{"id":115,"date":"2007-07-23T08:53:29","date_gmt":"2007-07-23T08:53:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2007\/07\/peter-pan-still-charms.html"},"modified":"2007-07-23T08:53:29","modified_gmt":"2007-07-23T08:53:29","slug":"peter-pan-still-charms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/07\/peter-pan-still-charms.html","title":{"rendered":"Peter Pan Still Charms"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 7 of series: European Reflections 2006 <\/em>
\n<\/em>Permalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nOne of the most beloved of plays written for children is Peter Pan,<\/em> by J. M. Barie. It began with stories that Barie told the children of a close friend, Sylvia Llewelyn Davies. One of these children, Peter, gave Peter Pan his first name. His last name came from Pan, the god of the forest.
\nBarie set his original story of Peter Pan, not in some far away place called neverland, but in Kensington Gardens, a stunning park in London (next to Hyde Park). In fact, Barie’s earliest story of Peter Pan is called, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens<\/em><\/a>. The first chapter is called, “The Grand Tour of the Gardens,” and begins this way: “You must see for yourselves that it will be difficult to follow Peter Pan\u2019s adventures unless you are familiar with the Kensington Gardens.” It was in Kensington Gardens that J. M. Barie first met members of the Llewelyn Davies family. And here he frolicked with the children, which inspired the writing of Peter Pan. <\/span>(Photo: The Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens)
\nKensington Gardens are wonderfully preserved today, filled with trees, flowers, and people of and shapes and sizes. One of the highlights of the Gardens is a statue of Peter Pan. When I visited this statue last month, I wasn’t surprised to see that it a favorite of children.
\nShortly after I snapped the picture to the right, the parents of the boy in the blue and white striped shirt determined that it was time for the family to move on. “C’mon, Jason, they called, we’ve must be going.” But do you think Jason was willing to leave Peter Pan behind? Not on your life! His parents kept calling, but Jason wouldn’t climb down. As I watched this spectacle, I thought to myself, “Now there are some parents that didn’t think this through very carefully. They brought their son to Peter Pan. They let him climb all over Peter Pan. And now they think he’s going to leave? Haven’t they ever seen the play? Don’t they know the power of Peter Pan.” More than a century after J. M. Barie first wrote about this magic boy, he still charms.
\nSo if you’re ever in London, by all means visit Kensington Gardens. Be sure to find the statue of Peter Pan. But if you’ve brought your young children, look out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 7 of series: European Reflections 2006 Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series One of the most beloved of plays written for children is Peter Pan, by J. M. Barie. It began with stories that Barie told the children of a close friend, Sylvia Llewelyn Davies. One of these children, Peter, gave…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-european-reflections"],"yoast_head":"\nPeter Pan Still Charms - Mark D. Roberts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/07\/peter-pan-still-charms.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Peter Pan Still Charms - Mark D. Roberts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Part 7 of series: European Reflections 2006 Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series One of the most beloved of plays written for children is Peter Pan, by J. M. Barie. It began with stories that Barie told the children of a close friend, Sylvia Llewelyn Davies. 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}