Today the church remembers St Francis of Assisi, so here is a sneak peek at a new poem I wrote based on his life and ethos for The Swelling Year. Instruments (For Francis of Assisi) All our instruments tend to dischord. We turn away from harmony in search of our own tunes. Brother Jesus, inContinue reading “Instruments: For Francis of Assisi”
Tag Archives: Jesus
Unless I See: After Caravaggio’s “Incredulity of Saint Thomas”
No need to touch the scars; Caravaggio got that detail wrong. The sheer force of His presence made Thomas crumple, doubt ceasing where belief gained life, the parched taste, hesitant like salt, exultant like wine, as loosened lips croaked, My Lord and my God. Yet I am comforted to see both the outstretched hand andContinue reading “Unless I See: After Caravaggio’s “Incredulity of Saint Thomas””
They knew Him too at breakfast
where, on the shore, He hadalready assembled, as a table,prepared for expected guests,a charcoal fire, some fish laid out,and, being himself the bread,a loaf laid for good measure. No need, of course, for the fish they brought.No need, either, for that excess in their boats.To feed seven mouths plus His,that net-bursting horn of plenty was,asContinue reading “They knew Him too at breakfast”
Resurrection Day
Nothing should compare to this:our singularity that, with earthquake force,shakes stones, baffles Rome, turnsthe mourners from the tomb with lightning conviction. And day on day this truth remains,though I have dishes to washand the ever-turning of the presentmakes me more a sullen Peter returning to his net than a Mary, fleeing the dead, for dearContinue reading “Resurrection Day”
If Ye Love Me
So many ways to wash feet: the posture, not the precise nature of the action, matters – poised at ground level, familiar with the dust and grime of the day’s streets, outer garments shed to throw off all show, the creak in the knees accompanying the splash and the mess of the self washing offContinue reading “If Ye Love Me”
Pass Through the Waters
Pilgrims, we return again to Jordan where the old familiar waters flow; As always we face the choice to enter, awash in what we do not know. Familiar the doubt, uncertain the prospect: the promise declares like a quaking in sky, yet how it transpires, our toes must encounter and nothing ensures that our feetContinue reading “Pass Through the Waters”
Epiphany: Unexpected Myrrh
…all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord. (Isaiah 60:6b) The promise shines bright, but not all have eyes to see. Many search elsewhere, dismissive of their quest for nothing great comes from Palestine. Preferring the grandeur of temple and palaceContinue reading “Epiphany: Unexpected Myrrh”
Christmas 12: Seen (Nathanael’s Story)
…through the birth of Immanuel… (From the Collect of the Day) He saw me by the fig-tree, desiring yet resisting, drawn to know the truth of things yet not looking for it there. He heard dismissal from my lips, saw straight into the heart of things, called to life the truth in me; I cannotContinue reading “Christmas 12: Seen (Nathanael’s Story)”
Christmas 10: Sons
…gather the nations to be one family… (From the Collect of the Day) But we know travail, know separation, are well-acquainted with the feeling, on waking, that something or someone or somewhere is missing, or wishing, or losing, is lost. And we know the gap between ourselves; we call the vacuum by first name. WeContinue reading “Christmas 10: Sons”
Christmas 9: …who lives and reigns with You and the Spirit (For Basil the Great and Gregory Nanzianzen)
…eternal unity of perfect love… (From the Collect of the Day) What He left behind we can scarce imagine,having never known such unity or home.At best we can only recallthe closest to belonging that we have touched:glimpses of a womb or a bed or a heart,footsteps meeting the sand in shared rhythm.Only if we knewtheContinue reading “Christmas 9: …who lives and reigns with You and the Spirit (For Basil the Great and Gregory Nanzianzen)”
The Consolations of Writing 