Come forth thee prisoner from the shadows of your captivity,
From the remote recesses of the human heart,
a light has emerged,
From the hollow echoes of dungeons,
a song has broken forth
and in the weeping of frozen winter gasps
the circulation of a beating heart
has poured a river of blood
on the desolate landscape,

The crimson victory of martyrs
has given new life to the desert,

A procession of the saints of old erupts in the weeping city

The tambourine interrupts the stale speech of the megaphone,
The haughty promises and empty lies
advertised generation after generation
have been stripped of their false messiah,

and daughter Zion rejoices for her hour
has arrived,

With the sweet smell of incense
the mingling of heaven and earth,
has made all things new
in the dazzling light of the transfigured moment,

Oh thee captives of Babylon,
leave the ruined fortress of your fear,
For the walls have been shattered,
Leave the tired excuses of borrowed ideologies;
a living truth has taken flesh
and proclaimed an end to your slavery,

Come forth thee prisoner
from the shadows of your wounded heart,
Break out into singing!
Rejoice for your victory has arrived.

for the Monastic Family of Bethlehem
Livingston Manor, NY 2016