“Curious Creatures” and “Gods Die When”

by Gershon Ben-Avraham

Curious Creatures

Something there is God loves about humans,
something that he longs for, something he needs.

He sits, listening to their singing and
watching their dancing, while clapping in time,
swaying in rhythm to their joyous music.

For a while, his loneliness moves aside,
leaving space within him where he places
these marvelous melodious beings.

His creatures sing to the music of his
spheres; his universe hums with happiness.

Gods Die When

Gods die when no one believes in them.
Old religion lingers, Pater wrote,
latest in the country, practiced by
dwellers of small towns and villages.

Gods die when the setting sun’s fiery
red glow on mountain snow isn’t a blush
caused by the sun god’s goodnight kiss, but
refraction and reflection of light.

Gods die when prayer becomes empty,
the sound of clapping hands inside a
vacuum, not an alarm bell to
awaken sleeping divinity.

Infinity weighs heavily on
hearts that yearn for gods, who long to love
and be loved by them, but find instead
the dark, cold abyss of endless space.

Gershon Ben-Avraham is an American-Israeli writer. He lives in Beersheba, Israel, on the edge of the Negev Desert. He and his wife share their lives with a gentle blue-merle long-haired collie. Before moving to Israel, Ben-Avraham earned an MA in Philosophy (Aesthetics) from Temple University.