Just too late to be of any use, here’s a new Advent hymn, to the tune of Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence.
Longing for a hope-filled morning,
Kingdom of the Son, draw near!
Waiting for the day soon dawning,
Light of love that casts out fear.
Dayspring, come from heav’n, in lowly birth,
Come to warm this cold, dark earth.
Sorrow through the world is sweeping,
Bitter conflict rages still,
Heaven hears its children weeping:
cost of humankind’s freewill.
Come, O Price* of Peace, in lowly birth,
Come to mend this broken earth.
Pattern of the world’s salvation,
God and human side by side.
Colour, language, creed or nation,
No more should the world divide:
Come, Emmanuel, in lowly birth,
Show how heav’n embraces earth.
*This word started off as a typo, but I quite like it, as it echoes the ‘cost’ of the previous line… If you use the hymn, you can choose whether to use Price or Prince 🙂 And thank you to the lovely Uptonpc for suggesting that Price could stay as an option!
reverendally.org 
Reblogged this on A Rector reflects and commented:
A reblog…
Is “Price of Peace” a typo? Because if it is, it shouldn’t be!
You know, I’m still in two minds about it! It started as a typo, but I quite like it! I might add a footnote to the effect that people can choose which word they prefer… 🙂
I like it!
Reblogged this on Bishop's Blog and commented:
Super Advant hymn by Ally – use it next year if it’s loo late fot his. A favourite tune of tune of mine too: will blog some words of my own to it next. BTW I would use “Prince” as “Price” is IMHO a bit too dissonant and confusing for a congrgetional hymn, though great for a poem. Can a hymn have footnotes?
I can think of a couple of hymns that come with footnotes – A&M R explains the Mystic Rose in “Crown him with many crowns”, and NEH points out the acrostic in “Saints of God, lo, Jesu’s people.”
I’d forgotten about the Mystic Rose – I’m inclined to give folk the choice so they can decide how poetic they are feeling.