Confessions during a Quaker Meeting

God – I have tried to ken Your Greatness in silence
& contemplate Thy Wonders with this little brain
but often all I'm left with
the pettiness of my small thoughts
and dry, fossilized feelings of disdain.

Sometimes however
all "I" evaporates
and on hard oak wood benches
& shuffles of the instant disappear:
then and then only does silence make sense
And Your Blessed Spirit Seem Near.

When there is no "self" to contain
or contend with or profane
The Burning Bush of Thy Glory
outshines the blatherings of this day:
only then is there worship.

Alas, dross that I am
this realization invariably fades
into the blades of the gristmill of consciousness
yet sometimes a few kernels remain.

Devani:		Can't we worship God a hundred thousand different ways?
Anya:		(raising his eyebrows) Who said that there is actually any god to worship? Men invent gods for their own convenience. The entire concept is merely a socio-political construct.
Carlos:		(pausing) Uhm, haven't you had a a transcendent experience of a peace that passeth all understanding? Without such experience, religion might indeed seem like a sort of social enterprise. However, the roots of each religion go much deeper.
Brice:		(shrugging his shoulders) Folks have been yapping 'bout this topic for centuries – and killing each other over dogmatic controversies. To me, it all seems like mere idiot's play. Why can't we admit there is little we know for certain.