Allusion vs. Illusion

Our literature class has been studying the use of Allusion in writing and it has been really interesting! An allusion is a literary device that an author uses to add meaning to his story. It is usually a brief reference in the text to a well-known piece of information that the reader is expected to know. An example of this would be something like: "With a Herculean effort, Marty lifted the car off the man trapped underneath." (The reader is expected to know the story of Hercules so that a Herculean feat is one that is very hard to perform and requires great strength.) Allusions come from Classical, Biblical, or Literary sources. It was so providential to read and study G.K. Chesterton's poem, "The Donkey" and then William Blake's poem, "The Lamb" this past week as we near Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday. Both are great examples of allusion; in these cases, Biblical allusion.

At home, Natalie and I both noticed that with our newfound awareness of "allusion," we were spotting it everywhere! Not only that, WE were coming up with our own allusions too! My little conservative (daughter) came up with this after observing and discussing Obamacare: "If the Healthcare Bill passes, it will be like opening Pandora's box."

Here is a great column by Kathleen Parker. She uses Allusion to emphasize the illusion of pro-life Democrats existing in Congress.

St. Patrick's Prayer

Excerpts from St. Patrick's Breastplate Prayer

I bind unto myself today
The strong name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever,
By power of faith, Christ's Incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan River;
His death on cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom;
I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, his shield to ward,
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the name,
The strong name of the Trinity;
By invocation of the same.
The Three in One, and One in Three,
Of whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Mission: Romania

Tonight was the first meeting for the team from our church going to Romania this summer. It was nice to get to meet the others in our group-- I think it will be easy to develop close friendships with them. Natalie and I are excited and so very blessed to be a part of this short term mission. We are eager to minister to the orphan children. It is amazing to realize that after all these years of financially supporting and following an orphan ministry in Romania (Regeneration Ministries), the door has been opened for us to physically go to Romania and minister to children through Heart2Heart ministries.

As soon as my birth certificate arrives we will be submitting the paperwork for our passports - Fun! We also will need to get some immunizations updated - Fun! (Not really...) Probably the only good thing about having had measles, mumps, and rubella as a kid, is that I don't have to get that particular booster shot now! But it will all be worth it. It will be great getting everything ready for our departure date July 23rd.