Blood In The Garden

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Luke, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TheAgony

+------Blood In The Garden; Jesus' Thoughts While Praying On The Mount Of Olives

I have known this feeling: the
trauma of clangor of angel swords
aflame swung at Lucifer,
the scars of sacrifice – blood on leaves
of the Tree of Good and Evil fur-stained -
of a beast not privy to serpentine
deception but vicariously bound to it's
divine law, stitched skins to clothe
Adam’s, Eve’s regret. I muse on
the terror of dying in its eyes, growling,
the terror of Michael in Heaven
when Heaven was besieged by betrayal,
wings pulled taut. And
tonight my sweat recalling it all. Thick
blood from pores on my brow, trickling
down rock, seeping in soil. Heavy breathing.
I have to die tomorrow. My skin Roman-whip-
stitched to clothe the world’s naked soul.

-----Luke 22:39-44
Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. 

Taylor Swift and Tony Conti: Sailors Sailing For Tarshish #taylordatetony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Jonah, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TaylorDateTony, #IHateJonah

+------Taylor Swift and Tony Conti: Sailors Sailing For Tarshish"

Taylor, I imagine us
love’s seafarers, eyelids shut,
holding hands, our other hands
holding opportunity’s mast,
a date at Starbucks like sailing.
Me kissing your soft lips like
zephyrs, a sunny sky’s diplomat.
Your two eyes charming like
gentle waves. And my singleness…
sailors’ opprobrium at storms. It is our
hearts huddled together, coffee sips, over
disdainful discourse of polarity- girls
who refused to date me- hashing out
solutions to my soul’s regret
sublimated potentially- Jonah below
the deck sleeping, threatening pysche’s
shipwreck. And babes, we wont make
it to Tarshish, #Bae country, with
negative vibes: Let’s toss him overboard.


-----Jonah 1:1-16
The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.” Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.) The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.

Where Else Can We Go?

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* John, Peter, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamPeter

+------Where Else Can We Go?; Peter's Proclamation Of Loyalty To Jesus

In a sense Judas Maccabeus,
God bless the dead, taught us,
albeit valorous, the sword of the
State’s slaughter of defectors.
Nehemiah, Im sure, etched
in toppled stone…“we here
invoke memories of David, King”
raising morale for our wall’s rebuilding
like ghosts (before being razed
again). Our collective hearts
a chick under Hen’s wings of
expectation since then. So
where else can we go? Your words
ethereal, your touch divine.
In just a moment, we know, Caesar
will die. We will know –a life
Hebrews always wanted but never had.

-----John 6:61-69
Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.” From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

The Last Kiss

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Luke, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #JesusvsJudas #TheLastKiss #IamJesus

+------The Last Kiss; Jesus' Thoughts As Judas Kissed Him In The Garden Of Gethsemane

Flashbacks of a fiery kiss. Eyes closed I
remember now, the first: An infant vignette
– my father kindling manger-fire, intersecting
logs (like a cross) for warmth;
The softest lips, my Mother cradling
me in swaddling clothes, smiling,
wiping her tears. Flanked by sheep-choirs,
the gente braying of canticles consonant
with respect, rhythmically.
Now this: Eyes open, my Mother’s
face disfigured, bearded, man-
lips textured like snake-leather, Judas’
lisp like hissing. "Rabbi." Flames now of a
Garden, of torches and staves, the dissonant
sounds-pandemonium of mob-roar. No, this
kiss is of betrayal (of everything I’ve
known). My last. For Caesar's cross (bloody)
is Death’s, not a carpenter's to comfort..  

-----Luke 22:47-48; John 18:3
While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”; So Judas came to the garden, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and the Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons.

I Cant Sleep

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Jesus, Matthew, John, Luke, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamJudas #JesusvsJudas #LastKiss

+---------- I Cant Sleep; Judas' Thoughts The Night After He Agreed To Betray Jesus For 30 Silver Pieces

My bedsheets drenched.
Sweat from my brow, neck
pouring profusely, the river of life
running from Adam’s serpent-crisis,
splitting into four tributaries; my sleep
snatched by moon rays
of conniving. I stare in the mirror,
I see the dark angel wrapping its
wings around me. I blink, now Im
alone again. Shifting 2 pieces of silver
in my hands trembling, 28 on
the lampstand. I remember asking
the Pharisees “Is blood the price
of revolution?” to no response.
I can only hope when Jesus dies,
clarity of conscience comes. And…
the real Elijah makes sense of
the chaos Im stirring.

------Matthew 26:14-16; John 13:17; Luke 22:47-50
Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over; As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly; While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.

