The Dream of the Rood Paper

 

Joshua Dotson

Professor Johnson

English 460: Christian Literature

October 9, 2023

“The Role of the Dream of the Rood in Christian Literature’’

 

     All literature reflects the values and beliefs of the culture in which a given text was born. Society is influenced by the arts, and produces them at the same time. For example, one's writer's emphasis on social justice probably reflects one’s Left leanings. On the other hand, a book about the silent majority being unheard may reflect the author's pro-life stance. Indeed, it is impossible for any work of literature not to reflect the values of the one who composed it. Certainly, the faithful Christians’ own art reflects biblical Christianity. By default, written works that explore Biblical themes are called “Christian literature.” Often, these values must be distinctly Christian, such as belief in the Trinity, and not a vaguer idea, such as friendship or forgiveness. No doubt, this was especially true for the Anglo-Saxons, who harbored an infatuation with Old Testament literature. It was during the age of Old English literature that one of the greatest works of Christian literature, The Dream of the Rood, was composed. This important book of Medieval literature highlights Christian themes in a number of ways. In the words of Old English scholar R. M. Liuzza, “The Dream of the Rood tells the story of the Crucifixion of Christ from the point of view of the Cross, which appears to the narrator in a dream and recounts its experiences. Christ is presented as a heroic warrior, eagerly leaping to the cross to do battle with Death; the Cross is a loyal retainer who is painful and paradoxically forced to participate in his lord's execution (Liuzza, 173).” However, proof of its canon in Christian literature derives from its historical background, Mariology, the atonement of Christ, its understanding of salvation and redemption, and the final victory of the Son of God. 

     As with any other work of literature, understanding its place in history is essential to understanding the text---The Dream of the Rood is no exception to this rule of literary history. In fact, the culture behind the composition of this literary piece is crucial to understanding its purpose. According to historians Hazel Maskell and Dr. Abigail Wheatly, two historians of Anglo-Saxon England, “From about the year 450, Britain came under attack. Boatloads of warriors from what is now Germany and Denmark launched a series of devastating raids on the south and east coasts. The invaders were made up of three groups Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes. These fearsome warriors forced the tribes of native Britons to flee to the hills (Maskell and Wheatley, 6).” Furthermore, literary scholar Susan Wise Bauer has written, “Soon, the south and east part of Britain was completely occupied by the Angles and Saxons (Bauer, 14).” Likewise, Medieval historian Anita Baker notes, “(Pope) Gregory also sought to further the teachings of the church and to bring papal authority to Roman Catholics throughout Europe, no mean feat in a continent ruled by many different tribes and riven by conflict. He sent a mission of 40 monks under Saint Augustine to England in 597 to convert the pagan Anglo-Saxon tribes to Christianity. It was a success (Baker, 69)...” Interestingly enough, Ecclesiastical historian Kevin Madigan has rightly observed, “According to an anonymous Anglo-Saxon biography of Gregory written in ca. 710, Gregory's interest in the English originated before he became pope (Madigan, 62).” Of course, all of this was before the literary work was written but it does help the modern reader to understand the origins of the Anglo-Saxons and more about the people who this literature was written for. In truth, The Dream of the Rood demonstrates the transformation of the Anglo-Saxons away from paganism and their conversion to Christianity, as well as their endeavor to create Christian literature of their own. The prerequisite to writing any Christian literature, however, is for the author’s knowledge of theology: a fact which the poem exhibits in many places. Although few Saxons were pagan by the time the work was written, the poem's emphasis on the Cross of Christ evidences the reform of the people to Biblical thoughts: “That tree was triumphant and I tarnished by sin, begrimed with evil, I beheld Glory's trunk garnished with grandeur, gleaming in bliss, all plated with gold; precious gemstones had gloriously graced the Lord God's tree. Yet I could see signs of ancient strife: beneath that gold it had begun bleeding on the right side. I was bereft with sorrows; that splendid sight made me afraid. I beheld the sign rapidly changing clothes with colors. Now it was covered by moisture, drenched with steaming blood, now decked in treasure (34.13-22).”

