“Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.'” – John 11:39

The first stones were the threats,
the stones they reached for when you said,
“The Father and I are one.” They called
it blasphemy, and well, it would be
if it weren’t true.

Given the risk of stones, which thrown,
break bones, returning to Judea
to heal your friend whose illness was
not to the death would make no sense,
at least if true.

But Lazarus was dead and in the grave
when you decided to return. Dear Thomas
pledged to join you in your death
if stones were cast. I’m sure he thought
he told the truth.

They came to you to weep. They came
to tell you just how much they trusted you.
“If you had been here, Lazarus would not
have died.” Your tears proclaimed your love
for Lazarus in truth.

“Remove the stone,” you called, despite the stink.
“Remove the stone,” you called, though they recoiled.
“Remove the stone,” you called, and Lazarus emerged.
“Unbind him now,” you called: he lived
in truth.

The stones they feared remained upon the ground.
No stones would break your bones, though one would seal
your tomb like Lazarus’. You there, as here, proclaimed
“I am the resurrection and the life”
in truth.

A poem/prayer based on John 11:1-45, the Revised Common Lectionary Gospel Reading for Year A, Fifth Sunday in Lent.

Photo by Eric Anderson.