The Life Behind Me

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Abraham, Moses, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamLotsWife

+------The Life Behind Me; The Thoughts Of Lot's Wife As Sodom Was Burning

Gilded, my former life in Sodom…
fondest of memories, a snapshot
of my soul molded and cast in silver
dreams,
speckled in black diamond.
The prestige of having all my words
respected, the pomp, serenading
of me, my daughters by renowned
men of the City at the Gate. We knew
freedom - life without thought of
restraint, moderation. But in truth, all
of it debauchery. We lived lies of
piety only fire and brimstone and
ash could reveal. And now…we
run for the dark unknown satchel-ed.
But my heart cant keep pace…

------Genesis 19:12-26
And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.
And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die: Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do anything till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

Taylor Swift Standing Over All Girls In Tony Conti's Dating Life Sleeping #taylordatetony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* David, Samuel Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TaylorDateTony #TaylorisKingDavid

+------Taylor Swift Standing Over All Girls In Tony Conti's Dating Life Sleeping

Taylor, all the girls
who rejected me- quixotic,
savage, froth about the mouth,
blinded by hubris of the crown
of romantic power, Saul descending
into lunacy camped beside the
road on the hill of Hakilah facing
Jeshimon. In a deep sleep, spear
of cruelty in the ground beside
his head. Plotting my demise, more
heartbreak. Flanked by a detachment
of bad intentions- horses, soldiers.
Oh but babes, you urbane. A true
Kween benevolent more deserving
of the crown. If you took me to
Starbucks, Ahimelek the Hittite,
Abishai, a retinue brandishing your
swords of charm, beauty aside you. You
standing over your enemy supine, snoring.
If we kissed – over coffee, or green tea,
like you disregarding all women I ever knew,
letting them slumber taking the spear. Since
you know your coronation soon comes.

-----1 Samuel 26:1-12
The Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?” So Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David. Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah facing Jeshimon, but David stayed in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul had followed him there, he sent out scouts and learned that Saul had definitely arrived. Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped. He saw where Saul and Abner son of Ner, the commander of the army, had lain down. Saul was lying inside the camp, with the army encamped around him. David then asked Ahimelek the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, “Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?” “I’ll go with you,” said Abishai. So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. Abner and the soldiers were lying around him. Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.” But David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.” So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.

Curses Of Canaan

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Matthew, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamtheCanaaniteWoman

+------Curses Of Canaan; The Canaanite Woman's Plea To Jesus For Her Daughter

At night, every night, my
daughter, her soul inverts…
normally petulant and sedentary
she turns noctambulist,
docile. A deer sprouting
horns and fangs to run with
wolves. I hear her soft incessant
mantras, face pale, eyes opal in
the full moon – “Noah’s curse!
…Noah’s curse!…I am Ham, the sling
of David, taunt…of Goliath slain!” Then
shrills violent and quivers,
interspersed growling. And sir I
know we are but to Hebrews dogs,
but even a dog doesn’t deserve this.
I apologize…for sins of my fathers.
Please…heal my daughter.

-----Matthew 15:21-28
Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

Salvation On The Seas

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Jesus, Matthew, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamtheFish

+--------Salvation On The Seas; The Thoughts Of The Fish That Provided Jesus With The Silver Coin For The Temple Tax

Ive internalized, already,
the apocalyptic ethos of
estuaries; My mother swears
it’s the way I was hatched…
a deep conscience for marshaling
order from chaos in the deep. I’ve
seen too many fish gone to soon,
hook-snatched, the mass graves in
the sky of thick algae like
pall bearers of Leviathan. Yes
Ive always been sensitive to decay
of the world (above and below), the
“fall of man” as the fishermen lament,
me hovering beneath the hull
eavesdropping on my predators. So
here is the silver coin I found buried
on the bed…Jesus…if it helps
redeem us all, Im glad to play my part.

------Matthew 17:24-27
 After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?” “Yes, he does,” he replied. When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered. “Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

The Hunted; Obadiah's Thoughts On Edom While In Captivity #IamObadiah

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Obadiah, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamObadiah

+------The Hunted; Obadiah's Thoughts On Edom While In Captivity 

Before all of this, barrage of
Babylon’s barbarities, blood-
dried- of Hebrews in streets,
I remember Temple anecdotes
of golden candlesticks, the onyx
stone, dark spell of intrigue,
on shoulders of Levitical priests’
ephods, singing. The Glories. Limericks
of Jacob, Solomon, David in their better
days. And now every hoof step of
trotting horse is Babylonian (on toppled
Jerusalem stone), every prayer by
our captors abominable. The scabbing
on top of scabs from shackles on wrists
continually replaced. And Edom is a scar
forever (God as my witness). For raising
shared swords with our enemies. I swear
when the diaspora ends, we heal…we
will hunt you.

