Yeshua Sits Cross-Legged with His Classmates and Listens to Artemis's Parable of the Soccer Match, and: Memorial to the Canaanite Woman

Yeshua Sits Cross-Legged with His Classmates and Listens to Artemis's Parable of the Soccer Match, and: Memorial to the Canaanite Woman Benjamin Bagocius (bio) YESHUA SITS CROSS-LEGGED WITH HIS CLASSMATES AND LISTENS TO ARTEMIS'S PARABLE OF THE SOCCER MATCH At the soccer matchplayers kick the ball out of boundsinto the stands The ball floats at youIt is big and soft. There is no wayyou will not catch it No one else in the stands moves to clutch itThey relax That it is meant for youis obvious Just sit there Who you are does not riseand clamor for foul ballsthat fly into the throng The game is where you sit and watch God's big, rounded softnesswaft into your lap [End Page 103] MEMORIAL TO THE CANAANITE WOMAN A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to Jesus, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." —Matthew 15:22 (NIV) In the city, obelisksreaching toward heaven celebrate thenation's founder. A domed cathedralpraises the manwhose acts of diplomacyin warwe rehearse on the designatedholiday. A building with seven columnsat the end of a gardenresembling a football fieldprotects the ideas of hewho championed the right sideof brotherhood. There are no plaques for the Canaanite Woman. Few know they passher house on a street off the thruwayto the obelisk, the cathedral,the garden of columns. Was it a brick home? This street?The thruway takes us past. Every time you lovebeyond love's barbed wirefence and no one knows, not even you yetin your unspeakable strain,you visit the invisible structure. You honor her. [End Page 104] [End Page 105] Benjamin Bagocius Benjamin Bagocius, PhD, writes and teaches across literature, queer thought, and spirituality. An associate professor of the humanities with Bard Early Colleges, Ben's first book of poetry, The Canaanite Woman, was released in Summer 2022, and his second book of poetry, "The Gospel According to B.," is slated for publication in 2024. Ben's writing appears in a range of venues, including On Being, The Other Journal, Modernism/modernity, and Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature. Ben is founding director of the Institute for Spiritual Poetry, which hosts writing workshops and other events and publishes a journal. Reach out and learn more at BenjaminBagocius.com and InstituteForSpiritualPoetry.com. Copyright © 2023 The Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, Inc.