Author: Odell Shepard, 1844-1967 Hymnal: Singing the Living Tradition #161 (1993) Meter: 8.7.8.7 First Line: Peace! The perfect word is sounding Lyrics: 1 Peace! The perfect word is sounding,
like a universal hymn
under oceans, over mountains,
to the world’s remotest rim.
2 Toiling centuries have struggled
upward on a stony way
just to set the torch of freedom
where it flames aloft today.
3 All the old forlorn lost causes,
every fair forbidden dream,
and the prophet’s hopeless vision,
and the poet’s fitting gleam,
4 All the hopes of subject peoples,
all the dreams of the oppressed,
must be ours, our hopes, our visions.
We can never stay or rest. Topics: Words and Deeds of Prophetic Women and Men Peace; Hope Languages: English Tune Title: CHARLESTON
Peace! The Perfect Word