Best Poems About
*Ash Wednesday* is T. S. Eliot's lengthy poem exploring the challenge of shifting focus from worldly matters to God, composed following his conversion to Anglican Christianity in 1927. The speaker grapples with uncertainty, longing, and the
This poem recounts the Biblical tale of Blind Bartimaeus, a beggar waiting outside Jericho who calls out to Jesus and is healed. Longfellow preserves the essential moments of the story — Bartimaeus's desperate cry, the crowd's attempts to h
This brief poem is Longfellow's English version of a well-known prayer-poem by the 16th-century Spanish mystic, Saint Teresa of Ávila. It encourages readers not to fear or be disturbed by anything life throws their way, as all worldly thing
This brief dramatic poem presents the Angel Gabriel's greeting to Mary during the Annunciation — that pivotal moment in Christian scripture when Mary discovers she will be the mother of Jesus. Longfellow sets it up like a scene from a play,
God's Grandeur is Gerard Manley Hopkins's assertion that the world is filled with divine energy, much like an everlasting battery — even as humans continue to harm the planet through industry and labor. No matter the destruction we inflict,
This short poem envisions the young Jesus delivering a prophecy: he speaks of his crucifixion thirty years ahead, identifies the thief Titus who will be crucified alongside him, and assures that Titus will be with him in paradise. It takes
*Jubilate Agno* ("Rejoice in the Lamb") is a lengthy, fragmented poem by Christopher Smart, composed during his time in a mental asylum in the 1750s and 60s. It joyfully celebrates God with an exuberant list of animals, people, and everyday
La Divina Commedia is Dante Alighieri's epic poem that follows the poet's journey through Hell (Inferno), Purgatory (Purgatorio), and Heaven (Paradiso). He is guided initially by the Roman poet Virgil and later by his idealized love, Beatri
This poem is part of Longfellow's larger work about the Moravian missionaries — a dedicated Christian group recognized for spreading their faith to far-flung areas of the world. In this section, Longfellow reflects on the courage and deep s
George Herbert's "The Altar" is a brief devotional poem where the speaker presents his broken heart to God as a living altar, crafted not from stone but from genuine human emotion and faith. This poem is well-known as a "shape poem," with i
This is a dramatic poem — or more accurately, a scene from Longfellow's verse play — where the Angel Gabriel greets the Virgin Mary with the Annunciation: "Hail, Virgin Mary, full of grace!" According to the stage direction, Mary reacts by
A child speaks from his own perspective, calling himself Jesus and clearly saying that he was born to suffer and die for the sake of others' lives. The poem captures the essence of the Christian beliefs in the Incarnation and Atonement in j
This brief dramatic piece from Longfellow's larger work *Christus: A Mystery* highlights the moment when Jesus asks his disciples whom the people think he is — a question central to Christian faith. It’s straightforward and to the point, re
*The Divine Comedy* is Dante's epic journey through Hell (Inferno), Purgatory (Purgatorio), and Heaven (Paradiso), first guided by the Roman poet Virgil and later by his idealized love, Beatrice. This monumental poem, written in Italian, sk
A man flees from God across the vast universe—through moments of pleasure, the beauty of nature, love, and the joy of being with children—yet God chases him tirelessly, like a hound on a scent. Every way out vanishes, every temporary comfor
Eugene Field's "The Twenty-Third Psalm" offers a heartfelt poetic retelling of the well-known Biblical psalm usually linked to King David. It preserves all the familiar imagery — the shepherd, the lush meadows, the shadowy valley, the overf
A Song to David is Christopher Smart's powerful ode that honors the biblical King David as the ultimate poet and musician. It explores his virtues, his creation of the Psalms, and the divine glory that shines through his work. Smart constru
This brief dramatic poem recounts the moment from the Gospels when the Roman governor Pontius Pilate offers the crowd a choice: free Jesus or free Barabbas. Pilate clearly sees Jesus as innocent, yet the crowd still demands Barabbas's relea
This short poem is delivered by Gaspar, one of the three Wise Men, as he welcomes the infant Jesus in the manger. Gaspar praises the newborn as something beyond all of life's highs and lows — joy, sorrow, and life itself — while also interp
This poem voices John the Baptist, the biblical prophet who paved the way for Jesus, as he urges crowds—including priests, Pharisees, and Scribes—to abandon their sins before it’s too late. Longfellow draws extensively from the language of
This poem immerses us in Martin Luther's thoughts while he hides at Wartburg Castle after the Catholic Church labels him a heretic. Longfellow blends Luther's well-known hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" with a dramatic monologue, reveali
This brief poem depicts a scene from Longfellow's larger dramatic piece *Christus: A Mystery*. In it, Jesus stands in the synagogue at Nazareth, reads from the scroll of Isaiah, and then takes a seat—effectively revealing his identity and p
Milton wrote this sonnet after he lost his sight completely, pondering whether God still expects him to create great poetry despite his blindness. The poem explores that fear and reaches a calm yet powerful conclusion: God doesn’t need our
A child asks a lamb who made it and then answers their own question: God did — the same God who refers to himself as "the Lamb of God" and came to earth as a child. The poem connects three elements — a lamb, a child, and Jesus Christ — illu
*The Song Celestial* is Edwin Arnold's 1885 verse translation of the *Bhagavad Gita*, the ancient Hindu scripture where the god Krishna advises the warrior Arjuna on the brink of a major battle. Arnold transforms the original Sanskrit dialo