     The mother of Christ is at the heart of The Dream of the Rood. Although the Virgin Mary is rarely mentioned in the small Anglo-Saxon poem, her importance is nothing short of essential to interpreting the text. The translation of the work from The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Middle Ages reads, “So the Lord of glory, guardian of Heaven, exalted me then over all forest-trees, as Almighty God before all humankind exalted over all the race of women. His own mother, Mary herself (90-94).” For certain, the Mother of Christ was as important to the Anglo-Saxons as she was to all Catholic Christians throughout Medieval Europe. The poem, nevertheless, understood her as providentially involved in God's plan to give birth to a Savior even before the foundations of the world. As one article notes, “But this suggestion shows a curious understanding of mediaeval Christianity, where the choice of Mary would be seen, not in modern terms as 'random' or accidental,' but as part of God’s pre-ordained plan, Mary having been chosen for her destiny before the foundation of the world to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament*1.” Certainly, the poem does not have to exhaust mentioning her name to prove her essentiality within its short narrative. In paying her homage and honoring her within the context of Christ, this Anglo-Saxon work reveals why the medievals loved the Mother of God so much: they saw her as blessed (Luke 1:42) and valued her because of her place in salvific history in giving birth to Christ. While The Dream of the Rood does not take Mariology to the explicit veneration for her that would later arise within High and Late Medieval literature, the Anglo-Saxon poem does recall her importance within the Christian tradition. 

     The ''Rood'' that The Dream of the Rood is referring to, is the tree that Christ died upon. According to Holy Scripture, God didn't want the world to perish, so He sent His Son for humanity (John 3: 16, 1 John 2: 2). Of all the plots within the Old English narrative, Christ saving the world may exist as the most significant. In saving mankind from sin, however, Christ was also preparing the saints for the world to come: “Now I command you, my man so dear, to tell others the events you have seen; find words to tell it was the tree of glory Almighty God suffered upon for mankind's so many sins and for that ancient offense of Adam. There, he tasted death; yet the redeemer arose with his great might to help mankind. Then he rose to Heaven. He will come again to this middle-earth to seek out mankind on Judgement Day, the Redeemer himself, God Almighty and his angels with him, so that he will judge, He who has power of the Judgement, all humanity as to the merits each has brought about in this brief life (36.95-109).” Indeed, manifesting these beautiful words, Christ has saved his people, and is purifying them for the final judgment. Likewise, the salvation described in The Dream of the Rood is holistically connected to Christ's sufferings and the redemption of creation. 

     Without referring to the atonement of Christ, the Christian heritage of The Dream of the Rood would be far inferior. The poem directly addresses Christ's inflictions as He suffers for the sins of the world, “On that mountain I have endured many cruel happenings. I saw the God of hosts direly stretched out. Shades of darkness had clouded over the corpse of the Lord, the shining radiance; shadows went forth dark under clouds. All creation wept, mourning the king's fall: Christ was on the cross (35.50-56).” Here, the poem refers to the many sufferings of Jesus Christ. Creation turns dark as the Son of God persists through His incarnation. Yet, through this darkness, Christ achieved the impossible, the redemption of the world through His divine and human atonement. Later, following His Resurrection, the poem is clear about what Christ accomplished, “I shall dwell in glory, together with the saints share in their delights. May the Lord be my friend, who on earth long ago on the gallows-tree suffered agony for the sins of men; he redeemed us and gave us life, a home in Heaven. Hope was made new and blossomed with bliss to those burning in fire (37.144-149).” Indeed, it took the sacrifice of Christ not only to save humanity, but to redeem the world from the stain of sin and destruction. In this regard, the old Anglo-Saxon poem reflects the Christus Victor view of the atonement which “... is the element of the atoning work of Christ that emphasizes the triumph of Christ over the evil powers of the world, through which he rescues his people and establishes a new relationship between God and the world*2.” In other words, one of the most ancient views of the atonement asserts that Christ's death on the cross was the beginning of God's restoration of the world unto Himself. Quite clearly, The Dream of the Rood exemplifies this view throughout its text as the author of this piece dreamed of the new Creation to come. 

