My column appeared last week in the York Sunday News and I wasn’t going to post about it here.
It isn’t exactly about books—-well, I do mentioned three, in passing—and I’ve already done several posts on the Amazing Grace film and the great batch of newly published Wilberforce books. But recent events made me want to share this essay with our broader Hearts & Minds circle of friends.
My new piece in the local paper used Wilberforce’s second great goal (after the suppression of the slave trade) as a way into the conversation about manners and morals, culture and policy, popular entertainment and the arts, heart change and social change. I need not remind most BookNotes friends that my previous piece in that paper most likely appealed to human rights activists and liberal politicos while this new one might appeal more to those with more traditionally conservative cultural leanings. Please read it here at the York Sunday News website; not sure how long it will be up, so do check it out soon. Why not post your feedback—what do you think about the coursening of our public discourse, the obvious lack of modesty, the ways in which pop culture has become so vulgar?
I wrote this, by the way, before the Imus flap, and the recent debates about X-rated rap, before the horror at Virginia Tech, and the renewned discussions about violent computer games and the gunman’s sexual violence. That I used Wilberforce is no cheap trick, as he indeed had a variety of concerns, saw deep relationships between the arts and politics, between the deepest matters of faith and the most arcane details of global economic justice. He was an advocate for Bible distribution and early spokesman for animal rights, was apparently kind and honest and good.
The original Dubya was a lover of books, a great singer, a man of deep faith and solid theology and a lovely host at the many good parties he threw. Walden Media did him right in their marvelous film and I’m glad for the recent biographies, such as the splendid one by Eric Metaxas which I celebrated a month ago (browse back to 2-4-09.) If only we all could, in our own places, nurture this kind of thoughtful, engaged, principled, prayerful activism.
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Bravo Mr. Borger on another fine York Daily Record contribution.Here’s a link to an article by Anthony Bradley that decries a recent hip hop artist’s video that debases the image of a Black college to that of a strip club:http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070410/OPINION01/704100314/1008“The virtues of a college education among blacks are under assault, however, by the celebration of ignorance and misogyny codified in much of mainstream hip hop. Thanks to a pathetic music video for the song “Rock Yo’ Hips” from Crime Mob’s newly released CD “Hated On Mostly,” black colleges are being portrayed as nothing more than strip clubs and brothels.The mere juxtaposition of the words crime mob and college is outrageous…”
Great article, Byron. I bought a 1839 copy of Wilberforce’s book. He’s passionate about his faith and its implications.Another British evangelical, who is not as well known, is Granville Sharp. He was a mentor to the members of the Clapham Sect and involved in many of their causes. He taught himself the law so that he could use the British court system to have slavery in England outlawed, in 1772, and paved the way for Wilberforce. Howard Wilson