M o n t h l y N e w s f r o m F P C Ty l e r • Vo l u m e 1 2 , I s s u e 2 : F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 7
The Inner Struggle of Good and Evil by the Rev. Dr. Stuart Baskin For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. —Paul, Epistle to the Romans 7:19-20 I’ve been thinking about Scotland lately. This no doubt in part because of our planned trip. In my musings, I decided to read Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson’s short novel, Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Stevenson, a native of Edinburgh, was the son of devout Presbyterians, and the maternal grandson of a Church of Scotland minister. Though he became an atheist, it is clear that his Presbyterian roots provided him with an intellectual framework for making sense of the world around him. Early in his career, he wrote an unsuccessful play called, Deacon Brodie, or The Double Life. The play was based on the real life William Brodie, the Deacon (or president) of the cabinet-makers guild in Edinburgh in the latter half of the 18th century. By day, Brodie was a respected member of society. But by night, Brodie was a thief, a gambler, and a serial adulterer. As a cabinet-maker, he was also a
skilled locksmith, and as a respected citizen, he had access to the homes of many wealthy Edinburgh citizens. In short, he copied the keys to the homes of the wealthy and used them to gain entry. After 20-odd years of living this double life, Brodie was caught, tried, and hanged. Though Stevenson’s play about the life of Deacon Brodie was unsuccessful, he apparently kept thinking about the strange duality at work in a man who could be so respectable by day and lead such a different life after dark. Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was the result. The story explores the apparent duality at work in all of us, that we are at once both respectable people, yet also filled with sin—perhaps not as dramatically as Deacon Brodie, but filled with sin just the same. The Apostle Paul explores the same duality in his letter to the Romans. Like Dr. Jekyll who recognized the sin and evil lurking deep within himself, Paul says, “I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Continued on page 2.
i n t h i s i s s u e | H I G H L I G H T S & F E AT U R E S FA @ FPC: Jazz Brunch | pg 3
2017 Lenten Study | Pg 2
2017 Mardi Gras for Missions | pg 4
Smooth jazz and good eats sponsored by Fine Arts @ FPC.
Learn how we will meet God in Paul this Lenten season.
Gumbo cook-off, parade, silent auction —the whole bit. Won’t you join us?. First Presbyterian Church of Tyler, Texas 230 West Rusk Street, Tyler, Texas 75701-1696 (903) 597-6317 | www.fpctyler.com