Eternal Homeland
To the city of the living Deity
Avoiding trace of impiety uglification
For reverence of liberally given benefits of edification
Guarding as a myrmidon the prize of salvation
To the city of the living God
To reach this Lasting Homeland,
Still, a good deal is missing my Lord.
To the city of the living Divinity
Shunning vice, cultivating virtue -
The desire for the charm of sanctity
For the regard of freely bestowed profusion of graces
To safely reach the Holiest of Places
To the city of the living Deity
Shielding as a stout soldier all... with pity
To reach that City of cities,
A great deal is missing my Lord -
(Regret each loss, my God...)
To the Fatherland - the Ultimate City
Safeguarding the greatest fidelity
For the regard of freely given Protective Presence,
Guarding as a warrior the Blood of Mercy and absolution,
Remaining steadfast in final resolution
To reach the City of the living God,
Willing to die - out of love only - on the spot
To reach that Lasting Fatherland,
Always, come short my Lord.
To the City of the Sacred Maternity
Where motherless exult by the mantle of True-Blue Motherhood
There motherliness dwells in joy with pure saintliness
And motherly love is the same as Immaculate Benignity
Virginal Generosity; There love devotional and votive
Remains the one and only motive...
Long downright for this mothering -
This Motherland, my Lord...
To the Kingdom ruled by majesty of Truth and Love
For awe of being given the gift of faith and mystical hope
Guarding as a warrior for Truth, the prize of His unsurpassed Love
Taking refuge in His wounds, eager to be wounded -
A sign for the realness of the poorest form of love
To the city of the living Deity
Undefiled by error, guarding the wealth
Of the unshakable twosome of chastity and charity
Miss gravely this City my Lord...
To the Unchanging Homeland...
To God's own country where Presence of Deity
Triggers weighty feelings of reverential, filial fear
Missing this Homeland dear...
All earthly dealings and gear shall disappear...
Yet, the Kingdom where Love and Truth reside
Cannot be shaken...
(Cannot be mistaken...)
Here the King is a "consuming fire,"
Bestowing superabundance
To only one - straight as an arrow - desire...
Where the King is...
There all the wealth is...
So never
Pass the chance
Have a cause for regret
Shame or blame...
As a myrmidon -
Carrying out orders without question or doubt
Lastingly setting eyes on hope that is safe
And Safe Haven again -
Never to feel that something is missing again...
"...this is the will of God: your sanctification" - 1 Thess 4:3
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- dorothy Kardas Psy.D. Th.D.'s blog
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Ultimate longing and supreme fulfillment.
Dr. This is a truly an outstanding work! A "magnum opus" of words! Each stanza is full of substance... enriching insights that invigorate the mind and elevate the soul. I admit that after I read the stanza about motherland I was teary-eyed which for me is a rarity! I am forwarding this superb work to my sister for her birthday this week. THANKS!
P.S. Glad to see you back and your work of excellent caliber. While recently browsing the site we found offensive materials (even titles with foul language). Highly distasteful! They can't call themselves true versemongers! (talking about lacking creativity!).
"For wisdom will not enter into a malicious soul...
nor dwell in a body subject to sin" (Wisdom 1:4)
Thank you for your graceful gesture of kind commenting. Indeed, The Redeeming Illuminator - God grants each one of us different talents and the gift of speech or writing to be used prudently. Any profanity whether one believes it or not bit by bit infects the mind and contaminates the soul. Needless to say, not only writing but reading such material offends God unspeakably and has incalculable and even indelible adverse spiritual effects. Regardless what message is conveyed opting for foul language is an adulteration of the gifts we were given; it incurs blame and causes public scandal.
Let's not forget that getting to the promised Eternal Homeland involves purifying our words, thoughts and deeds...
God bless you for bringing up this subject for discussion.
May God cleanse our lips and our hearts before we undertake any work.
Wishing your sister on her birthday and all of us to be on the side of the saints...
A bridge for troubled waters!
Doc, like the message of steady hope and perserverance inspired by God's love and our resolution to follow faithfully in His footsteps. I get sometimes discouraged when I fail but this marvelously written poem gives me great hope, encouragement and motivation not only to become better but to see my difficulties from a different perspective and different light. Our problems then seem so small and petty when we think of our End. Thank you for these powerful and meaningful upbeat reminders.
God bless!
BRAVO to your response to Faithseeker. My sentiments exactly!
Richie and the hopefully eternal gang.
Steady As A Rock Witness To Truth!