------Obadiah 8-15
“In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “will I not destroy the wise men of Edom,
    those of understanding in the mountains of Esau?
Your warriors, Teman, will be terrified,
    and everyone in Esau’s mountains
    will be cut down in the slaughter.
Because of the violence against your brother Jacob,
    you will be covered with shame;
    you will be destroyed forever.
On the day you stood aloof
    while strangers carried off his wealth
and foreigners entered his gates
    and cast lots for Jerusalem,
    you were like one of them.
You should not gloat over your brother
    in the day of his misfortune,
nor rejoice over the people of Judah
    in the day of their destruction,
nor boast so much
    in the day of their trouble.
You should not march through the gates of my people
    in the day of their disaster,
nor gloat over them in their calamity
    in the day of their disaster,
nor seize their wealth
    in the day of their disaster.
You should not wait at the crossroads
    to cut down their fugitives,
nor hand over their survivors
    in the day of their trouble.
“The day of the Lord is near
    for all nations.
As you have done, it will be done to you;
    your deeds will return upon your own head.

David Mueller's Reputation Sulfurous

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Isaiah Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TonyvsDavid

+------David Mueller's Reputation Sulfurous

David Mueller, your perverted (Luciferian)
assault on Taylor: you holding a decaying
indecorous harp celestial (radio fame).
Your vile-angel smugness like maggots
of besmirched reputation spread
out beneath you, your court testimony
worms covering the soul.
You disgraced Taylor to exalt yourself,
summit-scaling of Mount Zaphon,
ascending the heavens. To be a Star,
seeking Taylor dethroned, deposed. But
my love for her an Archangel
sword raised flaming; Battalion
of rage marching beneath cover
of cloud smoke red, her other fans; We
angels righteous, irises as black
as our pupils. And now you are brought
down to the earth, guilt-laden by the Judge.
I proclaim before Instagram: “DAVID,
GO TO HELL!!!” ...Michael hurling Satan in
that Lake of Fire, Sulfur.   #istandwithTaylor

-----Isaiah 14:11-17
All your pomp has been brought down to the grave,
    along with the noise of your harps;
maggots are spread out beneath you
    and worms cover you.
How you have fallen from heaven,
    morning star, son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
    you who once laid low the nations!
You said in your heart,
    “I will ascend to the heavens;
I will raise my throne
    above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
    on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon.
I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;
    I will make myself like the Most High.”
But you are brought down to the realm of the dead,
    to the depths of the pit.
Those who see you stare at you,
    they ponder your fate:
“Is this the man who shook the earth
    and made kingdoms tremble,
the man who made the world a wilderness,
    who overthrew its cities
    and would not let his captives go home?”

Taylor Swift Washing Her Hands Of Tony Conti's Dating Life Condemned #TaylorDateTony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Matthew, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TaylorDateTony

+------Taylor Swift Washing Her Hands Of Tony Conti's Dating Life Condemned 

Taylor, my heart a
Man taciturn head down
sandal-staring, tall, beard unshorn,
garbed in tunic without seam (pure
intentions to fall in love)…
bruised and beaten from girls’ prior
romantic repudiations-a night
in the high priest’s home detained.
Truly misunderstood.
But babes, your love for me (Pontius
Pilate) a governor standing before
steamed mirror, blade to bald head,
emotions plagued. You taking
me to Starbucks: you unconvinced
of crucifix contrivance. Your soft
lips, hypnotizing gaze a bowl of
water. Our kiss over coffee
like hands dipped, cleansed; You
spurning jeers of mobs uncouth.
A date with you, my soul uncondemned.


-----Matthew 27:20-24
But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. The governor answered and said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” They said, “Barabbas!” Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!” Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!” When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.”

The Last Words Of Moses (Atop Pisgah) #IamMoses

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Moses, Aaron, Disciples, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamMoses

+------The Last Words Of Moses (Atop Pisgah) 

I remember the last glimpses
of my mother’s face now,
anguished, glowing nimbus of
a Levite wife atop her head, hair
wrapped in the tattered turban of
my father to disguise herself as man,
feet tracing the edge of the bank
of the Nile. A baby. Interlacing walls
of my wicker basket dissipating some
noise of its current rushing,
disembodied screams of
the collective conscience of all
enslaved Hebrews. Her last
words “when you think of Freedom,
I am always with you…” (Miriam
watching us). And now this: Egypt’s
Exodus, Pharaoh drowned, the apex
of our dreams, vistas of Canaan for
my people to colonize. I close my eyes.
I think…I hear footsteps of my Mom.

