…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”
Tag Archives: wisdom
Christmas 11: Upsidedown
One of the more curious lost phenomena of Christmas was the late Medieval custom of appointing a so-called “Lord of Misrule” (or, as called in Scotland, the “Abbot of Unreason”). This involved either a peasant or an unimportant figure in the church being appointed to oversee the Christmas revelries. A related or parallel custom involvedContinue reading “Christmas 11: Upsidedown”
20 Contemplations #18: Anointing
In your majesty ride out victoriously for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness… God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions. (Psalm 45:4a, 7b) Do not be deceived. He comes in meekness now to expose the proud. He sleeps among the donkeys and cattle now; soon theContinue reading “20 Contemplations #18: Anointing”
Childhood (After Peter Steele’s “Star Man”)
For those who follow the church calendar, we are now in the season of Epiphany, the brief time between Christmas and Lent. Peter Steele’s cycle of poems “Rounding a Year”, deals nicely with this season, especially the strange in-between period where Jesus has been born but is not yet approaching the Cross. I’ve used today’sContinue reading “Childhood (After Peter Steele’s “Star Man”)”
All the wisdom of Babylon
“The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.” They can only rearrange, those magi whose god is their own minds. Taking what is known already, they squint first through this eye then that. Ask for wisdom, theyContinue reading “All the wisdom of Babylon”
Joy in the Planting
“What profit,” I asked, “does there lie in this soil? My labour will bear its fruit on a day Far off in the future, when I’m gone away And a stranger will reap from my toil.” “What gain,” I then asked, “in this mortal coil, This limitless cycle of birth and decay, This nothing-new-under-the-sun, andContinue reading “Joy in the Planting”
The Consolations of Writing 