Christian Piety in the Light of the Poems Created by the Spanish and English Poets - Essay Example

Christian Piety Literature is aptly d as the reflection of the era in which it has been produced. Hence, a refined piece of literature represents the religious beliefs, social norms, cultural values and political aspects of its contemporary age. The same is applied with the poetry and prose created during the Classical Era that frequently discusses the Biblical moral values on the basis of the puritan ethics described and determined by the Christian faith. The literary giants including Chaucer, Marlowe, Shakespeare, Spencer, Bacon, Milton, Johnson, Blake, Byron and several other poets, playwrights and prose writers also created verses and prose keeping in view the teachings and sayings, attributed to the Holy Jesus Christ. Some of the literary classics specifically express true feelings of sheer love and affection for Almighty God and Christ as well, and hence concentrate upon the Biblical tales and stories while depicting the themes and imagination; Milton’s illustrious Paradise Lost (1667) is the best example of such poesy. Additionally, the poets also articulated their unflinching commitment with the Christian faith, which not only infuse energy in the minds of the readers, but also fill their hearts with the feelings and passion for the faith they adopt and imitate from the core of their heart; the present paper also concentrate upon the Christian Piety in the light of the poems created by the Spanish and English poets at different times. By critically examining the verses depicting the Christian piety, it becomes crystal clear that the Christian authors adore the Lord, and appear to be ready for offering all kinds of sacrifices for the uplift and glory of their faith. The same passionate sentiments have been depicted by seventeenth century Spanish poet Miguel de Guevara in his To Christ Crucified. Written in the form of sonnet, the remarkable verses describe the very reality that the poet maintains unconditional love for Christ without having any greed of obtaining permission to enter heaven or maintaining any fear of the high flames burning the bodies of sinners in the inferno. On the contrary, he just loves Christ because of the great sacrifice he made at gallows for the salvation of the sinful humanity after receiving bruises, wounds and injuries from the king of Jerusalem. Christ was maltreated, adversely cursed, tortured mentally and physically and was rebuked by the king’s men and masses alike. However, his feet never wavered or trembled altogether in the face of the series of hardships, and he remained as firm and dauntless to teach and preach to the humans the noble message of Almighty God the Creator. Consequently, Jesus is still revered and adored by millions of people belonging to every part and region of the globe at large without discrimination. It has aptly been found that an overwhelming majority of the individuals have embraced Christianity keeping in view the concept of reward and punishment; consequently, they imitate the belief in order to enter the Eden Garden the first parents of humanity were kicked out after tasting the fruit of forbidden tree in the wake of the temptation made by Satan in the form of serpent. (Milton, 1667, IX) Furthermore, since the Scriptures also warn them of the wrath of God for transgressing from His laws, practicing wickedness and violating the rules manifestly prescribed in the Old and New Testaments, the ordinary Christians love and worship the Lord out of the fear of punishment they would be inflicted after death; as Dante describes in his self-imagined Divine Comedy Canto II that the sinners and rebels would be in adverse and painful state of affairs in the inferno in the world hereinafter for not complying with the commandments of the Lord. Somehow, Guevara refutes the very idea of reward and punishment for having love for the Christ. On the other hand, he is so inspired by the great life-sacrifice of the Christ, where he was ‘nailed upon the cross’ (Line 6) after being tortured by the cruel and ruthless infidels, that he is ready to dedicate his entire life for the cause of Christianity. Hence, Guevara has pointed out towards the very Christian thoughtfulness that forgiving even the worst kind of wickedness inflicted by others is the gist of the Christian faith. Almost the same feelings have been expressed by twentieth century Spanish poet Luis Munoz Marin in his Pamphlet (1964). Marin, in his poem under examination, also preaches the Christian piety by arguing in support of the equal and generous distribution of wealth, resources and opportunities for the Christians that are deprived of even the basic necessities of life. Thus he looks for ‘satisfying the dreams that sleep in the veins, of men who sweated and wept and raged in order to season the coffee.’ (Lines 7-9) The poet displays deep and sincere impressions of grief over the pathetic life led by the poor masses, and appears to be determined to follow the real teachings of Holy Christ for rendering valuable services for the social and economic uplift of the Christians without discrimination. Marin also laments over the miserable life the Christian brethren belong to lower stratum of society lead. He claims himself of being the pamphleteer and postman of the Lord, which has been assigned to convey and communicate His holy message. Hence, the verses give the universal message of piety and compassion in a simple but eloquent manner. Eighteenth century innocent novelist and poetess Emily Bronte has also portrayed the complete scenario of her unabated love in her superb and delicate poem No Coward Soul is mine (1848). The four-stanza poem shows that the poetess maintains sheer sentiments of love for her Creator, and hence is not afraid of her expected death even at the prime of her youth. She admits the very reality that she is at the death door; even then she acknowledges the fact that every object including the humans and earth, and the sun and the universe are to die and expire sooner or later; and it is just her Lord the God that is eternal and immortal as His spirit ‘animates eternal years, pervades and broods above and changes, sustains, dissolves, creates, and rears.’ (Lines 19-20) Thus, she expresses her humblest gratitude on having strongest relationship with her Creator; it is therefore she loves to obey His commands without displaying even the slightest reluctance or refusal altogether. The poem consists of seven four-line stanzas of equal size, which urge the followers of Christ to gird up their loins for their ultimate meeting with their Lord in the Hereinafter. Carmen Alicia Cadilla has revered Holy Christ through her dedicated words in praise of Holy Virgin Mary as well as for Christ by drawing out the Biblical theme regarding the glad tidings of the sacred virgin birth in her Angelus (1947). Written as a free verse, the poetess welcomes the sacred arrival of the archangel Gabriel to Mary in order to communicate the holy message of virgin pregnancy to her. It was not mere a message conveyed to a woman by the angel; on the contrary, it was actually the symbol of the salvation of humanity from the punishment and agony to be inflicted upon them because of the original sin on the one hand, as well as for getting indulged into the sins of various kinds throughout their life span on the other. The Archangel is not meeting an ordinary lady; on the contrary, he is announcing the victory of the truthfulness, justice, compassion and sacrifice over falsehood, cruelty, wickedness and bloodshed. Thus, arrival of Christ is actually the beginning of new era on the very face of the earth, as Jesus is coming to fill the earth with peace, tranquility, righteousness and uprightness. To conclude, it becomes evident that all the four above described poems fill the heart with countless joys for displaying unflinching love for God and Christ. These poems negate the personality of the authors and deeply express that it is only Lord that is worthy of praise, admiration and worship; and humans are mere trivial creatures, which could attain salvation by having strong belief in the Lord and sticking to love Him without any intention of reward on the one hand, and without having fear of punishment and penalty on the other. Works Cited Aitken, Thomas, Jr. “Poet in the Fortress: the Story of Luis Munoz Marin.” An NAL World Book. NY: New American Library, 1964. Bronte, Emily. “No Coward Soul is mine” 1848 Retrieved from http://www.online-literature.com/bronte/1352/ Cadilla, Carmen Alicia. “Angelus.” Anthology of Contemporary Latin-American Poetry Ed. Dudley Fitts. Norfolk, CT: New Directions, 1947. Guevara, Miguel de. “A Cristo Crucificado.” Anthology of Spanish Poetry: From the Beginnings to the Present Day. Ed. John Crow. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State UP, 1979. Read More