Today marks the day of Charles Dickens Birthday. February 7th, 1812. This would mark his 200th birthday...if God had so chosen for him to remain among us!
Charles Dickens wrote about suffering...the suffering of those who were participants of a "New Age" at that time in history...the Industrial Age. England herself was one of the very first to embrace what has been a great permanent change in society since its origins in the early 1800's.
Dickens wrote of the "Cry of the Poor"...seeing with his own eyes children, as young as 4 or 5 years old crawling into small crevices and holes in the tin mines to recover the precious metal society had demand of within that era. He saw for himself the emptiness in the poor's eyes, especially among the children...who worked in places like the tin mines for 12 to 16 hours a day.
Dickens also was a witness to the funerals that "piled up" in the London area...directly due to these hellish and sheer horror work conditions. At one point , around 1840, 50% of all funerals in London were of children...aged 10 years old or less.
With the Industrial Age coming into full swing, Charles Dickens also saw the great divide between the rich and the poor...the greed and the corruption of the financiers...creeping up to the Members of Parliament itself!
Charles Dickens himself was well-acquainted with poverty, seeing his own father being sent to a debtor's prison and as a result forced to work in a factory fixing labels on jars of boot polish at the tender age of 12 years old.
From that experience, Dickens was introduced to the cruelties of a "workhouse"...seeing families split apart for the sake of economics, seeing the cold harshness of child labor as well as the sheer pain of long hours at the treadmills.
He was also made quite aware of the depravity of man, hearing and seeing the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse that thrived in these so-called "workhouses."
Charles Dickens had seen much: in fact he was known to be an insomniac and had roamed many of the streets of London in the night hour...seeing pain and suffering in its rawest form.
Charles Dickens decided to do something about it...the things he saw...the words he heard...the general evils of the society he lived in and were being looked over.
His compassion for the poor overtook him...and history was changed!
Although some of Dicken's writings are some of the greatest classics ever written such as "Oliver Twist" and "David Copperfield"...I will remember him for the greatest classic I ever had the honor of reading in my entire life: "A Christmas Carol".
I will forever remember Charles Dickens as "the man who changed Christmas...around the world!"
Up to that time, before that glorious day in December of 1843, when "A Christmas Carol" was to be published, Christmas was nothing more than a Mardi-Gras at best...simply a time to take a choice of what you wanted to indulge in: wine...or women...or song.
That is, until that day....for it was then... the whole Holiday was changed and took on a brand new appearance, and this new appearance changed the whole world!
Christmas has ever since been returned to its primary roots...to the family...and in particular...the children.
Charles Dickens had 10 children of his own, and through his life he dedicated himself to the cause of the poor...which was centered on children.
Although our society today has it's own "sin" to answer for as to how we treat children, certainly Charles Dickens has been a pioneer as to showing us how...for it is said his writings rescued literally millions of children from the "Doom of Death" he had seen with his eyes.
We will forever be indebted to his "anointed use" of the pen, along with his compassion, perseverance, and the very heart...of Charles Dickens!
May God in His Grace raise up more like Charles Dickens...and remind society of our obligation to always "Remember the needs of the Poor"!
In the words of a young child who once said: "God bless us...everyone!"
"When you help the poor...you are lending to the Lord...." Proverbs 19:17(a)
"Anyone who oppresses the poor insults the God who made them. when you help the poor, you honor God." Proverbs 14:31
Charles Dickens wrote about suffering...the suffering of those who were participants of a "New Age" at that time in history...the Industrial Age. England herself was one of the very first to embrace what has been a great permanent change in society since its origins in the early 1800's.
Dickens wrote of the "Cry of the Poor"...seeing with his own eyes children, as young as 4 or 5 years old crawling into small crevices and holes in the tin mines to recover the precious metal society had demand of within that era. He saw for himself the emptiness in the poor's eyes, especially among the children...who worked in places like the tin mines for 12 to 16 hours a day.
Dickens also was a witness to the funerals that "piled up" in the London area...directly due to these hellish and sheer horror work conditions. At one point , around 1840, 50% of all funerals in London were of children...aged 10 years old or less.
With the Industrial Age coming into full swing, Charles Dickens also saw the great divide between the rich and the poor...the greed and the corruption of the financiers...creeping up to the Members of Parliament itself!
Charles Dickens himself was well-acquainted with poverty, seeing his own father being sent to a debtor's prison and as a result forced to work in a factory fixing labels on jars of boot polish at the tender age of 12 years old.
From that experience, Dickens was introduced to the cruelties of a "workhouse"...seeing families split apart for the sake of economics, seeing the cold harshness of child labor as well as the sheer pain of long hours at the treadmills.
He was also made quite aware of the depravity of man, hearing and seeing the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse that thrived in these so-called "workhouses."
Charles Dickens had seen much: in fact he was known to be an insomniac and had roamed many of the streets of London in the night hour...seeing pain and suffering in its rawest form.
Charles Dickens decided to do something about it...the things he saw...the words he heard...the general evils of the society he lived in and were being looked over.
His compassion for the poor overtook him...and history was changed!
Although some of Dicken's writings are some of the greatest classics ever written such as "Oliver Twist" and "David Copperfield"...I will remember him for the greatest classic I ever had the honor of reading in my entire life: "A Christmas Carol".
I will forever remember Charles Dickens as "the man who changed Christmas...around the world!"
Up to that time, before that glorious day in December of 1843, when "A Christmas Carol" was to be published, Christmas was nothing more than a Mardi-Gras at best...simply a time to take a choice of what you wanted to indulge in: wine...or women...or song.
That is, until that day....for it was then... the whole Holiday was changed and took on a brand new appearance, and this new appearance changed the whole world!
Christmas has ever since been returned to its primary roots...to the family...and in particular...the children.
Charles Dickens had 10 children of his own, and through his life he dedicated himself to the cause of the poor...which was centered on children.
Although our society today has it's own "sin" to answer for as to how we treat children, certainly Charles Dickens has been a pioneer as to showing us how...for it is said his writings rescued literally millions of children from the "Doom of Death" he had seen with his eyes.
We will forever be indebted to his "anointed use" of the pen, along with his compassion, perseverance, and the very heart...of Charles Dickens!
May God in His Grace raise up more like Charles Dickens...and remind society of our obligation to always "Remember the needs of the Poor"!
In the words of a young child who once said: "God bless us...everyone!"
"When you help the poor...you are lending to the Lord...." Proverbs 19:17(a)
"Anyone who oppresses the poor insults the God who made them. when you help the poor, you honor God." Proverbs 14:31
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