March 21, 2008

• Death as a Tool of Love, Blood as a Bleach

  Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood
  Shall never lose its power,
  Till all the ransomed church of God
  Be saved to sin no more.

  ~ William Cowper

  He has delivered us from the power of darkness
  and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
  in whom we have redemption through His blood,
  the forgiveness of sins.

  ~ St. Paul

  How well chosen wine was
  to stain our souls with remembrance!
  He knew how it burst, vivid,
  from the flushed skins of grapes
  grown for this sacramental crushing:
  a shocking red, unforgettable as blood
  a rich brew in the cup, a bitter,
  burning in the throat, a warmth within,
  chosen well to each our lintels
  with the paradoxes of
  a high priest bound to his own altar,
  death as a tool of love,
  and blood as a bleach.

  ~ Luci Shaw

  Good thoughts for Good Friday.
  Be still.
  Listen.
  Remember.
  Give thanks.

  

  • 1:05 pm
  • 6 Comments