Seeking the Hidden God

By Jane Kopas

"The Structure of Desire" by W.F. Lantry, is a wonderful book of poetry for all those who have loved someone. But it is infinitely more than just a book of love poems. The author places his reader at a privileged crossroad of his poetic landscape that reveals the sanctum sanctorum of the multi-faceted magic that results from loving another. In this case Miranda, who he describes as: "A miraculous being, whose existence could be neither imagined nor predicted, who insists she's 'just a mortal woman.' A protean changeling, whose transformations, if revealed, would mystify the most jaded skeptic. The center of a whirlwind. A coloratura soprano. Also, by the grace of providence, my wife." Lovers of good poetry will find in Lantry a master craftsman of what can make the genre so powerful: At such times as when this world obeys its own internal physical logic. A world to which readers have traditionally escaped to read verses such as this, where, as in Plato's cave, we are indirectly shown the emotional reality in the author's heart. In this collection, his reader will have models of the pre-eminence of inspiration and talent. Lantry had his formal curriculum well in hand and his technical tools sharpened but nothing could surpass or replace the immediacy of the authenticity of finding his ultimate muse: Miranda. She is the id?e fixe that powers his drive to capture her presence: Such as the de-incarnate wind or the fleeting spark of a lover's glance. Moments such as these permeate the best poems of this collection. Great loves and talent have always found echoes and correspondences of each other in other art forms and other artists. This book is an excellent example of this landscape.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1570756244
• ISBN13: 9781570756245
• Release Date: September 2005
• Publisher: Orbis Books
• Length: 183 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.5" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

Approaching God in a New Context

Kopas points out that many long-held beliefs about God are called into question today by even the most faithful. Some of the questions relate to God's having created the world complete from the beginning, allowing evil to occur to bring forth a greater good, deciding Jesus must die for others to be saved, being "male," and being revealed fully only in Catholic Christianity. She begins by delving into scripture, theology, and mysticism to examine the tradition of a hidden God. Next she explores contemporary images of God, such as "challenging companion," and "compassionate adversary." Kopas then offers spiritual skills necessary in a time of diverse religious cultures, obsession with information, and a devotion to narrow self-knowledge. Specifically, she talks about skills of radical faith, such as the ability to act without concern for results. Skills of contemplation include embracing simplicity and trusting the ordinary. Skills of self-knowledge are honesty, empathy, forgiveness, and transforming pain into love. Kopas has provided valuable material for others with "an evolving desire for God in a new context" marked by religious diversity, awareness of physical and social sciences, and development of personal religious thought.