Fearless Faith

We all have seen it. We just didn’t know it had a name. “It” is the angular gothic-styled Germanic lettering called “fraktur” that is often discoverable on bookplates, manuscripts, handbills and similar artifacts from the mid to late 1700s and early 1800s. One of the earliest stylistic schools of fraktur ascended from the Ephrata Cloister in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, (1745-1755). Ephrata was known, in part, as one of the few places in Colonial America where women could exercise their own authority. A number of women of the cloister, who fled colonial hardships for the relative calm and safety of the monastic community, became adept at copying then developing their own particular style of fraktur.

The fraktur produced at Ephrata, now a National Historic Landmark, remains unique for its its subtle hues, particularly soft grays and blues that ornamented hymnals, baptismal certificates and wall hangings. Some claim that the peculiar nature of the buildings of the cloister has somehow preserved this unique fraktur in ways that could not have occurred elsewhere. What is certain is that the popularity and artistry of this colonial folk art continues to inspire modern fraktur, both the popularity of reproductions and the creation of original works.

While we recognize and appreciate the value and beauty of fraktur by today’s standards, we would never dream of publishing books, hymnals or other serious literary works using this very old style of writing/art, except as ornamentation for a cover or perhaps a letter or two as notice of the beginning of a chapter. It is cumbersome to read and would simply get in the way of most writings that ought to be measured on their own merit rather than how they are packaged.

When it comes to religion, it seems that we confuse pretty ornamentation with substance. We have acquired catch-phrases, and ways of talking about our faith that sometimes don’t even make sense to many, and then we attempt to scare the devil out of people by challenging them when they question what has been said. Religion survives in part on fear and control, a far place from the grace that we preach.

“Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don’t impose it on others. You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you’re not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe — some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them — then you know that you’re out of line. If the way you live isn’t consistent with what you believe, then it’s wrong (Rom 14:22-23, MSG).”

If what you are hearing or seeing is fraktur rather than something reliable — readable and comprehensible for today — then take responsibility for yourself and ask the questions you need to ask, without apology, or hesitation or fear. At the same time, do not receive as gospel truth all the responses you collect. Learn to distinguish between pretty words, petty words and the truths that speak authentically to you.