Dear Dr. Kardas,
Sorry you haven't heard from us in a while but we frequently visit your other blogs & twitter. Your poems and responses to readers always compel us to stand more face to face with our conscience, helping us to look carefully and re-examine our goals, thoughts and motivation to reach that level where we can trust and be satisfied more with our spiritual reality. Your guiding words and profound thinking lead us closer to God. In each of your poems we find some condensed essence of Christianity, but this brilliant work has a definite WOW factor! Foolishly in the past I wasted so much time trying to please others to be appreciated but frequently was bitterly disappointed. Finally I learned that to strive to please God alone in everything is the key to inner contentment here and to eternal bliss. I am thankful to God that I reached this blessed awareness that by being faithful to Him in all that I do, I no longer fear anything. I know I still have A LOT to learn but I am ready to share the joy of my commitment to Christ with others.
We thank you again for being a helping hand in this exciting journey! FHC
CONGRATULATIONS DR. KARDAS!
'THE POETRY CIRCLE' HAS READ AND ENTHUSIASTICALLY DISCUSSED THIS PARTICULAR POEM BECAUSE OF ITS FINEST QUALITY ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS ON OTHER SITES.
PERSONALLY, EVERY TIME I READ THIS OUTSTANDING WORK, IT GIVES ME BOTH A BURST OF SPIRITUAL ENERGY AND YET, BRINGS ABOUT A CALMING EFFECT. THE GENIUS OF YOUR WORK!
WE ALL EXTEND TO YOU OUR SINCERE CONGRATULATIONS ON BEING ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE WOMEN OF CAMBRIDGE FOR YOUR "PRODIGIOUS ACCOMPLISHMENTS"...WE JUST RECENTLY CAME ACROSS THIS INFORMATION ON CROSS WAY. WELL DESERVED HONOUR MAY WE ADD...
KUDOS & LOVE
FROM "THE POETRY CIRCLE OF FRIENDS"
Engrossed in Cerebration!
The intellectual faculties burn with curiosity and cogitate as they vigilantly savour your fire of genius- scintillation of shrewd savant!
With highest respect & God's blessings
TJ
~Spirit of New Life~
Dorothy,
The winds are blowing the banners of His justice. The sun is calling for every thought to grow in Him. The oceans are resonating with the sound of His voice. There is glory in every motion. Every emotion is a call to His action.
Although moments move, we can be like stagnate water, in gridlock. Life can move around us as we ruminate in our failures. I confess that life's storms can pull me inside myself. It is not enough to hide with God in the shelter of His being, we must move with His Spirit.
Deep inside our failures we can find hope, if we elect to dawn the thoughts of others. Your thoughts are brilliant; they find there way into my being. Your thoughts sit inside me like a rose sits in a vase. Your thoughts are fragrant and awaken my senses.
I meditated on your poem for a long time. Your inspirations inspired me. My thoughts turned to my Mother, and our Mother. A Mother's love is so important. A Mother's love is present to us before our birth. A Mother's love is the seed to finding grace and sanctity in being. I rest comfortably in my Mother's arms because my God planted me there.
~A MOTHER'S EYES~
Stars fall from Mother’s eyes
To light a candle deep within
Compassion seeks conscience
A luminous purpose to begin
Swaddled in God’s affection
Desires billow into our storms
Our sails of humanity steering
Into hearts, where love is born
In the shelter of God’s heaven
We seek to find our soul’s rest
Our thoughts are like the birds
They journey before they nest
High into a tree’s full canopy
Thoughts budding upon limbs
Gazing into our Mother’s eyes
Where sanctity of being begins
Dr. Kardas, thank you for being a voice of reason in an unreasonable world.
Peace be with you.
Sister in His Spirit,
Kathy Paysen
All Is Curable Through The Power Of Grace...
Dear Readers/Friends...
My apologies that at the present time due to rather demanding time constraints, I cannot give fitting acknowledgement to you individually for all the substantive reflections and complimentary words. Admittedly, in all your supportively and considerately written messages I find a genuinely inspiriting comfort for which I am forever indebted...
Kathy, thank you for this intelligently conceived and superbly delivered poem - paying homage to the Mother of God and Our Mother... the sweet tones in singing of the praises of love, the celebrating of Her divine maternity and Her merciful and generous protection. The Blessed Mother is indisputably the highest ideal of womanhood; Her womb brings forth New Life; it is the final victory of the eternal feminine, and Her life being the pattern in giving all women (and men) practical direction in habits of virtue. It is impossible to understand properly Jesus' place in God's plan of salvation without understanding adequately Mary and Her place in God's plan. Virtuous life is absolutely necessary in comprehending the truth about God and Holy Mother. Mother of God loves sinners, and in reliance on Jesus, She is "suppliant omnipotence" as well.
