Calpurnia: A Woman of the Gospel
A lesson I learned from Calpurnia
One of the numerous lessons that I have learned from To Kill a Mockingbird was taught by Calpurnia. In chapter 12, Cal took Scout and Jem to her church for the first time. In the beginning of the chapter, Calpurnia was being ambushed by Lula, an arrogant church member, for bringing them to the negro church. Lula stated that Calpurnia "ain't got no business bringin' white chillun here- they got their church, we got our'n. It is our church, ain't it, Miss Cal" (Lee 136)? Calpurnia replied back to Lula saying, "It's the same God, ain't it" (136)? Her short, yet pensive, retort spoke to me on a spiritual level.
The lesson that Calpurnia taught me through this is that no matter where you worship at, who you worship with, or how you worship, we are all still worshiping the same God, and that's all that matters. God does not care if we worship at a big church, small church, white church, black church- as long as our faith is in him, and we worship him with all our strength, we will persevere.
I believe that Cal said this to Lula to defend herself and the kids. She did not want Jem and Scout to be forced to leave the church. She may be oblivious to the actual impact that she had on some people. First, Lula may have come to realize that what Calpurnia said was true. Because of all of the gossip, media, and prejudice, it was in Lula's beliefs that only blacks should be allowed in her church. Calpurnia may have opened Lula's eyes by showing her what the true meaning of going to church and being a Christian is about. Jem and Scout were also right next to Cal when she spoke the beautiful expression. As kids, God is a perplex concept. Jem and Scout, like Lula, perhaps don't entirely understand what it means to be a follower of God, but Calpurnia just gave them their first lesson on it.
The quote from the novel relates to my personal life because I go to Browns Bridge Community Church, and sometimes I get criticism or hear of people bad-mouthing my church. This infuriates me because I love my church and the church community. When I hear that Browns Bridge is "only a place to socialize" or that we "don't even worship God and just eat donuts and play games" or even that my church is "not traditional," it makes me question if those people know what being a Christian is about. If they were to hear Calpurnia's words, maybe they would stop bringing others down about where they go to church and start bringing others up because we all celebrate the same God.
Calpurnia's lesson has given many people, including me, the chance to realize that all that matters is that we praise God and that we are all worshiping the same God together. The next time someone tells me that their church is more suitable than mine, I'll say, "It's the same God, ain't it?"
A lesson I learned from Calpurnia
One of the numerous lessons that I have learned from To Kill a Mockingbird was taught by Calpurnia. In chapter 12, Cal took Scout and Jem to her church for the first time. In the beginning of the chapter, Calpurnia was being ambushed by Lula, an arrogant church member, for bringing them to the negro church. Lula stated that Calpurnia "ain't got no business bringin' white chillun here- they got their church, we got our'n. It is our church, ain't it, Miss Cal" (Lee 136)? Calpurnia replied back to Lula saying, "It's the same God, ain't it" (136)? Her short, yet pensive, retort spoke to me on a spiritual level.
The lesson that Calpurnia taught me through this is that no matter where you worship at, who you worship with, or how you worship, we are all still worshiping the same God, and that's all that matters. God does not care if we worship at a big church, small church, white church, black church- as long as our faith is in him, and we worship him with all our strength, we will persevere.
I believe that Cal said this to Lula to defend herself and the kids. She did not want Jem and Scout to be forced to leave the church. She may be oblivious to the actual impact that she had on some people. First, Lula may have come to realize that what Calpurnia said was true. Because of all of the gossip, media, and prejudice, it was in Lula's beliefs that only blacks should be allowed in her church. Calpurnia may have opened Lula's eyes by showing her what the true meaning of going to church and being a Christian is about. Jem and Scout were also right next to Cal when she spoke the beautiful expression. As kids, God is a perplex concept. Jem and Scout, like Lula, perhaps don't entirely understand what it means to be a follower of God, but Calpurnia just gave them their first lesson on it.
The quote from the novel relates to my personal life because I go to Browns Bridge Community Church, and sometimes I get criticism or hear of people bad-mouthing my church. This infuriates me because I love my church and the church community. When I hear that Browns Bridge is "only a place to socialize" or that we "don't even worship God and just eat donuts and play games" or even that my church is "not traditional," it makes me question if those people know what being a Christian is about. If they were to hear Calpurnia's words, maybe they would stop bringing others down about where they go to church and start bringing others up because we all celebrate the same God.
Calpurnia's lesson has given many people, including me, the chance to realize that all that matters is that we praise God and that we are all worshiping the same God together. The next time someone tells me that their church is more suitable than mine, I'll say, "It's the same God, ain't it?"