Seigneur, venez (‘Come, Lord’) is one of those lovely songs. I first heard it when I was a student in France many years ago, and during the days of Advent, I often find myself humming it, singing it under my breath, words and melody carrying me into the unique atmosphere and spirit of this midwinter season of hope and promise. The song is not relentlessly otherworldly and positive, highlighting comfort, peace and joy.
Instead, it seeks to acknowledge the brokenness of life, to open us to the mystery of God’s presence in human experience, even when it is bitterly cold and the night seems endless (‘le froid nous mord et la nuit est sans fin’). Seigneur, venez ends with a prayer that God’s Spirit will enable a dying world to be re-born (‘qu’au feu de l’Esprit renaisse un monde qui meurt’).
Given all that is happening today, some would readily identify with that idea of a ‘dying world’, wondering perhaps if the final line, ‘My God, may your kingdom come!’ (‘Mon Dieu, que votre règne arrive!’) is not simply a wish but an urgent question: will God’s kingdom ever come?
Source: Thinkingfaith
