Christ: A Personal Vision
And Jesus said, "He who drinks from my mouth will become as I am and I shall be he"
Gnostic Gospel of Thomas vs. 108
1
They sang and
they danced in
praise of the
Savior
And I left the church
I walked quickly
and I was at the
water's edge.
A man waist deep
offered to baptize
me in the name
of the Lord...
And I did not stop
Further on, a sorrowful
Mother asked if perhaps
I knew of her son
Jesus…
But I pretended not to hear.
In the forest
the twelve
approached me
with a message
of good news...
But I paid them no mind.
2
And when I came
to a clearing I met
a young man whom
I had always known.
His beard was unkempt
and blood was dripping
from wounds in his hands
and feet.
A crown of thorns sat
upon his head, and blood
trickled down his cheek.
'Do you know me?' he asked.
'Of course I know you!' I shouted.
'I left you behind at the church!
At the river, one of your followers
sought to baptize me and along the
road a Mother spoke your name.
In the forest, your apostles
confronted me with your
message.
Did I not take my leave
of them all?
I thought I was rid of you,
yet here you stand
Tell me! Why do you haunt me?
Why can I not leave you behind?'
3
He grabbed my shoulders
and I felt the pain in all
of my body and in all
of my being
and he asked me again:
'Do you know who I am?'
'You are the Christ!' I cried
'And I have heard your
story from every church and
holy man in the kingdom.
But I want nothing to do
with you!
I want only to leave you
behind and live my life
At this he looked into
my eyes and as his
penetrating stare drew
my senses to his being,
his face began to change.
He was one of the
singing parishioners at
the church.
Then another,
and another until the
likeness of each one
was in him.
Then he was the
man in the river
and the Mother,
and every one
of the twelve
and I stared
in disbelief
He began to take
on the appearance
of everyone I had
ever known and
even those I would
never meet.
His face was changing rapidly:
African, Asian, Spaniard, European,
From every race and every creed
he became everyone who ever was
and everyone who ever will be…
A few I recognized.
Mohamed, Caesar, the Buddha,
Pontius Pilate, Krishna, Herod,
Moses, Pharaoh.
Faster and faster he changed until
I was dizzy with incomprehension.
Then, as quickly as it had begun,
the celestial parade ceased.
He was Jesus again, standing before me.
His hands and feet caked in blood.
The crown of thorns still resting atop
his head.
4
'I do not understand,' I said.
And he smiled.
And again he looked into my eyes.
'You can never leave me behind.'
And as he spoke he began to change again,
And I found myself standing before another image.
One I surely knew well.
There…
In the clearing of a forest
that existed beyond the boundaries
of space and time,
I looked into my own eyes...
And understood.
Patrick ! The hairs on the back of my neck rose as I read this splendid poetry. You are de man!!!. Philip
Outstanding. Patrick, you have a rare talent in taking a concept and bringing it to life in an unusual way in verse. This brilliantly gets the message of omnipresence across without hitting the reader over the head, and with a good dose of humour too. Great stuff.
Epic in concept and execution. Beyond the narrow parameters of the empirical lies the immeasurable realm of insight.
Deserves a thousand viewings Patrick...A truely " Classic Work" It matters not that perhaps a thousand stories are created to allow those that doubt to absorbe the TRUTH. The truth is " What ever works for thee" Have a great New Year. Stay inspired. ( Oh and thanks for your comment) Kind regards. Philip
Tho' i would love to return over & again to certain works by my favorite scribes such as you, Patrick, unfortunately as each week goes by I am finding my PF passtime going in the other direction....dwidling! However, I must keep sacred that 'ole "Exception 2-z Rule" concept, and I have opteed to exercise that concept quite liberally on this late, late Thursday night by revisiting this very captive work, (imo), one of your best...The strctural set-up alone being more than worth a 2nd visit, at least! Merry Christmas , my good friend ...And Good Health for you in 2012! ~fJr~
Is this a poem meant to bring peace on our earth? For more than a moment ,am sure I felt a good peace to my heart, thank you! For me this is not about gods but us the humans, we shall watch everything near of far with eyes filled with own love, maybe that is the greatest tool of all the gods..Great poem, thank you for share.
Awesome and marvelous, fantastic tribute to the quote heading this off! This is well worth the labour expended on its creation, superbly rendering the reality of the quote. He is one right captivating, irresistible saviour, that fellow the speaker met, Delivered in first person, it is wonderfully poignant and effectively potent in haunting each reader who will take more than a hasty minute to consider. All congratulations for the effort! Bravo! I remain disinterested in the fellow, however.
Oh dear. Oh deary deary dear. Patrick, I've always hovered on the sidelines, a disbelieving, half agnostic half atheist, clinging to other stuff, but your poem swallowed me whole and spat me out at the other end wondering. You've set me thinking yet again about the nature of "God" and it's/his/her existence. For that reason, and for almost the first ever time, I do believe I am going to recommend a "religious" poem. Wow! I'll have to go for a lie down to recover!!! Lol. :) kath xxx
A truly visionary poem, Patrick...The poem never ceases to charm and surprise with its insight and depth of vision...I don't think there's quite another Xmas poem like this. Amazing.
A stunning piece of top-notch, affecting poetry whose imagery and sentiments will remain with this reader long after she leaves the page. Very well done.
i am in awe of this you have written
Agree with John X - this is worthy of publication Patrick - it grips the reader from the very first line and thrills as it expands to its finale' which is truy inspired. Thank you and - recommended.
Woooooooooooooooooosh ! Patrick, my 'ole buddy, you have penned a many gems my friend, but I think I will (at worst) place this in your "Best Of" docier as a McFarland's Top Ten Verse! Absolutely gripping & ingenius ! ~FjR~
Thanks everyone but I would be remiss if I didn't again thank Raj Arumugam. I sent him the first draft of this several months ago and he was kind enough to help me turn it into the poem you have just read. I could not have written this without his keen insight and sharp editing.
Just brilliant Patrick - I agree with John - this piece merits being published....great work from a very talented poet...
This is worthy of publication.
Excellent write. Never seen one like this. tfs.
Perfection