Jeremiah's Lamentations--Slavitt's Translation

Some of us read Bible commentaries and use Bible commentaries for various reasons and the reality is that there is no shortage of commentaries. Sometimes commentaries are given by first rate scholars who even provide a new translation directly related to the commentary. In truth, most Bible scholars are not first class wordsmiths and in the best of all possible worlds, poets, and polished producers of prose would be consulted when translating the Bible. One reason I so enjoy the translations of Robert Alter is because he really does understand language. He knows Hebrew very well and is equally knowledgeable of English. Since it is not likely Bible scholars will seek out poets to assist in translating we all need to keep our eyes open for the occasions when poets translate Hebrew poetry.
David Slavitt's translation of Lamentations is such a work. Most of us know that this portion of Holy Writ is a compilation of melancholy dirges akin to funeral elegies about a ruined people. Structurally, what is most unique about Lamentations is that the first four poems are acrostics and virtually impossible to translate into English. While I'm sure others have attempted this, Slavitt provides a poets sensitivity giving insight into not only the suffering of the ancient Jewish people, but into the nature of human suffering. Slavitt translates aleph to taw or A-V with great finesse. This translation is a formal outpouring in the highest of high literary expression.

My Interview with William James on the New Atheists

Ok , I begin with a disclaimer. This is not an actual interview in the technical sense. Since William James passed from this world in 1910, many decades before I was even born, it is not possible that I interviewed him. However, here is what really did happen. After spending the last few months pouring over key books by Professor James, it caught up with my unconscious mind and I did indeed dream that I met him and we talked. The following is an imagined conversation based on significant engagement with some of his writings and an unusual dream. Robert Woods: This is a most unexpected honor to meet you Dr. James and be able to ask you some questions about some things you have written. William James: My pleasure. I am glad to discover that some are still reading my writings. Woods: I think what most impresses me about your education is that you are a philosopher and psychologist, but were trained as a physician which gives you an extraordinary advantage over some who

Accepting the Invitation to the Great Conversation Extended by Mortimer Adler and Robert Hutchins

If I think about it, I am saddened that I received the invitation later in life. I wish I had received and accepted the invitation in High School, or college, or certainly graduate school. It was not all my fault, I was not told about the invitation until about twelve years ago. Since that time, I have invited hundreds and hope to invite many more. What is The Great Conversation ? The actual wording I am most familiar with comes through the writings and lives of Mortimer Adler and Robert Hutchins. Since the 1960's those two men and a handful of others fought valiantly against social and cultural trends that would all but be the end of the Great Tradition, the Great Books, and the Great Conversation. While things have gotten considerably worse since these intellectual warriors declared a strategy of intellectual health, there are loving resistance fighters and pockets of resistance found here and there. Robert Hutchins, "Until lately the west has rega

How Twitter Killed Tolstoy or Why You Will Likely Not Finish this Blog

My favorite fictional Professor, aptly described the end of learning. Faber, tells how his class went from Sven Birkerts The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction Alan Jacobs Slow Reading in a Hurried Age David Mikics Words Onscreen: The Fate of Reading in a Digital Age Naimi S. Baron My own experience parallels that of Professor Faber. With declining Liberal Arts majors and distracted Great Books students.... Our lives have become as thin as the thinnest flat screen TV. There is a hollowness to our public discourses and our private conversations. It is not surprising how the tone, texture, and content of our verbal exchanges mimic posts on our dominate social media or the headline stories Of course, the title of this blog could have been any of the following: How Instagram Killed How Vine Killed How Facebook Killed How Google+ Killed How LinkedIn Killed

Musings of a Christian Humanist

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