Prophetic Poems

Woe to the United States: A Poetic Contextualization of Isaiah 10, Particularly “Woe to Assyria” (10:5)

Woe to the United States A Poetic Contextualization of Isaiah 10, Particularly “Woe to Assyria” (10:5) Grant Showalter-Swanson
Woe to the United States A Poetic Contextualization of Isaiah 10, Particularly “Woe to Assyria” (10:5) Grant Showalter-Swanson

Woe to the United States

A Poetic Contextualization of Isaiah 10, Particularly “Woe to Assyria” (10:5)
By Grant Showalter-Swanson

Woe to the United States –

the guns wielded by ICE –

awash in blood and murder

always made excusable

by a tyrannical regime –

elicits God’s fury.

Woe to the political leaders who make morally wrong policies –

weaponizing the law to oppress the migrant and the powerless;

shielding themselves from the consequences of their wrongdoings.

Woe to the power players of unbridled capitalism

who prioritize the (b)(tr)illionaires and corporations

over the ability of the rest of us to survive –

the infinite wealth of a few

over the livelihood of the many.

Woe to the christians who blaspheme the name of Christ

to justify white Christian Nationalism

and a heretical theology of civil religion –

attributing God’s blessing to the economic

and military might of the United States –

for the benefit of an administration determined

to eliminate electoral democracy

and maintain power-over

indefinitely.

Woe to the MAGA base –

and any republicans, independents, democrats, and non-voters –

who have opted into the group-think

and mind control of a fascist

and authoritarian curation of reality.

Woe to the U.S. citizens who stand by –

apathy and agreement both leading to death –

as the Trump administration

robs the poor

plunders the middle class

reduces health care access and

eliminates health care subsidies

abuses children

controls the bodies of women

demonizes Trans/Queer people

dehumanizes non-white people

criminalizes migrants

colonizes sovereign lands

coerces foreign leaders

justifies genocide

rapes the Earth

and kills with impunity.

God demands that we ask ourselves:

what will you do on the day of judgement

when you must account for your active—

or passive— participation in this regime?

When there is no way to flee from God

behind wealth, religious platitudes,

or feigned obliviousness?

God promises eventual justice, 

for those who oppressed,

hated, or were ambivalent

toward their neighbor?

Neighbor: defined by Jesus

as anyone we encounter,

especially those in need.

 

Repent.

Be transformed by the Spirit.

And live in love toward your neighbor, as yourself.

 

But for those who suffer under this tyrannical regime –

for those who speak out and put their lives on the line

for their neighbors –

do not be afraid.

God promises that the yoke of suffering and oppression

will be removed from your shoulders

and destroyed from this world

in the final realization

of God’s peaceable Kingdom

on Earth as in Heaven.

 

Lord,

may Your will be done,

enacted and embodied

through us, the body of Christ.

Amen.

 

 

 

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night scene milky way background

Merry Christmas! Tis
the season of love and hope –
mindful of the trials
and tribulations of now –
and those yet to come –
but joyful that we are not
alone – God with us!

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Christians & Politics: A Prayer of Lament and a Prayer of Hope

Weave

Christians on political “sides” subscribe to a binary and oppositional understanding of our faith and political engagement that causes separation, harm, and idolatry.

Republicans, especially in the new Trump era, have increasingly synthesized salvific hope and politics toward a Divine King/Strong-Man Nationalism theology. This is problematic since Christ brought salvation in a way antithetical to cultural/political power, control, and exclusion. Instead, he offered preferential and tangible hope for the oppressed/marginalized. He frequently challenged, and even condemned, the power players perpetuating inequality. Ascribing divine privilege to a power-player, like Trump, toward the ends of Christian nationalist control, is idolatry.

On the flipside, Democrats often want to silence faith-led conviction in the polis, falsely believing that a true separation of faith/politics, public/private, secular/sacred is possible. This leads to an idolatry of law, legal systems, and political figures as the sites of salvation and hope.

Christians must be constantly self-reflective and challenge ourselves away from the allure of false-hopes within these camps. Our salvation is in Christ. The gospel message leads us to discern and question all powers that exist if their outcomes are not equivalent to the criteria of Christ’s ministry pronouncement of Luke 4:14-30, or the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.

Neither party does this. There is no easy-answer to the challenge of discerning and voting with our conscience based on these faith-based criteria. Consequently, no party should have our faith and devotion. No PAC or politically activated denominational or faith-based political platform should have our faith and devotion. No nation or national symbol should have our faith and devotion. No power, system, or institution of humankind should have our faith and devotion. Only the gospel message of Jesus Christ, which commands us to love God and our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31), and the subsequent discernment and action of the Holy Spirit in our individual and communal lives, should have our faith and devotion. All else is idolatry. Idolatry that leads to hate and violence in our hearts (and sometimes actions) toward others not like us, or those who hold different values. God clearly warns against this in Matthew 5:43-48.

As the divisive and violent party-driven rhetoric amps up in the next few months, I pray that I, and all of us who follow Christ, remember this counter-cultural message. I pray that we strive to be presences of mediation and love during these volatile times. May the gospel message that we proclaim and live-out be good news for all, not for some. May our words, actions, and lives point to God’s peaceable kingdom on Earth now, as it is in heaven.

We CAN do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

Amen.

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‘Lakota Language I’ Final @ Sinte Gleska University

I have had the joy of taking ‘Lakota Language I’ through Sinte Gleska University on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota this semester. It has been a blast reconnecting learning Lakota language basics, philosophy of life, the power of storytelling, and the importance of decolonizing our minds. It has also been so great reconnecting with folks at Sinte!

