When asked why he selected the Gospel of Luke to focus on for these poems, he said, “Luke is intent on centering the voices of the marginalized in his telling of the gospel story. In particular, he brings to the fore the voices of the poor and women in how he tells this story. This was something that I wanted to shape this poetry collection…”
By the time this post goes up, his second book Touch the Earth: Poems on The Way (2023, IVP) will have appeared. It is a follow-up to his first collection, with poems relating to Luke 9 to 24.
The following poem is from God Speaks Through Wombs.
An Opportune Time (Out in these Streets)
Luke 4:13
I remember the day they gave me the talk:
Watch the way you walk,
out in these streets.
Pay attention to how you speak,
out in these streets.
In the car, try not to lean
out in these streets.
No durag, keep yourself clean,
out in these streets.
You won’t know at what moment,
out in these streets.
The man will be riding by,
out in these streets.
You gotta keep yourself ready,
out in these streets.
It will happen at an opportune time,
out in these streets.
Posted with permission of the poet.
This post was suggested by my friend Ryan Apple.
Entry written by D.S. Martin. He is the author of five poetry collections including Angelicus (2021, Cascade) ― a book of poems written from the point-of-view of angels. His books are available through Wipf & Stock.
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