Part 3 - Give the Gift of Nobility
- Logan Fude
- Mar 19, 2022
- 3 min read
What do you think of when you hear the word nobility? Lords and Ladies clothed in finery? Someone surrounded by people who respect them and their authority?
Perhaps Narnia, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe comes to mind.
Four children of no renown stumble into a world where they don’ t belong. They don’t know anyone or anything. Have you ever felt like that? I have. So how did these four children end up kings and queens ruling an ancient kingdom with peace? Because the world they stepped into saw them for what they could be. The beavers didn’t have any proof that they really were the fulfillment of the prophesy. It wasn’t stamped on the Pevensie’s foreheads. The beavers trusted and believed, but most importantly, they acted (remember, the reason they wanted to help rescue Edmond so badly was because they believed he was one of the kings, not just because the White Witch had him and they felt sorry).
Throughout the story, Peter, Susan, Lucy, and later Edmond after being rescued, were given gifts that they would need as kings and queens. It took a lot of prodding from the Narnians – and a conversation with Aslan himself – to convince them that they really were capable and needed to correct the evil that was infesting Narnia.
What a difference between the Pevensie’s first scene in Narnia and their last (as adults, hunting the white stag). The confidence, the relationships, the surroundings. Everything was thriving and summer was well underway.
Nobility didn’t die with the medieval era.
Have you ever met someone with a noble spirit or at the very least, seen a glimpse? Not of haughtiness or entitlement, but of knowing that they are valuable where they are, and they don’t need to please others or show off to be worth the air they’re breathing.
Matthew Kelly says we can rehumanize people into having this noble spirit. How? Glad you asked.
What did we say nobility was before?
Lords and Ladies clothed in finery? Someone surrounded by people who respect them and their authority?
While our image of nobility may involve material things, they are not necessary to have a noble spirit, nor do material things need to play a part in our generosity. “Clothed”? Yes, but instead of velvet and fine silks, how about with confidence? That understanding that our dignity isn’t dependent on perfection, power, or prestige, but that we were created on purpose for a reason. Whether you believe it or not, you are a child of God, and that is where your dignity comes from, not from perfectly avoiding mistakes.
Hawk Nelson’s song “Words” points out that “words can build us up; words can break us down”. Words can cloth a person in nobility, or it can dehumanize them into feeling worthless. In medieval times, Lords and Ladies had servants and a caste system; they certainly didn’t press the point that their attendants had dignity!
What if we brought a little bit of Narnia into our world today? Yes, the Kings and Queens of Old had attendants, but having been “nobodies” themselves once, I think King Peter probably treated his servants well. Let’s all strive to be a bit more like the beavers: that voice in someone’s ear reminding them of their value and grounding them with dignity.
Who knows? Maybe it will thaw our land too.
Embrace Your Nobility – Matthew Kelly – The Generosity Habit
“Words” by Hawk Nelson
Lewis, C. S. (1978). The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. HarperCollins Publishers
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