A Modern Reformation

Have you thought recently about the reformation? I mean the 21st century one. That’s right, there’s another religious reformation going on! This reformation shares many parallels with its predecessor. Just as many devout Christians sought to better reconnect with God in the Protestant reformation, so are many millennials striving to understand God in innovative ways today.


(Girl: freerange stock, Luther: Wikimedia commons, photo editing by Emma Crisp)

The Monster in the Mirror: Individualism During the Reformation and Romantic Eras

“The different accidents of life are not so changeable as the feelings of human nature.”

- Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

 

Humans have a natural inclination to want to change things - whether or not we actually can. Often this can lead to disappointment and failure, but there are times throughout history where this persistence has led to a large global impact.

In 1517 the stage was set for one of these moments. Tensions between the church and religious scholars were coming to a head around Europe, and all it took was one man to be a catalyst for religious reform. Martin Luther and other newfound Protestants sought relief from the structure and confines of the Catholic church, and this growing movement led to immense growth and change for all religious parties. We see this in the “Consilium de Emendanda Ecclesia” - a report created by a church commission to recommend internal reform. It reflects a sense of helplessness towards the unknown, saying:

Looking Back, Moving Forward

When I was in high school, I went with a group to Moab for white water rafting. As we drifted down the stream, our guide taught us about eddies.

Eddies are formed when part of the current splits off, spinning a section of the river back towards its source for a brief moment. Just like water flows in the streams of nature, humanity drifts in the stream of time. When a change interrupts the natural flow, the denizens of time turn back to their sources. In fact, history is a never ending cycle of going back to the sources.

Take the Renaissance. They went back to the texts of the ancient Greeks and Romans, celebrating the glory of humanity. 

“What a piece of work is man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god – the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals!”

– Shakespeare, Hamlet

What grew out of this was science, art, and new heights to which humanity could grow.

The stream of time flowed a little bit farther before another eddy appeared—that is, the Reformation. It too helped humanity reach new heights, this time by emulating the God and reflecting on the fallen state of man. The conflicts divided nations. Interestingly enough, however, it empowered the citizens inside them. With the use of the printing press and the sharing of information, our first real step towards globalization began. John Donne illustrates this principle when he states that, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every piece is a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less.”

In this case, “Europe” isn’t just a generation of people, it’s everyone who’s ever lived—we feel the consequences of our history today, lifting the mountains and pockmarking valleys. We grow and develop as humanity. And as we look back, we move forward.

-The Humanists

Sydney Sands, Ryan Young, Isabella Boss, Grant Baldwin

Mystery VS Morality

Mystery VS Morality

In the Medieval Era, mystery plays were a popular source of entertainment and religious education for the general public. They were known for their extravagance and dramatic portrayals of Bible stories and the expeditions of the apostles. During the time of the Reformation, a shift in religion was apparent as culture was vehemently moving away from the Catholic religion and began exploring in the Protestant realm. This shift in religion can be seen in the dramatic representations of the time, known as morality plays. Instead of focusing on the stories of the Bible like the medieval times, morality plays encapsulated the doctrine of the Bible during the Reformation. 

The Chester Mystery Plays

The shift in theatre was mostly a result of the different emphasis that the Protestants placed on literature. John Donne’s devotional poetry was an example to all Protestants of how to look at christianity through a new lens of self-reflection. Martin Luther strongly believed poetry and rhetoric encouraged a deep respect for sacred things among the believers. This belief, coupled with Philipp Melanchthon’s humanistic encouragement to put off the old church and create a completely new religion, led Protestants to abandon worldly mystery plays and create morality plays. These plays focused on morals, values and the journey of a soul toward salvation, reflecting the values in their theology. The most popular morality play, Everyman, focuses on coming judgement, the fleeting morals of the world and the lasting morals of righteousness. It demonstrates the Protestant ideals of piety, devotion and a personal relationship with God.

scene from Everyman

The Reformation had a much deeper effect on Western culture than simply challenging the canonical doctrines and practices of the Catholic church. Reformation attitudes were evident in many aspects of life, and is especially so in the expressive entertainment and arts of the age. While the Middle Ages and Renaissance’s mystery plays featured elaborate production and execution, the morality plays were more abstract and didactic in nature, reflective of the Reformation focus on doctrine and individual connection with God. 

