God only can heal the bruised spirit, and yield
Peace. By the overthrown altar of a fane,
Foundation shattered, which from faith to faith
Translate, e’er consecrate still stands, we join
In mystic worship secretly. Let us trust
All, worship, form and offering grateful. Stone
Untooled; untouched, unless by nature’s hand,
By man reared, solitary; mound, pyramid,
Tower, temple, obelisk, stony cirque, and spire
To one fact witness, that as sun and moon
Fill, with their light, space, so twin truths man’s mind
Through time possess; God’s onemostness, and our
Immortal life. To soul saved, time’s no more
An opponent section of duration, summed
In separate column from the eternal. All’s
Eternity, is concentric with our life.
A Ruined Temple, surrounded by Sands.
Festus and Lucifer.
Festus. Here will I worship solely.
Lucifer. It is a fane
Once sacred to the sun; since consecrate
To the Cross; deserted now.
Festus. It matters not
That false god here may have truly been adored,
Nor true God falsely served, nor by what rites
Life–hating, or life–nourishing, or with sign
Simplest of corn, oil, wine; or fruit and flower.
The truly holy soul which hath once received
God’s unattainable gift, the imparted sense
Of unitive life with him can hallow here
Whate’er the creed it holds; not less what, late,
Of theo–human being, before all time,
And all incarnate emanations, priest
Or prophet taught these stones, than in times long gone,
Of mediatorial light, heaven’s orb
(Philip James Bailey)
More Poetry from Philip James Bailey:
Philip James Bailey Poems based on Topics: God, Light, Heaven, Life, Time, War & Peace, Eternity, Devils, Charity, Space, Flowers- Festus - XLV (Philip James Bailey Poems)
- Festus - VII (Philip James Bailey Poems)
- Festus - XLII (Philip James Bailey Poems)
- Festus - II (Philip James Bailey Poems)
- Festus - XXXIII (Philip James Bailey Poems)
- Festus - XIV (Philip James Bailey Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: God Poems, Life Poems, Light Poems, Time Poems, War & Peace Poems, Heaven Poems, Flowers Poems, Charity Poems, Eternity Poems, Wine Poems, Space PoemsBased on Keywords: festus, obelisk, cirque, emanations, mediatorial, unitive
- Parisina (Lord George Gordon Byron Poems)
- The Golden Legend: VI. The School Of Salerno (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Poems)
- Of The Nature Of Things: Book II - Part 03 - Atomic Forms And Their Combinations (Lucretius Poems)
- The School Of The Heart. Lesson The Second. (Henry Alford Poems)
- Hyperion, A Vision: Attempted Reconstruction Of The Poem (John Keats Poems)