To the Immaculate Virgin, On a Winter Night

I found this Thomas Merton poem on Brian's site, A Book of Everything, and loved it! It has become one of my favorite poems.

To the Immaculate Virgin, On a Winter Night

Lady, the night is falling and the dark
Steals all the blood from the scarred west.
The stars come out and freeze my heart
With drops of untouchable music, frail as ice
And bitter as the new year's cross.

Where in the world has any voice
Prayed to you, Lady, for the peace that's in your power?
In a day of blood and many beatings
I see the governments rise up, behind the steel horizon,
And take their weapons and begin to kill.

Where in the world has any city trusted you?
Out where the soldiers camp the guns begin to thump
And another winter comes down
To seal our years in ice.
The last train cries out
And runs in terror from this farmer's valley
Where all the little birds are dead.

The roads are white, the fields are mute.
There are no voices in the wood
And trees make gallows up against the sharp-eyed stars.
Oh where will Christ be killed again
In the land of these dead men?

Lady, the night has got us by the heart
And the whole world is tumbling down.
Words turn to ice in my dry throat
Praying for a land without prayer,

Walking to you on water all winter
In a year that wants more war.
              
         Thomas Merton - 1949

You can find more of Thomas Merton's poetry here.

Faith

banked embers
an unseen hand stokes
the fireseed
day after day
fanning the flames
of forever

Thank you, Jennifer, for defending life.

A while back I wrote a post on one of my other blogs about opening our eyes and seeing the writing on the wall http://openingthefloodgatesofmercy.blogspot.com/2009/10/tekel.html . Tekel means that we have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. This word continues to be relevant as our country continues it's downward spiral. It doesn't need to be this way. Repentance opens the floodgates of our Lord's mercy. Each of us must turn away from sin and we must also repent as a nation. America (and other countries) are acting as "little gods" and playing with life itself. Abortion, partial birth abortion, euthanasia, cloning....where will it end? God alone is the Author of Life. America would do well to remember this. Our job is to defend life not end life.This particular baby's death did not take place here but it has happened in the U.S. a number of times. You can read the story here http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=36333. Every time I read stories like this I wonder:
If people are not horrified by a tiny baby left to die what has happened to their hearts? God have mercy on us.
Thank you, Jennifer, for using your strong voice to defend the most innocent of all God's children.

The Brother of Sloth

You see it everywhere - blank apathetic stares when God is mentioned. Yes, this has happened to me often, I'll mention God and people's eyes will glaze over. Personally, I can't think of a better topic than the great I AM, Creator of all that is, the Author of Life. And truthfully - people's hearts should leap for joy at the mention of His name. Why does the mention of God get such a lukewarm response so often? According to statistics, most people believe in God. Then why do so few speak about Him? A great spiritual apathy has grabbed hold of our nation and world.

The sorriest sight I ever did see
Was the brother of Sloth: Apathy
A vice so great and so profound
Spying an evil, he'll make not a sound
Too lazy to stand and use his own voice
By his very silence has made his choice
He has made his bed and there he lies
Being "politically correct" is his disguise
A mask he wears to fool friend and foe
Hides a stunted soul that has failed to grow
A failure to act - a slowness to speak
Beneath the cover his spirit is weak
Neither hot nor cold, lukewarm at best
He views the world with disinterest.

What's the cure for apathy? Prayer. Ask the Lord to remove apathy from your heart. Pray that He pours His Spirit into your soul. The Holy Spirit's fire will stir up the soul as He pours his zeal into it.

Abba, set souls on fire for you. Pour your Spirit upon us, for where Your Spirit rests there is no apathy. May zeal for your House consume us! I ask this in the mighty name of Jesus, from whom all good things come. Amen.

The Dragon

Alas, dear Christ, the dragon is here again.
Alas, he is here: terror has seized me, and fear.
Alas, that I ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge.
Alas, that his envy led me to envy too.
I did not become like God; I was cast out of Paradise.
Temper, sword, awhile, the heat of your flames
and let me go again about the garden,
entering with Christ, a thief from another tree.

             St. Gregory

I love this piece by St. Gregory. It is so poetic and full of truth. Don't we all wish to go again about the garden? We will someday :)
 Thank you, Jesus, for defeating the dragon, Satan, and the dragons of sin which sneak their way into our hearts. Amen