------Deuteronomy 34:1-8
Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the Lord showed him the whole land—from Gilead to Dan, all of Naphtali, the territory of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Mediterranean Sea, the Negev and the whole region from the Valley of Jericho, the City of Palms, as far as Zoar. Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it.” And Moses the servant of the Lord died there in Moab, as the Lord had said. He buried him in Moab, in the valley opposite Beth Peor, but to this day no one knows where his grave is. Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone. The Israelites grieved for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days, until the time of weeping and mourning was over.

Me and My Son

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Mary, Joseph Simeon, Luke, Disciples, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamMary

+------ Me and My Son; The Words Of The Virgin Mary To Simeon At The Presentation In The Temple

In my third trimester
I felt it, His determined kicking
like half stepping, a soldier
of revolution of Judas Maccabeus
wild with belief. How “preposterous”
the suggestion of a Roman siege,
I thought. A pair of doves for
freedom. The smiling of Fate
on Jews like Aphrodite
snapping Paris’s helmet
strap, Menelaus stupefied.
Yes, Simeon, He and I both share
dreams – regime change.
To resist Caesar to raise the
same sword of faith in King David.
And yes I swear, no matter the cost,
both me and my Son will live
and die by this blade.

------Luke 2:22-35
When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
    you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
    and the glory of your people Israel.”
The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

Marked For Death

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Matthew, Disciples, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to Jesus

+------Marked For Death; Jesus' Last Thoughts On The Cross After Drinking Vinegar And Wine

Raucous jeers, profane
protests from the crowd
muffled now; overcome by white
noise. My vision hazy, blood-blurred,
the criminals on my right,
left indistinct, amorphous.
I can hear rumbling of
subterranean earth, the ground
splitting, Hades rising, clangor
of precious metals precursory,
then thunderous footsteps
approaching. The pitter-patter
of feet, the cacophonous
barking of three dog-heads one
body, Cerberus, his portal’s guardian.
Clenching my neck, he stands
eye to eye – “Hades isn’t a place,
it’s a person….” My breath flees
my body in terror.....I'm convulsing.
Father why have you forsaken me?

------Matthew 27:32-37
As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. Above his head they placed the written charge against him: this is jesus, the king of the jews.

Dysfunctional Family Matters

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Sarah, Abraham, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TonyandKirk

+------Dysfunctional Family Matters; Kirk Cousins Evicting His Haters In 2018 (With A  Superbowl Win) 

Kirk, last year’s franchise tag:
a son, Egyptian, fruit of the
womb of Dan Snyder’s (wily bride)
sinister presumption, mocking.
His conniving: Ishmael. (A
trope, familiar – you tested
and tested). But this year’s tag,
predestined…prophetic promise
of the Football gods bundled,
the miraculous joy of a wife of fealty:
your playoff potential- elderly
while pregnant (your 6th season)-Isaac.
He your prosperity as son, QBR maturing.
And now is time for wifey to be choleric.
2018 to prove the haters wrong, your
touchdowns, Superbowl triumph casting
all NFL teams, Dan Snyder, from
your presence pride-wounded; food
and a skin of water on their shoulders
wandering Beersheba's desert crying
under bushes – land of pure losers.

-----Genesis 21:8-21
The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.” Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob. God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.

My Triumphal Entry

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Elijah, Elisha, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamElijah

+------My Triumphal Entry; Elijah's Thoughts While Being Charioted Away To Heaven 

I feel quaking earth. Faintly,
I hear horses stampeding,
aroma of ash, breath of fire,
light of consciousness fusillading
from fantasy out of the dark corner
of my eyes, myth becoming reality.
This is it, the full translation of
glory I've seen, the dead raised, oil
in one jar to jars manifold, Baal
priests’ altars blood-stained.
And they say the voice of
God, still and small, but the glory
of His face, His presence…is
chariots amethyst in a whirlwind,
my heart forever windswept.

-----2 Kings 2:9-13
When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.” As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two. Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.

Father To Father

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Abrahah, Isaac, Moses Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #ThePromise

+------Father To Father, Eternal; God's Words To Abraham Regarding His Promises

I knew it in an instant;
before majesty of grand vistas
of the cosmos manifested
by Speech, like crafting earth
was a sublimated desire
for you. Before I grimaced
at the blood continuum
in time, the betrayal, the
warring, the whips, nail-
jabbed salvation scars.
Of my Son. I saw your soul
worthy, I said there should
be more like you, other souls
as infinite sand on seashores,
innumerable as stars in the sky.
Their Father Faithful, Abraham-
a name I swear shall never be
forgotten.
 