Today I had the opportunity to present my final and it was so much fun. First I learned, sang, and translated the Lakota Bernstein Bears theme song. Check out the theme song here: https://youtu.be/LJF1BfIONhI?si=fMTli5N23G_BOV67. I also wrote a series of haikus in Lakota, their literal translation, and than an English haiku translation. You can see the song lyrics, the three haikus, and my English translations below.

Matȟó Waúŋšila Thiwáhe – Theme Song

Até iná čhúŋkš čhiŋkší – (My Father, My Mother, Daughter, Son)

Matȟó waúŋšila kiŋ – (The Kind Bear[s])

Lila ihákčhiktapi – (They feel very attached to each other)

líla oíyokiphi! – (Very Pleasant!)

Até iná čhúŋkš čhiŋkší – (My Father, My Mother, Daughter, Son)

Matȟó waúŋšila kiŋ – (The Kind Bear[s])

imáǧaǧaič’iyapi – (They enjoy themselves)

líla oíyokiphi! – (Very Pleasant!)

Até iná čhúŋkš čhiŋkší – (My Father, My Mother, Daughter, Son)

Matȟó waúŋšila kiŋ – (The Kind Bear[s])

Lila ihákčhiktapi – (They feel very attached to each other)

líla oíyokiphi! – (Very Pleasant!)

1

Lakota:

Rocky, Owauηspe

Thuŋkášila Etάηhaη

Wόuηspe Iwάču

English Literal:

Rocky, class

Creator from

Learning I receive

Haiku:

From Rocky, the Class

and the Creator – I have

received much knowledge.

2

Lakota:

Wakȟaηpi Héchapi

Wičhoni Na Wičhúηt’e

Wičhakağapi

English Literal:

Sacred they are

Life and death

They create

Haiku:

All that can create

sparks of life and final death

is wholly sacred.

3

Lakota:

Lakȟótiyapi Kiη

Waúηspekhiye

Lakȟόl-Wičhόuη Kiη

English Literal:

The Lakota language

Teaches [teacher]

The Lakota way of life

Haiku:

Lakota language

is more than words – a way of

life – philosophy

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Psalm 42 Lectio Divina Response Poem

Pour out humility on the mighty

and convict them of the evil

in superiority and domination,

oh Lord.

My heart is disquieted within

the real-word examples of suffering

caused by pride and greed.

My mind is heavy with the knowledge

of dissension, based on arguments

over the worthiness and belovedness

of those on the margins.

My soul longs for unity

based on the constant striving

to tangibly center

the imago dei

within all Creation.

Unity does not mean assimilation

but just-filled redistribution

of the resources and experiences

necessary to thrive.

May we tirelessly pursue

the unity of all creation

that translates into the

tangible flourishing

and holistic well-being

of all people

and all created things.

Amen.

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Prayer (5.14.23)

When Mother God

created the heavens and the earth,

including all of humanity,

tending to the most minute details,

and ensuring a rich tapestry

of variance and difference,

she/they looked at all of it,

all of us,

and said that everything

was “very good.”

Go forth with this knowledge

of universal goodness,

in the creative power

of the Holy Spirit,

and love courageously.

Amen.

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Unnamed (a poetic response to Acts 16:16-19)

Naming:

a human process

enacted at birth

to those deemed human

enough

to deserve a name.

The slave woman –

unnamed –

regulated to the margins

of knowability and purpose

through commerce and profitability.

But God knows her name –

our names –

in the deepest sense

in the fullest sense

beyond even how we know ourselves.

The unnamed woman is known

fully and completely

as a beloved child of God. 

Sofia –

Is that your name?

The Holy Spirit present –

manifested in an unexpected form

to challenge and convict

to defy the social/cultural

norms and expectations.

To remind us,

all of us,

that the truth of God

is proclaimed loudly and boldly

where people are willing

to be transformed

to be changed

to take action –

if we are only willing

to humble ourselves

and listen

to the revelation visible

within the goodness

of all Creation.

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The Table is Set and Open

The table is set and open
welcoming the holy and the hungry
to the feast of love and full bellies
for the communion of all creation.


The heavenly table is set on Earth
to nourish all people
through the breaking of bread
and the pleasure of wine.


Bread and Wine:
God’s manna of love
and promise of mercy and grace
offered to all without condition.


The metaphoric body and blood:
God’s divine paradigm of justice
predicated on love
and the belovedness of all creation.


We all deserve full bellies
and joyful existence.

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Happy Fourth of July

Be grateful for what you have,

they say.

Okay.

I’m grateful for my marriage

with my husband.

But many folks across the country,

emboldened with power,

want to rip our marriage apart,

calling our love unconstitutional,

along with many other nasty

words, phrases, and threats.

Seeking the goal of allowing

states to make our union illegal,

or perhaps a full-fledged federal ban.

So I’ll be grateful for what I have,

as I’ve been told,

before it all gets legislated away.

Happy Fourth of July

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Trust the Seeds

Trust the seeds

for they know that which they do –

their entire being designed to grow –

to make a way out of any soil.

We do not need to improve the seed,

nor should we smother it with care.

Instead, tend to the seed – 

provide it with basic necessities,

love, and respect –

knowing that it is the will of the seed,

no matter the hardships of the season –

drought, famine, pestilence –

to sprout and bloom.

Do not impede the seed 

through the folly 

of our own understanding.

Trust the seeds

and rejoice in their flourishing.

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