Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:8-20; 1 Peter 3:13-22; John 14:15-21
No God Left Un-Altared (Acts 17:22-31)
From Athens, Greece sometime during the 1st century.
There’s no god left un-altared in our time,
each one we can think of has a shrine.
If your sacrifice goes unheeded
or one god refuses what’s needed,
then just move on to the next one in line.
For love to Aphrodite make pleas
at her temple your passion will increase
A Hugh Hefner design,
in full relief so sublime,
if you don’t get excited you’re deceased.
From goddess Athena comes our name,
wisdom and warfare are her fame
born from Zeus’s head,
she wears armor to bed,
leaving romantics among us quite lame.
For war you need Ares by your side
son of Zeus and Hera their pride
If it’s bloodshed you’re after,
or chaos and disaster,
then a sacrifice to Ares is advised.
A pretty young man with long hair
always the life of the party extraordinaire
Dionysus the god of wine
should be invited every time,
and your bash will be the envy of the debonaire.
No one wants to be dead
so to Hades you must give some cred…
that you are among the living,
still breathing, now giving
sacrifices so you don’t die in bed.
Hera is the wife of Zeus,
for his affairs there is no excuse
Though she is the goddess of marriage,
Her’s was a total miss-carriage,
but she still might keep yours from coming loose.
Of gods Zeus is king on Olympus
in his hand your fate could be momentous,
but pass his shrine by
and most surely you will die,
his lightning bolts are accurate and plentious.
But there is one god we don’t know,
Still a shrine we did build to bestow,
a modicum of honor
lest Athens be a goner
and we would end up eating crow.
Now this fellow shows up named Paul
about this god we don’t know tells all
but while most don’t get it,
his words to his credit,
echo our poets most eloquent call.
We live and move and have being,
in this god who with our lives is weaving
a tapestry of love
pure gift from above
now children we are in God’s keeping.
All that sounds mighty good to be sure,
a god we don’t know is the cure
to our angst and seeking
to give purpose and meaning,
but his resurrection is causing quite a stir.
Walt McCanless 2014
10140 Providence Church Lane
Charlotte, NC 28277
704-846-1079