Way Down in Hadestown

We interrupt your regularly scheduled mythology posting to bring you this important announcement!

Hadestown is the actual best.

But you already knew that. Or at least I hope you did. You certainly knew that I think so, if you've been reading these posts.

The reason I want to write specifically about Hadestown today though is because it KEEPS. BEING. APPLICABLE. To every lesson I hear. Every church service/meeting/group I've been to over the past two weeks (if you're counting that's like... six things) I have been hearing a messaged shared and thought "oh! Like in Hadestown!"

I know that sounds cheesy, but I mean it! Hearing this taught six times is great, but knowing it - FEELING IT - from a musical? From a story? From a myth? That sends a message home.

There are several messages from Hadestown. The one that I mean the most is the lesson learned from Hades' relationship with Persephone, and the way he reacts to her. And the lesson I keep hearing over and over which allies to this is about trusting in the love of God, and resting therein.

Let me explain. In Hadestown, Hades and Persephone have been married for years and decades and centuries, and recently that relationship has been on the rocks. The reason for this is twofold. Firstly, Hades' paranoia, and secondly Persephone's avoidance. As my therapist once told me, we often have one of three responses to Shame and Fear: to fight, to flee, or to appease. In this case Persephone flees and Hades fights.

For the seasons to function normally, Hades and Persephone have an agreement. For six months, Persephone will live with Hades, and for the other six, she will live on Earth under the sun. And Hades must trust that in six months time she will return. In Hadestown Hades has lost this trust. Not because Persephone has ever proven unfaithful or failed to return, but because Hades - in my interpretation - is insecure. He's insecure that she really loves him, him, because how could she? He's Hades, it's the Underworld. And she belongs in the sun.

And so Hades fights this feeling of shame by trying to make sure that Persephone stays with him as much as possible - he tries to keep her in Hadestown longer than he ought, and comes to bring her back himself, and does so early. It causes chaos on earth, and only further damages the couple's relationship. On top of this, Hades fills the absence of Persephone in his life with Industry - something which makes him more rich and powerful, but makes his wife like the Underworld even less.

Hades is a hoarder. He builds a wall to keep out Poverty, and tries to keep everything he owns - including Persephone - under lock and key, because he cannot trust that if he loosens his grip it will not all abandon him. And what's worse? He really does thing that what he's doing, he's doing out of love. He has an entire song about it! Two songs! More! But it's not love. It's not trust. It's covetousness. It's Fear.

And what has this to do with God? I think a lot of us want to act the same way. We don't know why God would love us - us? - and no matter what we say, we don't REALLY trust that he's going to keep coming back time and time again. So we try to put as many "bonds" on him as we possibly can, to put him in a little box that we can take hold of, and we fill every void (which he wishes to fill but we don't trust him with) with Industry - which may be good or bad, but certainly isn't why he's here. We are misers, and are covetous and greedy and untrusting, just like Hades.

If you're familiar with any of the modern retellings of Hades and Persephone, you know that they Love each other in a way truly rare for Greek myth. Not like Zeus and Hera, not like Aphrodite and Hephaestus, not like Ariadne and Theseus, not like anyone else (except, perhaps, Orpheus and Eurydice. And maybe Cupid and Psyche, depending on the telling). And the whole point of Hadestown is that Hades is the only one who can't see it.

That's not to lay all the blame on Hades, though. Persephone also willingly harms the situation by drawing herself further and further away, drowning her sorrows and trying her best not to engage with Hades more than she needs to - because of his suffocating "affection". Sometimes we do this too when we are unwilling to participate in what Love has for us.

It's late, and I'm rambling. But I wanted to get some of this down on paper.

I've actually already written up the next Greek Myth post - it's all about the Pantheon and it's REALLY LONG. But I'm going to post this one now, because it's all I've been thinking about of late. I have a lot more thoughts here I can't get on paper. I will probably post about this again.

Thanks for reading. Please come back soon for more Story Time! You will hear of the 7 most important children of Zeus!

Thanks again
R

Praise God from whom all blessings flow, praise him all creatures here below, praise him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.