When you’re a kid, there are few things more exciting than a circus. When you are the parent … there are few things as frustrating. And enjoyable. We experiences all of that and more on our recent trip to the circus while on vacation. Seen thru the eyes of faith, there are few things that more clearly give us a vision of the creation mandate.
There is the blessing, and the curse. You see people subduing part of creation. The trainers have various animals performing prepared routines. While this could lead to exploitation, it isn’t necessarily the exploitation of the animals. We see people exercising the authority God gave humanity at creation.
We also witness some performers mastering the “laws of nature” to perform great feats that exceed our imagination. I love to see people do such things. It is a glimpse of glory.
Then there is the curse. Sometimes people and animals are exploited. Some of the performers are treated like, or act like, sexual objects. One of the performers had a very casual and scarily seductive way about her. Sex can sell, and she was using it to keep her job. That’s sad because her skills exceeded the other women she was working with. They were more awkward. She seemed a natural, but the look on her face seemed to invite more than admiration of skill.
The curse is also seen in the crass greed. They had some good sale pitches. For instance, peanuts were only sold for 5 minutes and might include a coupon for a free balloon. The stick of the balloon won by the girl in front of my kept hitting me and poking me. Not so much fun. But I felt like Pilgrim at Vanity Fair: buy this, eat that, ride this…. The onslaught was non-stop, and my kids would have been willing victims. Thankfully, we don’t carry much cash so they didn’t get all the pony or camel rides, popcorn, etc. that their hearts desired.
So, our recent trip to the “one ring circus” was filled with glory and depravity. It is a microcosm of life. And I find that interesting.