I cry out in despair “O my God!”
for the tears of your children
and the sobs of the frightened.
Is that rising wail of sorrow
the sound of others’ lament
or my own voice against the pillow?
I have lost you amongst the clouds–
where is the One who saved Isaac and Ishmael?–
there is no sign of you even among the stars.
How long must children collapse in starvation
before you replenish the jars of meal and oil,
before you hold them close and renew their breath?
Our demons have turned on our children
and we are too busy pursuing our own sins,
too busy with our childish wars and dogmas
to make space for reconciliation, or faith;
so preoccupied with our convictions of hell
that we have neglected to practice heaven.