Gratias Agimus Tibi  (Thank You)

by Philip Schmidt

You have heard my sobs
Arising from the separateness of our cells.
You have come with ointment
To bind up these wounds.
But I am no longer here.
The tomb is empty.

You sat with me
In the crucible of our suffering.
You held me in the Pain
Of Excruciating Division.
You listened with an open heart.
You said, « I am with you ».

The Balm of that Presence
Has been enough.
The Night of Sin is over.
The Spark of Your Life has ignited our embers
And the tombs are being pried open,
One by one.

No official teaching,
No magisterial dismissal,
Not one bitter word
Can keep us apart
From the Love of Christ that gathers us into One.
« Eternal Life for us to live doth now begin ». (1)

Resurrexit sicut dixit !
Gloria in excelsis Deo !
Alléluia! Alléluia! Alléluia! (2)

(1). From « The Nativity » by Robert Southwell, S.J., English Martyr (1561-1595)
(2). He is risen as He said! Glory to God in the highest! Alleluia!