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An Older Song

Today is a day when we celebrate love, although all too often what is described as love is little more than lust. But all genuine human love is an echo of the God who is love, and who has loved us with an everlasting love that is greater than any human love we could imagine. I originally wrote this performance poem for 2 voices, male and female, for an event in May 2007 run by the Down District of the Methodist Church in Ireland, staged at the Waterfront in Belfast, celebrating the Life and Work of Charles Wesley, born 300 years previously. It is based on numerous passages of scripture, especially the Song of Songs and the First Letter of John.

A night for singing songs…
Old songs and new songs
All based on an older song…
THE song…
The song of all songs
The song of a lady for her lover
The Lord for his beloved…
A song which began before creation…
A song of love which called light into being
A song of love which breathed life into clay
A song of love which gave us liberty…
Yet pursued us when we went astray.
I have loved you with an everlasting love…
I have been eternally faithful to you.
If only I could say the same.
Yet I have not loved you as I should;
I have not lived the life I could.
I have sought out the shadows
Rather than living in your light
Yet still you love me… Why?
I am love…
No more…
No less…
And you were created to be loved.
To be loved and to love…

Yet love turned to lust
For luscious fresh fruit
For knowledge, for flesh,
For riches, for power
For fresh tasting morsels to devour…
Love became lust;
Lust became lechery;
Liberty became license
License became lawlessness.
In my love I wrote to you…
I was too busy to respond…
In my love I sang to you…
You weren’t singing my tune…
In my love I sent my son to you…
Our Son…
Son of Woman
Son of God.
Light in place of darkness.
Life in place of death.
Yet in our liberty we made our choice
Death in place of life…
Darkness in place of light…
My Son, My Son, my one and only Son.
Sent so that you should not be lost
But might be set at liberty.
Even me?
Even you.
Believe me… And live…
Believe me… and love…
Live in my love…
Love as I love you…
Love my beloved
Love one another
Love those who love you
Love those who hate you
Love the loveless
Love the unlovely.
Love…
How?
Love…
And this is love…
Not that I loved him…
But he loved me.
Loved me…
Loves me…
And always will love me…
Loved me into life…
Filled my life with love
Filled to overflowing…
A love that brings light;
A love more constant than the sun.
A love that brings life;
A love that is stronger than death…
A love that brings liberty;
Yet a love that will not let me go…
A love without limit…
A love like no other
that I want others to know…
I am my beloved’s
And he is mine…
The big day is coming…
And everyone is invited
Come home with me…
I go with my lover…
The tables are ready and waiting
and over the door is a banner saying
“I love you!”

A night for singing songs…
Old songs and new songs
Come, step into the spotlight of his love
and sing a song forever old,
forever new
of Light and life
of liberty and love.

© David A. Campton 2007

Shalom


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