Character and Enthusiasm

Reading Elizabeth Oldfield’s ‘Fully Alive’ has led me to muse on two words…

Character: We use character in two contexts: …A person’s character consists of all the qualities that make them distinct from others, particularly their moral qualities. …The people in a book, film or play are the characters that together make up the story.

‘Character’ comes from the old Greek word ‘kharakter’ , meaning an engraver’s mark. A goldsmith makes a beautiful piece of jewellery. The hallmark, the ‘kharakter’ on it tells both of the quality of the materials used and the skill of the creator.

Elizabeth Oldfield speaks of the Christian tradition of ‘imago dei’, that we’re made in the image of God: ‘We come from the womb as image bearers, and we go to our grave still sparking, still reflecting. Neither low status nor suffering nor physical or mental limitations can change that…’  We all bear the kharakter stamp of our creator-engraver.

Enthusiasm: Enthusiasm speaks of enjoyment, interest and approval; it involves energy, eagerness, involvement and intensity.

Elizabeth Oldfield reminded me that enthusiasm comes ‘from the Greek en theos, filled with God’. For seventeenth century Puritans it was a derogatory term that described excessive religious emotion…

I love anyone with enthusiasm, whether it involves fly fishing, basket weaving or the history of the London Underground. They spend time reading, listening, watching, talking; they spend money developing, practicing, doing, sharing. Energy and enjoyment, interest and priority, the god that’s inside.

Musing… In the story of my life I’m the central character; made in God’s image I bear my creator’s kharacter stamp. I hope and pray my individual qualities, my character, will reflect His character.

My Christian faith says that not only did my God make me, but he lives in me and can fill me. Harry Houdini said: ‘There is nothing more contagious than exuberant enthusiasm’. I hope and pray that the way I tell and live my story will show Houdini’s enthusiasm for my character and my God.