I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along th' unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair I bow'd my head:
"There is no peace on earth," I said,
"For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men."
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth, good will to men."
Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,
Of peace on earth, good will to men!
This carol was originally a poem written by Longfellow, still grieving from his wife's tragic death in a fire, and shortly after hearing that his son, a lt. in the Army of the Potomac, had been seriously wounded in combat.
Whenever I think of how bad things are, this time of year, I think of Longfellow and his poem.
Longfellow's Carol
Discussion in 'Free-For-All Archives' started by The Galatian, Dec 24, 2004.
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Thanks for sharing that, quite thought provoking.
Gina -
church mouse guy Well-Known MemberSite Supporter
One of my favorites, too. I posted it last year. It has a couple of verses that are left out of hymnals, according to Cyber Hymnal. (That's a "dot org")
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There were two other verses that specifically referred to the Civil War, but they don't do much for the poem as a carol, and were not used when it was set to music.