border nuns

by Kenan Phillip

there is no more room in the church.

there has not been room in the church for many months now.

And you shall love the alien, for you too were aliens in the land of Egypt. 

Deuteronomy 10:19

the pews have been removed to make space for mattresses,

and heaters and backpacks and coolers and boxes and toys.

And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’ 

Matthew 25:40

a plastic table has been set up on the far end, near the vestibule.

one of the sisters is there until after six, helping with paperwork.

The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 19:34

the floor is thick with hair, with limbs. there are not nearly enough hands 

for everything that must be done. not enough beds, not enough food. 

The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Galatians 5:14

it has never been easy work, never,

this work of tending the flock,

but how do you keep it up in a time like this?

A new commandment I give to you: 

just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

John 13:34