Illuminations
A Whole Poem
Anthony Esolen
Whenever I recommend the poetry of Christian hymns, and in doing so cast a cold eye on the incompetence and sloppy sentimentality of much of what we sing in our churches today, someone will accuse me of being an "elitist," as if that were a fit response to end all discussion. I typically reply in three ways.
First, I say that my friend has evaded the issue. If he wants to defend the art of a Marty Haugen or David Haas, let him do so, on the same grounds whereby we judge the worth of any poem, sacred or no. Then I remind him that all human cultures have had traditions of poetry—songs—handed down over the generations, beloved alike by old and young, rich and poor, men and women, whether the people were literate or not. We are the strange beings with no poetry in our souls. Finally, I ask him to turn to another art. Would he show the same indifference if an incompetent were to cover the walls of his home with paintings? Would he open his wallet for ugly and awkward furniture? If not, why the carelessness with poetry, with its peculiar power to enter the soul and to form it for good or bad?
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Anthony Esolen is Distinguished Professor of Humanities at Thales College and the author of over 30 books, including Real Music: A Guide to the Timeless Hymns of the Church (Tan, with a CD), Out of the Ashes: Rebuilding American Culture (Regnery), and The Hundredfold: Songs for the Lord (Ignatius). He has also translated Dante’s Divine Comedy (Random House) and, with his wife Debra, publishes the web magazine Word and Song (anthonyesolen.substack.com). He is a senior editor of Touchstone.
subscription options
Order
Print/Online Subscription
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Order
Online Only
Subscription
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more from the online archives
18.4—May 2005
The Idylls, Idols & Devils That Corrupt the Moral Imagination by Vigen Guroian
32.1—January/February 2019
Answers Secular & Religious by Allan C. Carlson
27.6—Nov/Dec 2014
Tales of Forbidden Stereotypes
Real-Life Men & Women & the Tragic Loss of Human Comedy by Anthony Esolen
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
