Saturday, July 13, 2013

Searching for help


the stranger holding him, broken
scanning the horizon
searching for help that doesn’t come
no help from his people
his body limp in his hands
another perfect stranger
not knowing what to do
but knowing he couldn’t leave him


July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
cover art of the July-August, 2013
Upper Room Devotional
 “Good Samaritan”
Artist: Stephen Sawyer
(USA, Contemporary)
Interpreter: Mona Bagasao-Cave
with Christ’s and her question, “who is my neighbor?”
seen July 12, 2013
&
email sent to artist Stephen Sawyer 7/12/13:
I just got a large print copy of The Upper Room for July and August with your painting as the cover art. I am working on poems inspired by it and wondered if you would be willing to answer a couple of questions about it. Did you read Mona Bagasao-Cave's interpretation? Is it consistent with what you wanted to convey?

Also, I noticed that the painting showed both the men clothed and that no blood was shown. Was that intentional and, if so, why did you show the victim clothed?

Also, I feel that the victim looks about the age of Jesus and very much like several images of Christ. Was that intentional as well?

It is drawing me to answer Mona's question as if the victim is Jesus and Jesus is my neighbor, much like the sheep and goats judgment in Matthew 25:31-46. She asked us to put ourselves into the image but I see myself, as one of the others, who might have been too busy to stop.

Finally, there is a softness about the victim, which made me think of a gay man I know, who often wore that type of shirt. Could you have been including that quality to the victim?

Lots of questions I know, but a wonderful painting to generate such. Thank you. Ray Foss, Poetry Where You Live, www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com”.


All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Mercy not Judgment


the measure, who was the neighbor
not in convenience, the letter of the law,
mercy, not judgment
offering themselves to them
stopping, caring,
helping the broken man


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

words needing meaning


the expert wanting context
a definition section
boundaries to the law
to his obligation
who is my neighbor
a seemingly innocuous question
but actually a dividing line
that Christ would obliterate.


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

any of your people


neighbor, implicit in the question,
a word with meaning
limiting the population
a trap he sought to set
in his question to Jesus.
If he answered, “everyone”,
that all are our neighbor,
blasphemy, heresy
making new law;
if he answered, “any of your people”,
many would be left out
not neighbors at all.


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Like truth, Like Pilate


Like truth, like Pilate
the lawyer’s question
“who is my neighbor?”
a question posed too lightly,
hanging in the air.

Did he want the answer
as when Pilate would ask his question,
“what is truth?”, then quickly moving on;
but the expert in the law,
left his question hanging in the air.


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

Not answering his question


The lawyer’s question,
“who is my neighbor?”,
reframing, responding
different, entirely
the parable to follow.
Answering another question:
“what does a neighbor do,
when someone is in need?”.


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

A term with meaning


A question important
loaded with meaning,
“who is my neighbor?”,
the bounds of love.
To whom do we owe
the law of Moses;
who must we love
as we love ourselves?


------
July 13, 2013
Luke 10:25-29
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Deuteronomy 6:5
Leviticus 19:18
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013
&
John 18:38
Pilate’s question, “What is truth?”
&
Amos 7:7-9
Amos 7:7:17
“The Plumb Line”
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
“Thanksgiving and Prayer”
Luke 10:25-37
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
Upper Room Disciplines for 2013
July 8, 2013 to July 14, 2013
“The Plumb Line”
by Denise Shafer
July 8, 2013
read July 8, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

hope for the invisible


our hope in the invisible
in the unseen
in life eternal
by your blood made clean
our hope in your promise
in life eternal
our pain, our sorrow
come to an end


------
July 13, 2013
Romans 8:18-25
Future Glory
Romans 15:13
Upper Room Daily Devotional
 “Never Without Hope”
by Elena Kalashnikova
for July 13, 2013
read July 13, 2013

All of my poems are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss for usage. See all 23,720+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

the crowd wearing yellow stars


at the beginning, a sea of people
the crowd wearing yellow stars
over 100,000 with them
a third of the town
the Jews Hitler gathered up

now only 800, 12 children only
when they were given freedom
their yellow stars saved them
the mark of their religion
the Jews remaining
leaving the ghetto