Fay Walker, Aubrey McDonald, Jacob Lang, Madison Smith

Corruption in Religious Authorities & Political Despots

The Reformation kicked off to a roaring start when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of a church in Wittenburg, Germany. This not only began the greatest religious upheaval in European history but also paved the way for the rejection of traditional political systems during the Enlightenment.

Criticizing the corruption and over-abundance of the Church, Luther asked, “Why does not the pope, whose wealth is today greater than the wealth of the richest Crassus, build this one basilica of St. Peter with his own money rather than with the money of poor believers?" In a similar vein, the founding fathers of the United States of America declared their independence from England "For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent." This is only one of seventeen grievances written in the Declaration of Independence, compared to Luther’s ninety-five, but we see a pattern in the types of accusations that these revolutionaries were leveling against the institutions in power.





Both the Enlightenment thinkers and Luther provided these complaints as evidence that change was needed. In his work The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, Luther said that “the church has been robbed of all her liberty.” The same sentiment is echoed in the words of Immanuel Kent, who noted, “Everywhere there is restriction on freedom” while penning a defense for the Enlightenment. The parallels are clear between these two thoughts, though it’s worth noting that Martin Luther supported monarchies, as did many people of his time, as being divinely appointed.





Although it wasn’t his intention, the Enlightenment thinkers were only free to think about liberty from authoritarian forms of government because Luther had already challenged the most powerful institution in Western Europe, the Catholic church, and provided a space for humankind to question centuries-old tradition.





With this newfound independence of thought, the people of the Enlightenment could build on Luther’s momentum and carry their grievances not just to religious authority but to political despots, leading to revolutions and the semi-successful establishment of democracy in the western world. Enlightenment leaders like Thomas Jefferson, John Locke, and Voltaire questioned established political norms. Much like Luther, they came to the conclusion that those in power were hurting their constituents for their own gain. They could either submit to corrupt authority or break away. In the Americas and France, the people chose to reject a distant (geographically or socially) leader to develop their own democratic systems, echoing Martin Luther’s decision to reject the Pope in pursuit of God’s truth.






Gabe Bradford, Mary Bowers, Eliza Anderson, Christy Bradford, Kelsi Hicken

"One Nation, Under God"

“For Germany!” or “For England!” are perhaps the single greatest phrases that capture the reason why the Reformation was able to succeed and fundamentally shape Western religious culture today. Nationalistic feelings in both the German provinces of the Holy Roman Empire and in England provided the support necessary to preserve and spread the ideas of the Protestant Reformation. Without it, there is no way that Martin Luther and others would have survived the persecution of the Catholic Church. 

After Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the cathedral in Wittenberg, the Catholic Church severed connection with Martin Luther and was looking to kill him when he would not rescind his statement. If it were not for the German prince who took him in, he would have likely been burned at the stake. From that point on, the spread of Luther’s ideas directly tied to German nationalism among the princes of individual provinces. Luther encouraged Eoban Koch, “Do not give way to your apprehension lest we Germans become more barbarous than ever we were by reason of the decline of letters through our theology.” By invoking the idea that German people should continue their religious devotion through scholarship, Martin Luther is clearly invoking German nationalistic pride to promote his religious ideas.

Like those in Germany looking for an excuse to separate themselves from the Catholic church, for England, it seemed to fall right into their laps. With Henry the 8th holding the crown and in need of an heir, which his current wife could no provide, he decided it was time for a divorce. The Catholic church did not believe in divorce, therefore, declined King Henry to make the legal separation from his wife. Frustrated and determined, King Henry decided to show the Catholic church who has the real power by severing his ties with them, divorcing and remarrying multiple times and proclaiming that England is now Protestant. This created confusion among the people, unable to decide who their loyalty belonged to: church or state? Though later, when Bloody Mary took the throne, that decision became easier to make with the introduction of propaganda: Foxe’s Book of Martyrs.

