Your weekly slice of Poetry

Welcome to another edition of Poetry Pie. This publication offers 3 poems that I've found over my own readings these past few weeks. They all pull deeply from good Biblical imagery, and are thus both delightful and enlightening. Enjoy!

Holy Baptism 1 & 2

George Herbert (1593-1633)

As is Herbert's style, both of these poems provide introspection into the theological realities of his life. A Herbert poem is almost always in first person, which is one of the reasons why they have been so meaningful to Christians through the years.

The first poem is a sonnet, containing water imagery in different ways: sky (the waters above), the "spring" from Christ's side, and tears. These carry the different aspects of Baptism, in which the believer passes through the waters of death and is washed. This ending line struck me with quite a beautiful surprise.

You taught the Book of Life my name...

The second poem features the "diamond" meter that he's used before, wherein the line length gets longer and then shorter. In it he describes how God brought him to faith in his "infancy." He asks God that he would make him as "soft and supple" as he was as a child, and that his flesh would not outgrow the health of his soul, his "childhood."

A Soldier Speaks to Pharaoh

Kate Bluett

Here is another poem from the prolific Kate Bluett. It offers a unique narration: an Egyptian speaking to Pharoah as they are chasing the Israelites toward the Red Sea. It contains references to the Egyptian gods, connecting some of these myths with Moses and his miraculous delivery from death as a child. The theme of being "drawn out" is used frequently, which is the meaning of Moses's name.

Interestingly, I commented on the poem and praised the subtle way that Psalm 90 was woven through the poem. Psalm 90 is the only psalm that was written by Moses, and it contains phrases used here related to the brevity of man's life (poem: "his span was barely longer than a breath", psalm: "yet their span is but toil and trouble"). The author, however, said that this was not in her mind when she wrote it. This, in my mind, makes it all the more exciting that this Biblical connection happened naturally.

Transfiguration

Kilby Austin

This poem is described by its author as "an ode to transience." Transience is the property of being short lived, not lasting very long. The poem offers a call to embrace the transience of the beauty in this world. A delicious meal, a movie, a song - all these things must end at some point and we both distort and corrupt them when we try to cling to them too tightly. Much like Bilbo, they become "like butter scraped over too much bread," stretched out beyond what they were ever meant to be. So enjoy God's beauty as it comes, praise him for it, and then let the moment pass until he brings you another.

The Shepherd Lamb

Abram Newcomer

Similar to the selections above, this poem contains Biblical imageries from different stories. I greatly enjoyed contrasting two of Christ's natures: how he is both our sacrificial lamb and our shepherd. I'm finding that I enjoy my own poems that are shorter... There's something to the brevity of a short (but packed) poem that is appealing to me. It's hard to say all you want to say in a small space, so I think the challenge typically pays off.

Thank you for reading! My writing has tapered slightly these last few weeks, likely due to Summer busyness and so on. Yet, I'm still grateful for the regular scheduling of this publication, ever thankful that I get to share beautiful poems with you. Take care, and see you soon.