Sunday, November 28
this morning, while
unloading the dishwasher in my parents' kitchen
i listen to a radio sermon
the preacher is talking about christian humility
of which he suggests the apostle paul was a perfect example
it would be easy to flippantly suggest
that he's exactly right
but i've known christians
whose humility was real
and appealing, a ground for their faith
rather than an unsubtle expression
of some ugly pride
anyway, i've heard worse sermons by far
it's kind of a dying art,
the glittering and loquacious predators
of the broadcast pulpit industry
notwithstanding
you used to hear good sermons, though
maybe my perspective has just shifted
but i remember the minister at my grandma's
church, this huge man with a huge voice,
and his images of the soul — broken jars
and the bright copper tone of new pennies —
have lasted longer than my catechism.