-----Genesis 22:13-19
Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

Signs Of The Times

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Thomas, Disciples, Holy Church pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamThomas

+------Signs Of The Times; The Thoughts Of Thomas Engaging Wounds Of The Risen Christ 

And this is Odysseus
below the mast regret-dreaming:
of thrusting a stake through the
eye of the Cyclops drunk. (Cursed).
Deep-breathing, taciturn…ship teetering
before winds' betrayal, abandoning
notions of seeing Ithaca’s soil
again. My fingers grave robbing…
tracing in disbelief - flesh, scars and
scabbing of a Ghost. But flashes
of vignettes before my eyes:
fish and loaves exponentially doubling,
a Man walking on water, Lazarus
tearing off grave clothes. And this
is what I barely fathomed
when He first called me – the
impossible – a Dead man before
me, his crucifix wounds, his side, my
unbelief healed. So....now there
is no turning back: now is the
time for me to believe.

------John 20:24-29
Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

The Ashes Of Belief

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Jeremiah, Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamJehoiakim

+------The Ashes Of Belief; The Thoughts Of King Jehoiakim As He Burned Jeremiah's Scroll 

Winter is for dreamers, fur clad,
teeth chattering, winds
snow-blustery, reflecting on
regressive failures that chill
to the bone, on Judah shackled
to Egyptian meddling, then
on a gilded throne
gold-glistening, my supremacy
again. An eagle surveying,
talon eagerly clasping tip of
the tree, all that he
could and should
seize, conquer. (Lust unabated,
blood of enemies, blood for gods,
drugs, slaves, strong drink, deceit.
Life proudly debauched.)
Any notions, to the contrary:
scroll-char, ash, soot, smoke
of fools. All who doubt my
success…can burn in hell.  

-----Jeremiah 36:11-26
When Micaiah son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll, he went down to the secretary’s room in the royal palace, where all the officials were sitting: Elishama the secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Akbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. After Micaiah told them everything he had heard Baruch read to the people from the scroll, all the officials sent Jehudi son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to say to Baruch, “Bring the scroll from which you have read to the people and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah went to them with the scroll in his hand. They said to him, “Sit down, please, and read it to us.” So Baruch read it to them. When they heard all these words, they looked at each other in fear and said to Baruch, “We must report all these words to the king.” Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how did you come to write all this? Did Jeremiah dictate it?” “Yes,” Baruch replied, “he dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them in ink on the scroll.” Then the officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah, go and hide. Don’t let anyone know where you are.” After they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, they went to the king in the courtyard and reported everything to him.  The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him. It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire. The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes. Even though Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them. Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the Lord had hidden them.

Tony Conti's Singleness Swallowed Whole By The Great Fish Of Taylor Swift's Love #TaylorDateTony

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Jonah Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #TaylorDateTony

+------Tony Conti's Singleness Swallowed Whole By The Great Fish Of Taylor Swift's Love 

Taylor, my singleness
a Hebrew man on the lam,
robes and turban dust laden
and sweat-drenched,
agitated, coming undone
at the suggestion of
love – Nineveh, Assyrian
city of pagan savagery.
And not dating
is a ship Tarshish bound,
land of misery prolonged,
romantic dereliction…
captain, sailors of hopelessness
startled at the savagery of waves
of wrath, girls cruel. Indifferent
to me drowning. Throwing
me overboard to misfortune,
ill-fate, reprobation. But babes!
Your magnanimity, a grand
fish hungered, diving in and out of
froth, ripples …your two majestic
eyes blue as the sea, your soft
lips like oceans merciful. If
you took me to Starbucks,
singleness, loneliness
swallowed up. If you kissed
me over coffee…Jonah
in a whale’s belly, wreaking
of half digested eels, rotted
seaweed. Discomfited.  

-----Jonah 1:7-17
Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?” He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him. Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

This (Night) Is....

* Spirit Of Jesus pray for me
* Moses, Aaron Holy Church pray for me
* Saints pray for me
*  Dedicated to #IamMoses

+------This (Night) Is....; The Thoughts Of Moses On That Fateful Night In Egypt 

The scent in the air – Egyptian
slaughter; carried by wind gusts
of harried angel wings
of a God who cares of his
peoples’ vindication. Our sheep
(and goats) bow heads
dutifully, exhaling below
war constellations. I raise the
blade to mine, I whisper “this
is the blood that saves us.”
…”Thank you.” I drive the
bread, without yeast, down
my throat. I take shelter
under covers, cover my wife’s
ears. The death angel nears:
(THIS IS THE PASSOVER).

-----Exodus 12:21-30
Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning. When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down. “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped. The Israelites did just what the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.