Songs of the Slav
Thou tallest first. And for Thy name, Thy dreams,
Hundreds upon hundreds shall spill their blood
On crosses and arenas and scaffolds.
And when 'twill seem Thy dream has been fulfilled,
Then in Thy name, and only in Thy name,
The carnage shall go on. So far as eye
Can see, there rows of flaming pyres extend
Where sacrifices are burned in Thy name;
And in Thy name numberless wars shall rage,
And in Thy name cities and towns shall burn,
And in Thy name countries shall be laid waste,
And in Thy name curses shall be uttered,
And in Thy name there shall be slavery
Of body and of spirit.
For behold
The centurion and the scribe! The one
Shall murder in Thy name, the other bless
Him in Thy name. Wretched millions shall pay
For Thy dream with their most precious estate,
Their lives.
And o'er the blood that is thus spilled
Thy dream of God's eternal kingdom and
Heaven's glory shall rise up like a phantom
That shall reward the dead. A lure to them
In life thruout and on till ends the world!
Why then didst Thou not take all those kingdoms
And glory of this world? For life is mine.
I am the life, the lord of all below.
And forever I sit in hearts, in souls! . . .
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