From Martin Luther to MLK Reformation as a Stepping Stone Towards Progression

In the Summer of 1934, then Michael Luther King Sr. took a life-changing ministry trip to Berlin, where the reformast story of Martin Luther spoke to him so much that the reverend decided to change his own name (and that of his son’s) to Martin. That son became the leader to one of the biggest civil right’s causes in America (very befitting of his namesake). Through this happenstance of chance, lie the differences and similarities between Martin Luther and Martin Luther King Jr (MLK).

The act of changing or reforming an institution or practice in order to improve it is the basic meaning of what we see as “reformation”. However, with that verb come connoted history and processes that came around the Sixteenth Century. While this concept is not new, we have seen that aforementioned era helped shape future leaders as we have seen or see them today. 

Interestingly enough, both reformers mentioned above, MLK and Martin Luther were willing and able to share their stance with the world through each’s “new media” of the time. Martin Luther was born 43 years after the invention of the printing press, which as we know, served a role in Luther’s words being able to be spread to the people most needing it. The kairotic rhetoric for Luther gave at a time when there was much religious unrest, and the Reformation was underway. MLK came along about 34 years after the radio. Both used different mediums to share their messages--Luther the written word, and MLK relying on speeches and media. Luther chose to post at a church, MLK gave his famous speech at Lincoln memorial, each setting serving as a rhetorical device helping connect their audiences and connect and contrast their setting with their messages. 

MLK in his last speech “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” explains the importance of pushing boundaries to step toward progression by saying, “If I were standing at the beginning of time, with the possibility of taking a kind of general and panoramic view of the whole of human history up to now . . . I would even go by the way that the man for whom I’m named had his habitat, and I would watch Martin Luther as he tacks his 95 theses on the door at the church of Wittenberg. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life; longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will . . . I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!”. This excerpt shows the dedication to the cause needed by reformers to bring about change. This same dedication is also seem with Martin Luther as shown in the following clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiSCnZ4wSMo&feature=youtu.be 

Knowing the dedication and strife of these two men stresses and highlights the importance of reformation, the importance of improvement through drive for a positive change.

Dealing with Disabilities

During the Renaissance times, villages didn't know how to "deal" with those with physical, mental, cognitive, etc. disabilities, so they would board them onto ships to "rid" their cities of them. They were then under the supervision of mariners who would take them from port to port and exhibit them for money. This was often referred to as the "Ship of Fools," which was portrayed by Hieronymus Bosch.

These people were viewed as a side show. They were passed from town to town as entertainment. They weren't cared for, they were just dealt with until they found a means to get them out of their town. Researching this information was sickening. However, it was pretty pleasing to realize how far the world has come--we have made leaps and bounds in the improvement of the treatment of people with disabilities, moving toward more holistic civil rights. Nowadays, we have even made movements toward eradicating the "r" word (which is rarely used, and if so, it's normally spoken ignorantly rather than harmfully).

Throughout history, there has never been better opportunities for those with disabilities than today's. In fact, there are laws in place that require services to be provided in schools for those whose disability adversely affects their education. Additionally, there are several programs and sponsored agencies put in place to help them live their most independent lives. However, the attitude is still present in some that they can never improve; even that they are simply to be "dealt" with rather than worked with and helped.

That antiquated belief shows up in the special education realm often. Special educators are frequently referred to as sitters rather than educators. This opinion even rolls over into the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) of the student when they get easy, pointless goals that don't stretch them and generate improvement. People with disabilities can be strong, productive, and even independent members of society if they're given the tools and supports to reach those heights. It's been proven several times, but that value isn't as widespread across the nation and world as it ought to be.

We shouldn't merely "deal" with those with disabilities, just as many societies before us have. The tools are accessible to help people (especially the youth) with disabilities become successful, independent, and live meaningful lives. All we need is enthusiasm and the common belief that high goals can be reached--we can't keep inhibiting.

