Stop
your praying
Samuel Sewall.
New Jerusalem smolders;
the Covenant shattered
with the bones
of Giles Corey,
the Serpent has reclaimed
this Wilderness
and God? no longer dwells here.
2 comments:
So, I won't lie, I don't know who Samuel Sewall is. I mean I have gathered meaning from the context, but still. I like how direct it is. I like that about your religiously themed work. It's direct, and there is a power and an authority in that directness.
Like Chris, I did not know who Samuel Sewall or Giles Corey was but the names sounded familiar. So I cheated and looked them up of the Internet and found out that they were involved in the Salem Witch trials. With this new knowledge, I really like this poem. It keeps with the consistent voice that can be found in your religious poetry.
The last three lines are outstanding in that they turn the purpose of the witch trials on its head by almost declaring the persecutors as witches themselves. The last line is haunting in its finality. I questioned the question mark at first, but now see its twofold purpose. Well done.
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