"For that many there be that pretend to be the King's Labourers and that say they are for mending the King's High-way, that bring dirt and dung instead of stones, and so marr,instead of mending."
Really enjoying this series, thank you Karen. Seems to me that Bunyan, maybe without realizing it, has written a sort of theology of the body (JPII). Christiana’s journey is the Church’s journey, not as an institution, but as a living, breathing, stumbling bride. The celestial city is not a destination beyond the world, but the world itself, redeemed.
Might I suggest the interplay between Christian’s solitary pilgrimage and Christiana’s communal journey is an unwitting icon of the incarnation’s particularity. For if Christ’s divinity was clothed in flesh, then the spiritual is never abstract, never disembodied, but always mediated through the tangible… through bread, through wine, through the laughter of children, through the sweat and terror of fending off assailants. Christian’s path was one of existential crisis, but Christiana’s is sacramental, her salvation is worked out in the company of others (as others have commented), in the domestic, the mundane, even the grotesque.
The city is reached not by transcending the body but by sanctifying it. The near assault on Christiana and Mercie is not merely an allegory of temptation but a brutal reminder that the pilgrimage is enfleshed. The divine is encountered not in spite of the body’s vulnerability, but through it. Just as Christ’s wounds remained after the resurrection, so too does the pilgrim’s journey bear the marks of struggle. Not as shame, but as witness.
Great-heart is more than a pastor, he’s an icon of Christ the bridegroom, armed not just with sword and shield but with tenderness. When Christiana’s heart bleeds in remembrance of Christ’s bleeding, she participates in the stigmata of devotion, a mystical union where love is both wound and balm. This is no mere emotionalism, it is the eros of the Cross, the divine ache that transfigures suffering into communion.
Most of my interest in Pilgrim's Progress has been on the influence of part 1. So much so, in fact (here comes a confession), I haven't read part 2 before. This goes along with my never finishing reading The City of God and parts 4-6 of The Faerie Queene and (while I'm confessing) Paradise Regained. I don't have anything to add at the moment, but I am reading part 2 now and am enjoying this commentary.
Okay, one thing to add: Bunyan waits rather late into the text to give names to the four sons. Other than that they're all names used in the Bible, they seem representations of different parts of the Bible: an epistle writer (the youngest), a gospel writer (the oldest), a patriarch of the Old Testament, and a prominent name from the histories and a prophet as well. I'm not sure what I conclude from this observation, or if there is more to conclude.
It is so surprising to find how many people who had previously read Part I, have never read Part II, and it has been still more surprising to discover that many printed editions only have part I. My childhood edition, 'Dangerous Journey', and my father's edition, a Peebles Classic Library edition, both have parts I & II, so I always thought of Christian's and Christiana's journeys as the complete whole of Pilgrim's Progress, and to only read the first part would have left the book half read.
I am not sure, but I suspect this is a fairly recent phenomenon as it is so easy to publish non-copyrighted materials these days (as well as to make other adaptations). A book that weighs as half as much and takes half the paper will seek as much and cost a lot less. 😏
That's true, but even book reviews, summaries, and scholarly articles seem to primarily be reviewing, summarizing, or studying the first part - it is like the literary world itself has only been focused on Part I.
This has inspired me to read the rest of the book as well . I have just broken my ankle and have a terrible bad mood and was going to abandon Pilgrim’s Progress but Karen’s essay has inspired me to find out about Christiana and Mercie. I haven’t the book to hand right now because I’m stuck in bed so please tell me what the four children are like, and were they written in so parents could inspire their children to be young pilgrims? Or do they hardly appear other than as essential for Christiana to take with her . It is interesting that this is seen as Christiana’s duty , to lead her children to God, while the earlier book does not suggest that Christian is negligent as a father in leaving them behind. So Christiana, not Christian, is the theological leader of the household . But I can’t imagine Bunyan being so progressive.
Oh, I’m so sorry about your ankle!!! Heal quickly.
The boys get more roles in coming sections. I don’t find it fun to read books online, but I did link to an online version of the text in the reading schedule (I think!) if you want to resort to that.
There is certainly a difference in how Christiana and Mercy are portrayed on their journey - I noticed the Interpreter's statement that he showed the hen and chicks to them "because you are women, and they are easy for you" - but I was thinking that Bunyan also portrays his female pilgrims with something akin to awe or reverence.
At the Interpreter's house, when they are washed and clothed in fine, white linen, which are the wedding garments for the bride of Christ, and given the seal in their foreheads from Revelation, Christiana and Mercy are described as being "fair as the moon" with "their countenances more like those of angels." Bunyan says: "When the women were first adorned, they seemed to be a terror one to the other; for that they could not see that glory each one had in herself, which they could see in each other." Bunyan's female pilgrims are noble women or princesses at the beginning of their pilgrimage.
