I recently read Vintage Hughes, a short collection of Langston Hughes’ poetry. Hughes (1901-1967) was a poet, novelist, and activist in the Harlem Renaissance. He wrote with creativity and conviction, poetically revealing his experience as a Black man in the 20th century who grew up in Missouri and moved to Harlem. I’m new to poetry, but I was deeply impacted by his imaginative writing. I noticed glimpses of his redemptive imagination – both in his descriptions of a more beautiful world and by creatively exposing his current surroundings.
My next few posts will reflect on Hughes’ redemptive imagination, which is beautiful and profound. Though Hughes’ vision lacked the fullness of the Kingdom of God, his poetry offers several invitations to Christians. First, we’re challenged to cultivate a greater depth in our redemptive imaginations. Second, we’re challenged to apply the grand cosmic vision of God’s redemption in the here and now. Third, we’re challenged to consider how beautiful our imagination is. We worship a God who created beauty, and we should strive to create beauty in this world. In my reflection, I’ll draw out how we can learn from Hughes, while also holding to the far greater vision of New Creation.
I Dream a World
I dream a world where man
No other man will scorn,
Where love will bless the earth
And peace its paths adorn.
I dream a world where all
Will know sweet freedom’s way,
Where greed no longer saps the soul
No avarice blights our day.
A world I dream where black or white,
Whatever race you be,
Will share the bounties of the earth
And every man is free,
Where wretchedness will hang its head
And joy, like a pearl,
Attends the needs of all mankind –
Of such I dream, my world!
I Dream a World is the essence of Hughes’ redemptive imagination. He wrote this poem in 1941: pre-Civil Rights Movement, with World War II raging in Europe, and at the tail end of the Great Depression. He had seen pain and suffering, and yet he could “see” a world set free from hate, violence, greed, and racism.
As Christians, we place our hope in God’s redemption of all creation. There will be a day defined by love between all peoples, absolute peace and freedom, no more injustice, and constant joy! I dream a world, too. Alongside the Scripture, the apostolic witness, the historic church, and my spiritual brothers and sisters around the world – I dream of the New Heavens and New Earth, where everything is made new! Read Revelation 21-22 today and allow your imagination to run wild in God’s beautiful redemption plan.
However, in our firm hope of what is to come, we must not forget that God’s Kingdom has broken into the present through Jesus. In Jesus’ incarnation, life, death, and resurrection, it’s as if God’s future reached back into the present. Therefore, God invites us to live as part of New Creation now (see 2 Cor. 5:16-21). We can dream a world just like Hughes – but far greater!
Without this reminder, we may default to the Western, dualistic mindset, which separates the spiritual from the physical. In doing so, we divide sacred from secular and fail to pursue God’s comprehensive work of redemption in the here and now. Thus, some see life as a waiting room for heaven. Others see it like a museum, learning about God’s past actions but failing to see God’s invitation to participate. But the Scriptures are full of people who dared to dream and to imagine God’s redemption absorbing violence, injustice, and poverty with divine joy and peace:
Isaiah dreamed of weapons made into plowshares (Isa. 2:4)
Amos dreamed of justice rolling down like waters (Amos 5:24)
David dreamed of communing at God’s table amidst his enemies (Psalm 23:5)
A psalmist reminds us that God brought the exiles home, and they were like “those who dream” (Psalm 126:1)
Esther and Mordecai dreamed of God saving their people through unexpected circumstances (Est. 4:14)
Mary dreamed of breaking gender barriers by sitting at Jesus’ feet like a disciple (Luke 10:39)
Peter (literally) dreamed of God upending the social system of moral disgust between people groups (Acts 10:9-16)
John dreamed of Jesus making all things new in the New Heavens and New Earth (Rev. 21-22)
The disciple must dream! For we are called into a thin place between heaven and earth, where our resolute faith in the coming New Creation fuels a creative and redemptive imagination for the present.