by Ken Sehested
John.
Such a tame name for a man born to inhabit
the wild side of heaven’s incursion into
earth’s contempt.
You startle children with your leather-girdled,
camel-haired attire, hot breath calling the
devout into Jordan’s penitential wake.
Witness to the Spirit-dove’s descent,
confirming Elizabeth’s praise and Mary’s assent.
What brings you and
your honey-smeared beard
into such a barren land?
Wade in the water. Don’t mind the mud.
A certain drowning is required as Breath
from above is delivered on the wings of a dove.
The baptizer’s bargain is this:
There’s no getting right with God.
There’s only getting soaked.
©Ken Sehested @ prayerandpolitiks.org. Inspired by Mark 1:4-11, adapted the author’s longer poem, “The Baptizer’s Bargain.”