Revival
I was a stage manager Curtains, lights, sound, backstage accommodations I was the only one on that night I beheld from many angles
I set up risers for the chorus To march in and fill Robes spinning with their rhythmic gyrations As their voices tsunamied into the crowd
And the crowd played its part Dressed to the nines Jumping, hands upraised To receive ecstatic bolts of angelic energy
Then the preacher took the pulpit Asking who was ready for a bless sing Two words, always two words No one was sitting anymore
He said The Enemy was among them The Enemy sought their hearts The Enemy whispered in their ears During all the dark moments of their life
But with the help of Ja He Sus Always three words They could cast The Enemy aside And travel the path of righteousness
Who is ready to cast The Enemy aside Who is ready to take Ja He Sus into their heart Who is ready to have the strength of Ja He Sus As they kick The Enemy right square in the backside
One by one they came up and the preacher anointed them his hand drenched in Holy Oil Coming down on their foreheads Like Ja He Sus throwing a haymaker
They in turn would collapse Or break into spasmodic dance Or start speaking in tongues Or all three at once
And now the preacher challenged them The battle against The Enemy was going to be long and hard Large men with pickle buckets circulated As the chorus took to song again
Give what you can, but know this God is watching, Ja He Sus by his side And will measure your faith by how much You support this ministry in its fight
Later, after more singing, more praying, More opening hearts to Ja He Sus After all the blessed attendees shuffled off Radiant in the glow of their faith
I joined the minister and his crew backstage As they counted out thousands In small untraceable bills, I realized this was just another show
*Craig Bertuglia says, “After leaving home at the age of fourteen I have, in my time, been a high school dropout, a juvenile delinquent, a mental patient, a punk rock musician, a monk (at a yoga ashram), and I then assailed the walls of academia. I got an MA in Creative Writing at the University of Southern Mississippi in 1994 having received my BA in English Education (with a minor in Creative Writing) at the University of South Florida in 1992. I worked as a Teen Services Librarian for Houston Public Library from 1999 till 2020, and am now happily retired.”