poetry, St Catherine of Siena

~

I see that you have endowed your vicar
by nature
with a fearless heart;
so I humbly, imploringly beg you
to pour the light beyond nature
into the eye of his understanding.
For unless this light,
acquired through pure affection for virtue,
is joined with it,
a heart such as his tends to be proud.

Today again let every selfish love be cut away
from those enemies of yours
and from the vicar
and from us all,
so that we may be able to forgive those enemies
when you bend their hardness.

For them, that they may humble themselves
and obey this lord of ours,
I offer you my life
from this moment
and for whenever you wish me to lay it down
for your glory.       [pp.217-18]

CONSECRETED

All has been consecretad.

The creatures in the forest know this,

The earth does, the seas do, the clouds know

as does the heart full of

love.

Strange a priest would rob us of this

knowledge

and then empower himself

with the ability

to make holy what

already was

It could be said that God’s foot is so vast
That this entire earth is but a
field on His
toe,

and all the forests in this world
came from the same root of just
a single hair
of His.

What then is not a sanctuary?
Where can I not kneel
and pray at a shrine
made holy by His
presence?

~

Eternal Trinity,

Godhead,

mystery deep as the sea,

you could give me no greater gift

than the gift of

yourself.

For you are a fire ever burning and never consumed,

which itself consumes all the selfish love

that fills my being.

Yes, you are a fire that takes away the coldness,

illuminates the mind with its light,

and causes me to know your

truth.

And I know that

you are beauty and wisdom itself.

The food of angels,

you gave yourself to man

in the fire of your

love.

~

CONSUMED IN GRACE

I first saw God when I was a child, six years of age.
the cheeks of the sun were pale before Him,
and the earth acted as a shy
girl, like me.

Divine light entered my heart from His love
that did never fully wane,

though indeed, dear, I can understand how a person’s
faith can at time flicker,

for what is the mind to do
with something that becomes the mind’s ruin:
a God that consumes us
in His grace.

I have seen what you want;
it is there,

a Beloved of infinite
tenderness.