====
November 10, 2018
Rev Martin Niemöller Quote
Edmund Burke Quote
November 10, 2018
Summary of Kristallnacht poems
November 10, 2018
Five years before Kristallnacht
(the photo was in Life Magazine in 1933, after all…)
edited November 10, 2018
Black and White – v5
(editing V2)
edited November 10, 2018
The Granary – v3
edited April 25, 2015
Black and White – v2
September 4, 2006 19:05
Black and White
edited April 25, 2015
The Granary – v2
January 30, 2010
The Granary
This poem is about my memory,
of the jarring sensation
seeing a photograph circa 1994,
of one of the all-time
great pictures, capturing evil,
before it rose up to full flowering
of Joseph Goebbels,
in 1933 at the League of Nations
Life Magazine article about the photo
on display at The Granary Gallery
on Martha’s Vineyard
taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt (1898 - 1995),
a master of black and white. Photojournalist of the century, http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue9911/eisieintro.htm.
====
edited November 10, 2018
a lesson I have not learned – v4
October 23, 2014
a lesson I have not learned – v3
(editing original again)
edited November 10, 2018
we must forgive – v2
edited October 22, 2014
we must forgive
edited November 10, 2018
we are to forgive – v2
new October 22, 2014
we are to forgive
edited November 10, 2018
to forgive to forget – v2
new October 22, 2014
to forgive to forget
edited November 9, 2018
to forgive without forgetting – v4
edited October 3, 2015
to forgive without forgetting – v3
(editing version 2)
edited October 22, 2014
to forgive without forgetting – v2
new October 21, 2014
to forgive without forgetting
based on profile quote of
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
“Forgiving is not forgetting; it's actually remembering—
remembering and not using your right to hit back.”
Mpho and Desmond Tutu for the #Forgiveness Challenge
Forgiveness Challenge
The Book of Forgiving
by Archibishop Desmond Tutu
and Reverend Mpho Andrea Tutu
and story of Corrie ten Boom about forgiving former Nazis
&
edited October 20, 2014
a lesson I must learn
edited October 20, 2014
a lesson I have not learned – v2
October 17, 2014
a lesson I have not learned
“The first to apologize is the bravest.
The first to forgive is the strongest.
The first to forget is the happiest.”

author unknown
seen 10/17/2014
post 10/14/2014
on Rachel’s Challenge
and see
The first to forget is the happiest –
&
==============
edited November 10, 2018
the crowd wearing yellow stars – v2
July 13, 2013
the crowd wearing yellow stars
inspired by the book,
Yellow Star,
by Jennifer Roy
& page 11 – Chapter “February 1940” and poem, “Relocation”
& pages 218-222 – Chapter “Winter 1945” and poem, “An Amazing Story”
&
edited November 10, 2018
Their Haunting Witness – v2
September 3, 2010
Their Haunting Witness
on remembering
the United States Holocaust Museum
in emails today
&
edited November 10, 2018
so we would never forget – v2
October 16, 2015
so we would never forget
Elie Wiesel
and Holocaust
Blog Action Day 2015 – “Raise Your Voice”
October 16, 2015

All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. All rights are reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for usage. See all 48,040 of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.

United States Holocaust Museum, justice, Jewish, Nazi, Holocaust, Raymond A. Foss, Poetry Where You Live, Methodist, United Methodist, hate, love, faith, God, witnesses, people, David, faces, Kristallnacht, never forget,

#UnitedStatesHolocaustMuseum #justice #Jewish #Nazi #Holocaust #Poetry #hate #love #faith #God #witnesses #people #David #faces #Kristallnacht #neverforget #Kristallnacht80

---------------------
God, Holocaust, Nazi, Jew, family, remember, evil, sin, children, father, mother, sister, trials, struggles, triumph, spirit, freedom, fear, victory, star, Kristallnacht

#God #Holocaust #Nazi #Jew #family #evil #sin #children #trials #struggles #triumph #spirit #freedom #fear #victory #star #Kristallnacht #Kristallnacht80

=================
God, Christ, Spirit, hope,  justice, peace,  freedom, America, apologize, forgive, forget, happy, Corrie ten Bloom, brave, strong, faith, trust, Desmond Tutu, Kristallnacht, Kristallnacht 80,

#God #Christ #Spirit #hope #joy #justice #peace #freedom #America #apologize #forgive #forget #happy #joy #brave #strong #faith #trust @TheDesmondTutu #Kristallnacht #Kristallnacht80 #CorrietenBloom

======================

darkness, Eisenstaedt, evil, Faith, God, Goebbels, Martha's Vineyard, memories, Photos, soul, WWII, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Joseph Goebbels, hate, Poetry Where You Live, truth, Granary, photograph, Nazi, Kristallnacht, Kristallnacht 80,

#darkness #Goebbels #Eisenstaedt #evil #Faith #God #Goebbels #MarthasVineyard #memories #Photos #soul #WWII #hate #truth #Granary #photograph #Nazi #Kristallnacht #Kristallnacht80