Immortal Day
(Meek: Humbly patient or submissive, spiritless, tame –
Also gentle, kind)
Bowing to meekness tends to martyrize;
And yet – the Sermon plainly states the case
Unless, lighting that day, we analyze
Word origins the sand of time deface.
If I am bound to turn the other cheek
Is that not cowardice disguised as meek?
Tame natures, while incapable of crime,
Are equally inclined toward retreat.
There was another choice, in Jesus’ time,
Contemporary texts rule obsolete.
O Lord! Did Thou mean gentle, noble, kind;
Yet proud, and bold, and firm, if I’m inclined?
| The Curator’s Notes: The poem engages with a real theological and linguistic problem: Biblical virtues can sound passive or weak to modern ears, partly due to translation issues and cultural shifts. The Greek word praus (meek) in Matthew actually carries connotations of strength tamed or power under control, like a war horse trained to obey. It doesn’t mean spiritless at all. The poet’s journey moves from suspicion (is this just cowardice?) through investigation (word meanings have changed) to a reconstructed understanding (meekness as controlled strength). She wants permission to be both gentle and bold, kind and firm. She doesn’t want to chooses between strength and virtue. She wants to integrate them. The title “Immortal Day” likely refers to the day of the Sermon on the Mount, an eternal teaching that transcends time even as its language becomes obscured by time. This poet didn’t just accept the truth of Matthew 5:5, but wrestled with it honestly, arriving at a deeper understanding through questioning rather than blind acceptance. |
The Coping Stones 