poetry

In May 2008, Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb became the first woman rabbi to visit Iran. She was one the two leaders of the 7th Civilian Diplomacy delegation of the Fellowship of Reconciliation.

The following is a poem written by Rabbi Lynn. In addition to being one of the first ten women rabbis in Judaism and a leader in the Jewish Renewal movement, she is the co-founder of both the Shomer Shalom Institute for Jewish Nonviolence as well as the Muslim-Jewish Peace Walk for Interfaith Solidarity.

Poetry shouldn't finally have to come to this, though the Old Testament prophets, the chronicler of the Bhagavad Gita, the Psalmists, all form a line as long as the parade of saints who have lost their lives to violence and who, when they finally come singing, sing a song we had best listen to at last. It was Walter Brueggemann, among others, who argued (in Finally Comes the Poet), that the voices that best bring us to attention to the issues of the day may be the poets. Occasionally allow me to lift up a poem which will direct you to the poets and their most recent book of poems. Have you noticed how, with increasing frequency, poets are singing such alarms?

Written May 1, 2008

The value of the almighty $ just keeps on going

down that is.

You see, I have a preoccupation with my new $-->RIAL exchange
Why?
There are no ATMs or Cash Stations here
and I just could not afford to bring hundreds/thousands of por si acaso dollars
As some may have.

The value of the dollar is dropping

Truth is
back home some of us would be pinching pennies
Not because the compensation is not fine
But because like so many who live under
the red, white, and blue of liberty at all costs, selective justice, and exploitation for all
we have bills stemming from entry to the medical complex
by way of harm inflicted by the government and everyday US
Through environmental degradation
Do you see?
The value of the dollar just keeps dropping

And without a change soon