Take, Read: From Seuss to Scripture - Part II

When our children first learn how to read, a whole new world opens up to them. Reading is about expanding one’s horizons. We are going through this process right now as Jayce is slowly mastering the sounds and way words are put together. Yesterday when he started reading to me, you could see the spark of excitement in the knowledge of this new power of which he was taking hold. His horizons are definitely expanding right now. And with this new power comes a safe yet challenging place – a sanctioned place for fantasy and imagination to acquire the ability to make moral and spiritual choices later in life. He will be able to “transcend the artificial boundaries of race, gender, class, and things.” He will “learn from the wisdom and joys and mistakes of others.” The practice of reading shapes us morally and intellectually. We master certain ideas, broach new values, and stretch our minds and hearts.

Most of you know I love books and am an avid reader though one of my favorite quotes by Einstein gives us some cautionary instruction on the subject: Reading, after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking. Certain books as “brain candy” aside, I can see where using any books too much as an escape from the reality and adventure of living can be fruitless and even dangerous. Done right however, reading can reap enormous benefits in our lives mentally, emotionally and spiritually. With the “right books” and a “fruitful method”, [St.] Augustine was convinced, “truth could be found."

Reading aloud, reading silently, reading together, reading alone, meditation on words, meditating on the Word, listening for the Word among all the words – all of these deeply spiritual practices immensely enrich our daily life. If words are important, and if the Gospel of John pictures God’s own beginning as “Word” (the “Word of God”; John 1:1), then not surprisingly reading and its companion practices of writing and telling stories – the art of seeing and composing a life through words – have rich potential for faith. Christians are “people of the Word.”

If, after all this, you’re not sure of your own feelings about the written word, I’ve come up with some pretty good indicators (in a Jeff Foxworthy-style manner) as to whether you are a lover of books.

You just might be a book lover if…

…walking through a book shop is considered “Me” time.

…upon receiving a new book, you crack it open to smell the “fresh”, new book smell.

…you're sleep deprived because you just can’t put it down.

…80% of your wish list for Christmas or birthday is books.

…you enter a library as if it were a sanctuary.

…you’ve put Amazon.com as an icon on your desktop.

…you consider the printed word more precious than gold...and therefore spend much "gold" on the printed word.

…you recognize the act of picking up a book in some way feeds your soul.

…you have a pile of books by your bedside your are currently reading – all at the same time.

…you have more books than bookshelves.

So we read for pleasure. We read to learn, grow, experience new worlds, and connect to others. Ultimately we also read out of a fundamental spiritual need. We seek meaning and answers to profound questions of existence.

Just as food determines the state and shape of one’s body, books can form the soul. Reading, like eating, provides essential nourishment and communion. We cannot live without eating. We cannot live fully without reading. Take, eat. Take, read. Reading is this elementary, this basic to life and faith.

So if your main courses comprise of Scripture, nonfiction and "educational" books, your snacks of miscellany and your desserts of fiction, it sounds to me like you're a pretty healthy reader. Whatever it may be, enjoy your next read!

All green text comes from Chapter 8 of In the Midst of Chaos by Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore.