rumble of thunder
a street juggler
lights his torches
one rock for my garden–
a thousand ants
rescuing eggs
so suddenly winter
the colors
in her pill box
credits: “so suddenly winter” The Heron’s Nest
“one rock for my garden–” The Heron’s Nest
“rumble of thunder” — The Heron’s Nest (Jan. 2005)
by dagosan:
the blizzard
starts as scheduled —
saturday is cancelled
waiting out
the snowstorm —
pantry’s full
through the frosted window –
all is dull gray
or bright white
[Jan. 22, 2005]
Jim Wallis of Sojourners Magazine was on the Charlie Rose show last night (Jan. 21, 2005),
discussing his newest book God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It.
As usual, although Wallis is a religious believer and I am not, I found myself consistently agreeing
with his message. I especially liked his statement “religion has no monopoly on morality.” As the
book flap states:
It has become clear that someone must challenge the Republicans’ claim that
they speak for God, or that they hold a monopoly on moral values in the nation’s
public life. Wallis argues that America’s separation of church and state does not
require banishing moral and religious values from the public square. In fact, the
very survival of America’s social fabric depends on such values and vision to
shape our politics — a dependence the nation’s founders recognized.
presidential campaign to let the American people know that the vast majority of us hold moral and
ethical views that fit squarely within our national consensus on values — and that differences on
how those values should be applied in particular instances should not “excommunicate” anyone
from our social community or political discussion.
Frankly, many Baby Boomers are “allergic to religion,” because of disillusionment with the religious
institutions of their birth, and many feel intellectually superior to believers. We need to get over both
of these obstacles to recognizing and acknowledging the values we share with American believers,
just as certain segments of American’s religious community need to recognize that they do not have
a monopoly on morality nor on solutions to America’s social and political problems.
Although I believe that the majority of America’s believers come in “good faith” to
the positions they take on political issues, I admit to being skeptical — just as I am,
for instance, with the interpretation of legal ethical requirements by lawyers — when
a person’s positions consistently result in their own financial gain or the enhancement
of their social position.
