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St. Patrick’s Cathedral (Free verse) by Dovina

Familiar themes in architecture and art Bloodstained head, hands and feet A stone beside a hillside tomb The fact of death graven In skull and grave Quiet kneeling in massive hall Alcove candles glowing dim Saints’ fixed eyes staring down Artwork preaching from thick stone walls Glass stained with Mother’s face Arms stretched to humble sheep Some may know what they seek in church And why they seek it here But in the struggle for revelation To transcend reason I must tread the lonely forests Skid about in skies and minds Looking for the strength to die Without somewhere to go

Dovina 28-Aug-04/7:27 PM
Envy is the wrong word for what feel when I see religious people comforted through their religion. Envy implies ill will because of another’s advantage. I wish to have their comfort, but know that because of my reservations I cannot. Among my misgivings is the fear of hope such as an ostrich has when its head is in the sand. (Actually, I don’t think ostriches do that.)
People want to believe — to hold a position on something. It does not have to make sense. Discrepancies are expunged for them by faith. So religion provides substance for their faith, and in so doing, it gives its parishioners psychological advantage in the storms of life. Your argument for applying real solutions through research and philanthropic funding (instead of spending money on cathedrals and such) makes sense. But people have always looked to gods and probably always will. There’s advantage for them; we might as well acknowledge it.




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