What got us here?

I

Sitting in our easy chair,
We watched the marches on the air
And wondered at the world presented to us
When demonstrators broke on through
With gallows for red, white, and blue.
We witnessed then the horrors that o’er threw us.
Lord, have mercy, sing the chorus—
Lord, have mercy, sing the chorus—
Lord, have mercy, sing the chorus—

II

There is, in the knowing of ritual,
A yearning and the need for ritual;
For oftentimes, only ritual
Has the power to relieve and reveal public angst.
So, our nation was drawn
To that elemental, tabled core of devotion;
Word of prayer spoken,
Looking over Jordan pool
With lights of life
Rising to the heavens,
Not seeing, but reflecting,
On lives lost and the life to come.
“What got us here?”,
We ask in wonder.
“What got us here?
What got us here?
What god is here?”

III

Is our ground of being
Fertile loess of loss to fill the grave
Of what, though flawed, was something good?
Or can that fecund soil sustain
The seed of new growth and harvest?
Can we with careful hands
Pull the weeds among the wheat,
Or must we wait for murky future mercy given?
O Ground of Being, in you we trust
And cache our hopes and dreams in you.
In dependence on your justification
We seek your justice for all.
“What got us here?”,
We ask in wonder.
“What got us here?
What got us here?
What god is here?”

IV

There is, in avarice of land,
An esurient need of land,
And only acquisition
Has the power to sate our public covetousness.
We came, we saw, we stole the dirt.
Denying prime title or civil worth,
We sold their lives. In the name of Mammon,
Seeking ever expanding borders,
Smilingly, we wrote
Those many treaties broken;
Taking, without reflecting,
On lives lost and lives to come.
“What got us here?”,
We ask in wonder.
“What got us here?
What got us here?
What god is here?”

V

Is our image then
Devoid of God
and cannot then be saved
From wanton ways? Or is reparation desire
Enough to heal these broken lives?
Can we with careful hands
Find the wheat among the weeds,
Or must we plead for murky future mercy given?
O Image Fair, to square accounts,
You ruled our lives redeemed in You.
With repentant pennants, we treat you to surrender,
Seeking peace, for all your precious people.
“What got us here?”,
We ask in wonder.
“What got us here?
What got us here?
What god is here?”

VI

And so, we come, with ritual,
With yearning, in need of ritual,
Knowing that only ritual
Has the power to relieve and heal our public wounding.
So, we come to bind our hurts
At tabled, core conviction, with devotion
And word of prayer now spoken.
Looking into Jordan pool
We see the light
Of murky mercy given
Not reflecting now, but seeing
Lives lost and potential life to come.
“What got us here?”,
We ask in wonder.
“What got us here?
What got us here?
What? God is here?”

VII

And so, we come, in need of prayer,
With cries that fill the open air,
Remembering loss, beginning times of healing.
When impeachment trial is through
And judgments made are true,
With hope-filled hearts, we’ll bow our heads while kneeling—
Lord have mercy. Sing, believing.
Lord have mercy. Sing, believing.
Lord have mercy. Sing, believing.