red-shift

ben-Uziel could roast a bird in flight
if it flew by while he was deep in prayer
his comm-link's collimated hot and tight
too bad for anyone intruding there.
With Moses only, God spoke face to face
and he concealed his beams behind a veil
for no one since him has that been the case
more often, calls rejected, e-texts fail.
"no more than one"'s the formula that Jews
agree for God, but He won't intervene
within the laws of nature, we can choose
but what's divine is neither heard, nor seen.
Attenuated with the passing time
God's messages grow dim (but they still rhyme)

shemini

Nadav and Abihu drew close and burned
and never brought their insights to the world
once consummated, disdained to return
preferring to dissolve into the swirl
a Light unto the Nations gotta shine
those who've seen more should share it with the rest
an ethic's sterile if it's only mine
we need consensus to enforce what's best
as Moshe rose and put back on his shoes
once private revelation was complete
he had to publicize it to the Jews
and couldn't rest in that communion sweet
to bring the sacred into the profane
takes all we've got of body, soul and brain