I was going to skip reading the book and follow along with the articles because time is not on my side this summer. Now, after reading this and a few comments, I want to read the book, and knowing myself, if I don't read it with the group, it will probably never happen. So I hope to find some slivers of time to fit it in. :-)
This was a good introduction to the work. Really good.
I’m so glad, Mel! Thank you! I always struggle with what to leave out with so much time and space limited! I hope you are able to read along. I expect you will like Part 2 more and I can’t wait to find out if so!
When I first read Part 2, Christiana, I loved the more relational aspect of Christiana’s journey. That is, Christian walked through sanctification on his own — and sometimes we need to choose Christ despite nobody beside us — but Christiana had family and Mercie and her boys, providing mutual encouragement. God knows what we need to grow in our love for Him.
Good stuff! I did know the second part existed, but when I first came across it, I was about 13 and instantly put off by the name Christiana. While I could appreciate the cleverness of using Christian as an allegorical name for a male character, Christiana felt like a mouthful—like reading the name of a fan-fiction OC. It ranked right up there with naming your daughter Liberty or America—a bit too on the nose, even for allegory. It was like when your little sister wants to play G.I. Joe with you and insists that Jenny is a good code name. Yes, that’s exactly where my 13-year-old brain went.
Thankfully, we ended up engaging with it anyway, since it was part of our curriculum. Mom, ever the excellent and patient reader of the classics, brought it to life with her interpretations and character voices, as was her way. I’m looking forward to giving it another go—24 years older and, hopefully, a little wiser.
On a voiceover note—I've found that if I'm recording on a laptop without it being plugged into the wall, the audio does a bit of a flamenco. Definitely something to watch out for. I really appreciate your ready willingness to record!
Haha! You are funny, Daniel. I love the way your mom approached it. She sounds delightful. I’m definitely interested in how you find the story all these years later.
What does “flamenco” mean? I’d really like to make the recording as good as it can be. Unfortunately, my charging ports work only when my laptop is tipped at a certain angle (loose, old, something). The company says I need a new motherboard. Sigh. But I want to try to figure out a workaround.
You already do your recordings in one take so try recording to your voice app on your phone and uploading your recording on your phone. I can send a demo if you need it.
Exactly! The clickety clackety, castinette dance. 😅 I suppose I could have gone for Fred Astaire for a more immediate dance analogy, but the flamenco sticks in my mind as bold, in your face and dramatic, driving clicking.
story time: I never listen to my record recordings, except for the “testing 123 testing,” I do before each recording. And I only do that because when I first started recording, there was one early post. I did where there was no sound. I could not figure out for the life of me what the problem was. I finally ended up paying for a tech consultation that was $70. In the course of that half hour or so, I discovered myself that the reason there was no sound in my recording is because the headset I use for recording has two parts and one part of the cord was not plugged securely into the other part. So. That gives you an idea about my technology skills. On the other hand, I did figure it out myself while talking with the tech consultant. Sigh.
Oh my…I have an intuition about these kinds of things. If you need help in future I'm willing to be your first responding “Tech Support” and we can try to work it out together. The phone method should give you a clearer recording and (if you want) I will be your guinea pig and listen back over your recording.
Can I ask about the voice over - is that something you record directly onto Substack, or do you upload a file? Also, do you use any special equipment, i.e. microphone with a filter?
“So that all that you have, my daughters, you have by a peculiar feeling made by a thinking upon what I have spoken to you. This you have, therefore, by a special grace.” In an allegory spiritual forces are, of necessity, given a physical presence and Great-heart certainly does suggest a pastor but to me he also suggests the indwelling Holy Spirit. That “peculiar feeling” that is described as a warmth of affection toward Jesus especially because of the shedding of His blood for her sins. I think of what John Wesley describes as his heart being strangely warmed as he listened to Calvin’s notes on Romans and became a believer. The mockers that stood at the foot of the cross and laughed were faced with a scene they thought they understood - a condemned criminal being executed. I note that Jesus in selecting his disciples gathered a very diverse group of men (and women) but mockers were not among them. A long attitude of mockery is sure to bring hardness of heart that the Holy Spirit cannot or will not break through. Christiana and Merci lost their capability to become mockers when they first sought salvation.
"For that many there be that pretend to be the King's Labourers and that say they are for mending the King's High-way, that bring dirt and dung instead of stones, and so marr,instead of mending."
Indeed. Such truth.
Really enjoying this series, thank you Karen. Seems to me that Bunyan, maybe without realizing it, has written a sort of theology of the body (JPII). Christiana’s journey is the Church’s journey, not as an institution, but as a living, breathing, stumbling bride. The celestial city is not a destination beyond the world, but the world itself, redeemed.
