Bonus Poem: Joseph

This is the second of five new poems I'll post each week through Advent. 

For poems for Advent 2, Year A, please see Year A, Second Sunday of Advent

 

 

La Tour, Georges du Mesnil de (1593-1652): The Angel Visiting Joseph in a Dream 

Musée d'Arts de Nantes

"Her husband, Joseph, 

being a righteous man . . . ."

 

Saving Grace

 

The Bible, once again, dares redefine

The notion “righteous” as much more divine

Than oft we make it when we think of laws

All kept, producing someone lacking flaws.

For Joseph’s righteousness stems from his will

To do a gracious thing—and thus fulfill

The law his son would later say is best,

The law of love, by which we all are blessed.

 

And how it blessed him! For he had this dream

That told him that no matter who it seemed

The father of this child-to-be had been—

Abusive soldier? Or perhaps some friend?—

There was another possibility

To lead both them—and all the world—to see

That Jesus, meaning “Yahweh saves,” still shows

That love for all is how God’s spirit grows.

Scott L. Barton

 

The poem has recently been published in The Presbyterian Outlook’s Attending to Advent: Poetry, Prose and Prayer.

 

Her husband, Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:19-21)

 

Bonus Poem: Mary

This is the first of five new poems I'll post each week through Advent. 

For poems for Advent 1, Year A, please see Year A, First Sunday of Advent

Henry Ossawa Tanner: The Annunciation (1898)

Philadelphia Museum of Art

 

“She was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.”  (Matthew 1:18)
 

Found by whom, one wonders.
Mary, of course.
And certainly Joseph.
“I’m pregnant, my love,” she whispers.
But found by who else?
Is it anyone else’s business
That she’s pregnant?
How deeply personal is pregnancy,
With all its fear and joy,
Its worry and its hope.
From this word, “was found”—εὑρέθη—
Comes “Eureka!” “I’ve found it!”
And this, that we might cry today,
“I have found him!”
Is still the Holy Spirit’s business.
 

Scott L. Barton

Christ the King/Reign of Christ (C), November 20, 2022—Jeremiah 23:1–6; Psalm 46; Luke 23:33–43

 

John Singer Sargent: Tyrolese Crucifix 1914 

Metropolitan Museum, New York

 

Jeremiah 23:1–6

 

Not On Our Own

I guess it’s not so unique

That a shepherd will scatter

Those entrusted to his care.

Sometimes the sheep, unable

To know the things best for them,

Will find themselves in despair.

 

That’s the time when they might hear

A faithful prophet proclaim:

Awaken from the nightmare!

 

One comes not for self, who’s called

“The LORD is our righteousness,”

To change our hearts—everywhere.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the LORD. Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the LORD. Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says the LORD.

The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: “The LORD is our righteousness.”

+  +  +

Psalm 46 

(with a closing reference to Romans 8:28)

God is our refuge

    and God is our strength,

And people these days

    o'er the breadth and the length

Of the Philippines know

    —more than most—what this means;

For relief do they cry,

    when relief is unseen;

Oh! What destruction

    as far as the eye

And the news can perceive,

    so with tears we all cry;

But though earth and sea change,

    —and the mountains all shake,

Our God is the one

    who will never forsake;

It's a long ways away

   —to the end of the earth!—

But the one who breaks bows,

    Breaks despair, so rebirth

Will occur! So now know,

    in our comfort,

        though faith may be thin,

That God with us conspires

    for our kith and our kin.

 

Scott L. Barton

(Written after Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, but applicable in other circumstances, such as recent Caribbean-Florida hurricanes.)

 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the

mountains shake in the heart of the sea;

though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its

tumult. Selah

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy

habitation of the Most High.

God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help

it when the morning dawns.

The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his

voice, the earth melts.

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah

Come, behold the works of the Lord; see what desolations he has

brought on the earth.

He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and

shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I

am exalted in the earth.”

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah

+ + +

 

Luke 23:33–43

Hymn: As the Church’s Year Is Done

(Tune: VESPER HYMN (Now on Land and Sea Descending)

Alternative tunes: Hymns with 8.7.8.7 D meter, such as  GENEVA (Sovereign Lord of All Creation; Swiftly Pass the Clouds of Glory)(especially nice because of the mid-way change from minor to major); BEACH SPRING (God Whose Giving Knows No Ending), EBENEZER (Come, O Spirit; Once to Every One and Nation), HYFRYDOL (unless you plan to sing Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus to this tune soon), HYMN TO JOY (Joyful Joyful, We Adore Thee), IN BABILONE (There's a Wideness in God's Mercy), NETTLETON (Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing), or WEISSE FLAGGEN (When the Morning Stars Together).

 

As the Church's Year Is Done

 

1. Save the Sundays after Christmas,

Christ the King's* the only one

With his name or title noted,

As the church's year is done—

 

Though it doesn't change him any,

Doesn't sudd'nly make him king;

Not by churchwide nomenclature

Do his praises now we sing.