The painting was taken from https://fineartamerica.com/featured/the-ship-of-fools-hieronymus-bosch.html?product=greeting-card.

Renaissance Never Ended

          The Renaissance may be over, but renaissance is not. It happens all the time, in fact, over and over again, in the lives of ordinary men and women every day. What am I talking about, you may ask? Well, what does renaissance even mean?

          Renaissance is rebirth. The famed Italian Renaissance was, in large part, a rediscovery of the excellence of the human being. It was a redeclaration of our excellence in form, in intelligence, in capability, and in potential. (There’s a reason why, even today, we use the phrase “renaissance man” to describe one who has achieved a certain level of being well-refined.) Perhaps the most famous bit of text from the Renaissance to summarize this humanistic endeavor comes from Shakespeare’s Hamlet:

           “What a piece of work is man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties…”

           The Renaissance was a period of rebirth for society. Birth is a short period however, and after a brief infancy is rapidly replaced by adolescence. Such was the case with society after the Renaissance, a beautiful rebirth quickly subsiding to the Baroque era of society’s adolescence and development. And yet, the principles of rebirth are alive within each of us.

           When, in his Oration on the Dignity of Man, Pico della Mirandola said:

“But upon man, at the moment of his creation, God bestowed seeds pregnant with all possibilities…”

            he boldly and bravely declared that all men can be whatever, whomever, they choose. There is no limit to what man can make of himself. It was, as was customary for the era, part of a rediscovery of the grandeur of human life. This rediscovery happens every day. It happens when a hopeful young idol turns to music and, through diligence and desperation, discovers a newfound talent. It happens when an injured veteran refuses to stay down and learns to walk again. It happens when a middle aged housewife goes back to school and gets the degree she always dreamed of. The Renaissance may be over, but renaissance lives on. 

            We often speak of learning from the past. We can learn from those who have already discovered rediscovery. Renaissance may no longer be a societal change, but it can be a personal change. And though the phrase nowadays often comes with a negative connotation, always take comfort in remembering that man is a real “piece of work”.

Sprezzatura is the Cura

Learning about Sprezzatura, a way of being which is the defined as a nonchalance towards talents so that they appear effortless. In modern terms Sprezzatura is to basically fake it until you make it. This reminds me so much of the experiences I have been having lately with my dental school interviews.

Not knowing what to expect prior to the interviews there is only so much preparation that can been done. During these interviews one is required to think quickly on their feet and rely on past experiences and knowledge in order to do well.  When recently asked an ethical question in Dentistry and then questioned about my response I quickly went into the little I knew about the current opioid epidemic and used that in my reasoning for not giving an alternate answer. This knowledge as well as many other recent Sprezzatura moments like how knowing Spanish (and a little bit of Portuguese) has made learning historical terms like (filial piety) or anatomical terms like interosseus easier.

Although this ideology, outlined by Baltazar Castiglione (a diplomat for Italy during the time of the Renaissance), in “The Ideal of the Well-Rounded Man” and “The Courtier”, has become a distant memory in our day we can still find these ideas shaping our modern lives. I have realized I began a quest for Sprezzatura a little over a year ago when my desire for learning wasn’t being satisfied due to the limited free time I had. This led me to listen to many podcasts and e-books while walking between classes and to study the languages I know.

Hoping to have conveyed well the art that is Sprezzatura so that it can be used as a tool to open doors, give new perspectives, allow us to meet people we might not normally converse with. Sprezzatura is something that we can never achieve perfection in, but this shouldn’t stop us in our quest to be life long learners.

Apprehension During Information Revolution

 I see computerphobes in the 15th century. After reading "The Press, Rival and Ally," I became interested by the different attitudes toward new technology. For example, the text says that Italian humanists "were at first hostile to printed books" because they would reduce learning to the level of the masses. As a computer science major, I was curious and did some research into early computing devices, but did not find similar hostility toward early computers. I did find this article on the "computerphobia" phenomenon observed in the 1980s.

