Blessed are those, but what about me? Epiphany 4; Matthew 5:1-12 Ah! the Beatitudes! Why do I read them with unease? Do I flinch from the suffering, dare not claim the virtues? Can I see them as be-attitudes, sometimes experienced, often not, seldom attained by will and effort, their blessings paradoxical? Consider my poverty ofContinue reading “Blessed are Those, but What about Me?”
Author Archives: barbmessneroutlookcom
Out of the Blue
1. Lord, yes, I know the call goes on past these arrivals and beyond all that I know of who I am: I shall keep striving to respond. Here I am claimed, wrestled and named. Dark turns to light; grant me the sight. 2. Nothing as simple as one “yes” answers the urging that IContinue reading “Out of the Blue”
The Question of Call
The Question of Call Epiphany 3; Matthew 4:12-25 This inner urge, this outer nudge called “call” is hard to quantify or demonstrate, and having once said “yes”, that’s far from all. At times I do resist or remonstrate, pressed out and cut like pasta on a board, or wound around with tangled skeins of threadContinue reading “The Question of Call”
Poet’s Dilemma
Poet’s Dilemma I try to draw the searching word in sight to speak a truth I hardly know is there, or name a feeling that disturbs my night, or bring a smothered fear into the air. Sometimes I wake as words begin to cling – it’s best to get a pen and let them out,Continue reading “Poet’s Dilemma”
What Are You Looking For?
What are you looking for? Epiphany 2; John 1:29-42 When Jesus saw me following, he said, “What are you looking for?” I walked on slowly, pondering, and tried to reach for meaning’s core. “You are a chord to which I sing, a resonance most rich and true. You give imagination wing, show colours fresh withContinue reading “What Are You Looking For?”
Jesus’ Baptism
Jesus’ Baptism The Baptism of our Lord; Matthew 3:13-17 Just as he chose the waters of the womb, immersed himself in fragile life on earth, was formed in Mary’s body, cramped for room, then cried for air in dark and cold of birth, so now he answers to the Baptist’s call: the Jordan does notContinue reading “Jesus’ Baptism”
Girl on the Trampoline
Girl on the Trampoline The girl on the trampoline next door bounced up above the shielding fence that makes good neighbours scarcely known. She bounded up and into sight, yelled, “Hey, old lady!” Who was that? At first, I thought it wasn’t me, but there was no-one else to see. I heard her laugh inContinue reading “Girl on the Trampoline”
Song for Epiphany
Song for Epiphany Matthew 2:1-12 (written to fit the Irish traditional tune Columcille, as arranged by John Bell, Iona Community, for his song No wind at the window, Together in Song 287) What star can I follow to kneel in that place? How far will I journey? What doubts dare erase? And if I canContinue reading “Song for Epiphany”
Treasuring and Pondering
Treasuring and Pondering The Naming and Circumcision of Jesus; Luke 2:15-21 “But Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart.” She knew that’s how the Spirit flames from sacred truth. Does the Spirit guide the wary mind assigning scholarly ticks to what might be historical? Isn’t that a form of arrogance, anContinue reading “Treasuring and Pondering”
The Flight to Egypt
The Flight to Egypt Holy Innocents; Matthew 2:13-23 We keep our dreaming shuttered in our sleep, but Joseph was a man who trusted dreams. They fled into the night. Their loss was deep, but not as great as woe from Herod’s schemes. Behind them, parents wept for children dead. In Egypt, they at least stillContinue reading “The Flight to Egypt”
Barb, poet priest 