And to think that, by the radiance of day,
all of them marvel at Michelangelo’s frescoes,
celebrating their God and gathering to pray
beneath what that elaborate vault shows,
never thinking of the Ladies of the Night
who earned their bread through their oiled thighs
while men worshiped with that old Babylonian rite
through similar poses— wet on wet, likewise.
Eve, Mary, Magdalene, and so many more
are enfleshed in “sin merchants” whose wanton wares
are now prayed to, as with the Great Whore
replaced by a God shunning such carnal affairs.
The Mother and the Whore are together exiled
from the same robe, conjoint bodies bare
for the sketches which such artists used, eyes wild
with defiance, and an artist’s ironic stare.
What went through Michelangelo’s impish mind
as he sketched a harlot as the Mother to Cain?
Was it resentment against the pope who stood behind,
prodding him to paint for his own political gain?
Perhaps it was mere pragmatism, as someone who might
have had disastrous secrets of his own,
wanting to avoid trial about his own demons at night
and focus, eventually, on chiseling masculine stone.
Whatever the case, light and dark were often combined
into the form of the Mother, beneath her open skirts
which Man much desired and much maligned—
so many prostitutes peopling the holy works. The God of Ideals, thus wanting for the glorification of his stories, relied on the Mother Whore of Necessity to birth his glories.
Stephen Marshall. Writer, illustrator, layabout. Find him on Amazon, maybe. He has paperback and kindle books listed there. He also writes Supernatural Romance under the name S.C. Foster (because his fiancee pushed him to do so). He seems to have a knack for the Romance genre, much to his chagrin. Having pursued Children's literature he is particularly proud of his Children's novel series "Lost And Found", which begins with "Chloe Among The Clover", continues recently with "Stormy Within The Strawberry Patch" and may, in some future potentiality, culminate with "Candice Through The Picket Fence". These are novels for children (including his insistent nephew), but they are also written for adults who are children at heart. His short story collection, "The Eldritch Diaries", centers primarily upon Cosmic Horror and Body Horror, combining Lovecraft's mythos with the motifs of Sigmund Freud. His largest poetry collection, "Broken Crown Kings", contains over two hundred poems and two short novellas concerning the fleeting nature of the world and Man's place within it. Recently he has published a smaller book of poetry concerning Kentucky, Moonshine, and Ghosts called "Moonshine And Spirit Chasers". A much larger collection, entitled '"Nevermore" 99 Rhymes For $0.99' is also available. For those seeking supernatural and folklore, his collection "Weeping Cherry" is available also.
https://www.amazon.com/Stephen-Marshall/e/B07536QKD9?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_fkmrnull_1&qid=1554215427&sr=8-1-fkmrnull
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