In the Synagogue

In the Synagogue 

The faithful fidgeted

The chosen of God wondered 

What the carpenter’s son

Might say this Sabbath. 

Every seat was taken

Every pew was full

To listen to what Jesus

Might say this Saturday. 

He never failed to entertain

To challenge and surprise 

Turning well known sayings

Upside down and on their heads.  

Nothing was sacred for

Even the roof was taken off

To lower a stricken man

Looking for a cure on the cheap. 

There was a doctor and a chemist

But no, his pushy family

Upset the sermon in full flow

In what became a holy show. 

The time came soon enough

When he moved on and his rabble too. 

Spared now of parables and discomfort

Back to lighting candles and the incense. 

Life back then was tough enough

With the Romans to endure

No need to include the Philistines 

Or worse again Samaritans impure. 

A chosen people could remain just that

Comfortable in their isolation

With a noble history of suffering

Just let the world spin on. 

Two thousand years later

And the church founded in his name

Faces quandaries and challenges 

Much seems just the same.