| Day 1 - THE SEASON OF WAITING |
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R & B/Blues master Curtis Mayfield
wrote this hit that The Impressions first cut
in 1965. Here's the title cut from Mayfield's
2007 Greatest Hits CD released on the B.C.D. label.
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From an essay by J.B Phillips
"The Dangers of Advent"
As a translator of the New Testament I find in it
no support whatever for the belief that one day all evil will be
eradicated from the earth, all problems solved, and health and wealth
be every man's portion! Even among some Christians such
a belief is quite commonly held, so that the "second advent"
of Christ is no more and no less than the infinite number
of "comings" of Christ into men's minds.
Of course, no one would deny that there are millions of
such "comings" every year - but that is not what the
Christian Church believes by the second advent of Christ;
and it is most emphatically not what any writer of the
New Testament ever meant in foretelling his second coming.
The New Testament is indeed a book full of hope,
but we may search for it in vain for any vague humanist optimism.
The second coming of Christ, the second irruption of eternity into time,
will be immediate, violent, and conclusive. The human experiment
is to end, illusion will give way to reality, the temporary will
disappear before the permanent, and the king will be seen
for who he is. The thief in the night, the lightning flash,
the sound of the last trumpet, the voice of God's archangel -
these may all be picture-language, but they are pictures
of something sudden, catastrophic, and decisive.
In my judgment, the description which Christ gave
of the days that were to come before his return is
more accurately reproduced in this fear-ridden age than
ever before in human history. Of course we do not know
the times and the seasons, but at least we can refuse to be
deceived by the current obsession for physical security
in the here-and-now. While we continue to pray and work
for the spread of the kingdom in this transitory world,
we know that its center of gravity is not here at all.
When God decides that the human experiment has gone on
long enough, yes, even in the midst of what appears to us
confusion and incompleteness, Christ will come again.
This is what the New Testament teaches.
This is the message of Advent.
It is for us to be alert, vigilant, and industrious,
so that his coming will not be a terror
but an overwhelming joy.
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Dylan's Slow Train Coming album
came out thirty years ago, but the prophet's
lyrics still ring as true as ever. It's on
the Sony Entertainment label.
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SLOW TRAIN
Sometimes I feel so low-down and disgusted
Can't help but wonder what's happening to my companions
Are they lost or are they found, have they counted the cost it'll take to bring down
All their earthly principles they're gonna have to abandon ?
There's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
I had a woman down in Alabama
She was a backwoods girl, but she sure was realistic
She said, Boy, without a doubt, have to quit your mess and straighten out
You could die down here, be just another accident statistic
There's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
All that foreign oil controlling American soil
Look around you, it's just bound to make you embarrassed
Sheiks walking around like kings, wearing fancy jewels and nose rings
Deciding America's future from Amsterdam and to Paris
And there's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Man's ego is inflated, his laws are outdated, they don't apply no more
You can't rely no more to be standing around waiting
In the home of the brave, Jefferson turning over in his grave
Fools glorifying themselves, trying to manipulate Satan
And there's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Big-time negotiators, false healers and woman haters
Masters of the bluff and masters of the proposition
But the enemy I see wears a cloak of decency
All non-believers and men stealers talking in the name of religion
And there's a slow, there's slow train coming up around the bend.
People starving and thirsting, grain elevators are bursting
Oh, you know it costs more to store the food than it do to give it
They say loose your inhibitions, follow your own ambitions
They talk about a life of brotherly love, show me someone who knows how to live it
There's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Well, my baby went to Illinois with some bad-talking boy she could destroy
A real suicide case, but there was nothing I could do to stop it
I don't care about economy, I don't care about astronomy
But it's sure do bother me to see my loved ones turning into puppets
There's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
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This is Ub40 from their 2003 CD titled
Labour of Love III,
on the Virgin Label.
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