Foolish men have prattling tongues Yet the wisest use no words Purest songs go unsung Though the din, though the din Is heard Foolish men seek out a name Yet the wisest hold their own Set aside without shame Standing strong, standing strong Alone What’s the price, what’s the price Of God’s truth? What’s the sum, what’s the sum Of Man’s worth? Wild winds are … Continue reading A Man for All Seasons: An Anthem
Look into the poorest eyes And find the hidden queen The pool of gracious light reveals The depth of the Red Sea And she will lead us through the waves, The first upon dry ground Find the highly favored one, Work-chafed, oppression’s child, Whose people felt the stinging lash Yet heard the Word of God And she has heard His whisper rise On the harshness … Continue reading Hidden Queen
With the rapid spread of Covid-19 shutting down a good chunk of world affairs and affecting the lives of people around the globe, the topic of God and his role in “natural evil” comes back to the fore of philosophical conversation. When a disease hits or a volcano explodes or fires rage, people often either blame God for it, or indeed speculate if it’s some … Continue reading Symbol of the Kingdom: The Problem of Pain in a Time of Pandemic
Trinity Sunday is often joked about in Christian circle as that day anyone can easily fall into heresy via poor analogies for an incomparable mystery. Some insist the topic should not even be broached unless one has a theology degree, and even then it’s a matter that treads thin ice. I, however, take for granted that analogies are inherently imperfect, not depicting what a thing … Continue reading The Talk of the Three-in-One: Meditations on the Trinity
In the Passion Narratives of the Four Gospels, the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate, is not portrayed as a menacing monster or two-dimensional villain, but as the image of fallen mankind, made of flesh and blood and ambition, along with the underbelly of weakness that accompanies it. He becomes the cynical “every man”, representing each one of us, his fate caught on the swinging … Continue reading Ecce Homo: Pilate as Every Man
Circle etched in the desert’s droughtHeart pulled out and flesh subduedLove of God that tears the soulApples offered, blood-stain redWho will sever evil’s chainThat binds each one unto the nextBorne within, our nature’s curse?The echo of a serpent’s tongueBare-breasted, or a lion’s roarPride-praising, or alonenessAnd none will hold Your hand…Who will cast the sinless stone?Only those whose eyes are blind.Who will castigate the worldFor the … Continue reading Last Temptation
The problem of Evil is one of most staggering dilemmas for the human mind. If we define it as such, then we acknowledge a spiritual component, and yet if we do that, we also acknowledge a greater power which allows for the existence of this evil, or more specifically, anything in this world which is likely to cause suffering of sentient beings, including the very … Continue reading God’s Good Chaos: A Reflection on the Problem of Evil
Cleaning out a priest’s house Is a strange thing Like a sheep finding the shepherd Gone And the crook standing up And the hat, tossed to the side You wonder if he’ll ever come back For he was old And ill And it’s time that he is gone So you’ve been called over To clean out his house And all his belongings Or they’ll just … Continue reading The Priest’s House
My childhood memories of Holy Week, when Christians the world over commemorate the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, are a kaleidoscope of images and impressions, turning from lighter colors to deepening hues. I dyed eggs and watched Peter Cottontail. I savored marshmallow peeps and beamed over My Little Pony toys in my Easter basket. I basked in the lengthening days, the freshness of … Continue reading Easter to Me: A Personal Reflection on the Memories and Meanings of Holy Week
Ave, the spring of flowerAnd summer’s fernAve, the flow of riverAnd ice’s thawAve, the walls of NazarethWhite as angel wingsAve, the grace of seedThe death and the dawnAve, the hollowed earthAnd Woman’s wombAve, all things rebornThe kiss of God and ManAve, the farmer’s sowingAnd the sun’s ascentAve, the green of treeAnd outstretched limbsAve, the cup that brimsAnd the heart that runs overAve, the lilies and … Continue reading The Annunciation
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