Poetry Spot: "The Agony" by Rev. George Herbert

Note: I'm starting a new segment on this blog called "Poetry Spot", which I eluded to in my introductory post. Basically it just denotes a post where I share a poem that I really enjoy that I wanted to share, rather than one I wrote myself.

    Seeing as today is the day on which the Church of England commemorates him on their church calendar, I thought it would be appropriate to share one of my favorite poems from one of my favorite poets, George Herbert. Herbert was a country priest who was remarkable in the humility of his station in comparison with the depth of his education. He studied at Cambridge and was almost ingratiated into the court of James I, but ultimately that life didn't materialize for him. Pastor George, instead, became a country parson in the remote and rural Wiltshire, where he shepherded the Good Shepherd's flock for relatively few years in number, but grand in quality. Not only did his congregation speak well of him as a pastor, but these were also the years of his life that he produced his greatest poetry. 

    The poem I've decided to share with you all today is one that encapsulates the spirit of sin, love, and the depth of that love our Savior was smitten by in order to save us from that sin. I hope you delight in and are pastored by Herbert's verse as much as I have been.

The Agony

By George Herbert

 Philosophers have measur'd the mountains,

Fathom'd the depths of the seas, of states, and kings,

Walk'd with a staffe to heav'n, and traced fountains:

      But there are two vast, spacious things,

The which to measure it doth more behove:

Yet few there are that found them; Sinne and Love.

      Who would know Sinne, let him repair

Unto mount Olivet; there shall he see

A man so wrung with pains, that all his hair,

      His skinne, his garments bloudie be.

Sinne is that presse and vice, which forceth pain

To hunt his cruell food through ev'ry vein.

      Who knows not Love, let him assay,

And taste that juice, which on the crosse a pike

Did set again abroach; then let him say

      If ever he did taste the like.

Love in that liquor sweet and most divine,

Which my God feels as bloud; but I, as wine.

"Christ mercy give, His mercy spread"

A Poem for God's own Glory

In light o' death, I'd rather stand at Judgment drunk on brandy,

Than drunk my fill o' hevy hearts o' throngs o' neighbors God gave me

My stomach would be better full o' rich and divers treats,

Than to be gorged on man's worst days, and preyed on victims' feats

What good, I says, an empty gut, or head that's full o' psalms,

If God can see my heart is black, my gossip hand, with bloodied palms

Reviler I be, if think that I be free from Mighty's ire,

Good God, I cry, I know that I be then in Christ's own pyre

My warning, thou, I give this day, that thou dread not God's wrath,

If only, thou, upon this day, mercy for men thou hast

Christ mercy give, His mercy spread, and thou better give it many,

So on the fateful Judgment day, thou need pay not a penny.

Due Introductions

Gizmo, not-an-apostle to the Internet, to the churches of... well you know the drill.

Grace to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

    I wasn't quite sure how to make a first post on this, or any, blog, since I've not made a serious attempt at consistently uploading to a blog prior to today. But, one must start somewhere, and put the hand to plow... even if that plow isn't all that great. In any case, welcome! I'm sure we'll have a bit more focus and direction in how and what is posted here in no time, but for now this is just a borderline stream-of-consciousness entry to get words on a page. Hopefully, today's post will just give you some further insight into who I am, what I intend to use this blog for, and perhaps network with other like-minded folks, i.e. poetry-inclined Christians.

    To begin, I suppose I'll tell you a bit about myself, for those who aren't all that familiar with me. One may ask, "why Gizmo?" And to be frank, it's just the screen name I've gone by for about a dozen years or so, and to change it now would feel strange. Plus, it would be weird to have this blog linked on my X/Twitter, and for people to see me going by another name. You don't build a brand that way, y'know?

With that out of the way, let's do a lightning round of the basic stuff, shall we?

Religion? Christian, specifically a Reformed Anglican currently in "exile" in the Presbyterian Church of America.

Age and Demographic? 23 (24 in a month) year old white guy who just moved to the Tampa Bay Area. Lived in south-central PA and went to college there, and a born and bred New Englander.

Education and Background? I've got a Bachelor's in Cybersecurity and working in IT. Got a minor in Philosophy too, which gave me a crippling addiction to Kierkegaard and smoking tobacco pipes.

Top 5 Non-Bible Books? Beowulf, The Valley of Vision, The Hobbit, Leaves of Grass, Fear and Trembling.

Biggest living influences? Malcolm Guite, my spiritual father, and I guess my twitter mutuals (lookin' at you, Colors).

Biggest deceased influences? George Herbert, John Donne, Martin Bucer, Samuel Rutherford, Philip Schaff, JC Ryle, Charles Spurgeon, C.S. Lewis, Soren Kierkegaard, Walt Whitman, Johnny Cash

Your childhood and mine,
if you're about 20-30.

    So why'd I make this blog anyways? To be honest, keeping a pen n' paper journal would do just as good, as I really just need a place to put my thoughts down so I can come back and look at it. But let's be honest, with a blog you can be a bit more creative than just writing entries in a composition notebook, not to mention the hand cramps. But what good are all the interesting thoughts you've got in your head if you don't have other people to share it with? And how often do we get into meaningful conversations with one another, that the important thing in life get talked about deeply? Trust me too, you really don't want to read the journals I kept in high school and college. Especially high school, wow. 

    What I'm really looking to do with this blog is post some poems or essays I may write on subjects that interest me, whether they be in vogue at the time or something that's been of interest to me in my own time. I may also repost the work of others just so I can share those wonderful works of writing with whoever keeps up with this blog.

That being said, you're welcome to follow me on Twitter or to reach out to me here via the comments or via email at gizmorazaar@gmail.com. I'll sign off here, since I'm just looking to get my feet wet with this entry, and I'll come back swinging with something more interesting next I post. Ciao!