Tuesday, November 16, 2004
A Sweet, Perhaps Sappy, Story, and A Boast About Myself
First off, how do you feel about the second comma in the title? I'm always unsure about commas in that place - it sort of feels wrong if it's there and wrong if it isn't. Does anyone know what's correct?
Last night in Introduction to Anthropology, two men from Operation Mobilization came as guest speakers. They told us about their backgrounds and their missionary work in the Middle East. One man does church planting, evangelism, and the like. The other, a 28-year-old Irish man, is working on a doctorate in ethnic studies at American University Beirut. He wants to become a scholar, and influence the Middle Easterners toward valuing reconciliation. Specifically, he's studying ways in which offended groups of people construct collective narratives about their ethnic history. Might there be a way for Palestinians or Israelis, for example, to construct new narratives that could open possibilities for reconciliation? Beautiful life work, I think.
The older man, Grant, told a story about visiting with Bedouin people. He's been in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey, and other places, but said that the Bedouin are more different from himself than any other people. The Bedouin are nomadic shepherds who don't have much of a national identity - they don't affiliate with modern identity constructs.
"I sat in a man's tent with him and realized I had absolutely nothing in common with him," he said.
The Bedouin believe that God is far away, and doesn't draw near. They don't have an Arabic word for the concept of "grace." They have "gift" and "mercy", but neither quite does it. The missionary wants to persuade them that God wants to "come live in their tent," an idea that, as of yet, no one has believed.
Grant told the Bedouin man about the 99 sheep and the one, the story I've heard titled, "The Good Shepherd." Grant said that the shepherd had 99 of his sheep, but one was lost. He went off to find the one, to bring it back to the flock.
Grant asked, "What do you think of that story?"
The Bedouin man said, "That's a stupid shepherd! I'd have left the one sheep lost. If it came back on it's own, I'd kill it."
"Why would you kill it?
"Because it has shown itself to be stupid. A sheep that stupid would just get lost again tomorrow."
I thought the shepherd went to get the one sheep because sheep are soft, and he wanted to pet it. I thought the sheep would be glad to be found, and would learn its lesson. The "good shepherd" did an act of kindness and love.
Instead, the Bedouin says this is the story of "the stupid shepherd." By saving that sheep, the shepherd accomplished nothing. He'll probably have to rescue the sheep again and again. He's wasting time and effort on a beast too stupid to even appreciate it.
In the story, we're left to speculate about the shepherd's motives. Maybe he was stupid. Maybe he loved the sheep. The rest of Scripture makes it obvious, however, that we are the dull-witted beasts and Jesus is the shepherd who saves us over and over, when it would be more convenient and rational for him to let us die. A Bedouin perspective, which has no word for unmerited salvation, helps me understand grace.
Part Two: A Boast About Myself
I mastered the "Life's a Beach" challenge in Grand Theft Auto San Andreas. James said that I'd look cool if I blogged about it, but if I say more than a sentence or two, I'll reveal my ignorance. James got stuck on that challenge, and I helped him. My character was a black man wearing underwear, cowboy boots, and Harpo Marx glasses (James dressed him). I guided him through a dance (picture the Japanese four-step video arcade dance machines) so he could steal a van full of stereo equipment.
First off, how do you feel about the second comma in the title? I'm always unsure about commas in that place - it sort of feels wrong if it's there and wrong if it isn't. Does anyone know what's correct?
Last night in Introduction to Anthropology, two men from Operation Mobilization came as guest speakers. They told us about their backgrounds and their missionary work in the Middle East. One man does church planting, evangelism, and the like. The other, a 28-year-old Irish man, is working on a doctorate in ethnic studies at American University Beirut. He wants to become a scholar, and influence the Middle Easterners toward valuing reconciliation. Specifically, he's studying ways in which offended groups of people construct collective narratives about their ethnic history. Might there be a way for Palestinians or Israelis, for example, to construct new narratives that could open possibilities for reconciliation? Beautiful life work, I think.
The older man, Grant, told a story about visiting with Bedouin people. He's been in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey, and other places, but said that the Bedouin are more different from himself than any other people. The Bedouin are nomadic shepherds who don't have much of a national identity - they don't affiliate with modern identity constructs.
"I sat in a man's tent with him and realized I had absolutely nothing in common with him," he said.
The Bedouin believe that God is far away, and doesn't draw near. They don't have an Arabic word for the concept of "grace." They have "gift" and "mercy", but neither quite does it. The missionary wants to persuade them that God wants to "come live in their tent," an idea that, as of yet, no one has believed.
Grant told the Bedouin man about the 99 sheep and the one, the story I've heard titled, "The Good Shepherd." Grant said that the shepherd had 99 of his sheep, but one was lost. He went off to find the one, to bring it back to the flock.
Grant asked, "What do you think of that story?"
The Bedouin man said, "That's a stupid shepherd! I'd have left the one sheep lost. If it came back on it's own, I'd kill it."
"Why would you kill it?
"Because it has shown itself to be stupid. A sheep that stupid would just get lost again tomorrow."
