I was seated next to Madeleine at dinner one night at Bishop Salmon’s house and she made the point that in the spiritual realm every godly thought rippled its effect out from itself like a stone thrown into a pond, affecting the whole spiritual world–and it was God’s call to us that we overwhelm the tide of evil in this world by creating a sea awash in the ripples and waves of our godly thoughts and acts…certainly her own contribution was a tsunami…
I found some of her ‘spirituality’ in her non-fiction books to be rather new age-ish. However, her fiction rocked! It was “A Wrinkle in Time” that turned me on to sci-fi books, both adult and Young Adult. I actually wrote to her once, and she responded with a very nice letter (not a form letter). I still have it with my photo albums.
Oh, I forgot, I loved her take on the Tallis Canon with her character of “Canon Tallis”. Wonderful sense of humor. We also discovered the “sung table grace” to the tune of the Tallis Canon through her books (the Austin Family series, I think):
Be present at this table, Lord
Be here and everywhere adored.
These mercies bless and grant that we
may feast in paradise with Thee. A-men.
One of her adults novels “A Severed Wasp” was a wonderful parable of sin and redemption. And her “Irrational Season” is a book I return to every year around Advent. May the angels lead her into paradise, the martyrs greet her at her coming, and with Lazarus who once was poor, may she have eternal life.
Sigh, … One of the earliest books I can remember reading was “A Wrinkle in Time”. It had such a powerful impact on me. Even today, when I reread one of her books, they still have the same impact. She will be missed, but she has left a wonderful legacy.
I had the pleasure of hearing Madeleine L’Engle give a lecture on literature and spirituality at Berea College when I served on the faculty there in the 1970s. I still remember the attention and respect that the packed chapel (1000) gave her. Of her books I’ve read _The Left Hand of Darkness_ and _The Wizard of Earthsea_, the latter a good fictional respresentation of the Jungian concept of the dark side of a personality. I learned that she was an Episcopalian in her talk, because she told us of how she had to help her young daughters understand when they had been hurt by another youngster who told them that they were not true Christians and were going to hell because they had not been baptized by immersion. It is very sad that youngers are often the heralds of their parents’ and pastor’s religious prejudgices.
#9… Hi Bob. You might be thinking of Ursula K. Le Guin. She’s the one who wrote the books you mentioned (THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS and A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA).
It seems like I recall hearing once about someone who was a grandchild of Mrs. L’Engle – it was someone somewhat prominent in the Episcopal church – I think. Though, I could be very wrong. Any help from anyone?
In [i]Wrinkle…[/i], when the kids are flying over the creatures singing a psalm (“Sing unto the Lord a new song, I think it was), she has Jesus listed among other good people or something like that, as nothing special. It strikes me each time I read it. Unfortunately, I can’t find my copy of the book right now to do a direct quote.
Apparently, Wrinkle has 4 sequels now (it was a trilogy last I knew):
A Wrinkle In Time (1962)
A Wind In The Door (1973)
A Swiftly Tilting Planet (1978)
Many Waters (1986)
An Acceptable Time (1989)
Her testimony to her marriage with Hugh Franklin (Dr. Charles Taylor on “All My Children”-a soap EVERY nurse watched in any hospital I ever worked in!) has brought me to tears every time I read it; look for “Two Part Invention” by her. She was a woman of faith and courage and a role model for anyone in the arts who is a Christian.
In the years 1976-1978 I was a peripheral member of that circle at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine that included Madeleine L’Engel and the real-life model for “Canon Tallis,” Edward Nason West (1909-1990), Subdean and Canon Sacrist of St. John the Divine. I was quite young for my age at the time, and didn’t quite realize the significance of the “campy” atmosphere of the group until someone in that circle tried to seduce a young undergraduate friend of mine whom I had introduced to it. My “letter of reproach” to the person concerned put a chill over the friendships that I had begun there at the time. This was all at the time of an earlier crisis in ECUSA, over WO, and the fact that Canon West and Madeleine decided, after initial hesitations, that they could “live with it” had a knock-on effect, at least as far as Madeleine was concerned, for in the late 70s and early 80s she became quite pro-choice, telling me on one occasion that she thought that in many circumstances abortion was the “best thing for the child” as well as for the mother. It was at this time, around 1981, that I realized that we had little in common any longer, and the next occasion that I set foot in St. John the Divine was for Canon West’s funeral in January 1990.
Still, I cherish the memories of my earlier conversations with her, and for an overnight visit in 1977 with her and Hugh at their rambling old house in Goshen, Connectucut.
