And One Another

 

The eternal hell we feared

is here

That lake of fire that burns within

tears of rage sop pillows,

fill palms.

 

They taught us that hell

was reserved for the hereafter,

was reserved for those who denied

Creator.

They lied

They are lying, still.

 

They pimp out God

like a Friday night whore

Evoking God’s name

to pleasure themselves

 

As they mockingly

burn this country down.

This America,

for whom, better men died.

Women, too.

 

They evoked God’s name

when they needed

somebody else’s sons,

someone else’s daughters,

to bleed out on foreign shores.

 

Immigrant sons

Immigrant daughters,

you go, they said,

Go earn your citizenship.

But coffins are returned without a flag,

Ragged N-400s tossed into

the fires of promises made

and broken.

 

They lie

without remorse

Brazenly

without hesitation

The pompous

The entitled

The self-righteous

Rapists

In-the-making.

 

They evoke God’s name

as they fuck women

their granddaughter’s ages

in the public square.

Their laughter

fueling the flames

that burn within

US

 

Hell, they said,

was for the hereafter

for those who denied

Creator

They lied

They are lying, still.

 

Hell is the betrayal of God

and One Another

Hell is the exploitation of God

and One Another

Hell is the mocking of God

and One Another.

 

We make the world our hell, Wilde said.

Sometimes, tho,

like now,

wealthy white men

make it so

for the rest of

US.

 

Karen Spears Zacharias is author of CHRISTIAN BEND (A Novel, Mercer Univ. Press).

Karen Spears Zacharias

Author/Journalist/Educator. Gold Star Daughter.

3 Comments

Barbara Windmoller

about 6 years ago

Karen, once again you've expressed the world's problems so eloquently. Never stop sharing your thoughts and words. The world's a better place because of you.

Reply

Karen Spears Zacharias

about 6 years ago

Thank you, Barbara. I wish I could pull all the hurting people into a warm embrace and reassure them that this too will pass. It will. These men will die. Their legacies will continue to haunt us, but one day, very soon, they will pass.

Reply

AF Roger

about 6 years ago

It comes down to white evangelical women and how they vote in November and in every election following. What we saw yesterday was the raging of white Christian men and a godless president cheering them on as we systematically walk backward from caring for the creation on which all God-created life depends. Our household has suffered worse than Dr. Ford at the hands of privileged men who saw human pillage as their birthright. What we saw yesterday is the failure of white Christian men to lead, a so-oft repeated performance that we barely notice and accept it as normal. They are one reason why my survivor daughter will pray with me but not go near one of their churches. These men will not change or yield. So it's up to the women. Ladies, I am ready for you to move forward as the women at Jeff Flake's Senate elevator did. There is truth to be uncovered. May we be rightly judged if we fail to do so.

Reply

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