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Elizabeth Anne Finnigan's avatar

The Light continues to lead-- one must but step out of the shadows.

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Carol Burns's avatar

This is one of the poems I THOUGHT I understood! When my husband and I first got married, I copied it out in calligraphy as a gift to him. I am amazed and astonished at how often your choices of words, poems, and songs coincide with events and prayers. Last month I bought a small devotional book entitled Lead, Kindly Light. Then the recording of the poem I know so well by the Mariners [I'd never heard of them] brought me to tears. One of my students lost his beloved Grandpa in the night. So the poem took on still another veil of meaning. Thank you!

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Debra Esolen's avatar

Carol, I am so glad that we chose this poem for this week, reading your comment. Tony decided this time to walk everyone through the poem, stanza by stanza. The traditional hymns are such a real support and comfort, and they lead us -- as this hymn, in particular emphasized -- in that direction which God chooses. God rest the soul of your student's dear Grandpa.

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Mary Blanton's avatar

I cannot hear this poem without thinking of Thomas Howard, whose account of his conversion, with the title of this poem, was instrumental in my own coming into the Church.

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Helen's avatar

I just received this book of Thomas Howard a few days ago. It's a connection for me in other ways as Thomas was a brother of Elizabeth Elliott, window of Jim Elliott of the Auca Indians mission in Ecuador. I was in high school in 1956 when that morning the news came on announcing the death of the 5 missionaries. Made a big impression on me in my teen years.

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Anthony Esolen's avatar

I met Tom a couple of times, the last at Gordon College, quite a few years ago now. He was irrepressibly cheerful, a wise man who never took himself seriously. A beautiful soul.

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