     The climax of The Dream of the Rood concerns Christ's final advent to judge the world and bring justice to all as well as perfection to the old creation. Written at the end of the work, in many ways, the return of Christ is perhaps one of the most epic aspects of the work: “The son was victorious in venturing forth, mighty and triumphant when he returned with many, a company of souls to the Kingdom of God, the Almighty Ruler, to the joy of angels, and all those holy ones come to Heaven before. to live in glory, when their Lord returned, the Eternal King to His own country (37.150-155).” When one analyzes this aspect of the poem, the reader will see all the more the beauty of this work. For example, “The son was victorious in venturing forth...(37.150),” is an example of alliteration with the use of “v” in both words which adds to the rhythm of the work and keeps the reader focused on the glory of Christ's eventual coming, Secondly, however, by invoking “...the Almighty ruler (37.150),” the literary piece demonstrates a high reverence for God Himself. With references to Christ being “victorious,” “triumphant,” and to God as “the Almighty ruler” and “Eternal King”, the writer of The Dream of the Rood reminds those who study its composition of the good news that all Christians can wait for---the return of Christ and the restoration of the world under the Lord King of Heaven and Earth. 

      Works of Christian literature always point in some way to the redemption that Christ has done and is still doing to the world. This is certainly true for The Dream of the Rood. Though the Anglo-Saxons had not always been Christians, this literary piece reveals that once they embraced Christianity, there was no going back for them. The theme of God as King stayed especially important to them as they saw Christ as superseding the gods of old. In contrast to paganism, however, Christianity turned men away from violence and to the hope of a loving Savior. Throughout Europe, paganism had been often associated with child sacrifice. For Christians of the Medieval era, though, their sacrifice was the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist. Furthermore, while paganism thrived among some of the Anglo-Saxons until the eleventh century, the poem does indicate the gradual importance of Christianity to the British people. Indeed, in the words of Anglo-Saxon scholars Lloyd and Jennifer Laing, “The structure of English Christianity received the official stamp of approval by the Council of Hertford in 672, while at Hatfield in 679 a profession of allegiance to Roman orthodoxy was made formally (Lloyd, Laing, 98).” All of this echoes in the poem. Christianity was changing England forever. Finally, while The Dream of the Rood does not signal a genuine transformation of every person in England to Christianity, it does indicate a general shift in the mood of the people and more importantly, the presence of the church in Medieval lives. 

     In conclusion, the heritage of American and British Christian literature has its origins long before J. R. R. Tolkien, an Anglo-Saxon scholar, and C. S. Lewis, a Renaissance scholar. Indeed, both of these great twentieth-century writers admired the Medieval world and wrote frequently about it. They drew from Medieval literature for their own works of Christian fiction, just as many contemporary Christians draw from Tolkien and Lewis. One of the greatest ways to teach anyone about Christian theology is through literature. Oftentimes, modern readers are acquainted with great Christian classics, such as Confessions or The Pilgrim's Progress. Sadly, however, far fewer believers are aware of the great Christian literature written in Old English by the Anglo-Saxons. Indeed, long before John Wycliffe or William Tyndale, parts of the Bible had already been translated into English by the Anglo-Saxons though Bible translations into English became significantly rare after the Norman conquest of England in the eleventh century. There is much to admire about Augustine, Bunyan, Tolkien, and Lewis, but the boundaries of Christian literature extended far beyond their works. Indeed, every Christian ought to read The Dream of the Rood. It is an underrated classic within the Old English canon of Christian literature. 

                                                          Works Cited: 

Baker, Anita. The Medieval World: The Illustrated History of the Middle Ages. (2018). Sevenoaks. 

Bauer, Susan. Wise. The Story of the World History for the Classical Child Volume 2: The Middle Ages From The Fall of Rome to the Rise of the Renaissance. (2003). Well-Trained Mind Press. 

Greenblatt, Stephen. The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Middle Ages (tenth edition). (2018). W. W. Norton & Company. 

Old English Poetry: An Anthology. R. M. Liuzza. (2014). 

Madigan, Kevin. Medieval Christianity: A New History. (2015). Yale University Press. 

Maskell, Hazel. and Wheatley, Abigail. (2012). Usborne. 

 

Notes:

*-administrator,+flor12art04 (4).pdf

*2-https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/christus-victor/