 

2. This day is the culmination

Of the message we have heard,

Starting with the proclamation

Christ would come in flesh, from Word.

 

Yes, he came, revealed, was baptized,

Then the twelve to him he called,

Suffered, with his death approaching,

Demonstrated giving all.

 

3. After death, a resurrection,

Each week here we celebrate!

Shouts of joy, what acclamation,

Love o’ercame death’s heavy weight!

 

Then disciples, still unsure of

How the future would unfold,

Prodded by the Spirit outward,

Learned that grace for all be told.

 

4. Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Is the basis of our claim

Through our ordinary time, the

Life of Christ is still our aim.

 

If we choose, if we can own him

As the one who in us reigns,

That's the day in which we crown him,

Ruler, who our lives sustains.

 

(*or Reign of Christ's) 

 

Scott L. Barton

When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots to divide his clothing. And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.” One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time/Proper 28 (C), November 13, 2022— Isaiah 65:17–25; 2 Thessalonians 3:6–13; Luke 21:5–19

 Isaiah 65:17–25

Lion and Lamb

 

Every Advent my wife and I send

A lion and lamb Christmas card;

We carry on the tradition

of my Reformation professor,

Charlie Nielsen, and his wife, Eloïse;

It's nice to have a theme,

But it's not always easy.

Sometimes I almost despair

of finding the card with

The right amount of preposterousness!

I don't want it to be "religious;"

Surprise, even comedy, is the key.

For isn't this what we mean by

God's vision for the world?

Unexpected?  Brand new?

And then, as in answer to prayer,

A new lion and lamb appears,

A new take on an old theme, and

A witness, we hope,

To those who will receive it,

So that they might be glad,

And rejoice forever

In what God is creating

—and be a delight, too!

 

Scott L. Barton

 

For I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I am creating; for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy, and its people as a delight. I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and delight in my people; no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it, or the cry of distress. No more shall there be in it an infant that lives but a few days, or an old person who does not live out a lifetime; for one who dies at a hundred years will be considered a youth, and one who falls short of a hundred will be considered accursed. They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, or bear children for calamity; for they shall be offspring blessed by the Lord— and their descendants as well. Before they call I will answer, while they are yet speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox; but the serpent—its food shall be dust! They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.

 

+ + +

 

2 Thessalonians 3:6–13

 

For the Love of All

 

It’s easy to imagine

This text misused without compassion

For people who might have no jobs,

And might be labeled, then, as “slobs.”

 

But Paul’s demanding attitude

Was aimed at those who misconstrued

The certain coming of the Lord

With working not for room or board.

 

Thus, Paul condemns religious talk

Which at the common good would balk

Because one thinks one’s faith demands

Ignoring common life at hand.

 

Though Christ may give you great delight,

Be weary not in doing right.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

Now we command you, beloved, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from believers who are living in idleness and not according to the tradition that they received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you, and we did not eat anyone’s bread without paying for it; but with toil and labor we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you. This was not because we do not have that right, but in order to give you an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: Anyone unwilling to work should not eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right.

 

+  +  +

 

Luke 21:5–19

 

Election Day

 

"By your endurance you will save your souls."

This is a message that has different goals

Than if one thinks some strong and outside force,

Some revolution, soon will change the course

Of history. Not anger, shouts or hate

Can ever bring God's kingdom, make us great;

No, just the opposite: Forsaking fear,

And giving hope—and blood—and sweat—and tears.

It's giving of yourself, with constancy

For neighbor, yes, whoever that might be—

All this is what it means to follow he

Who calmed the wind with love and stilled the sea.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.” They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” And he said, “Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is near!’ Do not go after them. “When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven. “But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your souls.

 

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time/Proper 27 (C), November 6, 2022—Haggai 1:15b—2:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:1–5, 13–17; Luke 20:27–38

 

Haggai 1:15b—2:9 and Luke 20:27–38

 

The Heart of It

 

This really is the heart of it, isn't it?

They "neither marry nor are given in marriage."

Or try this:

"The latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former."

"We will all be changed."

"They thought it was a ghost."

"Because I live, you also . . . ."

Like a Sadducee,

I just can't wrap my head around any of this.

And maybe that's the point.

This God

. . . this word

. . . this news

. . . this love

Changes everything.

Most of all, my heart.

This really is the heart of it, isn't it?

 

Scott L. Barton

 

In the second year of King Darius, in the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai, saying: Speak now to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, and say, Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Is it not in your sight as nothing? Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the Lord; take courage, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; take courage, all you people of the land, says the Lord; work, for I am with you, says the Lord of hosts, according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. My spirit abides among you; do not fear. For thus says the Lord of hosts: Once again, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land; and I will shake all the nations, so that the treasure of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with splendor, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the Lord of hosts. The latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts; and in this place I will give prosperity, says the Lord of hosts.

