The Ruins of Time

Descriptor: 
This resource relating to Isaiah 5:1-7 provides a poem by Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) highlighting that decay is a gradual process and a poem by Robert Lowell (1917-1977) highlighting themes of mortality and the passage of time.
Paid Resource: 
N
Lectionary: 
Revised Common Lectionary
Source: 
Englewood Review
Related to Children or Youth: 
N
Audio/Video: 
N
Full Text: 
*** Revised Common Lectionary *** Lectionary Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7 CLASSIC POEM: Crumbling is not an instant’s Act Emily Dickinson Crumbling is not an instant’s Act A fundamental pause Dilapidation’s processes Are organized Decays — ‘Tis first a Cobweb on the Soul A Cuticle of Dust A Borer in the Axis An Elemental Rust — Ruin is formal — Devil’s work Consecutive and slow — Fail in an instant, no man did Slipping — is Crashe’s law — *** This poem is in the public domain, and may be read in a live-streamed worship service. CONTEMPORARY POEM: The Ruins of Time Robert Lowell SNIPPET: I saw the musty shingles of my house, raw wood and fixed once, now a wash of moss eroded by the ruin of age furning all fair and green things into waste. … [ READ THE FULL POEM ]
Author: 
role: 
Primary Author
Author: 
Emily Dickinson
role: 
Primary Author
Author: 
Robert Lowell
Content Type: 
Key Scriptures: 
Isaiah 5:1-7
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Non English Resource: 
RCL Lectionary Week: 
Year C Proper 15 (Ordinary Time 20)
Date: 
Monday, August 8, 2022