"O Little Town of Bethlehem"

Things are not what they were in Bethlehem! With Middle Eastern conflict and Israel fuelling discontent, constructing a massive wall and checkpoints, settlements and more...

Peace activists and networks have a way of cutting through...  maybe we'll sing it in coming weeks!

O LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM
O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and restless sleep,
a missile glideth by
While children weep in shallow sleep
for friends who are no more
How silently, how silently
their hope has gone away
No laughter rings, no choir sings
in shepherds’ fields this day
The angels in the heavens
are hushed in sad lament
the holy child forced into exile
finds Herod won’t relent
O holy child of Bethlehem,
descend on us we pray
Your love bring down on David’s town,
drive fear and hate away
Awake the ire of nations,
let justice be restored
Rebuild the peace in silent streets
where once your love was born
O broken town of Bethlehem your people long for peace,
But curfews, raids and barricades have brought them to their knees
Yet still they long for justice, and still they make their stand.
Their hopes and fears still echo down the years
Come heal this holy land.
O holy child of Bethlehem, a royal refugee.
Your place of birth, now hell on earth, through our complicity.
The innocents still suffer, their backs against the wall.
We see the crime, the pain and death
And choose to ignore it all.
O holy streets of Bethlehem, where watch towers block our view.
With armoured cars and tanks and guns so no one can go through.
The market place stands empty. The fruit rots on the tree.
While loving families strive to build
A life of dignity.
O hopeful town of Bethlehem quite soon your day will come
When tanks go back to Israel and prison walls are gone.
Go tell it on the mountain and spread it o’er the plain
The ancient land of Palestine
A nation once again.