The Things that God Allows (a poem)

Religion is a system of cruelty
And the priests are the executioners
The church can no longer fool me
Of the terrible abuse that occurs

Let’s go beyond good and evil
Into the gray mist of the unknown
Leaving behind the crosses and medieval morality
That have provided comfort for so long

This priest towers over me; a blazing fury in his eyes
He foams at the mouth and tells me
He’s the Devil in disguise

Trust me, I do believe him – in the darkness of the confessional
His tales of deceit are utterly credible
And his wizened face is ancient and contemptible

The sun goes down, turning the church’s inside to darkness
The stained-glass windows shine in the final rays
The priest begins his monologue in harshness:

“So, you think me a good man, but you’re mistaken
I am a coward and a devil –
I’ve unleashed the hounds of hell on this land,
All the money I’ve embezzled,

“There’s no use to report me or turn me in,
The bishop knows what I’ve done –
With one touch, I can turn your skin
Into a sponge that soaks up the world’s misery

“Go ahead, make my day, try to defeat me
I have you in my grasp now,
You’ve never known the evil of a bad priest
And the things that God will allow.”

(Photo by Rishabh Dharmani on Unsplash)

Author’s Note: This poem was partly inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morality, which I’ve been reading lately. I remember Nietzsche somewhere in the book calling religion “a system of cruelty” and him talking about the dark side of Christianity, and it stuck with me. I must admit, reading Nietzsche makes me ashamed somewhat because of how much hate-mongers have loved him over the years. But I’ve enjoyed this book so far and, perhaps, many scholars are right in claiming that his works are and were misunderstood.