Might I suggest the interplay between Christian’s solitary pilgrimage and Christiana’s communal journey is an unwitting icon of the incarnation’s particularity. For if Christ’s divinity was clothed in flesh, then the spiritual is never abstract, never disembodied, but always mediated through the tangible… through bread, through wine, through the laughter of children, through the sweat and terror of fending off assailants. Christian’s path was one of existential crisis, but Christiana’s is sacramental, her salvation is worked out in the company of others (as others have commented), in the domestic, the mundane, even the grotesque.
The city is reached not by transcending the body but by sanctifying it. The near assault on Christiana and Mercie is not merely an allegory of temptation but a brutal reminder that the pilgrimage is enfleshed. The divine is encountered not in spite of the body’s vulnerability, but through it. Just as Christ’s wounds remained after the resurrection, so too does the pilgrim’s journey bear the marks of struggle. Not as shame, but as witness.
Great-heart is more than a pastor, he’s an icon of Christ the bridegroom, armed not just with sword and shield but with tenderness. When Christiana’s heart bleeds in remembrance of Christ’s bleeding, she participates in the stigmata of devotion, a mystical union where love is both wound and balm. This is no mere emotionalism, it is the eros of the Cross, the divine ache that transfigures suffering into communion.
Oh wow. This is lot, Steve. Very very interesting and profound and seems to me very true.
These insights are a tremendous gift and I am beyond grateful.
Maybe everyone has already noticed, but if not, you can sing the songs to
"How Sweet and Awesome Is the Place"
Bunyon would have said "How Sweet and Aweful..."
That melody is called St. Columba so it's very, very old.
Such a great old word: “aweful.”
Most of my interest in Pilgrim's Progress has been on the influence of part 1. So much so, in fact (here comes a confession), I haven't read part 2 before. This goes along with my never finishing reading The City of God and parts 4-6 of The Faerie Queene and (while I'm confessing) Paradise Regained. I don't have anything to add at the moment, but I am reading part 2 now and am enjoying this commentary.
Okay, one thing to add: Bunyan waits rather late into the text to give names to the four sons. Other than that they're all names used in the Bible, they seem representations of different parts of the Bible: an epistle writer (the youngest), a gospel writer (the oldest), a patriarch of the Old Testament, and a prominent name from the histories and a prophet as well. I'm not sure what I conclude from this observation, or if there is more to conclude.
It is so surprising to find how many people who had previously read Part I, have never read Part II, and it has been still more surprising to discover that many printed editions only have part I. My childhood edition, 'Dangerous Journey', and my father's edition, a Peebles Classic Library edition, both have parts I & II, so I always thought of Christian's and Christiana's journeys as the complete whole of Pilgrim's Progress, and to only read the first part would have left the book half read.
I am not sure, but I suspect this is a fairly recent phenomenon as it is so easy to publish non-copyrighted materials these days (as well as to make other adaptations). A book that weighs as half as much and takes half the paper will seek as much and cost a lot less. 😏
That's true, but even book reviews, summaries, and scholarly articles seem to primarily be reviewing, summarizing, or studying the first part - it is like the literary world itself has only been focused on Part I.
Good point!
So glad you are reading along, Jack. The sons develop more along the way.
I have seen the development. I have no gripes.
This has inspired me to read the rest of the book as well . I have just broken my ankle and have a terrible bad mood and was going to abandon Pilgrim’s Progress but Karen’s essay has inspired me to find out about Christiana and Mercie. I haven’t the book to hand right now because I’m stuck in bed so please tell me what the four children are like, and were they written in so parents could inspire their children to be young pilgrims? Or do they hardly appear other than as essential for Christiana to take with her . It is interesting that this is seen as Christiana’s duty , to lead her children to God, while the earlier book does not suggest that Christian is negligent as a father in leaving them behind. So Christiana, not Christian, is the theological leader of the household . But I can’t imagine Bunyan being so progressive.
So you did! When my brain is less fuzzy I will read it
Take care of yourself!
Oh, I’m so sorry about your ankle!!! Heal quickly.
The boys get more roles in coming sections. I don’t find it fun to read books online, but I did link to an online version of the text in the reading schedule (I think!) if you want to resort to that.
There is certainly a difference in how Christiana and Mercy are portrayed on their journey - I noticed the Interpreter's statement that he showed the hen and chicks to them "because you are women, and they are easy for you" - but I was thinking that Bunyan also portrays his female pilgrims with something akin to awe or reverence.
At the Interpreter's house, when they are washed and clothed in fine, white linen, which are the wedding garments for the bride of Christ, and given the seal in their foreheads from Revelation, Christiana and Mercy are described as being "fair as the moon" with "their countenances more like those of angels." Bunyan says: "When the women were first adorned, they seemed to be a terror one to the other; for that they could not see that glory each one had in herself, which they could see in each other." Bunyan's female pilgrims are noble women or princesses at the beginning of their pilgrimage.
