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Ada Cambridge - The Candle Of The Lord
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"The Spirit of man is the candle of the Lord."

        "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God."

Our spirit—ay, our own!—the tree whose fruits 
    Have never fail`d—the sign upon the door 
`Twixt us and God`s intelligent dumb brutes, 
        That parts us evermore! 

Our spirit—last, best gift—still unbereft 
    Of treasures stored in Eden`s happy land; 
One fragment of the human, as it left 
        The Divine Maker`s hand. 

That seal of our high birth He did allow 
    Toea unharm`d the sin and woe and strife; 
That remnant of our godhead—wanting now 
        Only the "breath of life." 

Only the breath of life, whereby the Lord 
    Made use to be His equals, fit to fill 
His throne—our free wills brought into accord 
        With His own sovereign will. 

Our spirit—not the feeble soul which came 
    With our dishonour`d state and its new needs; 
And not the feebler heart of sin and shame, 
        That daily breaks and bleeds. 

Our spirit—our unshatter`d lamp—still ours— 
    Fill`d with the heavenly essence, as of yore,— 
To bear a light, to light the midnight hours, 
        And light the wreck to shore. 

Ay, `tis the same—the same! It hath not shared 
    The mutilation and the curse and blight; 
When the destruction fell, the lamp was spared— 
        Only deprived of Light. 

O God! and hath it ever ceased to grope 
    For light, and yearn and cry for light to come? 
In blackest gloom, ere revelation spoke, 
        While yet the Christ was dumb, 

Thou knowest it search`d for every wandering ray, 
    And never wearied of the weary quest; 
And fed and fenced and treasured, day by day, 
        A glimmer in its breast. 

O holy Dove! O Grace! O Love! come down— 
    Our spirit with Thy perfect light inspire! 
Circle each candle with its flaming crown, 
        Its cloven tongue of fire!
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