 

—

 

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”

 

+ + +

 

2 Thessalonians 2:1–5, 13–17

 

Stand Fast

 

A college friend from long ago,

Not seen in nearly fifty years,

Reflecting on the climate’s change,

And plastic spreading o’er the sphere,

Proclaimed today that, “We are screwed;

Humanity is finished.

Done."

 

And I was left to wonder if

Despair once felt by everyone

To whom Paul wrote, meant hope was gone

And they, too, felt their goose was cooked.

There seemed no more that they could do;

They had been rendered hopeless.

Numb.

 

But Paul said, No; do not forget

That you are those whom God just chose!

You can’t throw in the towel now;

My job, and yours, is to oppose

The evil in our midst! Stand firm,

Hold fast, do not give up—

Or in.

 

The glory of the Lord himself

Is where, in Christ, we must begin.

The one who loved the world to death,

And rose, to show we all are kin,

Still comforts, so we’re not deterred

From loving with our hearts

All stirred.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here.

 

Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. Do you not remember that I told you these things when I was still with you?

 

But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.

 

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.

 

+ + +

 

Luke 20:27–38

 

If This Be Love

 

A person dies, someone you love.

Mother, father, sister, brother.

Then this headline, which today blared,

"Girl, 9, dies in bus accident."

Oh, dear God, who can bear such news?

How could any of us survive?

That any do, is miracle.

I weep to think of deaths I've known.

And yet. And yet. Perhaps it's true

That for our God, all are alive.

I know not what that means, except

Even when I'm long forgotten,

Just a tombstone name, in some book—

I'm alive, you're alive, and all

Who've ever lived, in him, somehow

Live, and move, and have our being.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”

 

 

Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time/Proper 26 (C), October 30, 2022—Habakkuk 1:1–4; 2:1–4; Luke 19:1–10

Zion National Park's "Watchman," 

photo by Carol Sumner, 

Road Scholar participant, 2016

 

 

Habakkuk 1:1–4; 2:1–4

 

Keep Watch

 

On the plane,

I watch the man

Across the aisle

Reading the magazine

With at least one gun

Pictured per page.

Some of the headlines,

Mostly ads, read:

 

American exceptionalism

A smoother way to shoot

Clinton and Shumer are one election away from taking your guns

Stop any threat dead in its tracks

 

I worry about this kind of vigilance.

It purports to trust in oneself;

But if truth be told,

The trust is really

In all you can buy

To keep you safe—

Ever bigger, ever faster,

Ever smoother, ever prouder.

 

Look at them, says Habakkuk;

Some spirit is not right.

But wait for it. Wait for it.

Wait for the exception,

Trust the one who comes to you,

Live like no one will let you down,

Watch for grace for all

That'll knock your socks off.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

 

Still

 

“Look at the proud!

Their spirit is not right in them,

but the righteous live by their faith.”

 

Yep. Still good news!

 

Scott L. Barton

 

The oracle that the prophet Habakkuk saw. 

O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, 

and you will not listen? 

Or cry to you “Violence!” 

and you will not save? 

Why do you make me see wrong-doing 

and look at trouble? 

Destruction and violence are before me; 

strife and contention arise. 

So the law becomes slack 

and justice never prevails. 

The wicked surround the righteous— 

therefore judgment comes forth perverted.

 

I will stand at my watchpost, 

and station myself on the rampart; 

I will keep watch to see what he will say to me, 

and what he will answer concerning my complaint. 

Then the Lord answered me and said: 

Write the vision; 

make it plain on tablets, 

so that a runner may read it. 

For there is still a vision for the appointed time; 

it speaks of the end, and does not lie. 

If it seems to tarry, wait for it; 

it will surely come, it will not delay. 

Look at the proud! 

Their spirit is not right in them, 

but the righteous live by their faith.

 

+ + +

 

Luke 19:1–10

 

Zacchaeus Was a Wee Little Man

 

Zacchaeus was a wee little man:

We loved to sing that song!

With finger wagging, "You come down!"

We knew we all belonged

To Jesus, who, to us might come

Someday, though we were small!

These days, much taller, would he still

To my house make a call?

And if he did, would I be so

Astounded that he came,

I'd change my ways, perhaps give more?

And he would change my name?

Or is this scene all by itself

A parable of grace,

Since those who'd like to know this God—

No matter time or place—

Will find Christ even more inclined

To knock upon their door,

For he insists! Not just observed

Will he be anymore!

This God e'en now, across the years,

Would still with us consort,

For faith is not some taxing thing,

Nor some spectator sport;

To be a "child of Abraham,"

Means you have been restored

Not by your efforts, but by love—

Which is its own reward.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

[Jesus] entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.” Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”