, and denial of the faith. Christians can better identify with Peter through this poem. The Proof is a poem that shows the mercy of God. It paints God as the Editor of life through proofreading terminology. Mankind is created by utterance (line 2). This is referring to the Genesis account of Creation in the Bible where God speaks and at His word, an utterance, things come into being. But, Wilbur says, one sometimes will say things that cause Gods work to jar and stammer (line 3). This is when a person says something that violates a commandment and upsets God. The speaker says, I love him that he did not in a rage / Once and forever rule me off the page (lines 5-6). He is grateful that God did not strike him down for his iniquity. Instead, God crossed out delete and wrote in stet (line 8). Stet is a proofreading term for let it stand. God, in His mercy and love, leaves people to do in their free will what they wish, hoping they will make the right choice and might please him yet (line 7). Through this poem, Christians can recall how GodShow MoreRelatedThe Parable Of The Good Seed1253 Words   |  6 PagesPoetry is oftentimes filled with several literary elements, but many make a single one its main focus. This same concept is seen with the poems â€Å"The Parable of the Good Seed† by Matthew, â€Å"Love Calls Us to the Things of This World† by Richard Wilbur, and â€Å"The Second Coming† by William Butler Yeats. All three poets focus on the same allusion of religion throughout their poems all in their own unique way. Each alludes to ideas outside of the actual poem by incorporating religious structures and beliefsRead MoreTheme Of Hypocrisy In Beowulf1437 Words   |  6 Pageswell. The Danes and the Geats both have killed whole villages of people just to obtain their treasure and gold. Even though they do all the same things as Grendel they still say they are superior to the monsters. They state that they are people of God who are righteous and worthy, but these are not the actions of a follower of Christ. They act and say that they are of higher quality because of both their religion and their blood line. The monsters and outcasts are supposedly said to be from â€Å"Cain’sRead MoreDefinition of Alliterative Verse1157 Words   |  5 PagesDefinition of Alliterative Verse Old English literature encompasses writings in Anglo-Saxon England during its conversion to Christianity in the 7th century up until the Norman Conquest in 1066. The roots of Anglo-Saxon poetry were based on Germanic tradition that was mainly in the form of alliterative verse (Greenblatt). When comparing to other forms of poetry, there are 6 key characteristics that define alliterative verse: four-beat lines, medial caesuras, enjambments, half-line alliteration,Read MoreWilliam Blakes London1458 Words   |  6 Pagesnature of certain practices. He supposedly bragged that he had only been to church three times in his life: his baptism, his marriage, and eventually he would attend his funeral service (Harris 1). What bothered him about the different sects of Christianity was that there was no wiggle room for those who disagreed with certain aspects. Many people accept the will of the Church without questioning whether the dictums are right or wrong. He said once, Active Evil is better than Passive Good. By thisRead MoreAn Essay on Religion1974 Words   |  8 PagesPope touches upon is regarding God and faith. At the start of this soliloquy, Pope questions whether he should begin by talking about man first or god, as we cannot make reason out of more than what we know to be fact (Pope, 1, 17-18). As the passage continues, Pope criticizes how mankind’s vision differs based on the individual, citing how different societies view deities differently, â€Å"When the dull ox, why now he breaks the clod, Is now a victim, and now Egypt’s god†¦This hour a slave, the next aRead MoreSAT Top 30 Essay Evidence18536 Words   |  75 Pagesold man Columbus†¦ Facts: Born to a middle-class family in Genoa (now modern Italy); as a boy and young man he worked on ships and as a business apprentice. He was an ambitious, self-educated man who was also very religious and interested in Christianity (and the spreading of it) In Columbus’s lifetime, the â€Å"Silk Road† to China and India - an important trade route and source of luxury goods - became much more dangerous to travel, and many navigators and traders were seeking an alternate routeRead MoreIslamic Way of warfare23558 Words   |  95 Pagesof warfare in Islam. Finally it contains recommendations for US and other Western nations in general about engaging with Muslims and extremist militant groups. Since the author is a Muslim, the name â€Å"Allah† is used throughout the paper to mean God. The concept of Allah’s being is explained in brief in chapter 3, and that idea is carried throughout the paper whenever any reference is drawn from the Quran. Muslims believe that the Quran is the word of Allah, revealed over time through the angel