 

The Impossible Dream

If only I had more school… I wish that I and my fellow students said this more often. Why? Because! School comes from a Greek word that means leisure time. Don’t you wish you had more leisure time? If you were Greek, then you would be wishing for more school. This was the dream in the renaissance era as well. Do we as college students realize and appreciate that we are living the impossible dream for the influencers of the renaissance? Can you believe that we have 16+ years carved out of our lives by society for us just so that we can go to school and learn?! Amazing!




Enjoying the invention of the bicycle in 'school.'







Amazing what we humans can do at 'school'!

The vast majority of people alive during the renaissance did not really experience the renaissance. They were hard at work in the fields or hard labor and thus they did not have enough school. Not enough free time, that is. When you think about it this way it makes total sense that school would be free time. You see, we now grow up in a world of public education where school is the norm and people tell you to go to school and “work hard!” Why don’t people send their kids off to high-school and tell them, “enjoy all the free leisure time!”? Sounds kinda funny to us, right? I don’t think that would sound funny to Michelangelo though. Here’s why:

The Renaissance Man is Dying

As the rebirth of ideas known as the Renaissance swept across Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries, much contemplation was put into how men and women should be living their lives. The humanists started conversations that led men to believe that humanity itself is what made us as individuals special. But what does the ideal human look like?

The Courtier - Castiglione

In answering this questions, we see a major theme of the Renaissance known as Sprezzatura – the readiness to say or do the right thing in a social setting. The ancient Greeks taught that a man should be "well-rounded," or of a developed personality. The Italian diplomat, Castiglione, added a Renaissance flair to these Greek ideas in his work known as The Courtier. Castiglione enlightens his readers by describing the perfect courtier as one who, "must vary out life with different occupations." The courtier must know how to speak eloquently, have a deep understanding of the humanities, be a skilled writer, a talented musician, an artist, and an entertaining host. That is an intimidating amount of skills and qualities for just one man, but if one wished to be well-rounded and respected as a Renaissance Man, that is what was necessary. But where do we find Renaissance Men today?

A Journey for Breadth

I was supposed to be an artist. If you asked me what I wanted to be when I was a kid, that’s what I would have said. The answer stayed the same through middle school and high school, though I was a good student all-around. 

The plan stayed until I was in college. Even though I was doing well, something was off. It took me a while to realize what it was: I missed being challenged academically. In fact, I was starved for intellectual learning. It became obvious that I wouldn’t be satisfied as a design major.

A self portrait done for a BYU class.

The renaissance was a time period where new thinking, art, and literature were blossoming and shaping society’s rules and culture. One source of this blossoming literacy was Gutenberg’s printing press. As the availability of books and printed material increased, increased literacy naturally followed.




The invention of the printing press is often framed in the context of the religious angst against corrupt clergy and lack of direct access to God’s word. Indeed, William Tyndale took advantage of the printing press and devoted his life to translating the Bible so that “a boy that driveth the plough [would] know more of the Scripture, than [the Pope] dost.” While this context of the printing press makes it seem like the invention of the printing press was simply a magnanimous, philanthropic invention to aid the world’s artistic, religious, and educational progress, I would say that these outcomes arose from society’s race to get rich.

Who were the giants?

WHO WERE THE GIANTS?

Isaac Newton, the father of Newtonian physics, inventor of calculus, and discoverer of gravity once said, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

As central as gravity is, it wasn’t theorized until recently. In fact, gravity is 80 years younger than colonial America. In this light, science may look like an undeveloped field—and in many ways, it still is. There were giants, to be sure. But who were they?

Much of the physical science we know now was born in the Renaissance. As Europe shed the plague-pocked skin of the Middle Ages, they began to look forward by, ironically enough, looking backwards. They adopted en masse an ad fontes philosophy, that brought them back to the times of the Greeks and Romans. As philologists dove into “rescued” ancient texts (and knowledge brought back by trade and crusade), they rediscovered some of the progress their predecessors made. From these texts, made available by the brand-new, movable-type printing press, a group of scientists emerged from the woodwork. In the same way that trees are planted in, but grow away from the ground, most scientists planted their ideas in, then grew away from the Greek and Roman ideas of the time. Here are a couple of the shoulders upon which the modern scientist stands.

