Salvation
Twentieth century poet/writer Langston Hughes shares the account of a boy who deceives others in church about his having been saved by Jesus. All children are meant to rise upon their seeing of The Lord, but the boy who does not truly witness the event, rises as a way to escape the pressure. This account, entitled “Salvation,” comes from Hughes’s autobiography The Big Sea, signifying the boy to be a young Langston Hughes. The story denies condemnation of Langston for his deceit by indicating his literal yet curious nature. Intent on being obedient, Langston trusts all of what he is told, basing all of what he knows off this trust. Upon determination that his trust is undeserved, Langston does what he thinks is best to preserve the …show more content…
He is aware that the majority of the church is older, and that the children are being brought because they are not thought to fully believe in The Lord. The elders in the church are noted to be wise, while the children are meant to be confused. The surrounding old people encourage the children to walk to Jesus, to accept him, and let him into their lives. In establishing his true belief that Jesus will appear to him, Langston surmises that the older people surrounding him, telling him of what is to come, “seemed to [him] they ought to know.” Children, referred to as lambs rely on the more experienced, older people to lead them down the path of righteousness. However, these older worshippers do not help Langston by telling him of what he truly will see. Langston expects the physical appearance of God, when what truly is to be presented to him is the clarity of his belief. The talk of a visible light is metaphorical, referring to the illuminating value of His guidance. Fitting into the category expected of him, this overwhelmed boy can not be faulted for his decision to fake understanding to the others of the church. He too literally held to their words, attempting to see what he has been told he will see. Instead, by seeing nothing, he loses faith that Jesus will help him at all. However, the true belief he felt, with the confidence that Jesus would appear to him was the light of which the notably wiser had informed
Twentieth century poet/writer Langston Hughes shares the account of a boy who deceives others in church about his having been saved by Jesus. All children are meant to rise upon their seeing of The Lord, but the boy who does not truly witness the event, rises as a way to escape the pressure. This account, entitled “Salvation,” comes from Hughes’s autobiography The Big Sea, signifying the boy to be a young Langston Hughes. The story denies condemnation of Langston for his deceit by indicating his literal yet curious nature. Intent on being obedient, Langston trusts all of what he is told, basing all of what he knows off this trust. Upon determination that his trust is undeserved, Langston does what he thinks is best to preserve the …show more content…
He is aware that the majority of the church is older, and that the children are being brought because they are not thought to fully believe in The Lord. The elders in the church are noted to be wise, while the children are meant to be confused. The surrounding old people encourage the children to walk to Jesus, to accept him, and let him into their lives. In establishing his true belief that Jesus will appear to him, Langston surmises that the older people surrounding him, telling him of what is to come, “seemed to [him] they ought to know.” Children, referred to as lambs rely on the more experienced, older people to lead them down the path of righteousness. However, these older worshippers do not help Langston by telling him of what he truly will see. Langston expects the physical appearance of God, when what truly is to be presented to him is the clarity of his belief. The talk of a visible light is metaphorical, referring to the illuminating value of His guidance. Fitting into the category expected of him, this overwhelmed boy can not be faulted for his decision to fake understanding to the others of the church. He too literally held to their words, attempting to see what he has been told he will see. Instead, by seeing nothing, he loses faith that Jesus will help him at all. However, the true belief he felt, with the confidence that Jesus would appear to him was the light of which the notably wiser had informed