UPDATED POST — please read or re-read
Do the following:
- Read the book “The Giver” by Lois Lowry
- There are a few video links at the end of this write-up. AFTER you finish reading the book and have some time, feel free to watch them and be prepared to discuss.
Prepare:
“The child intuitively comprehends that although these stories are unreal, they are not untrue.”
― Bruno Bettelheim
Alright, Vanguardians.
We’ve got our work cut out for us this week.
The Giver
The Giver and the world of The Community
This story takes place in a world of clear and ever-present order. Everyone has a place. People speak carefully. Progress is measured and sure. No one worries about having enough to eat or not being loved. Feelings are dealt with, gratitude is regularly expressed. There is always an authority to turn to who has answers to your questions — always someone to lean on and trust. Widely speaking, discomfort is at a minimum and people have what they need and want.
Sounds like a nice enough world?
What then is the complication?
Your job this week is to decide whether or not there is one.
Whether this novel is utopian or dystopian.
(Please look those words up if they are unfamiliar to you or if you have any trouble defining them.)
Does this book describe a perfect world? Or something … else?
As you read, please note what the values of The Community are. Are these values that you share? Some yes and some no? How does the Community pursue and live out these values? In life, every choice has a cost and the pursuit of a value is no different. What are the costs the Community pays to achieve its goals? Are these costs you would be willing to pay?
Shout out to Cael for his ingenious assignment this week about redrawing the borders in the Middle East. He allowed you all to play god, or absolute monarch if you like, over the lives of a large population. You realized that solving one problem often causes new ones. I invite you to think about that exercise as you read The Giver. Do you see parallels between your role Cael’s assignment and those who lead The Community?
Everything has a cost.
Also keep in mind the difficulties we saw in Jesus Revolution. Why did the movement (the community) that Lonnie and Chuck established fall apart? Could principles accepted by The Community have helped them? Would they have made things worse? Was there overlap of pursued values in the Community and in Calvary Church?
Was there anything in The Giver that reminded you of Red Scarf Girl?
The Kindgom of God is within each of us. But the vision of God and His dream for us is a community of believers pursuing a shared vision: “And the Lord called His people ZION — because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness, and there was no poor among them.” (Moses 7:18)
We are tasked with the creation of a heavenly, Christian community. Is The Community in The Giver on the right track?
Perhaps the most important question that we will discuss at some length next Thursday is this:
Is this story about a make believe world? Or about ours?
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Once you have read the book:
1. Allow me to introduce you to a group that fancies themselves the elders of our community:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOWFSwyF_2A
2. Is technology a problem?:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MB5OsJW3EM
3. An effort currently underway in Saudi Arabia:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1vgbF4aH6k
