With the dawn of a new church year, we have launched a new feature on our website, a weekly post of poetry that resonates with the lectionary readings for that week (Revised Common Lectionary).
*** Revised Common Lectionary ***
Lectionary Reading:
Isaiah 61:10-62:3
CLASSIC POEM:
The Seedling
Paul Laurence Dunbar
As a quiet little seedling
Lay within its darksome bed,
To itself it fell a–talking,
And this is what it said:
“I am not so very robust,
But I ‘ll do the best I can;”
And the seedling from that moment
Its work of life began.
So it pushed a little leaflet
Up into the light of day,
To examine the surroundings
And show the rest the way.
The leaflet liked the prospect,
So it called its brother, Stem;
Then two other leaflets heard it,
And quickly followed them.
To be sure, the haste and hurry
Made the seedling sweat and pant;
But almost before it knew it
It found itself a plant.
The sunshine poured upon it,
And the clouds they gave a shower;
And the little plant kept growing
Till it found itself a flower.
Little folks, be like the seedling,
Always do the best you can;
Every child must share life’s labor
Just as well as every man.
And the sun and showers will help you
Through the lonesome, struggling hours,
Till you raise to light and beauty
Virtue’s fair, unfading flowers.
*** This poem is in the public domain,
and may be read in a live-streamed worship service.
CONTEMPORARY POEM:
Growing Apples
Nancy Miller Gomez
SNIPPET:
There is big excitement in C block today.
On the window sill,
in a plastic ice cream cup
a little plant is growing.
This is all the men want to talk about:
how an apple seed germinated
in a crack of damp concrete;
…
[ READ THE FULL POEM ]
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I cannot see how to receive a weekly Lectionary Poem…. did I miss this? This is a marvelous item.
Thanks, Brian.
You can receive the weekly Lectionary Poems for the coming Sunday in your inbox by signing up for our “Daily” email list here:
https://forms.aweber.com/form/33/933429033.htm
(It’s called daily because in the past it was sent daily, but now is generally sent 3x each week)
Best,
Chris Smith
ERB editor