Saturday, 29 March 2008

Who are the top five people that inspire you and why?

Now THIS is a question worth answering! It's hard to pick five, but here are some of my top choices. Note that this says PEOPLE, so I guess that means that one of my choices as my Lord and Savior, Jesus, doesn't completely count. Although He's a person, He's so much more.

5. Ludwig van Beethoven. He stood as his own person and was unafraid to challenge and take the models of his day to their absolute limits. In doing so, he set new a musical standard (the symphony, in particular). All those that would come after Beethoven's time would find it simply unavoidable to stand in Beethoven's towering shadow. The short, dark-skinned German man (he looked like a Spaniard!) knew how to shook the foundations of music to its core and became one of its most beloved disciples.

4. William Byrd. The composer was truly brave-he was a Catholic living under Protestant English rule, working for the Crown and secretly writing music for the Roman Catholic Church. He managed to live two lives, writing two libraries of music, and he suffered his family being abused for what it believed to be true. Though I myself am not Catholic, I will admire someone who stands up for his church like that. He stood up to the English crown and essentially got away with it, thanks in part to his music.

3. Johann Sebastian Bach. The man never once signed a single piece of music-the way we know if he penned a piece of music is if we can find "Soli Gloria Deo" written on it. "To God alone be the glory." The man knew where his gifts really came from, and saw himself as a rather common garden-variety of Bach, even though he possessed great genius and musical brilliance. I guarantee his music will continue to have a place in people's hearts longer than someone like Anton Webern or Arnold Schoenberg.

2. Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Even in the face of great danger and adversity, he went back into Nazi Germany, despite the great danger from Adolf Hitler's regime to minister to the people and try and stop der Führer. That's inspiring. His great values of community, friendship, and ministering to one another resonate with me.

1. St. Augustine of Hippo. The man lived in sin, had a breakdown, and experienced new life when the Holy Spirit finally took hold of his life. I can't say I experienced the exact same thing, but I somehow can understand how he felt. Augustine felt raw emotion, and I think I'm simply the same way. He cried tears, and I have too. I've trusted the Holy Spirit change me, and I know He's continuing to work to change me and constantly tweak who I am into a better person. Augustine lived long ago, but it doesn't seem like that so much somehow when I read Confessions-he's someone I can understand, somehow.

Currently Reading The Pursuit of God in the Company of Friends By Richard Lamb see related