Gather it from memory.Let it touch the earth.In Touch the Earth, Drew Jackson continues the project he began in God Speaks Through Wombs, reflecting on the Gospel of Luke through poetry. Touch the Earth picks up in chapter nine and continues through the end of Luke's Gospel. Part protest poetry, part biblical commentary, Jackson presents the gospel story in all its liberative power. Here the gospel is the "fresh words / that speak of / things impossible."From the feeding of the multitude ("The best hosts always provide / take home containers") to the resurrection of Jesus ("the belly of mother Earth / is, indeed, a womb . . . the humus of life is where we become fully human"), this collection helps us hear the hum of deliveranceagainst all hopethat's been in the gospel all along.

Drew Jackson is the founding pastor of Hope East Village in New York City. He is also the author of the poetry collection God Speaks Through Wombs. He and his wife have twin daughters and live in Lower Manhattan.

Foreword by Pádraig Ó TuamaPart I: JourneyI. StudentsTouch the EarthTake NothingShake the DustIn Their GardenHouse of Hunting, House of the HunterSilence DisruptedWe Feed Each OtherLeftoversStreets Is TalkingCrazy TalkStr, Pt. IIInner CircleTransfiguredThe Tragedy of the DisinheritedHuman HandsAnd What of Greatness?With or AgainstLike FlintA RebukeThe Call in Three MovementsII. NeighborsSquad UpA Harvest of DreamersRomulus and RemusInstructions for the Freedom StruggleMaledictionsPower to the PeopleTo Live and to Live OnApokalypsis (Tell Me)Touch Yo' NeighborNobody Talks About the RoadFor Those Who Choose to SitIII. PrayerA Certain PlaceCurious ObservationPray Then Like ThisImagine, or, SupposeThoughts on Asking, Seeking, and KnockingOde to PopSilencedThis Haunted HouseRedemptionBlessednessThe Sign of JonahWashing DishesWeightier MattersWhen the Truth Insults MeMonumentsIV. HypocrisyMeanwhileHypocrisyEyes on the SparrowBlasphemyOde to the Savings AccountPigeon EconomicsFour BoysMilesWhen the Rain ComesV. TyrantsThere Are Pontius Pilates in Every AgeSurvivor's GuiltTo Become a FlowerWhich Lives?Don't Despise Small BeginningsEschatologyAsk Them WhyFoxesA Lament for the Prophets We've KilledVI. Dinner GuestThanksgiving EtiquetteLex Et OrdoBreakingSaint ColtraneWith Strings AttachedI Am a Conflict-Free ZoneWe All EatThese BagsSalty GhazalVII. FoundFor the Ones Called LostThis Side of the PastureTo Be Still Is to Be FoundThere is a Great Joy That WaitsProdigalGive Me My ShareDistant CountryBrinkWhen I Came to MyselfRehearsalWhere the Road and Sky Shake HandsLike a SlaveVIII. EconomicsRich ManSituation EthicsInterrogating MammonFor the LoveWishesDog Spells God BackwardsThresholdWhen the Prophets ComeIX. Kingdom ComeStumbling BlocksBe on GuardIf Another Disciple SinsPine-Sol and Gospel MusicEvery Living Thing Was Once a SeedGold StarFor I Am Like JonahKindness TravelsRoses for GodThe Faces of the BlessedThe Kingdom of TreesOrdinary DaysRemember Lot's WifeAetosX. MercyThe Virtue of AnnoyanceWhen Hatred Goes to ChurchFacing HeavenBlocking BlessingEven InfantsWhat Must I Do?Mortally ImpossibleComprehensionWhat Do You Want Me to Do for You?XI. ReparationWee Little ManTree ClimbingI Think It Was BrunchNo Repentance Without RepairThe Waiting GamePart II: JerusalemXII. TriumphBeast of BurdenHosannaSinging RocksThe Last FrontierFlipping TablesXIII. QuestionsHaiku: UnansweredBeautiful RejectionMachinationsGive to CaesarIn the Age to ComeFor the Sake of AppearanceXIV. WarningsButterscotch Hard CandyBuilding CampaignBefore It All EndsImminenceWhen the Powers of Heaven ShakeSometimes Death ComesN.Y. State of MindXV. Passion30 PiecesUpper RoomEucharisteoThis Is My BodyThis CupTowel and BasinThe Kingdom Is OursSiftedTwo SwordsA Stone's ThrowKiss of DeathPeirasmosLike a KingDeath Row Trial #1XVI. DeathDeath Row Trial #2Death Row Trial #3Death Row Trial #4Via Crucis: Sweet BlacknessVia Crucis: Daughters of JerusalemVia Crucis: Two OthersForgive Them, FatherThe Ninth HourSpectacleSaturdayXVII. ResurrectionUnder the GroundEmmausParanormal ActivityFish FryAscensionAcknowledgments