God in the Works

In many cultures, there are different types of a “god” that people worship and look toward. In “The Wanderer”, “The Dream of the Rood”, and “Caedmon’s Hymn” there is proof of a god in the stories. In these three works, the authors talk about a god, but it isn’t as straight forward as saying “Oh look there is God on the horizon.” Instead it says, “Yet I, lying there a long while troubled, beheld the Saviour’s tree until I heard it give voice; the best of trees began to speak words.” (Bede.29).
So to begin, “The Wanderer,” written in the Exeter Book, but has no specific author, talks more about the belief and the loyalty towards a lord rather than a God. It begins with a man who survived a war, but now he has no lord to show loyalty toward. His Lord was killed in the war, so this man is wandering around trying to find someone, anyone to show some kind of loyalty to. He wants to feel a purpose as to why he, out of his entire court and kingdom, survived the war. “He who is alone often lives to find favor, mildness of the Lord, even though he has long had to stir with his arms the frost-cold sea, troubled in heart over the water-way had to tread the tracks of exile. Fully-fixed is his fate.” (Exeter.112). These are the first two sentences in this short story. It mentions a Lord, but not in the sense of a God. It is more in the sense of an actual Lord; a human being with power. But to understand in more contexts, you would have to continue reading the story. He ends up walking and being alone, forever looking for a lord to listen to and to take orders from. “The wise man must be patient, must never be too hot-hearted, nor too hasty of speech, nor too fearful, nor too glad, nor too greedy for wealth, nor ever too eager to boast, until he knows clearly, sure-minded, where the thoughts of his heart may turn.” (Exeter.113). This quote, in particular, talks about how a man or a person should act toward a Lord. This is how he wants to spend his life, but because he has lost his Lord, he doesn’t know how to act any different. Just thinking about what this one man had to go through, it almost seems impossible. It’s like telling a man who doesn’t believe in God or in any kind of higher being, to suddenly believe in it. It is possible, but highly improbable. To understand where his allegiance lied shows how much he showed loyalty to his lord, and the fact that even after his lord died, he still looked for someone to worship and sign his life away to. “It will be well with him who seeks favor, comfort from the Father in heaven, where for is all stability resides.” (Exeter.113).
Then to look at another piece of work, “Caedmon’s Hymn,” written by Bede, talks about a God, and how this God spoke through someone. This story begins with a young man known by the name of Caedmon, who cannot sing, but is told to, by a man who he dreamed of. He is told to “Sing about the Creation,” (Bede.25) and as he opens his mouth, he “immediately began to sing verses in praise of God the Creator, which he had never heard before…” (Bede.25). He began to sing out loud to the man, and how this was possible, was because he put his faith in the higher power. And actually, to be precise, he did all of this in his sleep and when he woke up the next morning; he remembered everything that happened in his dream. God is shown in this story through the life of Caedmon. Through this story, we learn about God, through Caedmon’s eyes and songs. “Therefore, the abbess, who cherished the grace of God in this man, instructed him to give up secular life and to take monastic vows.” (Bede.26). Caedmon went from working in a cattle shed to preaching God’s word. He never expected any of this to ever happen. “He sang about the creation of the world and the origin of the human race and all the history of Genesis; about the exodus of Israel out of Egypt and entrance into the promised land; and about many other stories of sacred scripture…” (Bede.27). He believed in his life and where he was going in life from what God had showed him. He preached the Lord’s work through song to his many followers and to the children. He became a better man because of his faith toward the Lord God Almighty.
In the last piece of work that I chose to write about, “The Dream of the Rood,” also has no known author or a date of composition, is about the cross in which Jesus was nailed to. It mainly talks about what the cross felt and what it went through. This piece of work talks the most about a god or a lord. It is the scene of Jesus being nailed to the cross. How much closer can you get to God? “I saw the tree of glory shine splendidly, adorned with garments, decked with gold: jewels had worthily covered the Lord’s tree. Yet through that gold I might perceive ancient agony of wretched, for now it began to bleed on the right side.” (The Dream of the Rood.27). The tree in the quote is what the cross sees as it is being tortured; tortured in the sense of Jesus being nailed to it. In the book it gives a reference about “for now it began to bleed on the right side,” and the reference is that the wound Christ received on the Cross was supposed to have been on the right side. This explains why it mentions about bleeding on the right side. To give a little love and compassion to the cross that is enduring all of this pain, this quote stands out the most to me. “Behold, the Lord of Glory honored me over all the trees of the wood, the Ruler of Heaven, just as also he honored his mother Mary, Almighty God for all men’s sake, over all woman’s kind.” (DOTR.29). It gives needed love to the cross after what it has been through. God loves all and everything that is on the earth. “Then he came with his multitude, a host of spirits, into God’s kingdom, the Almighty Ruler; and the angels and all the saints who dwelt then in glory rejoiced when their Ruler, Almighty God, came where his home was.” (DOTR.29)
God or a lord is in all types of work. It is just up to the reader to find where and how. God is a higher being that people worship or look up to and a lord is practically the same thing. The only difference is that God is not human and a lord is. Also a lord is someone who can physically touch you and tell you what to do, God can spiritually do all of these things, but you have to be willing to open up your heart and mind and listen to him. Just like Caedmon, he opened up his heart and mind to God and was given a different role to play in life and same with the lost soldier in “The Wanderer.” He wanted to serve his lord again, but wasn’t able to because he lost his, but he never gave up hope in finding a new one, and learns that God is someone that he can follow and serve. Both God and a lord care about their surroundings and what they rule. Without that, the world would be in danger.