Pictures of Emanuel
Embraced within the womb of
Mother Emanuel, evil sat
And listened to voices praising -
Nine faces looked into hatred,
Undertook a martyrs call to
Evict hate from the game, allowed
Love to rule the day.
Perhaps we'll learn from voices
Rallying together, honoring
A path flashed upon TV screens -
Yearn, reach, achieve true healing.
For are we all not a patchwork quilt
Of ornately different patterns, textures,
Rich colors? God's tapestry of
Undeniable beauty? Will we ever find the
Sense to grasp tightly and hold all dear?
by Margaret Bednar, June 20, 2015
My feeble attempt to express myself regarding the 9 lives murdered in Charleston SC due to racist hatred - and the moving, and truly heroic voices raised by the victims' families during the bond hearing. I will do my best to never forget their example of what true Christian mercy looks like.
NY Times "Charleston Shooting".
The following is an excerpt from this NY Times article:
At Morris Brown A.M.E. Church, just a few blocks from Emanuel, the mood of a packed house alternated between grief, hope and resilience. Calls of “enough is enough” echoed as the Rev. John Richard Bryant called for an end to gun violence.
“You look like a quilt, you look like patches,” Mr. Bryant said. “You all fit somewhere.”
Hundreds of people packed the pews of the white-columned Second Presbyterian Church on Thursday evening in a vigil to remember the victims of the shooting. Pastors read Scripture, the congregation sang and the Rev. Sidney Davis delivered a rousing sermon, his voice cracking at times. After reading a passage from the Bible, he said, “Last night, Satan came again. Satan came to say white and black cannot raise God.”
Later, he told the racially mixed congregation that the bullets were not simply penetrating the people who died in the church. “It was all of us dying last night,” he said.
Linked with "Imaginary Garden of Real Toads - Fireblossom Friday: Picture This" I hope this is close enough to the prompt challenge - I have really been moved by the voices and images of the people declaring "Hate won't win". And if we take their lead, it won't.
14 comments:
You are so right.. I see a lot of parallels between this case and Breivik.. The only attitude is to mourn I think.. I'm sad and I'm impressed...
This is truly sad, however I do believe your call to focus on God's mercy is the solution here. love is of God. A stirring poem: timely and poignant
Much love...
...mercy certainly was not my first inclination. I am still awed by the victims' families reaponse - and aspire to follow their witness.
A very nice tribute, the mood is solemn, with a hint and for sure a 'continue on, we will endure, forgive, and improve relations' one.
Your writing reminded me of the afterwards of the Amish school shooting of ten young girl students in Pennsylvania. They too had a aura of forgiveness. http://lancasterpa.com/amish/amish-forgiveness/
Yesterday was National (U.S.) Juneteenth Day in commemoration of when the slaves were all freed. We've come a long way, still, after all these years, more should come.
..
It is so hard to imagine what drives such a young person to this atrocity. My heart goes out to the families and community.
This is so sad.. can't imagine what they must have gone through, you wrote a very nice tribute. Well penned.
A tragedy
It is good to read poets' voices raised in response to this latest atrocity. It is so late in the day for humans to STILL be so clueless about how to live together and care about one another. But thankfully, some of us do. Thank you for your voice added to the conversation.
Brava to you for finding the right words .. this tragedy left me wordless.
There could not be a worthier subject for a poem right now.
I am moved by your perspective, your amalgam of emotion and fact, fear and bravery. Thank you, Margaret, for sharing this.
Emotive poem and such a moving note as well...thank you, Margaret.
every time there's another mass murder it is just so unfathomable to me! you did a brilliant job of writing about it, Margaret ~ it must have been so difficult.
♥
What strikes me here as so tragic is that evil sat there, embraced and listening to praise, and still chose to act.....when it could have just as soon been softened, and changed, by that warm embrace and praise.
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