Flood tides of Love

(Written during a miners' strike)

Prudence Backhouse

How should we pray?
How can we ease the bitter legacy?
How yield ourselves to the concentric rings
Issuing ever from the center-source,
Widening around us, through us, past us,
Dissolving the mine fields of unforgiving?

Can we see that Christ treads over the mine fields?
The once-pierced Jesus-feet of conquered hurt,
Shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace,
Annihilate the vindictiveness of hate.

Having known the corridors of suffering,
The constricting rock-ribbed walls of enmity,
Jesus walked triumphant.
Found there was no stone unturnable,
No wall resistant to the horn of Love.
Rolled away the boulder.

"We have suffered, we will not forgive."
"We have suffered, we cannot forgive."
If the boulder rolled, these pebbles of unforgiving
Can wash away in the surges of God's presence.

And then we may perceive brother loosing
Brother from the mire of grudge and hate,
Emerging from the labyrinth of spite,
Their limbs of reconciliation free,
With Christ triumphant in the level dawn of Love.

Prudence Backhouse

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