By William Shakespeare
(from As You Like It, spoken by Jaques)
All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms;
And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lin’d,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;
His youthful hose, well sav’d, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion;
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.
By William Shakespeare
(from Macbeth, spoken by Macbeth)
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
You see, we are all actors and actresses. During the day we take on many different roles.
Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary
Definition of act
-Verb
• Do
to do for a particular purpose or in order to deal with a situation.
• Behave
to behave in a particular way.
• Pretend
to pretend by your behavior to be a particular type of person.
• Perform in play/movie
to perform a part in a play or film/movie.
• Perform functions
to perform a particular role or function.
• Have effect
to have an effect on.
What does scripture say about "acting" ?
Ephesians 5:1
Therefore be imitators of God as dear children,
1 Corinthians 11
Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.
Scriptures on imitating Christ has inspired me to meditate on following Christ. As followers of Christ we imitate Christ. As imitators of Christ we follow Christ. To be like Christ is to be Christ because Christ is in us. We are IMITATORS of Christ, called to FOLLOW him and to follow in His steps.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
John 8:19
Then a certain teacher scribe came and set to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."
Matthew 8:9
And He said to him, "Follow Me." So he arose and followed Him.
Mark 8:34
Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
John 10:4-5
And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.
John 12:26
If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.
1 Peter 2:21
For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
Revelation 14:4
These are the ones who follow the lamb wherever He goes.
*As of today I am viewing Shakespeare's plays through a whole different lense. I agree to disagree. When you are saved you are not just a mere participant in stumbling through life without direction or purpose waiting for your time to die.
Yet the freedom of speech and Shakespeare's ability to bring real life emotion into play, is what makes it authentic and we can all somehow relate.
Imitating Christ is trying until you get it right!
♥️
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