the harsh truth and the cheerful order

(I wrote this poem after reading George Fox's letter to Friends from which the famous phrase 'walk cheerfully' comes. it is an amazing piece of writing.  I've mixed up the phrases quite a bit.) 

The founder of my faith

did not merely say,
'walk cheerfully over the earth'.
The Fox said,
'walk cheerfully over the earth....
spare no deceit. Lay the sword upon it;
go over it....
Spare no place,
no word, no pen;
be a terror
to the adversaries of God
and a dread;
answering that of God in them all.
Ye have the power, do not abuse it;
eye the wisdom...
the wisdom of creation...
that you may be
ordered...
may you live...
where glory
and life is.'
Deceit.
Foolhardiness and fooling - ourselves
of anything less than -
the glory the life of god:
action truth beauty
stand on top of structures of hopelessness
(global financial institutions and other
manifestations of injustice)
and
tear
them down; 
do not let the demons 
of darkness and despair and 
'i haven't done it right or enough'
tear you assunder from the 
cheerful order. 
this requires
a fundamental
life-transformation.
why didn't anyone tell me that
walking cheerfully
required
such radicalness
that the Christ
is nothing if not
revolutionary
that without revolution
we just keep spinning
the same fabric of destruction
not knowing where to turn we
move: myopic animals just
turning randomly floating endlessly
un-ordered.
but there is an order there is
Love
who comes with the sword
of the word
oh the harshness of truth
 that Love
infinitely patient
demanding justice
imminently
immediately
close
she is so close she is
walking
over the earth
next to me if only i 
dare
to look.

Views: 55

Comment by Forrest Curo on 6th mo. 24, 2011 at 1:25pm

Well, then, there she is! But I'm not sure the line divisions work well. "Inspired" doesn't mean "Doesn't need more work," [Alas!]

 

Not "speaking truth to Power" (who after all, doesn't want to hear it) but knowing who the real Power is. Letting that power work through you (or anyplace else it wishes.) [& Archie says you have nice 'i' s]

Comment by Stephanie Stuckwisch on 6th mo. 25, 2011 at 11:18am

Thank you for sharing your poem.

I can't remember the source, but I read that when Fox said "answering that of God," he meant challenging that of God in the other person to help bring them to an immediate experience of the Light.

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