this is part two of a set of three (not a trilogy exactly) part one is "golgotha",
the third is yet to be written.
just for the record: i am part of the church, and therefore implicated in my own critique
I sat in church last Sunday, not my
usual church, not my usual pew
I should have been listing to the sermon
but something else caught my attention
Now the sermon might have been great
for the preacher started well enough,
or in the end it might have stunk,
[a not unheard of outcome for a preachment.]
I’ll never know because a thing
above and behind the preacher
caught my eye. The stained glass window
drowned out the preacher and the sermon.
The window was the good Shepard
Jesus and the sheep – a fair rendition
not great artistically but not too bad
except the Christ portrayed was bogus.
Leave aside the purple robe he wore
leave aside the bare feet in the rough
and flinty Palestinian pasture: One
was artistic ignorance, one licence.
What drowned out the sermon was this
There were no wounds in those bare feet
no nail prints in the hands that held the lamb.
A Christ without wounds is a rich man’s Christ
who condescend to concern himself with the
deserving poor, as sanitized and well groomed as the sheep
in the window with their neatly parted hair-do,
A Christ without wounds is a white man’s Christ
taking up his burden as a consequence of his blue eyes
and blond hair; aiding his “little brown brothers” to escape
their benighted condition to true enwhitenment
A Christ without wounds is the Christ of empire,
Caesar’s prop, the politicians friend, opiate of the poor:
soothing the masses. Bolstering the law of the Reich
with platitudes, heaven, and hellfire.
So I mused in church on Sunday trying to hear
the preacher over the roar of the stain glass window.
Good lord, John, {pun intended} this is a masterpiece! Did I miss Part 1, or is "golgotha" part one?
Exquisite . . . and I see that we are once again on a similar wavelength.
Reviewed by Nicole Davis Vergara (Reader)
Reviewed on September 5, 2003
John this is truly a deep, thought provoking and inspirational masterpiece! Wow, have you shelled out much food for thought here!
Awesome Masterpiece Work!
~Nikki~
Reviewed by ya mama (Reader)
Reviewed on September 5, 2003
this is amazing john. you have crafted yourself a great piece of art
this happens to me all the time...searching for deeper thing in life...even on painted windows on a sunday...this was very deep John..thanks for sharing this!!
Love Tinka
An interesting and intriguing write, John. I like your metaphor of the sound of the glass image drowning out the sound of the minister.
Best regards,
Leland
Reviewed by Jaclynn Huntington (Reader)
Reviewed on September 4, 2003
This has indeed given me much to think about!! Dang it! I hate when someone forces me to look deeper inside like this. **S**
to each is choosen a road to follow, what to see and who to be... that day a window spoke to you and took you to a higher plane... you missed the words but saw Christ very close in a window no matter how bogus... this is a poem that is the food of the mind... today I saw him in the words you left here <smile>.. well done poet
the world is in a whirl of piles of historic lies, too many books saying too many truths from too many perspectives...that look like mind control, or somekind of control. thoughtful write... now it is population control at hand, and who is our god today. Lord Maietraya will be the flavor of the future.
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Exquisite . . . and I see that we are once again on a similar wavelength.
Awesome Masterpiece Work!
~Nikki~
Love Tinka
Best regards,
Leland
Honestly...it has had a strong impact!
~Jackie~
SATAN DEVIL DID,i.e. (God) Doesn't Need Momey$$$ Nor Churches,Religion ,All (God) Needs You To Be Is Good Human Being_
Alas Few Good Humans Left In This Holy Hell World__
Good Write!!
TRASK