SEPIA SATURDAY
When I hear the word book, immediately writers instinctively come to mind, and one especially well known storyteller springs quickly into my thoughts.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, aka Mark Twain
The world knows him for his classic American novels such as, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer.
"The Bible has noble poetry in it... and some good morals and a wealth of obscenity, and upwards of a thousand lies." - Mark Twain
Our Sepia theme today runs a bit deeper then the likes of Huck and Tom's shenanigans, as we research the Bible.
This photo on file at the Library of Congress
was taken between 1950-1960.
Asia Minor, Ephesus, Marble Street.
Ruins of theatre on the right.
Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the
Book of Revelation. The Gospel of John may have been written right here.
The city was the site of several of the 5th-century Christian Councils.
But, Alan has asked us to bring forth any bibles or other old books from under our own roofs.
So let's brush off that dust and see what we have.
Just what might we uncover from
our own bookshelves?
The books below are from my family's collection of old bibles and other interesting books.
This tattered and thoroughly worn bible, is now in my possession, but once belonged to my grandfather. He used this bible regularly, but he also owned a rather lavishly larger version bound in white leather.
The couple in the photo are his parents, my Great-Grandmother Bertha and Great-Grandpa Alfred. The glass, also a family treasure was etched at a fair in 1908!
This is one of several maps within his bible.
This was from my grandmother's collection of bibles. She had an endless supply from all walks of life.
After all these years, I've come to finally understand why she spent so many hours pouring over her own thoughts and writings regarding the bible. It was Thomas Jefferson's own thoughts throughout this book which introduced her to the very idea of rewriting, or editing the bible.
My burning question at this very moment, that sadly will remain forever unanswered is,
did she agree or disagree with Thomas Jefferson's writing?
Or for the content within the bible as well?
Below is the last page of his book.
The closing remarks in ink, are in my grandmother's own handwriting.
This page is from another book belonging to my grandmother, Strength for the Day. I haven't looked at it in years, but it's very amazing how even though it was written in 1945, the words are quite fitting for today's world as well.
If you care to visit other Sepia Saturday posts or bring forth your own
go here
22 comments:
You always post the coolest pictures, thanks for sharing them.
I think I'll stick with Huck and Tom today.
My son is reading Huck at the moment and adores Mark Twain. He wants to favourite every one of his quotes on Good Reads :)
Mark Twain's work will last fo a long time and I guess, so will the bibles you have shown us.
When I saw the prompt for this Saturday I was glad I had a family Bible. You have many!
i liked the twain quote about the bible. :)
Tex, I also favor Twain's quote! Surprisingly, in my parent's house, we held each other's thoughts on religion private.
I'm a Twainer as well. I abandoned my family's high Episcopalian faith and joined up with the Quakers after a long process of searching...through it all, the bible holds us together!
Quite an impressive array of items there! Loved your grandfather's worn old Bible.
Nice addition your grandmother made to Jefferson's writings about the Bible.
Loved Mark Twain's quote about the bible. I'd never seen that particular quote before, but it definitely sounds like him! :->
My favorite was the picture of your grandfather's well worn Bible, the photo of your grandparents, the glass and the ornate footed box. Nice. Gave a lovely feel for what was important to them.
Books get saved for all kinds of reasons, and not long ago I "inherited" a few very old books that dated back to the 1820s. They were not bibles, but musty histories that must have been important to some distant ancestor but were now of no value to me or anyone in the family. They were damaged and needed repair but I could not throw them away. Instead I donated them to our local library book sale. All old books are fated to be abandoned.
The non-existence of the internet in those days looks most likely one reason why their Bibles are this tattered and torn. I agree with the Mark Twain quote - on the noble poetry in the Bible but not I'm not sure about the rest of what he said.
Hazel
That Jefferson Bible is an interesting keepsake. It always seems to come up when people want to criticize Jefferson for one thing or another. I wonder if your grandmother agreed or disagreed.
A great collection! I never heard of a Jefferson bible - how interesting!
There is so much to appreciate here on so many levels, but I think my favourite is your grandmother's annotation of the Jefferson. On second thoughts the picture of Alfred and Bertha with the glass from the fair - wonderful!
Lovely treasures for you and your family. I can relate to Mark Twain; he is one of my favourite writers, I loved his books as a child and made sure my girls loved them too. He was one of the great thinkers and also had a healthy look about life and humour. I think he must have been an utterly nice and interesting man.
I love the photo of Mark Twain.
Nancy
My father has that Jefferson bible... and so many others....
:D~
From what you know of your grandma,
what is your own assumption?
Agree or disagree?!?
:D~
HUGZ
Your grandfather's Bible acquired a lot of character from being used.
I Love The Idea of writing ones own words in A Bible.An unfinished Story Indeed!
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