Thus, the infinitely consoling news is that all is curable through the power of Grace!
May God have you all and your loved ones in His keeping...
I shall keep you in my prayers... D.K.
Optimistic Prosody!
Passionately and evocatively molded work indeed! My heart still resounds from this verbal syncopation written with a laudable "eschatological" attitude. Truly, "Eternal Homeland" is the interior standard keeping order in our earthly journey. It strikes down the arrogant thinking that one's soul goes directly to Heaven after our earthly existence. "Hast thou forgotten that the place of purification exists?" Oh, how the modern "thinkers" would like to forget about Purgatory and hell! Once again, a powerful spiritual jolt of reality! God bless you Dr. Dorothy...
The Perils Of The Presumptuous Mind...
Thank you for taking time and always insightfully commenting on my work. Indeed, to assume that one's soul is so pristine to be in the presence of God for all eternity after departing from earthly life is to lack the necessary understanding of the infinite difference between God's Perfect Purity and Holiness and our wretchedness, littleness and humanness. Purgatory is a state of final purification after death and before entrance into Heaven for those who died in God's friendship, but were only imperfectly purified, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned. Even every venial sin must be purified either here on earth, or after death in Purgatory (1 Cor 3:15; 1 Pet 1:7). This purgation or purification frees a person from what is called the "temporal punishment" of sin. This must not be conceived of as a kind of vengeance inflicted by God from without, but as following from the very nature and gravity of sin. The sufferings in Purgatory are not the same for all, but proportioned to each person's degree of sinfulness. Moreover, these sufferings can be lessened in duration and intensity through the prayers and good works of the faithful on earth. God has revealed repeatedly to countless saints about the existence of Purgatory and Hell. St. Faustina in the 1930's by the allowance of God had visited the place of eternal damnation - the abysses of Hell and Purgatory to attest to their existence. This is what she had witnessed in Purgatory: "I saw my Guardian Angel, who ordered me to follow him. In a moment I was in a misty place full of fire in which there was a great crowd of suffering souls. They were praying fervently, but to no avail, for themselves; only we can come to their aid. The flames which were burning them did not touch me at all. My Guardian Angel did not leave me for an instant. I asked these souls what their greatest suffering was. They answered me in one voice that their greatest torment was longing for God. I saw Our Lady visiting the souls in Purgatory. The souls call her "The Star of the Sea." She brings them refreshment. I wanted to talk with them some more, but my Guardian Angel beckoned me to leave. We went out of that prison of suffering. I heard an interior voice which said, 'My mercy does not want this, but justice demands it.' Since that time, I am in closer communion with the suffering souls." ("Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul" - Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, p. 11; Marians of the Immaculate Conception, Stockbridge, Massachusetts 01263; 2003).
May we be purified from earthly ways...
Faithfully in Christ - D.K.
There is no "Highway to Heaven!"
In fact, it is a long and rough road! It makes perfect sense for any logical person to know that to get to Heaven we must get rid of all sins even the smallest ones and also all impurities. All those bad habits like the ones that hurt the neighbor.. the ugly green monster of jealousy must be completely gone. Thanks Doc for the title of the book, I know a few fellows who need to read about Hell and Purgatory. We love ya!
Rich & the gang!
Speaking of the green-eyed monster...
its related cohort - envy is one of the sins against the Holy Spirit (they are major offenses that carry a stubborn resistance to the promptings and inspirations of the Holy Spirit and a contempt of His gifts, which include: envy of another's spiritual good, obstinacy in sin, opposing knows truths of faith, despair of one's salvation - [i.e., disbelief in the omnipotent power of divine grace to cure or overcome sin], presumption of God's mercy - [i.e., false belief that one will be saved while remaining in unrepentant state or in mortal sins], and final impenitence). Since those individuals who sin in this way, resisting grace, do not wish to repent hence their sins cannot be forgiven. Envy as we know is one of the Seven Capital Sins and is contrary to the Second Greatest Commandment and also the Tenth Commandment. By definition, envy is discontent or sadness at the good fortune, the excellence or success of another person. It implies that one considers oneself somehow deprived of what one envies in another or even that an injustice has been done. It means that one is questioning God's perfect designs since everything that happens of course with the exception of sin! is ordained or permitted for our highest spiritual benefits by so called Ordained or Permissive Will of God respectively. Again, envy is a sin against charity and, though serious in itself allows of degrees of gravity depending on whether fully consented to and how important is the object envied. The most serious sin of envy is sadness at the supernatural gifts or graces that another person has received from God (i.e., to envy sanctity). For those reasons, St. Augustine viewed envy as "the diabolical sin" that can lead to the worst crimes.
