Drew Dellinger's poem is a wonderful statement of why, and a reminder to us all that good people of great wisdom are found in every spiritual community.
Carolina Prophet
Poem for Thomas Berry
we were dreamed
in the cores
of the stars.
like the stars,
we were meant to unfold
we were dreamed in the depths
of the undulating ocean.
like the waves,
we were meant to unfold
like bursting supernovas, birthing elements,
which crucibles give rise to creativity?
the world makes us
its instrument.
Father Thomas,
speaking for stars, in a voice
old as wind: 'origin moments
are supremely important'
what are the origins
of a prophet?
found in syllables of Sanskrit,
or Chinese characters?
in a decade of midnight prayer?
in childhood epiphanies
rising like heat?
blue Carolina sky;
dark pines;
crickets;
birds;
sunlight
on the lilies,
in the meadow,
across the creek.
born in Carolina
on the eve of the Great War,
Saturn conjoining Pluto in the sky.
raised in a world of wires and wheels,
watching dirt roads turn to pavement.
brooding intensity,
measuring loss
when others could see only progress.
white hair communing with angels of Earth
Father Thomas, reminding us
we are constantly bathed in shimmering memories
of originating radiance
we are constantly bathed in shimmering memories
of originating radiance
the psychic stars:
the conscious soil:
this thin film of atmosphere;
and only gravity
holding the sea from the stars.
when a vision of the universe takes hold
in your mind, your soul becomes vast as the cosmos.
when the mind is silent,
everything is sacred.
like the spiral
like the lotus
like the waves
like the trees
like the stars,
we were meant to unfold.
Poem for Thomas Berry
we were dreamed
in the cores
of the stars.
like the stars,
we were meant to unfold
we were dreamed in the depths
of the undulating ocean.
like the waves,
we were meant to unfold
like bursting supernovas, birthing elements,
which crucibles give rise to creativity?
the world makes us
its instrument.
Father Thomas,
speaking for stars, in a voice
old as wind: 'origin moments
are supremely important'
what are the origins
of a prophet?
found in syllables of Sanskrit,
or Chinese characters?
in a decade of midnight prayer?
in childhood epiphanies
rising like heat?
blue Carolina sky;
dark pines;
crickets;
birds;
sunlight
on the lilies,
in the meadow,
across the creek.
born in Carolina
on the eve of the Great War,
Saturn conjoining Pluto in the sky.
raised in a world of wires and wheels,
watching dirt roads turn to pavement.
brooding intensity,
measuring loss
when others could see only progress.
white hair communing with angels of Earth
Father Thomas, reminding us
we are constantly bathed in shimmering memories
of originating radiance
we are constantly bathed in shimmering memories
of originating radiance
the psychic stars:
the conscious soil:
this thin film of atmosphere;
and only gravity
holding the sea from the stars.
when a vision of the universe takes hold
in your mind, your soul becomes vast as the cosmos.
when the mind is silent,
everything is sacred.
like the spiral
like the lotus
like the waves
like the trees
like the stars,
we were meant to unfold.
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Drew has written a wonderful tribute to Thomas Berry. Thank you for sharing it here.
Nice that the first person from whom I'm hearing about Thomas's passing away is a Pagan (though I have good friends who are Christian followers of his). Thanks for passing that on, Gus. He was a remarkable figure.
Wow! Uncle Brother would have cherished your keen insight and the magnificent choice
of words in your poem. I will share it with others in our family.
Thomas was my uncle. For eight years, he lived 100 yards from my daughter and me at the end of Four Farms Road.
I want you to know that he had interviews and guests up to a week before he died.
Last weekend, he developed nemonia and passed quietly Monday morning. My sister was with him and said he had a happy death...
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