November 28

King Kamehameha IV, Queen Emma, Matsuo Bashō, and William Blake

Author

David Barnhart
November 28, 2025

Today is a feast day, in the Church of Hawaii, of “The Holy Sovereigns,” or King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma. Not only did they establish an Anglican church in Hawaii, they skillfully navigated the colonial powers of England, France, and America while trying to preserve Hawaiian independence. 

Today also marks the death, in 1694, of Matsuo Bashō, Japanese poet, widely considered the greatest author of haiku, but also a master of other poetic forms.

Today is also the birthday, in 1757, of William Blake, English Romantic poet and artist. 

Reflection: 

Bashō wrote: 

“Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.”

and

“Seek not the paths of the ancients;
Seek that which the ancients sought.”

In his poem, “The Divine Image,” Blake wrote: 

Then every man, of every clime,
That prays in his distress,
Prays to the human form divine,
Love, Mercy, Pity, Peace.

And all must love the human form,
In heathen, Turk, or Jew;
Where Mercy, Love, and Pity dwell
There God is dwelling too.

Prayer: Word of God who is beyond words, you remind us that poets write better theology than the theologians.