Saturday, March 8, 2008

Donne's "A Hymn to God the Father"

"A Hymn to God the Father"
Wilt Thou forgive that sin where I begun,
---Which is my sin, though it were done before?
Wilt Thou forgive those sins, through which I run,
---And do run still, though still I do deplore?
------When Thou hast done, Thou has not done,
---------For, I have more.

Wilt Thou forgive that sin by which I've won
---Others to sin? and, made my sin their door?
Wilt Thou forgive that sin which I did shun
---A year, or two; but wallowed in, a score?
------When Thou hast done, Thous hast not done,
---------For, I have more.

I have a sin of fear, that when I've spun
---My last thread, I shall perish on the shore;
Swear by Thyself, that at my death Thy Son
---Shall shine as He shines now, and heretofore;
------And, having done that, Thou hast done,
---------I fear no more.
-John Donne

This poem, which I just read for British Literature, reminds me of the many times I fall down and sin. The problems I struggle with are similar to Donne's in that they keep coming up. The issues I am dealing with now are essentially the same ones that I have been trying to fix for the past five years. Like Donne, I feel like I have "wallowed in [them] a score." How great is God, who forgives me again and again, for the same offense! I appreciate that Donne ends the poem with what matters, that is, the grace of God. There is hope because "Thy Son shall shine as He shines now," and that shining will cover a multitude of sins.

Not only does this poem move me to reflect on the grace of God, it also motivates me to pursue that type of forgiveness in my own life. Am I someone who could forgive an offender for the same sin, seventy times seven times? I doubt it. Yet a robust forgiveness is a godly character trait. It involves many of the fruits of the Spirit: love, peace, patience, and kindness. I am learning more and more how much Christianity demands: perfection, in fact, complete righteousness in every thought and action. Holy men have worked for godliness their entire lives and never achieved it. But when I start feeling depressed and unworthy, like the first two stanzas of "Hymn," I read the third stanza and look to Him.
edit: got the spacing on the poem right