Jack Pelham

He does good sometimes
When he finds it convenient.
Not all the time, mind you,
But only sometimes.

There will not come a day
On which the Earth finally settles down
And the mayhem comes to a close—
Though many seem to be wishing for it
Or even expecting that such a resolution
Should be the fitting end of this tumult.

Few are wholly committed to righteousness.
And few wholly refuse it.

The majority, however, are more comfortable
Living somewhere in the middle—
Where they ignore their transgressions
By rewriting the religion as needed
To match their preferred habits.

We push back against
The very institutions
Of which we are members—
As watchmen on the tower,
Calling out bad developments
We see going on within.

This unchristian Christian nation, when it has acted,
Has acted almost always unlike the Christ—

Genocide
Slavery
Incessant and unjust war
Invasion
Empire building
Overthrowing nations
Racism
False money
Lawlessness
Graft
Taxing one to help another
Subterfuge and concealment

New ideas are often rejected,
Not because they have been
Weighed on the merits
And found wanting,
But because they are
Simply unfamiliar.

He’s fascinated with a certain Bible topic
And fancies himself on an exciting odyssey,
With which God is helping him in a time of both
Grand discovery and self-realization—
Using him, even, to reveal important truths
To an ignorant world.

There comes a point
When you just have to
Take all the folks who get it
And leave the other ones behind.

You’ll not change the world
Without changing the people,
Yet so many who seek the former
Have no plan whatsoever for the latter.

Whatever glory they see in changing the world,
They do not find in changing an individual.
And I ask you: what world needs people
Like that being in charge of anything?

She has quit trying.
She makes no effort
To better herself
Or to relieve her own woes.

She has shunned
Responsibility for herself,
As she has also shunned those
Who hold her to account.
She kicks at the goads.