Our Greatest Prayers are Poems (with Dana Gioia)

On this episode, poet and writer Dana Gioia–founder of the Catholic Imagination Conference and former Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts–joins Kim and JJ to discuss his craft: the sound of language, the nature of inspiration, and the importance of poetic literacy among Catholic Christians. They discuss the centrality of the psalms and of biblical poetry in general, “God’s…baffling editorial decision of putting one-third of revelation in poetry.” We need poetry, Gioia exhorts, to “get us through life” and “gladden” our hearts.Key moments:“Don’t try to make sense of it; just listen to it” (8:40)“The Sound of the Poem is the Poem” (11:25)On creating a room for the reader/hearer (12:30)“I’m not sure how to talk to God” (13:50)“When your a poet, remember you write for God” (15:13)God’s baffling decision to reveal through (Scriptural) poetry (22:39)“Gird our loins and deal in verse” (24:00)“Our Greatest Prayers are Poems” (25:00)To know by heart (30:00)Standing at the Sink of Life (34:00)Let the Language Tell You (37:47)“Can Poetry Matter?” (The Atlantic, May 1991)https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1991/05/can-poetry-matter/305062/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.