Yes, I hadn’t been for years —
Inside a church, I mean:
But something drew me back
To try and ease the lack.
It’s that residual Christianity;
That little lick of flame
I thought had been extinguished,
Had glowed a little warmth in me.
No matter how deep they scourged;
Pierced with nails, thorns or sword;
Or shoved the bitter sponge
To His parched lips. His voice,
Like a haunting, hunting horn,
Often tuned my cottoned ears,
And sometimes teared my eyes
Until I quit, and went to worship.
Malcolm Ford is an artist and poet from Whangerai, NZ.
The English poet Francis Thompson (1859-1907) is well remembered for his poem “The Hound of Heaven”. This poem is inspired by that classic verse.
