Masterpiece’s Downton
Abbey, according to Maria Elena Fernandez, senior entertainment reporter
for Newsweek, has generated critical acclaim, audience enthusiasm, and
impressive ratings, garnering both Emmys and Golden Globe awards. People are
amazed at the success of a series focused upon a period of the early 20th
century when history was at the hinge of a cultural mega shift. The three
season series focused upon the English aristocratic Crawley family and their
servants who are deeply embedded in a post-Edwardian culture and class
structure. They lived lives many 21st century Americans find at best
intriguingly obscure and at worst disturbingly socially unfair. Weaving
throughout the series are snippets of historical events and their impact upon
all levels of society.
One actor commenting on the series universal
appeal noted, “What’s interesting about the show is that as our culture’s
protocol and etiquette deteriorates, we get to watch this show where it’s in
full swing from the turn of the century, where people actually honor their place
in society and live there.” He added, “That’s why it’s so interesting to watch Downton
Abbey because these people know their place and they thrive in their
place.” In our era of social discord it seems as if people are discontent with
where they are in life and equally discontent that someone else may be in a
better state than they are. We increasingly hear political rhetoric
highlighting the differences between people and classes rather than seeing the
individual value of people regardless of status, wealth, or achievements in
life.
Throughout Downton Abbey, people are clearly portrayed with a different station
in life, yet they were also portrayed as being proud of the status they had and
the inherent responsibilities associated with their position. They saw
themselves as having personal value, making a contribution by the part they
played in the overall scheme of life, and desiring to do the best for others to
whom they related. The series portrayed some notable exceptions who viewed life
differently, but they were not portrayed favorably.
The aristocratic Crawleys viewed their
servants as people whom they valued and for whom they were responsible. There
was genuine affection for those who worked for them. Their staff worked with
the attitude that they wanted the Crawleys to have the best of their service
and proudly carried out their duties, no matter how seemingly trivial, as a
privileged vocation not just a job to complete. When exceptions to these
attitudes were seen, they were portrayed as an aberration to the norm and not
an attitude to be tolerated. The series portrayed people living life as
collaborators so life could be jointly enjoyed not as competitors seeking to
benefit oneself over the welfare of others.
The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 6:5-9 wrote
to Christians in a Roman world that was definitely filled with class
distinction. He wrote that if one’s life was controlled by the Spirit of God, those
with a different status in life would relate to one another differently than
the cultural norm. Such people would respect their vocation on earth as a means
by which God can be glorified. Servants worked in their vocation “as to Christ”
(5:5). Masters would carry out their vocation knowing that they too were
serving God and “knowing that your own Master is in heaven” (5:9). This view of
a person’s vocation and value adjusted how servants worked and how masters
treated those who worked for them. This is the standard God has for people of
different vocations as they relate to one another.
Yesterday I conducted a funeral for an
Irish immigrant who knew that God had called her to a vocation as a maid. She and
her husband, who was a chauffeur, served one family through several generations
with integrity, diligence, hard labor, respect, and love from the day they
arrived in the United States until they had to retire. Her service was not a
job to perform but a way to express love to God by lovingly serving another. The
family she served respected her and her vocation and treated her with respect,
care, and love. When she could no longer work and needed to retire they provided
her a house, cared for her needs, and maintained loving contact with her and
her family. As time passed this maid needed to go to a nursing home; and there,
too, her needs were met by the family she had served. Above all, they visited
her. Yesterday at her funeral, a family member she was probably closest to was
there. Her glistening eyes revealed that that this Irish maid and this wealthy
family had connected as an employer and employee on a level which God intended
and honored. Two people from two very different worlds with different status,
and fulfilling different God-appointed vocations, connected in such a way that
developed a strong bond of love.
Downton
Abbey is a work of fiction that has caught our nation’s collective
imagination. But what I have seen over six decades in the life of an Irish maid
and an aristocratic American family is a wonderful reality of what life can be
like when people of different status can value, respect, and love one another. What
would our world look like if people looked at themselves and others this way?
It would be much better than a mini-series!
