I didn't intend to do that--
I HATE it when people
sneak up on me
with evangelical intent!
I merely opened my heart
to hear a poem, and
God bubbled to the surface.

No, not that God,
the one claimed
by the Christian right:
(who want you
to believe that Jesus
is a Republican--)

I mean the God you knew
as a kid.
Of course there's a God!
It's so obvious when you look,
wide-eyed and innocent,
at the miracle of existence--
how cool it is
just to be alive!

But then, growing up,
you found out
that there are Religions
that each have all this STUFF
about who God is.
They make it seem so complicated!

But really it's very simple:
Just love.
Everyone.
Always.
Devotedly,
passionately.
And--
forgive EVERYone.
That's all.
No, it's NOT easy,
but it is simple.

It works in every heart
It works in every culture
It works--
with or without
religion.

Religion might help you
find your heart's door handle--
reading about
the loving kindness of
a saint,
an avatar,
a rabbi,
a mystic,
a Sufi,
a Master.

But it could be
that God is always
singing a love song
to you
through a flower,
that rainbow,
a sunset,
the voice of a friend,
or even,
my beloved,
this little poem.
Are you listening?