George Herbert - A Poet for Life in God's House
George Herbert is arguably one of the greatest English poets, certainly one of the few great Christian poets. His sacred verse has easily stood the test of time. It has also stood the test when it comes to many a Christians’ life. Herbert’s poetry is accessible. His conceits, metaphors, and typologies are deep but not quite as esoteric as other sacred poets can be, like John Donne, for example. Readers of Herbert are less likely to get themselves tied into metaphysical knots (as fun as that can be!). Instead, Herbert’s poems baptize the reader’s imagination and invite him to meditate on the mysteries and revelations of God’s Holy Word. They give voice to both God and the soul as these two commune with one another through Scripture, prayer, and the Sacraments.
George Herbert (1593-1633) came from a noble family in Wales. His father died when he was only 3, and so he was mostly raised by his mother. In keeping with his class, he attended Cambridge University as a member at Trinity College. He spent many years at Cambridge, not only as a tutor and lecturer, but was eventually made the university orator—a kind of spokesman for the university, often writing official letters and speeches. Such a prestigious position could provide excellent opportunities for advancement at the royal court. With family and university connections, Herbert attempted a career with Parliament and the court for a short time, but personal struggles and doubts over his vocation kept him from pursuing a life in politics. He was also plagued by poor health for most of his adult life. But in 1624, Herbert embarked on a very different path: the ministry. He was ordained a deacon. Still, this did not make life easier. He became gravely ill in 1626, and 1627 brought the death of his mother. However, a couple years later brought some bright spots, in the form of a wife, Jane Danvers, in 1629; and then ordination to the priesthood in 1630. George and Jane settled down at the small parish church in Bemerton. It would seem Herbert genuinely enjoyed the life and work of a parish pastor. Sadly, his ministry only lasted three years. At the age of 39, George Herbert died on March 1, 1633.
One of Herbert’s contemporaries and biographers, Izaak Walton, explained Herbert’s life in the parish “as a kind of intentional humbling of himself. He describes Herbert's first sermon as a learned and witty exercise that confounded his parishioners, but he concluded with a promise never to preach that way again: he would from that point on ‘be more plain and practical in his future Sermons’” (from an article at the Poetry Foundation). Herbert thrived as a plain and practical minister, even writing a very useful little book in 1632 on the life and duties of a parish priest, called The Country Parson. But his greatest work from his short ministry, that has since been bequeathed to us, was the work he did in editing and writing sacred poems. These were eventually published shortly after his death in one volume: The Temple. It is carefully structured, by Herbert himself. In some ways the poems follow a tour of a parish church, which also serves as a pattern for the inner temple of the soul. But in other ways it serves as a pilgrimage through Christian doctrine and the work of Christ. Throughout the work, these poems illustrate and contemplate life in God’s House. The final poem in this collection is the one I offer here for your contemplation:
Love (3)
Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back,
Guilty of dust and sin.
But quick-ey’d Love, observing me grow slack
From my first entrance in,
Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning,
If I lack’d any thing.
A guest, I answer’d, worthy to be here:
Love said, you shall be he.
I the unkind, ungrateful? Ah my dear,
I cannot look on thee.
Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,
Who made the eyes but I?
Truth Lord, but I have marr’d them: let my shame
Go where it doth deserve.
And know you not, says Love, who bore the blame?
My dear, then I will serve.
You must sit down, says Love, and taste my meat:
So I did sit and eat.
This is a conversation between Christ (Love) and the Christian. It is a poem of heavenly consummation, particularly as it comes at the end of the book. But it must also call to mind the meeting of Christ and the Christian in the Divine Service at the Lord’s Table. Lutherans know the question well: Who receives this Sacrament worthily? And our honest answer, knowing the depth of our sin, is: No one. But the true answer, the answer that hangs on the words of Love, is: the one who has faith in these words, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.”
So, as the guilty, dusty, sinful soul draws back, afraid to look at God, Christ our Love draws near and welcomes us to the Feast He has prepared for sinners. And with words of love, Christ converts and wins the soul to be His guest. The Christian is brought to his true purpose: to be the Lord’s guest. We find out this is what our eyes were made for: to behold the beauty of the Lord, to see the salvation He has prepared for all people. Yes, we deserve to be sent away, shut out of His Feast, but the whole point of the Sacrament is that He bore the blame and gives His own righteousness to us.
Still, our fallen mind may insist that we do our part and offer something in return to our great Lord. But no, He won’t have it. He is among us as one who serves. “My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.” says Christ. “He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him” (John 6:55-56). With this gracious invitation, Love (3) concludes Herbert’s poetic pilgrimage. It offers a meditation on the Lord’s Supper, but also an image of our end, our final glory, our true home: Love’s eternal wedding feast.
Sources:
The Complete English Works of George Herbert. Everyman’s Library.