Friday May 20th:

Jonathan Edwards made it very obvious that there is no sugar coating the facts of life. In his sermon “Sinner In the Hands of an Angry God”, Edwards makes his points to be brutally harsh but in the end state the truth of the matter. Edwards comes across very bold with his theology which I thought was very impressive because most people like to interpret the meanings into ways that seem less harsh. I liked how him. I liked how Edwards states that “The wrath of God is like great waters that are damned for the present; they increase more and more, and rise high and high, til an outlet is given…….It is true, that judgment against your evil works has not been executed hitherto; the floods of God’s vengeance have been withheld; but your guilt in the mean time is constantly increasing. I found this to be very powerful and true. I have never took the time to really think about it but from past experiences I have learned the more I try to hid something that I have done or tell countless lies (not saying that I’m a pathological liar but in my younger days I always turned to lying so I wouldn’t get in trouble, boy what did I know it only made it worse) it makes the issue seem that much bigger until it completely demolishes you and your are caught up in one big lie. I think over all Edwards finds it to be more efficient to have messages and sermons that feel as they are overbearing because the outcome affect is better.

Sunday Morning presents the word of God in a totally different manner. Stevens brings forth the approach of spreading the word to be very pleasant and peaceful. I have never heard the words blood and paradise both used in the same sentence until know. I thought that this line was very unique because he is comparing two things at once meaning that the blood that was shed has given use eternal life which is paradise. I also like how he compares death to being the mother of beauty because when most people think of death they are very sad and depressed but in this poem he compares the opportunity of having everlasting life and as a dream come true because once death approaches you are taken to a place of paradise where worldly things will no longer matter. It’s hard to determine which presentation I like better because I really enjoyed the harshness of Edwards sermon because it’s something you don’t hear every day but at the same time I think that Stevens did a magnificent job at creating a simple poem that kind sums up the everyday thoughts of humans. I have wondered many days what heaven will be like but I guess that’s the reason for faith and knowing that one day I will be free from this wicked place I call home.

Young Goodman Brown seemed as if it was your everyday short story.  Hawthorne creates both a Christian husband and wife to portray the story. In the begging Hawthorne demonstrates how holy a ma perceives his mistress because he portrays her as being blessed angel on Earth. Not many people these days compare their spouse as being an angel in less it’s in a joking manner. Later on in the story Hawthorne makes a statement that is very clear to me about having heaven above and faith below and I will stand firm against the devil. This is a very interesting sentence to me because as most of us we travel this Earth having faith in what we believe and that one day we will enter into the paradise.  As it continues I can see Hawthorne turning what he has created as a story into everyday life being the dark road, this could be a path that a person is following down where they are making all the wrong decisions and they are headed straight for hell just like Brown did, he followed this dark and lonely path that he doubted about and to find out himself in the middle of what was known as hell.  I find this story to be very odd and comparing it to what both Edwards and Steven have wrote  I assume this to be because I like things to be black and white instead of having to read between the lines but I guess that the moral was to show that though Brown could have possible fallen asleep he followed a path that was less traveled and in the end it caused him more harm than good.

In today’s society I suppose that “we” are all in unison with Steven and the way that he demonstrates the word of God. Many of us today sugar coat what is right or wrong because its what we want to hear and it seems to make things less harsh but in reality we need to follow what Edwards is saying and maybe that would help us all out. I find myself from time to time contemplating what I know is right and wrong but I seem to try and find ways to make the things that are more harmful or bad less.