One of my earliest books was A Wrinkle in Time. I actually stayed inside all day to read it and completely missed a full ecclipse of the sun.
I don’t know whether she ever became more orthodox that her ideas expressed in that book. I didn’t remark on it at the time, as I was a young self-enlightened atheist at the time, but after rereading it as an adult I was struck by the passage where Jesus is listed with Buddha as a window through which the light shines.
Jesus is no window. He is the light.
Still, very enjoyable books and save for a some sketchy theology quite safe for children.
Ms. L’Engle spoke at Trinity College, Deerfield when I was a student there in the ’80’s. She and her husband were married at St. Chrysostom Episcopal Church here in Chicago. Her works were always a favorite of mine and I have recently enjoyed introducing my children to them.
For many years, Madeleine L’Engle rented a room in her Manhattan home to a close aide of Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold’s, a happy circumstance that led to the permeation of the spiritual writing of Madeleine L’Engle through the staff of the Episcopal Church Center and the many disciples who studied in spiritual and monastic retreats with Bishop Griswold. Madeleine’s poetry and prose were beautiful and accessible complements to the writings that were so foundational to the former Presiding Bishop: the desert fathers, Ignatius, Merton, and Herbert. Up to the present day, no spiritual retreat led by Bishop Griswold is complete without Madeleine L’Engle’s poetry, a profound gift to me, who knew Madeleine’s writings in my youth but had never been a beneficiary of her deep and sophisticated theology and spirituality until I met and learned from Bishop Griswold.
She was often invited to be a convocation speak at Wheaton College, Illinois. I heard her speak there, and when in Wheaton she stayed with a poet friend of mine, Lucy Shaw. Lucy and Madeleine were always very close.
My daughter, who read A Wrinkle in Time when she was 9, remembers her fondly at her blog also: http://sudokugirl.blogspot.com/
Rest in peace, indeed. Another true treasure of this life, gone on to the next.
I was seated next to Madeleine at dinner one night at Bishop Salmon’s house and she made the point that in the spiritual realm every godly thought rippled its effect out from itself like a stone thrown into a pond, affecting the whole spiritual world–and it was God’s call to us that we overwhelm the tide of evil in this world by creating a sea awash in the ripples and waves of our godly thoughts and acts…certainly her own contribution was a tsunami…
I still have my dog-eared, childhood copy of “A Wrinkle in Time.” May she rest in peace and rise in glory!
I found some of her ‘spirituality’ in her non-fiction books to be rather new age-ish. However, her fiction rocked! It was “A Wrinkle in Time” that turned me on to sci-fi books, both adult and Young Adult. I actually wrote to her once, and she responded with a very nice letter (not a form letter). I still have it with my photo albums.
Jim Elliott
Oh, I forgot, I loved her take on the Tallis Canon with her character of “Canon Tallis”. Wonderful sense of humor. We also discovered the “sung table grace” to the tune of the Tallis Canon through her books (the Austin Family series, I think):
Be present at this table, Lord
Be here and everywhere adored.
These mercies bless and grant that we
may feast in paradise with Thee. A-men.
We still sing it from time to time.
One of her adults novels “A Severed Wasp” was a wonderful parable of sin and redemption. And her “Irrational Season” is a book I return to every year around Advent. May the angels lead her into paradise, the martyrs greet her at her coming, and with Lazarus who once was poor, may she have eternal life.
Sigh, … One of the earliest books I can remember reading was “A Wrinkle in Time”. It had such a powerful impact on me. Even today, when I reread one of her books, they still have the same impact. She will be missed, but she has left a wonderful legacy.
Yes, definitely new-agey, but such wonderful fiction. It’s time to re-read [i]Wrinkle in Time[/i], yes indeed, it is.
I had the pleasure of hearing Madeleine L’Engle give a lecture on literature and spirituality at Berea College when I served on the faculty there in the 1970s. I still remember the attention and respect that the packed chapel (1000) gave her. Of her books I’ve read _The Left Hand of Darkness_ and _The Wizard of Earthsea_, the latter a good fictional respresentation of the Jungian concept of the dark side of a personality. I learned that she was an Episcopalian in her talk, because she told us of how she had to help her young daughters understand when they had been hurt by another youngster who told them that they were not true Christians and were going to hell because they had not been baptized by immersion. It is very sad that youngers are often the heralds of their parents’ and pastor’s religious prejudgices.
#9… Hi Bob. You might be thinking of Ursula K. Le Guin. She’s the one who wrote the books you mentioned (THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS and A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA).