"Through the devil's envy death entered the world" - Wisdom 2:24.
Thank you for commenting, and as always, it is a pleasure hearing from you and your friends.
May we grow in His Liberating and Consoling Truth and Love -D.K.
The task of taming the monster!
Dear Doc!
I can't thank you enough for this valuable information. I knew that envy was a serious sin but your clarification made me realize I must guard against this ugliness even more!
Thanks again & God bless from us all!
Rich & the gang.
A Message From Beyond...To a Dear Friend
My sincere thank yous from Yuri's entire family. We would like you to know how much your kind and supportive words meant to all of us during Yuri's illness. He did cherish your words and sincere messages of hope and Christian love.
My oldest grandson read "Eternal Homeland" at Yuri's memorial service. This piece of your work meant so very much to all of us. Everyone attending was so moved that they insisted we get them a copy. With proper creditation to you our friend, we provided the source.
We've asked everyone to continue their prayers for Yuri, so that he may finally reach that Eternal Homeland- that he so longed for.
Once again, we are ever grateful for your kind loving support. Dr. Kardas, we do hope in our simple letter that we have expressed what tremedous power and impact your words have made within our family and groups of friends. Thank you for your prayers and Christian Love that you so freely share, you made us feel that you are a part of our Christian family and a very dear friend the Good Lord sent to us in our hour of need.
May God Bless you...may we all meet someday in the "Eternal Homeland".
With love and gratitude beyond words,
Maya and family
P.S.
I have personally had several dreams of Yuri these past few days and I could feel him telling me to make sure I write this note personally to you. I assure you, he's praying for all of us. He'll always remain in our hearts the very loving caring and generous man that he was. My children and grandchildren are having 2 months of Holy Masses said to honor his memory. Just to let you know, I will remain on the island home with a granddaughter who wants to live here with me. Yuri wanted to be buried here, and I shall not leave him, even though the majority of my family wants me back on the mainland. Farewell for now.
May God Of All Consolation, Console You...
Dear Maya and Friends in Christ,
My wholehearted condolences to you and your family on the passing of your beloved husband Yuri, father, grandfather and great grandfather. Without a doubt, both Yuri and you have been exemplary heralds of the Gospel and thus builders of the civilization of charity and peace; in each correspondence both of you have changelessly evidenced this indispensable interior/exterior explosion of good - pertinent to individuals of exceptional faithfulness, probity and compassion... with manifest transcendent dignity. Individuals as you and Yuri give an encouraging reason for maintaining authentic optimism and hope in this world.
Thank you for kindhearted words, which undoubtedly were inspired by charity and hence have eternal significance and immesurable merit in the sight of Our Lord. It was equally touching to learn that "Eternal Homeland" was read by your grandson at Yuri's memorial service for which I thank God and you with deep emotion, as well as for all important insights and loving gestures.
Before I start any work, it is my daily routine to attend early in the morning Holy Mass and right afterwards to visit Our Savior in the Blessed Sacrament. As soon as I learned of Yuri's illness, I have been offering daily Holy Communion for him, you and your family, and prayed with my sister Carolyn and a group of faithful friends before the Blessed Sacrament in your intentions. I would like to assure you that we will continue to do so in the future. Undeniably, it was Divine Loving Providence that brought us together, and we are indeed a Christian family. I also firmly believe that through omnipotent grace and our full receptivity to its power, we all will ecstatically unite one day in the Eternal Homeland! I am not surprised that Yuri has visited you in dreams already. This is a great sign! I am sure you know what I mean...
Please, do let me know whether I can be of any other assistance; you can contact me at: raven.collins@rocketmail.com
May God's Love and Light continue to touch your hearts ever so fruitfully... and may Our Risen Redeemer bless you all superabundantly for Easter and always!
May Our Perfect Mother lead us to holiness...
With eternal gratitude and love,
Dorothy
P.S. I was eager to respond immediately to your letter, unfortunately in our house in Massachusetts we had a horrible flood. It took more than 9 hours to take care of this problem!