The Dawn of Capitalism

The Germans chose to stack the deck.
In other countries' churches, God is marble,
As are all the saints, and those who came
Inside to worship, tradesmen, nobles,
Humble clods, would have to do the
Heavy lifting, breathing into cold, white
Stone the spirits who they sought for
Their salvation in unsettled times,
As armies came and sacked their cities,
Famines passed across the lands,
And plague moved silently among
Them, taking every fifth or sixth.
In Germany, each God is gold,
His glory signified by radiating
Rays, also of gold. The saints are gold.
The point is clear. God's worth is
All-too evident. No heavy lifting
Must be done. God's so good
As precious metal, and the opposite
Is true. The nobles and the burghers,
And the clods who came in from
The fields could rest assured that
Gold itself was of a piece with God.



Poetry by Lawrence Beck The PoetBay support member heart!
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Written on 2017-10-24 at 00:54

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