Singing Our Truth

My friends,

We are now into the week that the Christian tradition calls "Holy". It is a week in which Christians recall the last days of the man, Jesus of Nazareth; we remember his prophetic ministry and his execution for speaking truth to power. Finally we Christians celebrate the fact that the truth Jesus proclaimed cannot be contained, even in death, as we profess that Christ the Lord has risen. Today is Palm or Passion Sunday, and the lectionary text for today comes from Luke’s account of Jesus’ life, telling of Jesus’ the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, his weeping over the city, and his cleansing of the Temple.

Four years ago, in the weeks after the U.S invaded Iraq, I composed a hymn for Palm Sunday based upon the Lukan text, in which Jesus claims that if the disciples were silent in their praise, then the very stones would be forced to cry out. In 2003, I found this text to be quite appropriate as I knew it to be a time when those of us who dared to speak out (against our government, the war, et al) were being told to shut up by the communities around us. In Luke's text, I heard the reminder that truth always has a way of being heard, despite my reluctance or my fear to speak out.

Four years later, this message is just as timely. Public opinion of the war may have turned, but we are still allowing for the continuing escalation of troops to Iraq. This is not a time to allow the stones beneath us take our place in the chorus of witnesses. So I wish to share the text of the hymn with you. May we speak boldly the truth we are called to proclaim.

Strength, courage, and peace for the journey,
Rachel


The Very Stones Would Sing
Tune: BEACH SPRING 87.87D
Luke 19:29-40

Here, we wave our palms in honor, Here, we lay our garments down,
As you enter in your glory, And as we demand your crown.
We shout psalms of adoration, Crying “Blessed is the king!”
And you say that if we’re silent Then the very stones would sing!

We have waited for your coming. We have cried out for release.
You’re the King whom we have longed for; You’re the One, the Prince of Peace.
So we wonder at your summons To be the peace you bring.
In reluctance, we are silent, So the very stones must sing.

We are frightened, thus unfaithful, When we’re silenced by the world.
We betray you; we deny you Lest their anger be unfurled.
We are scared, Lord, to speak boldly; To security we cling.
In our panic, we are silent, So the very stones must sing.

Lord, how quickly our “Hosannas” Turn to cries of “Crucify!”
When the justice that you call for Requires of us our lives.
We don’t want a God of mercy; We demand a conquering king.
In our anger, we are silent, So the very stones must sing.

O God, help us to stand steadfast. Help us witness to your peace.
Help us to reclaim our voices That our praise may never cease.
Lead us forward on the journey; Bells of justice let us ring.
Underfoot, may stones be silent; Let us be the ones who sing!


Copyright © 2003 by Rachel Frey. All rights reserved. revrachelfrey (at) gmail (dot) com. Permission for free one-time use is given for congregational worship. The above copyright and contact information shall be included when reproducing this hymn in worship bulletins.