The Converse of the Golden Rule

An untitled poem of Jesus Christ from the Bible:

Luke 6:27-31 (New Revised Standard Version)

But I say to you that listen,

Love your enemies,

do good to those who hate you,

bless those who curse you,

pray for those who abuse you.

If anyone strikes you on the cheek,

offer the other also;

and from anyone who takes away your coat

do not withhold even your shirt.

Give to everyone who begs from you;

and if anyone takes away your goods,

do not ask for them again.

Do to others

as you would have them do to you.

The words of detective Lew Archer

in the novel Black Money (1966)

by Ross Macdonald

 

Quotation on Wet Leaves

 Henri-Frederic Amiel (1821-1881)

was a Swiss moral philosopher,

poet and critic.

To read an article about him, click here.

Fatigue: A Poet Responds

 Jill Kandel recently said of her poem "Fatigue," "CNN carried a story on September 27 that the US cases have surpassed 7 million, and we can still expect to see an explosion of Covid-19 this fall and winter. I wanted to write beneath the surface of the pandemic, the veneer of daily frustrations, and into the heart of our sorrows."

To read "Fatigue" by Jill Kandel, click here.

O Perfect Love

 Here is a hymn, a prayer, by Dorothy B. Gurney (1858-1932) for Robert and Megan on this their wedding day.

O perfect Love, all human thought transcending,

Lowly we kneel in prayer before thy throne,

That theirs may be the love which knows no ending,

Whom thou forevermore dost join in one.

O perfect Life, be thou their full assurance

Of tender charity and steadfast faith,

Of patient hope and quiet, brave endurance,

With childlike trust that fears nor pain nor death.

Grant them the joy which brightens earthly sorrow;

Grant them the peace which calms all earthly strife,

And to life's day the glorious unknown morrow

That dawns upon eternal love and life.

The poem above, which was first published in 1883, is in the public domain.

An anonymous quotation