""Paul, Called to Be an Apostle,"" poetry

Introduction

Probably during the last year of Paul's stay in Ephesus (1 Corinthians 16:8), he hears disturbing reports, from members of the "house of Chloe" (1 Corinthians 1:11), about dissentions between spiritual brothers and sisters in the Corinthian Congregation. Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, visiting Paul from Corinth (1 Corinthians 16:17, 18), may have filled in details for Paul. He takes time out of his third missionary tour to write First Corinthians (about 55 CE), helping individuals serve Jehovah in peace and unity, and directing them about how to deal with unrepentant congregation members who are guilty of gross wrongdoing.

An excerpt, chapter seven

Must a man fly into heaven
Amongst eagles, that see
Shrews a mile off,
And falcons, that dive at
300 k like falling stars,
Or must he fly farther, to the
Great throne over every light
Beam that stretches our amoebic
"Home," gathering darkness
Into things grand, like
Nebulae and galaxies, or
Must he sail a ship across seas
To coastlines rocky, and loud
With spray,
To find the law of Jehovah
Clear and simple and clean?

Where is this law, firm like
A mountain and green like a
Cool valley? Here it is-
Says the man whose heart
Has been circumcised and
Whose tongue has been
Healed.

The author

Dan Lukiv, published in 19 countries, is a poet, novelist, columnist, short story and article writer, and independent education researcher (hermeneutic phenomenology). As a creative writer, he apprenticed with Canada's Professor Robert Harlow (recipient of the George Woodcock Achievement award for an outstanding literary career), the USA's Paul Bagdon (Spur Award finalist for Best Original Paperback), and England's D. M. Thomas (recipient of the Cheltenham Prize for Literature, Orwell Prize [biography], Los Angeles Fiction Prize, and Cholmondeley award for poetry). He attended The University of British Columbia (creative writing department), the acclaimed Humber School for Writers (poetry writing program), and Writer's Digest University (novel writing program).