Advent Oratorio by Tom Wright

Bostic — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:10:32 +0000

Tom Wright (or N.T. Wright) has caught the brunt of much controversy lately. For me this does not overshadow the fact that he has been one of the most prominent current theological writers on the coming Kingdom and a heavy theolgical influence in my life. Tom recently wrote a new “Advent Oratorio” that you can find here Advent Oratorio. Thanks Justin Taylor for first posting this N.T. Wright’s “Advent Oratorio” – Justin Taylor

The opening lines from Tom’s work

“When the deaf hear the song of the new-born swan

and the lame go dancing on gold;

When the pauper raises his cheerful glass,

And the blind exclaim at the bright green grass,

And the hills bow down for the Lamb to pass,

Then the tale will at last be told.

It‟s a tale of a world put right at last,

it‟s the news of justice done;

It‟s the story the dead are eager to learn,

it‟s the song of the hedgerow, the stream and the fern,

it‟s the whisper of a long-lost Lord‟s return,

Of heaven and earth made one.

When the axe is laid to the root of the tree

(As the Baptist saw long ago);

When the greedy are blamed, and the violent tamed,

and the liars are named and the lustful ashamed,

and the rights of the poor are at last proclaimed,

Then the River of Life will flow.

And the Tree will grow its healing leaves,

and the Advent bell will ring;

And the stars will sparkle their glad applause,

and the seas will lend their voice to the cause,

while the angels unlock the ancient doors,

To welcome the coming King.”

Garden to the City » Current Writers

Advent Oratorio by Tom Wright