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) — this architect, artist, inventor, polymath, and “universal genius” was the picture of the Renaissance man, and one of the most talented men to ever live. He designed flying machines, scuba gear, automobiles, tanks, catapults, music machines, and at one point, a utopian village. Unfortunately, Da Vinci was born too early, and many of his inventions could not be realized in his lifetime.

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) — Copernicus was the proposer of the heliocentric theory—i.e., that our earth turns on an axis and revolves around the sun. Before (and even after) Copernicus, people believed that the earth was the center of the solar system, and many medicines were based on the alignment of the planets and sun. He was also a major contributor to economic theories that we use today.

Paracelsus (1493-1541) — Overturned much of old medicine’s—specifically Galen’s—theories. Was known (to his disgust) as the Martin Luther of medicine.

Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) — Proved Copernicus’s heliocentric theory and argued Aristotle’s axioms of physical science. Arguably the greatest astronomer in history.

Looking for Faster Content? Try the Printing Press!!!

Early Press, etching from Early Typography by William Skeen

Guess who got a new computer this summer? Me! And it’s been so nice no longer waiting five to seven minutes just for the loading screen to show up! No more freezing if I have more than two windows open! There is something so nice about expanding horizons. Suddenly things that seemed difficult or impossible are within my grasp. One of the reasons my computer works faster than my old one is the increase of core processing. A simplified explanation of using more cores to make a faster computer is that each core can do at least one task at a given time. So if you have more cores more tasks can be done simultaneously.

Such advancements in technology make everyday lives easier but seeing these advancements for the first time can feel miraculous. There was a time back in the early fourteenth century when new advancements gave people the same sense of wonder, the ability to have so much more knowledge in their grasps as the printing press started to make books and the pursuit of knowledge more common. Similar to how I felt being able to do more in-depth searches on the internet having access to books and words gave the people of this time period a sense of wonder. It also, like the increase of cores in my computer, made it so innovation could move forward with more people working on projects together speeding up the forward gain of knowledge. Time moves on and as humans, we keep innovating. Yet if it weren’t for the printing press literacy never would have risen as high. If literacy hadn’t raised later inventions wouldn’t even have been dreamt of. Typing out this post on my computer wouldn’t be possible. The build-up of knowledge over time truely is a blessing both to the people flourishing in the renaissance and for me today who has the chance to turn her homework in on time.

The Travel Bug

About a year ago, my sister and I decided to take a spur of the moment trip to Costa Rica. The conversation went a little like this: 

me: 'Hey tickets to Costa Rica are like $200. Wanna go?'  

*text bubbles appear, waiting in suspense expecting a no*

my sister: 'Ya for sure'...

me: ‘Wait...you for real?' 

my sister: 'Yes! Let's go!' 

Next thing you know, 10 days later my sister and I are boarding a plane to San Jacinto, Costa Rica. No real plan in mind other than to do everything that we possibly could in the time that we had. So, we jumped in our rental car and started to drive through the twisty curvy highways of a stormy unfamiliar Costa Rica. Every thing was so different. My sister and I had both served missions in South America, so we were semi-familiar with their culture, language and foods, but imagine if we hadn't. Culture shock would have knocked us both down. Hard. 

Imagine the culture shock that Christopher Columbus must of felt when he saw 'India' for the first time. 

A place no one had ever seen before; no Google images, no friends telling you 'Dude you have to go, no TravelAdvisor not even a Rick Steve's travel guide to read on your voyage. Even better, imagine ending up in a place you didn't even intend to end up in! Picture going to a place where you've heard rumors from the native peoples that there's a group who’s ‘reported to have their eyes in their shoulders, and their mouths in the middle or their breasts, and that a long train of hair growth backward between their shoulders’ (Raleigh, Excerpt 3).  

