ALL THE ENDS OF THE EARTH
All The Ends Of The Earth is based on Psalm 98, and is the responsorial psalm for Christmas during the day, and the common responsorial psalm for the Christmas season.
“O sing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
have gotten him victory.
The Lord has made known his victory;
he has revealed his vindication
in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love
and faithfulness to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth
have seen the victory of our God.
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.”
(Psalm 98: 1-6, NRSV)
Psalm 98 seemingly encompasses much of the Christmas message. From the shepherds guarding their flocks in the fields to the Magi following the Star of Bethlehem, all of the ends of the earth, indeed, have seen the power of God in the stable of Bethlehem.
The psalm challenges us to ask the question, “Do I see the power of God Incarnate in the infant Jesus lying in a feed trough of oxen and donkeys?” If we do, the joy reflected in the melody of this song must radiate in our lives, in spite of the hardships and challenges of daily life. While we may feel at times burdened by the stuff of life, the knowledge that God loves us so much Jesus, the Word of God, became one with us, is capable of lifting that burden from our life.
I composed this back in 1986 as a Responsorial Psalm for the choirs at St Hubert Catholic Community. I reimagined this Psalm Setting as a song for piano in 2018. It is the piano setting that is bein presented here.
The Truce of Christmas
Passionate peace is in the sky–
And in the snow in silver sealed
The beasts are perfect in the field,
And men seem men so suddenly–
(But take ten swords and ten times ten
And blow the bugle in praising men;
For we are for all men under the sun,
And they are against us every one;
And misers haggle and madmen clutch,
And there is peril in praising much.
And we have the terrible tongues uncurled
That praise the world to the sons of the world.)
The idle humble hill and wood
Are bowed upon the sacred birth,
And for one little hour the earth
Is lazy with the love of good–
(But ready are you, and ready am I,
If the battle blow and the guns go by;
For we are for all men under the sun,
And they are against us every one;
And the men that hate herd all together,
To pride and gold, and the great white feather
And the thing is graven in star and stone
That the men who love are all alone.)
Hunger is hard and time is tough,
But bless the beggars and kiss the kings,
For hope has broken the heart of things,
And nothing was ever praised enough.
(But bold the shield for a sudden swing
And point the sword when you praise a thing,
For we are for all men under the sun,
And they are against us every one;
And mime and merchant, thane and thrall
Hate us because we love them all;
Only till Christmastide go by
Passionate peace is in the sky.)
GK Chesterton
