Messenger

Messenger

I feel weary whenever people speak of God 

With a sense of certainty 

As if they kept God in their back pocket

As if knowing God's thoughts were as simple

As knowing what happens when you flick a light switch

They say God is infinite, and yet

They say God is eternal, and yet

"He" fits in their brains so easily

Their certainty seems centered on judgement

The things "God" condemns are always clear

God, for them, is a gavel

Or a club to cudgel those they deem enemies

"God is love", they say

But it's always "love for me, not for thee"

God's voice is so loud, for them

And always so clear

The voice of an Accuser ringing out judgement

I never heard the voice of God so clear

When I prayed for clarity

Their voice of God only sounded to me

Like my own shame and fear

I've never seen one of them eat

With whores and tax-collectors

Let alone their own personal Judas

But

If God is love - agape

Then I have felt God's presence most clear

Upon returning home from a short trip

When my dog loses his everloving mind

Whimpering and straining to lay his kisses on my face

As if I'd just returned from years on the battlefield

Or been thought lost at sea

And then he grabs his favorite squeeky toy

Presents it proudly and frolics

He wags with joy when I tug

A mischievous smile in the corner of his jaw

We never argue about the interpretation of a verse

Or the justifications for bombing citizens

Or shooting an unarmed citizen with brown skin

Or putting a trans kid out on the streets

His joy has a power they never held

It melts my tension and banishes all anger

A love like this is surely holy

A sacrament

My gospel

Brought to me by the angel Domino