What if I hinted that Someone is smitten? Head over heels Who loves without quittin’ And cares for you more than a kid for her kitten Just savagely smitten with you
What if I mentioned you’re now on His mind? Not once in a while But all of the time With eyes for you only! Since you He designed And loved before earth was unearthed
What if I stuttered that by you He’s lovestruck? Afire with affection And for you, was nailstruck A Soulmate forever, not any ol’ schmuck Whose stricken heart quickens for you
What if this Lover is something undreamed of “Pazzo d’amore” (1) (Crazy with love) He’d give life and limb for you, push came to shove In fact, so He did! Long ago
What if I said that this Friend is besotted? “Drunk” with devotion (1) “Cross-eyed”, He fought Through death, He unblotted our souls all sin-spotted Through love, He’s now plotting to conquer
What if I blustered this “Bridegroom” has named you His “Chosen” and “Crown”? (2) His “Own” He has claimed you
To silence He summons you, calling your name
To prepare you for the “when” He will send
When your “winter” and “rains” (3) will come to an end
Again, He’ll invite, Come to me (4)
On a cross I was smitten
WITH thee and FOR thee
My spouse, my beloved
My friend
***** (1) St. Catherine of Siena: “You, high eternal Trinity, acted as if You were drunk with love [pazzo d’amore], infatuated with Your creature.. You, Sweetness itself, stooped to join Yourself with our bitterness. You, Splendor, joined Yourself with darkness; You, Wisdom with foolishness; You, Life with death; You, the Infinite, with us who are finite. What drove you to this?”
(2) Old Testament
(3) Song of Songs (Solomon) 2:11
(4) John 7:37; Isaiah 55:1 “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price”
I most love the One Who loves me the most And welcome the Guest Who’s also my Host I think of this Friend Who’s thinking of me And drink of this Fountain of Life My heart Fully dosed
I dwell on the Tenant Who’s dwelling within And call on the Voice Who first called my name I count on the One Who’s counted my days And praise only Him Who’ll remain Forever The same
The Spirit of God comes with gifts to INfuse Which the spirit of evil would have me REfuse Whose will I choose For strength?
The Spirit of Jesus prefers to EXcuse (1) While the spirit of “Satan” just loves to ACcuse (2) Whose will I choose For mercy?
The Spirit of Truth only truths will DIffuse Which the spirit of lies will but twist to CONfuse Whose will I choose For clarity?
The Spirit of heav’n will unite and ENthuse While the spirit of hell will divide and ABuse Whose will I choose For fellowship?
The first, like a drop on a “sponge”, sweet and gentle (3) The second, a drop on a “rock”, sharp and loud Whose will I choose For direction?
God’s Life-giving Spirit will shake up the stray (4)
And sting so to bring to repent and amend
But the spirit of death will distract and delay
In hopes that his prey go astray in the end
Whose will I choose
Today?
***** (1) “Forgive them Father, they know not what they do” -Lk 23:34 (2) “Satan” means “Accuser” (3) “In those who are making progress in the spiritual life, from good to better, the good angel touches the soul gently, tenderly, and sweetly, as a drop of water entering a sponge, but the evil spirit touches it sharply, with noise and agitation, like a drop of water hitting upon a rock.” (St. Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises) https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/the-sponge-and-the-rock/
(4) “For people who have closed themselves off from God’s grace, the good spirit disturbs and shakes up. It stirs feelings of remorse and discontent. The purpose is to make the person unhappy with a sinful way of life. On the other hand, the evil spirit wants such people to continue in their confusion and darkness. So the evil spirit tries to make them complacent, content, and satisfied with their distractions and pleasures”
(The following is inspired by Yip’s poem above, and in his honor. Yip is my great grandfather one of my main inspirations, after Christ, to write poems. His poem above is a sad reminder of anti-semitism by Christians, a tragically ironic violation of the Gospel of Christ, our semitic Savior)
*
How good of God
To help the Jews
To find His clues
In offered ewes (Is. 53:7; Jn. 1:29)
Salvation’s ruse
*
How brave of God
To teach His Jews
Through prophets’ woos
That soon His shoes
O’er dust would cruise (Ez. 34)
*
How wise of God
To help men fuse
His Law with News
(One Rabbi’s views)
That Death would lose
*
How “weak” of God
Our flesh, enthuse (from Greek “theos” meaning God)
Could God be Almighty- yet tiny and poor? Creator of planets- forgotten, ignored? Invincible Lord- but breakable, frail? The words of the Bible these myst’ries unveil
The tininess of God displayed In Bethlehem’s babe Cute and small (Lk. 2)
The poverty of God portrayed In Galilee’s tramp Shunned by all (Mt. 8:20; Mk. 14:71)
Our God’s “dismissability” In Nazareth’s son “without honor” (Mk. 6:4)
The Lord’s preferred fragility In Calvary’s Lamb Led to slaughter (Is. 53:7)
God’s weakness, smallness, helplessness, and utter breakability
Are found in ev’ry person full-endowed with all His features (Gen. 1)
And found in ev’ry Eucharistic Host! For shareability
Empow’ring us to heal Him hidden in His broken creatures (Mt. 25)
Our God’s love is “Less”: It is Fathomless, Endless It’s Bottomless, Boundless, and Rendless
And it is “Without”: Without Count, Terms, Conditions Without Breadth, Length, Height, Depth, or Attritions*
Our God’s love is “In”: Inexhaustible, Infinite Inspiring, Indwelling, and Intimate
And God’s love is “Un”: Unprecedented, Unimaginable Unbelievable? Grace makes us able
*****
*…that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:17-19)
Rhymes for the Rejoiceful 