The On The Bookshelf Podcast

Kathryn Wehr on DK Sayers’ classic BBC Radio Plays in WWII

“The Man Born to be King: Wade Annotated Edition” by Dorothy L. Sayers, edited by Kathryn Wehr (IVP Academic)

This is an extraordinary new edition of the BBC Radio Plays written by acclaimed author, playwright and scholar Dorothy L. Sayers. The BBC broadcast this series of radio dramas from Dec. 1941 until Oct. 1942, one a month, presenting 12 specific moments in the life and ministry of Jesus. They were written in such a way that they seemed like real people, speaking the vernacular rather than stilted “Bible-talk”. The broadcasts were incredibly popular and influential, and they were published in book form in 1943.

Sayers chose as her overarching theme “the kingship of Christ” because (as she explained), “even children can’t help knowing there is a great dispute going on (during WWII) about how the world should be governed.”

These plays are amazing! Powerfully written, and carefully constructed. I can only imagine what a punch these plays must have packed at the time, for actors were forbidden to portray Christ on stage in Britain since 1843. The actors on the radio were not restricted because no one could see them playing Jesus, so to hear Him speaking to His disciples and interacting with the other contemporary characters must have been incredible. It’s powerful now!

Dorothy L. Sayers painstakingly translated the Gospels and used other 1^st century writings (such as the Jewish historian Josephus) to flesh out these characters. I particularly like what she did with Judas Iscariot, making him a very smart and intuitive man. Like Lucifer, in this version Judas was tripped-up by his pride, and ultimately misjudged the situation so badly that he despaired of what he had put into play. Not trusting Jesus to forgive him, Judas took his own life. And what a tragedy on so many levels. What an incredible witness Judas would have had: the disciple who betrayed Christ to His enemies, yet the Son of Man forgave him. Alas, Judas didn’t believe Jesus would overcome death, even though he had seen Jesus raise a very-dead Lazarus, and so Judas died tragically and lost everything.

Dorothy L. Sayers was a brilliant playwright. I can hear these words of hers over the radio in my imagination, just filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to bless and enlighten. Kathryn Wehr has done a masterful job of providing us a window into the mind of the playwright, “documenting Sayer’s intellectual and creative process as she reflected on the Gospels and composed the plays for radio.”

In these days when radio is seen as old-fashioned and streaming is all the rage, these wonderful radio plays from eight decades ago still are vibrant examples of the every best of the art of storytelling. Christians who read these plays will find (as I do) that they still  can be touched by the authenticity of Sayer’s brilliant creations. These plays brought the truth of Christ to a generation in Great Britain during a time of greater danger and turmoil than we face today. They retain that vibrancy.

 

Marc Myers returns with more stories of iconic pop, rock & soul songs

Anatomy of 55 More Songs: The Oral History of Top Hits That Changed Rock, Pop and Soul” by Marc Myers (now in paperback from Grove Press)

The new paperback actually added 3 more stories from the hardback released at this time last year! Learn of the personal heartbreak sin Fleetwood Mac that inspired their classic "Go Your Own Way"; about how MTV was responsible for European bands getting a shot in the American market in the early 1980s, like Dexy's Midnight Runners ; and how the Charlie Daniels Band made the fiddles sound so evil in ":The Devil went Down to Georgia". Did you know that Donovan's "Sunshine Superman" wasn't about LSD but about his love for the woman he eventually married? And that Tommy James & the Shondells' "Crystal Blue Persuasion" originated in a Bible verse given to Tommy by a fan who shared his Christian faith? All kinds of music, all kinds of stories, told in the own words of the composers and lyricists, artists and producers. Marc Myers spent 20 minutes with me in an all-net interview and I added a few stories from last year's to round out the 30 minute show.

 

 

interview-Robert Spencer on How the Byzantines Saved Civilization

"Empire of God: How the Byzantines Saved Civilization" by Robert Spencer

Contrary to popular opinion, the Roman Empire lasted almost 2,000 years! That was up until the fall of the Eastern half of the Empire based on Constantinople in 1453 to the Muslim horde. The citizens of what has been dubbed "The Byzantine Empire" by more recent historians never referred to themselves as "Byzantinians"--they called themselves "Romans". True, along the way they dropped speaking Latin for speaking Greek, the language of scholars and ancient writings. But there was never a time when the Empire in the East was not considered part of the Roman Empire by th people of that time.

When Rome was sacked in the 5th century, it seemed to Western Romans (even North African Christian leaders who were Romans, such as Augustine) that the world had shifted on its axis. But the Western part of the Empire had been declining ever since Constantine built the city now known as "Istanbul" in the 4th century, and moved part of the governmental workload there.

