Three Pews Long
Can a person be preached to death?
My burned-out ears answer "yes."
Some church speakers use every breath
To berate those they suppose they bless.
They describe "don'ts" three pews long.
Congregants find it all but unfeasible
To live without doing something wrong.
Shouldn't preachers aim to be reasonable?
Three hours, four hours—they preach on.
Old men are nodding off, children crying.
Isn't it time for the choir to sing a song?
This must be worse than hell and dying.
The stained-glass windows are darkening.
The preachers have preached too long.
But to the late hour they aren't harkening—
And they're prepared to carry on 'til dawn.
Copyright © Paul Schneiter | Year Posted 2014
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