No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
So it's as much about bells as islands. If you are thinking, "wait a minute... John Donne would not relate to your obsessive ruminating about islands! He wants you to connect with other people, not hide out on some island in the North Sea."
OK. But the lyrical Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in London (where I intend to hear Evensong at least once, provided that "Occupy" activists do not appear and compel my conscience to join them in some disruptive action... conscience can be a big problem when trying to worship God in peace) would not, I am sure, take issue with hanging out on an island in order to become more "involved with mankind" in the big picture.
This was Thomas Merton's approach when he wrote
"The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image."
― Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island
Which, now that I ponder it, is an observation of the sort one often encounters in the writings of great spiritual luminaries like Thomas Merton and John the Dwarf. And, in yet another literary example, no less a spiritual luminary than RuPaul has said, "If you can't love yourself, how the hell can you love anyone else?"
What better reason does one need to obsess about islands? More literary references tomorrow...
"The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image."
― Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island
Which, now that I ponder it, is an observation of the sort one often encounters in the writings of great spiritual luminaries like Thomas Merton and John the Dwarf. And, in yet another literary example, no less a spiritual luminary than RuPaul has said, "If you can't love yourself, how the hell can you love anyone else?"
No comments:
Post a Comment