This concept of exploring a new place where no one had ever been before was considered the Age of Discovery. A time where new foods, peoples, cultures were introduced and exploited to help build a more global economy. All of the global exploration in this period has allowed us to be able to take those trips we've always dreamed of, to taste the foods that look so good on Insta or Google, and explore this beautiful vast world around us. Though many other things that stemmed from the Age of Discovery have not held with time, one main thing has: the travel bug. 

Please enjoy some pictures from my sister and I's trip!

Works Cited

Raleigh, Sir Walter. Discovery of Guiana: and the Journal of the Second Voyage Thereto (Classic Reprint). FORGOTTEN Books, 2016.

Fantasy and Fiction: Finding Utopia in Imaginary Worlds

Utopia in History

In 1516 Thomas More published Utopia, which depicts the traditions and laws of an island nation by the same name.  In many ways this book represents the beginning of a new type of fiction: one in which the reader is invited to explore a world entirely apart from their own.

Since then the word "utopia" has taken on many meanings.  We often hear about utopias in our religious discussions, or argue politically about how to make our world more utopian.  Even more often we see flawed utopias depicted in our fiction - usually as a way of exploring issues that come from our own society.  This trope has become so common that it's exhausting now.

But there is one genre where I still find the idea of utopia to be not only bearable, but incredibly satisfying.  This is a genre that goes back to the themes of exploration and new worlds that first inspired More, and once again invites its audience to join the author in exploring a new world together.

A Renaissance in Me

A rebirth. A renewal. A reform.
Changing. Beginning. Enlightening.
Such is a renaissance.

I feel like I can relate to this time period quite a bit. I bet that some things during the time of the Renaissance felt uncomfortable for those who were experiencing them. They were used to seeing things and processing things in a certain manner, and then little by little those comfortable ways were changing. I have felt like this in my life as well. I have felt things shifting and changing in my life as I mature and enter new phases of learning and growing. Often, some of these things feel uncomfortable. They are opportunities to stretch and apply myself in ways that I never have before.  Some of these things come through school, others through family life and personal relationships.

Just like the historical Italian Renaissance, often I do not recognize my growth and change as important - except in retrospect. When I reflect on my life 5 years ago, I can almost tangibly feel the emotions and struggles that I was experiencing - I had just left the country, traveled halfway across the world, and found myself deep in a culture that I knew nothing about.

My first day in Peru, November 2014

A Blooming Renaissance

“The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection.”

                                                                   -Michelangelo

The Renaissance was a time for people to truly explore themselves. The nature of the renaissance allowed people to be creative and think outside the box. During this time period, the people were traveling more which allowed them to experience more culture than what was around them. Thinking outside the box caused art to become 3-dimensional, communication was made better through the printing press, and people were more concerned with their decorum. 

Writing For The Lute 101

Rhythm. Beats. Music.

One of the best ways to express our emotions and ideas is through music.

During the 14th century, the Renaissance period was a time where society “rebirthed” the ancient Greek and Rome culture. Not only did the people rediscover the virtues of classical philosophy, art, and literature, they were able to rebirth themselves through music as well.

To help me feel that rediscovery, I followed the rules of composition used during the Renaissance period and transcribed “Row, Row, Row, Your Boat” into a commonly used tablature written for the lute.

"Row, Row, Row, Your Boat" in classical lute tablature form. By no means is this 100% accurate.

It’s quite different from modern composition!

Old Fashioned and Over the Hill

I haven't always listened to what most people would consider to be popular music. In fact, I rarely listen to music written within the last 15 years. When I was younger, the only music worth its salt in my opinion was classic rock. While my friends were listening to Justin Bieber, Maroon 5, and Miley Cyrus, I was listening to Van Halen, Jimi Hendrix, or Pink Floyd. In my fourth grade class my teacher gave out the assignment to write about on of our life heroes. While most of my classmates chose to write about some of the world's greatest leaders (Ghandi, Washington, etc.) I wrote about Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page.