OPreach
Dominican Preaching through Word and Image
The Christmas Tapestry
Do you remember the song “Silent Night – 7 O’clock News” by Simon and Garfunkel?
The Christmas TapestryBy Michael Hare DukeThe humdrum duties of the land,feeding the beasts, mucking out the strawprovide the dull hessian backgroundof the Christmas scene.Suddenly the tapestry is litby glory’s goldand smirched by red threads of violence.First the angel songcaroling the Word made flesh,then the murderous fire of Herod’s fear
slaying the InnocentsIs conflict part of the perennial patternof our response to Love’s story?Colonial might, conversionproceeding from the barrel of a gunbetray the gracious Christ;the fear of might and moneybreed Terror.Innocents of Palestine,Arab and Jewbleed from the bombs and gunsthat violence deploys;the flash of gunfirerapes the night’s tranquility over Baghdad;the mothers of Breslan weep for their childrenand will not be comforted.Meanwhile there’s far within;as each of us grows oldblack crows of death and diseasedarken our days.Come Love anewlet the angels’ songcounterpoint our tearsand lace the clouds with glory.Give us an unambiguous blessingby the Birthto paint a rainbowabove our hearts’ distress.With love and prayers for Light to overcomethe current darkness, political, ecclesiastical and personal.Source: http://thewitness.org/agw/hareduke010305.html (11/5/07) – Found on the Education for Justice website.
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