It was the Eastern part of the Empire that kept the flame of Roman law and government going , even though constantly under attack by the Muslim armies since Mohammed. Thanks to the people we call Byzantines, Western culture received the enormous heritage of law and beauty.

interview-Amanda Barratt brings a powerful novel set in WWII Poland

“The Warsaw Sisters: a novel of World War II Poland” by Amanda Barratt (Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group)

 As we continue to watch with horror the news of Hamas invasion of Israel and the accompanying atrocities against the Jews, I invite you to read a most incredible novel about how a pair of sisters survived the Nazi occupation of Warsaw, Poland. It is based on the true accounts of the misery inflicted by the barbarians on all the Poles, but the Jews were targeted for annihilation. However, it was a gradual destruction, often capricious. (In fact, the very casual brutality of it made it all the more horrific.) The German military invaded Poland from the west on Sept. 1, 1939. Two weeks later, the Soviets invaded from the east. After a month of bitter fighting, Poland’s freedom was ended, and they were a captive people. The Nazis killed without any reason, treating the Jews as their private punching bags, and stealing from them with impunity. Over time, the Jews would be squeezed into less and less territory within Warsaw, the Polish capital city, until finally they were sequestered into the Warsaw Ghetto. From there they would starved to death or carried off in the trains to the death camps. The nearest was Auschwitz, and it grew exponentially during the next four and a half years. Families were torn apart, men were killed on the streets, children were terrorized, women were raped and murdered. Few of the German soldiers seemed to have any moral fiber at all. They looked upon the Poles and especially the Jews and Slavs are sub-humans and treated with disdain, But the Polish people never gave up resisting; indeed their resistance groups were much more organized and efficient than the much-vaunted French Resistance. Our heroines are sisters from a nice middle-class family, caught in this reign of terror. They each deal with it in their own way. Antonina loves a brilliant fellow musician who is Jewish, which made little difference before the war. Now it makes every difference. She tries smuggling food into the Ghetto but Marek and his mother insist that she stop. Antonina decides to hide Jewish children as part of a daring network of women in an“underground railroad” to get them out of the country. She finally realizes that Marek is unlikely to last the war (or even the year) so they are secretly wed and conceive a child, both capital crimes. Her sister Helena is astounded that her sister is taking such chances and wants to avoid any more notice than necessary by the Nazi authorities. But after she learns of the birth of her sister’s child Kasia, and remembering how the Nazis casually murdered their Aunt Kasia, a physician, Hela joins the Resistance as a soldier for Poland. It will not be easy or safe; indeed, they are fearless but the Nazis are ruthless. And the promised help from the Soviets never arrives, because they had no intention of helping the Resistance. The communists plan to make Poland their colony after the war (and they will do so.)

The book is “a richly-rendered portrait of courage, sacrifice, and resilience.” I would add: powerful, shocking and inspiring.

interview-Hermann Eben on how to build Great Relation ships

“GR8 Relationship Series-Book i: How Did This Happen To Me?” and “Book 4: What Happened To Us?” by Hermann Eben (Equip Press)

These are 2 of the 8 books in this series of small books with big visions. The author, a very successful businessman, was rocked in 1981 by being confronted with God, which led to Hermann’s realization that he was not genuinely pursuing God’s righteousness. In his world was rocked again in 1991 by learning that he wife was having an affair. With God’s help, they reconciled, and he has turned the insight gained the hard way into this series.

Book 1 “How Did This Happen To Me?” he and his wife Louie lead us through understanding how a loving couple , active in church and ministry, could get in such serious trouble with each other and God. Hermann was a hard worker, who began to put more and more energy into work and less and less into his marriage. Louie starts drinking to mask her emotions rather than depending on Christ to remove them. It turned into full-blown addiction. Both learned a painful lesson: “turn your focus away from yourself and purse the best for others. Do this patiently, kindly, sacrificially, and unconditionally.” They diagnose that “The Flashing ME is the biggest problem.” Do you want and expect to be served, or to serve others? Is it Love or Selfishness?

In the GR8 Relationships they talk about The Three Fs and a C : Feelings, Freedom, Forgiveness, and Confession. Don’t be an amoeba, acting and responding like a one-cell creature with no brain! “You are free to do whatever you want, but why would you? If forgiveness is the cure, guilt is the problem, and we’re all guilty. To confess is to admit you have done something wrong, that others are hurt, and that God’s righteousness has been disregarded.

Book 4 dives into how relationships can go badly off the rails. Genesis displays the origin and purpose of marriage, which shows the critical component of any relationship is being anchored in God. Man is designed for work and activity, taking care of the creation, in need of companionship from a woman.  Her design is to “help, support, aid and designate assistance”. We can manage a business, but  not a marriage; we can build a partnership in our marriage if we treat it as a living relationship grounded in God.Our relationship with each other is based on this balance, but if the husband puts his significance in work, and the wife puts her in security, and both are estranged from God, it’s poison. But God has a better plan, and when we submit to His guidance from His Word our marriage can be the way it was designed to be.

I look forward to the others in this series! They are loaded with Scriptural guidance and time-tested wisdom.