Footprints

In the silence

I hear

The cacophony of

the groans of my brothers

and sisters

the groans of my mother

and father.

 

But from Christ

I hear

“If you love me,

Deny your brothers

and sisters

and deny your mother and father

And come after me.”

 

In the silence

I hear

The cacophony of

the calls of Black Friday

and Friends,

the calls of Nietzsche

and Wal-Mart.

 

But from Christ

I hear

“If you love me,

Obey my commandments

and my Word;

Abide in me and

deny yourself.”

 

In the silence

I hear

The cacophony of

the cry of my flesh

to protect it,

to preserve it,

to satisfy it.

 

But from Christ

I hear

“I have been crucified

with Christ and

it is no longer I who live

But Christ

who dwells within me.”

 

Whose voice do I heed?

Or rather,

Which silence is

More deafening?

The still silence

That comes from peace

with God?

 

Whose voice do I heed?

Or rather,

Which silence is

more deafening?

The maddening silence

That comes from the absence

of God?

 

Wisdom cries

Aloud in the street:

“The fear of the Lord

is the beginning

of wisdom.”

But Folly tells me

“Curse God

and die.”

 

How many of us

have not trampled

Christ’s face,

his blood,

with our sinful feet?

Who among us

is not Judas?

 

Who among us

has not denied Christ

three times

before the cock crows?

Have not

we all

Trampled the fumie?

 

But not out of love

for our brothers and sisters.

Not out of pain

and suffering

on Christ’s behalf.

But for childish

idols.