I thought the shepherd went to get the one sheep because sheep are soft, and he wanted to pet it. I thought the sheep would be glad to be found, and would learn its lesson. The "good shepherd" did an act of kindness and love.
Instead, the Bedouin says this is the story of "the stupid shepherd." By saving that sheep, the shepherd accomplished nothing. He'll probably have to rescue the sheep again and again. He's wasting time and effort on a beast too stupid to even appreciate it.
In the story, we're left to speculate about the shepherd's motives. Maybe he was stupid. Maybe he loved the sheep. The rest of Scripture makes it obvious, however, that we are the dull-witted beasts and Jesus is the shepherd who saves us over and over, when it would be more convenient and rational for him to let us die. A Bedouin perspective, which has no word for unmerited salvation, helps me understand grace.
Part Two: A Boast About Myself
I mastered the "Life's a Beach" challenge in Grand Theft Auto San Andreas. James said that I'd look cool if I blogged about it, but if I say more than a sentence or two, I'll reveal my ignorance. James got stuck on that challenge, and I helped him. My character was a black man wearing underwear, cowboy boots, and Harpo Marx glasses (James dressed him). I guided him through a dance (picture the Japanese four-step video arcade dance machines) so he could steal a van full of stereo equipment.
13 Comments:
First off... The second comma's very important as it signals the end of the clause. The third one, on the other hand, is optional.
And yes, we are stupid sheep. We will wander off again. And again. And again. And He will come looking for us every time.
Thank you for the awesome article.
By
sic, at 10:07 AM
Loved your blog today. Amazing story about the Bedouin and the shepherd...made me think a lot about how those around the world perceive the stories that we have been instructed how to view from our early years on. Sometimes I feel like God is going to wake up one day and realize that His continual rescue of my brokenness is futile and ridiculous. Yet He continues to find me no matter how far I wander.
Imagine you playing Grand Theft Auto has got to be one of the funniest things I have pictured in a while! Good for you.
And, lastly, I have always thought the last comma should be there For example: The girl wore a dress, shoes, a blouse, and stockings. But, then again, I am no expert on commas. I am more of an expert at wearing my pajamas and wasting my day reading blogs.
By
Rachie Rach and the Funky Bunch, at 1:03 PM
i love the comma.
i love the thought of you playing grand theft auto more.
By
kp, at 6:11 PM
I like:
A sweet, perhaps sappy story and a boast...
I am proabably wrong about the secnd comma, the third is definitely optional.
By
Rick, at 11:36 PM
I beg to differ on the second comma. You have a list of adjectives that precede a noun ("A sweet, sappy story" and there's no reason to place a comma *after* the last item of a list. All that's different in this case is that you have an adverb modifying the second adjective.
Sic: the second comma doesn't end a clause, because there is no predicate (in fact, there's no predicate at all in the post title).
Love the blog... I too am a stupid sheep.
~Journeying Geek
By
Anonymous, at 4:34 AM
I'm inclined to go with Journeying Geek.
A Sweet, Sappy Story and a Boast About Myself
That feels right to me. I think in speaking, I pause after "sweet" but not after "sappy." Three other people (including KP and Rachel who are writing experts) thought the comma was necessary. Journeying Geek, what are your credentials?!
By
Jenell, at 8:20 AM
I'd go with "A Sweet, Perhaps Sappy, Story and a Boast About Myself" or "A sweet-perhaps sappy-story and a boast About myself."
- Rachel L.
By
Anonymous, at 1:26 PM
Hmm. In your title, "perhaps sappy" is not an appositive (a noun or noun substitute that renames another noun just before it), nor is it a non-restrictive modifier (part of a sentence that modifies a noun with non-essential information). These are the two usual cases for employing that second comma.
Note that the sentence
"A sweet story, perhaps dripping with sap, is always worth telling" (non-restrictive modifier)
is different from
"A sweet story, perhaps Jenell's sappiest tale yet, is always worth telling" (appositive)
which is different from
"A sweet, perhaps sappy, [sic] story is always worth telling" (either coordinate adjectives -- with an extra comma -- or parenthetical interruption)
The last "perhaps sappy" is either used parenthetically or coordinately. If it's parenthetical, I prefer something other than commas because the commas unnaturally break up the noun phrase. Rachel L.'s suggestion ("a sweet--perhaps sappy--story, and a boast about myself") would work. So would "a sweet (and perhaps sappy) story, and a boast about myself."
If you don't mean it parenthetically, then you have coordinate adjectives (a string of adjectives separated by commas). In this case, you don't separate the final adjective from the noun.
Maybe this will help:
A sweet, perhaps sappy story, and a boast about myself
is identical in structure to
A single, carefully coordinative comma, and no trouble with it.
;)
Sorry, no credentials here. I'm an undergrad student (in computer science!). Was at a liberal arts college for three years prior, though. (Trinity Western U -- very similar to Bethel I gather!)
~Journeying Geek
By
Anonymous, at 2:36 AM
hmmm....
i think i would say
a sweet (perhaps sappy) story about myself.
look, no commas necessary!
:)
and i love the sweet (not sappy at all) story about the stupid shepherd.
that is great.
By
jen lemen, at 8:00 AM
I am hoping you will share your story.
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