This poem is a letter of confession and repentance from the Church to Lady Poverty. She is the face of the poor and oppressed around the world.
In 2010, David N wrote this poem when he was preparing to join a Servants team in India. He says:
“I wrote [it] in the middle of the night in Manila in one sitting because I couldn’t sleep. It was just after a huge typhoon devastated so many people in the Philippines and I felt such agony and helplessness. It was one of my deep experiences with body, sleeplessness, emotion, spirituality, and creative expression.”
The poem is presented as a video of images of women living in poverty, with the text reproduced below.
A Letter from the Church to Lady Poverty
dear lady poverty we often preach and act like it’s true
please give your attention as we plead with you
our words are often empty because of how we act
we claim to know answers as if it were all fact
we preach to repent and to do this and that
yet we hoard our possessions grow lazy and fat
we dehumanize you and call you a stat
walk on you like a mat
we act like nothing matters except eternal life
but forget to care for you in your never-ending strife
we talk about obedience the one narrow way
yet we give you pocket change and then turn away
we give you a glance and sometimes our money
we’ve replaced deep love with cheap easy charity
we’ve forgotten to listen to the cry of your heart
this false generosity disgraceful atrocity
this false generosity
disgraceful atrocity
we try making profit increasing the gap
for some it takes them farther for you it’s a trap
we follow Jesus who gave his whole being
but still to our selfish needs we cling
security comfort logic and wealth
money education here’s to good health
we act like we care but we make you a task
tell us how much money you need just ask
as if money will solve things and make it all right
yet it rarely confronts the root of your plight
we speak of new life but things don’t get better
this is why we wrote you this letter
we almost forgot you precious lady poverty
we’ve made you into some sort of commodity
instead of a sister for whom we would die
we’ve settled for a disillusioned form of a lie
you were made in God’s very image
but we’ve declared you a poverty line average
above or below as if you can be stratified
clean-cut categories where you’re constantly classified
we measure success by numbers and quantity
naming your world for you we’ve called it poverty
as if demographic determines your worth
predictable future as a mother gives birth
you have been made in the image of God
yet often we’ve acted like gods over you
You have been made
in the image of God
you have been made in the image of God
we see God more clearly as we try to know you
we act like we know when we have not a clue
with our problems it’s money we resort to
or to actual resorts where you work for next to nothing
and still we ignore the way you’re honest hard working
forgive us our sins and teach us humility
forgive us please all of our vanity
we’ve so much to learn from the way that you live
so much to learn as we watch how you give
financial crisis and we question our maker
your faith becomes stronger the more that you suffer
you care for your family entire community
in you we see authenticity such unity
you’re treated like dirt yet you give without thinking
if you have any guests they don’t leave without drinking
what we’re trying to say here is that we’re really sorry
for not taking time to just hear your story
a story that’s rich and loving and living
a story unique and selflessly giving
we think we have much but we want what you’ve got
we see how you value things that matter a lot
humility unity laughter and love
something we see only glimpses of
let’s make things right let’s reunite families
especially now with so many calamities these rising flood casualties
come stay at our home and eat at our table
we’ll come pick you up if you’re unable
better yet we’ll come see how you live
to learn from your lifestyle and watch how you give
stay with us or shall we stay with you
show us real love a love that’s true
we’ve been stubborn have so much to learn
but at this time we promise we’ll turn
we see Christ in you and the way that he suffered
the blood that was shed for our sins to be covered
tell us how to start we’ll begin things there
it’s your perspective we need so we want you to share
what is it you need we want to know
is it time and concern you want us to show
how do you care for your friends and your children
tell us how you do it we just want to listen
forgive us please and teach us humility
let us share life with you our sweet Lady Poverty
it’s your turn to speak
we just want to listen
This is the first of a series of posts over the coming months, re-posting the best of our poetry collection, and other wisdom from past Servants members.
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