From the book
Centuries of Meditations
Thomas Traherne · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordNews is information of something newly disclosed or brought from afar.
- In TraherneIII.25 describes a child listening eagerly because each report might conceal the happiness he seeks.
- In this editionRead the poem with III.27–33234567, which tests both the message and its mode of arrival.
- A place to beginConnects appetite for reports with the Gospel and with disappointing searches into curiosities.
Meaning
News is information of something newly disclosed or brought from afar. In Traherne’s account it also names the hoped-for announcement of an unknown good. The word connects childhood curiosity with the Gospel’s glad tidings and the discovery of happiness in Scripture.
Use in the book
III.25 describes a child listening eagerly because each report might conceal the happiness he seeks. Remote kingdoms seem promising, and the historical arrival of the Gospel from Judaea gives that expectation a decisive object. The poem in III.26 dramatizes the movement: the soul seems to gather at the ear, hurry out to welcome tidings, and return inward to prepare a place for them. Its last stanza reverses the expectation of distant treasure by disclosing the riches already surrounding the child and the greatness of the receiving soul.
The following sequence transfers the desire into an imagined book from heaven. Traherne first pictures an angel bringing revelation to him alone, then recognizes the Bible as a better fulfilment. Its content supplies the desired news; its public, historical transmission provides companionship, enduring testimony, and the manifestation of divine love across ages.
News therefore becomes a test of what information is for. A curiosity that yields no happiness disappoints him, while revelation transforms his understanding of himself and his inheritance. The sequence moves beyond the thrill of novelty toward goods made real by belief, meditation, and shared understanding.
Places to read
- III.25Connects appetite for reports with the Gospel and with disappointing searches into curiosities.
- III.26The poem ON NEWS stages the soul’s eager reception and its discovery of present treasure.
- III.29Scripture’s content answers the desire for glad tidings.
- III.33Public revelation proves better than an imagined private angelic delivery.
In this edition
Read the poem with III.27–33234567, which tests both the message and its mode of arrival. The 2026 note glosses Jury as Judaea; it is not a reference to a court or jurors.
Source note
Primary text: III.25–3323456789, including the complete poem in III.26. Supplied 2026 editorial note 193 identifies Jury as Judaea.