The best reflection I've come across on the phenomenon that is Susan Boyle can be found in The Herald, see here. It is a very fine piece of morally reflective journalism, respectful, compassionate, utterly unpatronising and says many things about human life, humanity and what is important.
I've no idea what lies ahead for Susan. The song she sung was about that great human gift of dreaming, and that less humane gift of wasting other people's dreams. I wish we weren't such a self-centred, celebrity obsessed culture. Susan's gift, talent, courage, performance started a landslide of attention, but what if her voice had been ordinary, and the sniggers graduated to outright ridicule?
If theological reflection means thinking about ordinary people's most human experiences, alert for that pervasive, invasive, inviting presence of God active and subversive in this blessed but ambiguous world, and then taking note when grace slaps us on the face to wake us up, then that performance deserves serious reflection. And those who sniggered then, now face the embarrassment of nearly 50 million viewers (latest hits stats on YouTube) who have witnessed "the laughter of fools". Grace does that. Reverses expectations, brings down the mighty and exalts the humble. Now take time to read that article in The Herald on the link above. If not precisely theological reflection it is nevertheless some of the most telling ethical reflection and cultural critique I've read for a while.
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