Oh, yes! I think that is right. They really are very pleasing characters. And I am not easily pleased.
I was going to skip reading the book and follow along with the articles because time is not on my side this summer. Now, after reading this and a few comments, I want to read the book, and knowing myself, if I don't read it with the group, it will probably never happen. So I hope to find some slivers of time to fit it in. :-)
This was a good introduction to the work. Really good.
I’m so glad, Mel! Thank you! I always struggle with what to leave out with so much time and space limited! I hope you are able to read along. I expect you will like Part 2 more and I can’t wait to find out if so!
Same here. It's been hard to get into a routine this summer.
When I first read Part 2, Christiana, I loved the more relational aspect of Christiana’s journey. That is, Christian walked through sanctification on his own — and sometimes we need to choose Christ despite nobody beside us — but Christiana had family and Mercie and her boys, providing mutual encouragement. God knows what we need to grow in our love for Him.
I agree, Amy. I think I like Part 2 better and this is one reason why.
Good stuff! I did know the second part existed, but when I first came across it, I was about 13 and instantly put off by the name Christiana. While I could appreciate the cleverness of using Christian as an allegorical name for a male character, Christiana felt like a mouthful—like reading the name of a fan-fiction OC. It ranked right up there with naming your daughter Liberty or America—a bit too on the nose, even for allegory. It was like when your little sister wants to play G.I. Joe with you and insists that Jenny is a good code name. Yes, that’s exactly where my 13-year-old brain went.
Thankfully, we ended up engaging with it anyway, since it was part of our curriculum. Mom, ever the excellent and patient reader of the classics, brought it to life with her interpretations and character voices, as was her way. I’m looking forward to giving it another go—24 years older and, hopefully, a little wiser.
On a voiceover note—I've found that if I'm recording on a laptop without it being plugged into the wall, the audio does a bit of a flamenco. Definitely something to watch out for. I really appreciate your ready willingness to record!
Haha! You are funny, Daniel. I love the way your mom approached it. She sounds delightful. I’m definitely interested in how you find the story all these years later.
What does “flamenco” mean? I’d really like to make the recording as good as it can be. Unfortunately, my charging ports work only when my laptop is tipped at a certain angle (loose, old, something). The company says I need a new motherboard. Sigh. But I want to try to figure out a workaround.
You already do your recordings in one take so try recording to your voice app on your phone and uploading your recording on your phone. I can send a demo if you need it.
This seems like a good technique to try. I’m really glad for the tips and will let you know if I need more help. 😬
But what is “flamenco”? Isn’t it a dance? 😂
Exactly! The clickety clackety, castinette dance. 😅 I suppose I could have gone for Fred Astaire for a more immediate dance analogy, but the flamenco sticks in my mind as bold, in your face and dramatic, driving clicking.
That makes sense! 😂
story time: I never listen to my record recordings, except for the “testing 123 testing,” I do before each recording. And I only do that because when I first started recording, there was one early post. I did where there was no sound. I could not figure out for the life of me what the problem was. I finally ended up paying for a tech consultation that was $70. In the course of that half hour or so, I discovered myself that the reason there was no sound in my recording is because the headset I use for recording has two parts and one part of the cord was not plugged securely into the other part. So. That gives you an idea about my technology skills. On the other hand, I did figure it out myself while talking with the tech consultant. Sigh.
Oh my…I have an intuition about these kinds of things. If you need help in future I'm willing to be your first responding “Tech Support” and we can try to work it out together. The phone method should give you a clearer recording and (if you want) I will be your guinea pig and listen back over your recording.
Can I ask about the voice over - is that something you record directly onto Substack, or do you upload a file? Also, do you use any special equipment, i.e. microphone with a filter?
https://youtu.be/AwcOCgBRZZ4?si=3OYc9ffSZh10HLp5
“So that all that you have, my daughters, you have by a peculiar feeling made by a thinking upon what I have spoken to you. This you have, therefore, by a special grace.” In an allegory spiritual forces are, of necessity, given a physical presence and Great-heart certainly does suggest a pastor but to me he also suggests the indwelling Holy Spirit. That “peculiar feeling” that is described as a warmth of affection toward Jesus especially because of the shedding of His blood for her sins. I think of what John Wesley describes as his heart being strangely warmed as he listened to Calvin’s notes on Romans and became a believer. The mockers that stood at the foot of the cross and laughed were faced with a scene they thought they understood - a condemned criminal being executed. I note that Jesus in selecting his disciples gathered a very diverse group of men (and women) but mockers were not among them. A long attitude of mockery is sure to bring hardness of heart that the Holy Spirit cannot or will not break through. Christiana and Merci lost their capability to become mockers when they first sought salvation.