I’ve heard that L’Engle’s theology was conservative enough to place her on the orthodox side of current Anglican debates.
Hi, John. Thank you so much for the correction. I have confused the two authors, but it was Madeleine L’Engle that I heard at Berea.
It seems like I recall hearing once about someone who was a grandchild of Mrs. L’Engle – it was someone somewhat prominent in the Episcopal church – I think. Though, I could be very wrong. Any help from anyone?
In [i]Wrinkle…[/i], when the kids are flying over the creatures singing a psalm (“Sing unto the Lord a new song, I think it was), she has Jesus listed among other good people or something like that, as nothing special. It strikes me each time I read it. Unfortunately, I can’t find my copy of the book right now to do a direct quote.
Apparently, Wrinkle has 4 sequels now (it was a trilogy last I knew):
A Wrinkle In Time (1962)
A Wind In The Door (1973)
A Swiftly Tilting Planet (1978)
Many Waters (1986)
An Acceptable Time (1989)
Well, it’s Amazon.com time.
Her testimony to her marriage with Hugh Franklin (Dr. Charles Taylor on “All My Children”-a soap EVERY nurse watched in any hospital I ever worked in!) has brought me to tears every time I read it; look for “Two Part Invention” by her. She was a woman of faith and courage and a role model for anyone in the arts who is a Christian.
In the years 1976-1978 I was a peripheral member of that circle at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine that included Madeleine L’Engel and the real-life model for “Canon Tallis,” Edward Nason West (1909-1990), Subdean and Canon Sacrist of St. John the Divine. I was quite young for my age at the time, and didn’t quite realize the significance of the “campy” atmosphere of the group until someone in that circle tried to seduce a young undergraduate friend of mine whom I had introduced to it. My “letter of reproach” to the person concerned put a chill over the friendships that I had begun there at the time. This was all at the time of an earlier crisis in ECUSA, over WO, and the fact that Canon West and Madeleine decided, after initial hesitations, that they could “live with it” had a knock-on effect, at least as far as Madeleine was concerned, for in the late 70s and early 80s she became quite pro-choice, telling me on one occasion that she thought that in many circumstances abortion was the “best thing for the child” as well as for the mother. It was at this time, around 1981, that I realized that we had little in common any longer, and the next occasion that I set foot in St. John the Divine was for Canon West’s funeral in January 1990.
Still, I cherish the memories of my earlier conversations with her, and for an overnight visit in 1977 with her and Hugh at their rambling old house in Goshen, Connectucut.
#13, if I’m not mistaken, Madeleine L’Engle’s daughter was married to Alan Jones, currently dean of Grace Cathedral SF. Correction, anyone?
One of my earliest books was A Wrinkle in Time. I actually stayed inside all day to read it and completely missed a full ecclipse of the sun.
I don’t know whether she ever became more orthodox that her ideas expressed in that book. I didn’t remark on it at the time, as I was a young self-enlightened atheist at the time, but after rereading it as an adult I was struck by the passage where Jesus is listed with Buddha as a window through which the light shines.
Jesus is no window. He is the light.
Still, very enjoyable books and save for a some sketchy theology quite safe for children.
Rest in Peace
Re: #17,
Correct.
Ms. L’Engle spoke at Trinity College, Deerfield when I was a student there in the ’80’s. She and her husband were married at St. Chrysostom Episcopal Church here in Chicago. Her works were always a favorite of mine and I have recently enjoyed introducing my children to them.
May she rest in peace.
sjengelhardt
For many years, Madeleine L’Engle rented a room in her Manhattan home to a close aide of Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold’s, a happy circumstance that led to the permeation of the spiritual writing of Madeleine L’Engle through the staff of the Episcopal Church Center and the many disciples who studied in spiritual and monastic retreats with Bishop Griswold. Madeleine’s poetry and prose were beautiful and accessible complements to the writings that were so foundational to the former Presiding Bishop: the desert fathers, Ignatius, Merton, and Herbert. Up to the present day, no spiritual retreat led by Bishop Griswold is complete without Madeleine L’Engle’s poetry, a profound gift to me, who knew Madeleine’s writings in my youth but had never been a beneficiary of her deep and sophisticated theology and spirituality until I met and learned from Bishop Griswold.
She was often invited to be a convocation speak at Wheaton College, Illinois. I heard her speak there, and when in Wheaton she stayed with a poet friend of mine, Lucy Shaw. Lucy and Madeleine were always very close.
My daughter, who read A Wrinkle in Time when she was 9, remembers her fondly at her blog also: http://sudokugirl.blogspot.com/