The Fifth Chamber, Part 1

Deep peace, deep joy. At home in this new land,

where God is not a theory or a thought,

but is the sun, wind, earth, the gentle hand

that leads us on beyond what we’ve been taught. 

Unlearn yourself. Let know-how disappear. 

No fine hewn doctrine, no technique, no art,

no words, no works, no icons aid us here;

only a waiting, self-forgetting heart. 

And God may choose to still the restless mind,

wrap us in love a while, and hold our gaze,

and when we come back to ourselves we find

the incense of God’s grace perfumes our days

with self-forgiving, calm humility;

a life more full, more fearless, and more free.