Christian Art | George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | Antiphon (1)
George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | Antiphon (1)
Chorus
Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing,
My God and King.
Verse
The heav’ns are not too high,
His praise may thither flie:
The earth is not too low,
His praises there may grow.
Chorus
Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing,
My God and King.
Verse
The church with psalms must shout
No doore can keep them out:
But above all, the heart
Must bear the longest part.
Chorus
Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing,
My God and King
George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | Antiphon (1)
The poem emphasizes universality and inclusivity of divine worship, suggesting that the entire world resounds with praise for God. The refrain, ‘Let all the world in every corner sing, / My God and King,’ creates a communal call to worship through the poem.
In the first verse, Herbert observes that no part of creation is too remote to participate in this act of praise. The ‘heavens are not too high’ implies that even loftiest parts of existence are within reach of God’s presence and praise. That the earth is ‘not too low’ suggests that God’s praise can flourish in every humble or hidden corner of the world. By connecting heaven and earth through praise, the poem knows that the divine is omnipresent and accessible, wherever one may be.
The second verse shifts focus to the Church as a collective body of worship; there is power of song to transcend physical barriers. ‘No door can keep them out.’ This implies that spiritual praise cannot be confined or silenced, no matter attempts to contain it. However, the poem underscores that genuine worship must ultimately be seated in the heart, as ‘the heart / Must bear the longest part’. This phrase suggests that while communal worship is important, the enduring and most meaningful aspect of worship is the individual, heartfelt devotion of each individual believer. We are all individuals with God.
By juxtaposing physical spaces – heavens, earth, the Church – with spiritual commitment of the heart, the poem presents worship as an act that is both outwardly communal and deeply personal. The refrain, which binds each verse, reinforces the idea that this praise is both continuous and unending, a shared endeavour that is boundless across place and person.
Saint Gregory the Great’s homily on Christ as the Good Shepherd, taken from the Gospel of John, is a deeply pastoral and theological reflection rooted in both personal experience and the challenges of his time. In unpacking this text, Gregory speaks not only as a biblical interpreter but as a pope with a profound concern for the souls of his people — both lay and ordained. His reflections continue to resonate in Christian thought, especially on what has come to be known as ‘Good Shepherd Sunday’ [ … ]
It is the time of the Passion. Jesus has been arrested and the Jewish leaders have asked Pilate to judge Jesus and order him put to death. Pilate now speaks with Jesus. Jesus’ life is in Pilate’s hands. The lives of all the people in the world are in Jesus’ hands – the crucifixion must happen; the figure of Christ on the cross, which has towered over the Gospels, must be realised, the sign of our redemption and the sign of truth [ .. ]
Jesus and his disciples have moved south into Judea, and Jesus and John are baptizing people very near to one other. John’s location is precisely stated in these Gospel verses: he is at Aenon, an Aramaic word meaning wells, near Salim, which was to the northeast of Samaria, about thirteen miles to the south of the Sea of Galilee. In these verses, John’s Gospel develops the information given to us in the Synoptics: we learn that Jesus’ public ministry began while John the Baptist’s was current, and that there was no rivalry between Jesus and John; indeed, that John the Baptist rejoiced in Jesus’ beginning his ministry [ … ]
