You have been called

Haiku responding to 2 Thes 2:1-5, 13-17

How to interpret

these ancient scriptures? Surely

not literally!

As to the coming

of the Lord, some are saying

that day has arrived.

Do not be alarmed;

troubled times must come ere Christ

gathers us to him

See the lawless one

exalting himself above

all. Makes himself God.

While I was with you

I told you all of these things;

don't you remember?

We give thanks to God

that God chose you, the first fruits

of God's salvation.

God has purposed this

proclamation of good news

and you have been called.

We proclaimed good news!

You heard, are bound for glory

through our Lord Jesus.

Sisters and brothers

stand firm; keep the traditions

that we taught to you.

May our Lord Jesus,

with God who loved us, strengthen

you in doing good.

© Ken Rookes 2025

Blessings upon Babylon

Haiku of reality

This is long-term, folks;

time for humiliation,

time for reflection.

They were in exile

in Babylon. The prophet

wrote them a letter.

It brought muted hope.

Make the most of it, he said.

You'll be there a while.

Work hard, build houses

to live in. And plant gardens;

eat what they produce.

Marry, have children,

give your daughters in marriage,

take wives for your sons.

Prosper and do well,

seek the city's welfare, pray

for them, your captors.

Bless your enemies.

your well-being stems from theirs;

thus God blesses you.

© Ken Rookes 2022 

Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

Haiku for founding a church

We went there last year:

Thessaloniki, sun-drenched,

oozing history.

Coming among them,

the Apostle convinced some,

offended others.

They couldn’t find Paul

or Silas; they grabbed Jason,

dragging him to court.

Much consternation.

Seditious accusations!

They get out on bail.

Somehow the word stuck;

planted in turmoil, the church

produces much fruit.

Paul writes them letters,

commending their love and faith;

they are examples.

Their love and welcome

prove that they have truly heard

Jesus words’ of life.

The deeds are noted,

their faith is celebrated

throughout the region.

People are watching;

by our fruits, we too, are known.

Better get it right.

© Ken Rookes 2020

Posted in response to the Narrative Lectionary Readings for the fourth Sunday in Easter.

In exile

 

In exile,
the forcibly dispossessed people of Yahweh
receive a letter from afar.
The mad and lonely prophet instructs them to stop resisting,
to make peace with their conquerors.
Reluctant dwellers in an alien city,
they have expended many tears for Jerusalem,
and the God who dwelt in its temple.

The holy city they called home, lies ruined;
they are cut off, abandoned.
Now, the prophet tells them,
in his long-distance epistle,
their separation from those ancient stones
must not lead to despair.
They are to trust impossibly
that the strange purposes of their apparently absent God
will yet be revealed.

“Become dual citizens,”
the treasonous words of the missive urge.
“Make yourself neighbours to your enemies,
and seek their well-being;
along with that of their heathen city.
Accept offers of friendship;
build, plant, take jobs, establish businesses
and call this place home.
Fall in love, take wives, beget children
and look to the time
when you can take pleasure in your grandchildren;
you will be here for some time yet.
But it will be all right.

“Don’t forget, covenant people of God,
to pray for your adopted city,
and its people.
In this way your enemies will become your friends
and you will all benefit.
Yes, and it will be all right.”

© Ken Rookes 2013

The Joy of Metaphors

The Joy of Metaphors

1 Corinthians 3:1 - 9

Knowing a good metaphor

when he saw one, the apostle

managed to cram two of them

into a fairly small space. He fed his

infant children, (is that a third?)

on milk rather than solid meat,

because that is as far as they had reached

in their journeyings of faith. (There,

I’ve introduced one of my own;

making a total of four.)

Even now, presumably some years

after the apostle’s Corinthian sojourn,

the children are still not ready

for the meat of discipleship.

You will be ready

when you learn to live in harmony,

he tells them. He then takes up

the gardening image, ever-popular

and much-employed by his own master.

Planting and watering

and growing to maturity;

his readers are purposed to bear the fruits

of which he is wont to write:

love, joy, peace, faith and hope,

but mostly love.

Unable to restrain himself, the apostle

grabs hold of few more metaphors;

and enthusiastically throws them into the mix

to drive the point home, (sorry!)

or else for the sheer joy of it.

© 2011 Ken Rookes