By Walt Garlington
On the Fifth of August
The Son of God,
Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Shone brighter than the sun
Upon Mount Tabor.
On the Forefeast
Of that Salvific Day,
A star rises from within the Church,
Prefiguring the greater Light
That soon will dawn upon the world:
The glorious king and martyr
Oswald of Northumbria,
Whose reign, like the transfigured Lord,
Still shines brilliantly upon English shores –
Saint Oswald, who raised up the Cross
And vanquished the pagans in battle
Through the intercessions
Of Iona’s shepherd Saint Columba,
Whose memory is blessed
Through the endless ages;
Who evangelized his people
With the help of his fellow-worker
The holy bishop Aidan,
The first of many
Who sanctified the isle
Of Lindisfarne
With the joyful toil
Of ascetic labors;
Saint Oswald, who established
Churches and monasteries
For the newly enlightened English,
Who died tragically young
As a martyr for Christ
But has never abandoned his land,
Guarding and blessing it still
Through the presence of his holy relic.
Remember us, radiant King,
Here at the South, stumbling amidst
The darkness and confusion
Of the modern world,
Bowing blindly to idols
We hardly recognize.
Remember us, your kinsmen,
And guide us out from the branches
And brambles of the dead,
Blackened forest-maze
That tear and pierce us
Without pity or remorse
That we may walk in the light of day,
In the pleasant pastures
Of the Orthodox Church,
Where there dwell all the righteous
Saints and angels blazing in their glory –
The most magnificent constellation
Within the renewed creation –
The glory gained from their indivisible union
With the All-Blessèd Trinity,
Who is worthy of all praise
From Southern tongues.
Ruler of Northumbria,
From which hails the family
Of the foremost
Of Virginia’s sons,
General Washington himself,
Generous Oswald,
Exalted in two kingdoms,
Bear our behest
To Christ the King,
That Dixie may be admitted
To the Greater of the two,
Initiated into the Life of God,
Where there is no sighing and no fear
But only peace and rejoicing
In every time and in all seasons.
Walt Garlington is a chemical engineer turned writer and editor of the website Confiteri: A Southern Perspective. This longtime Southern Baptist, then Anglican, was united to the Orthodox Church in 2012 and makes his home in Louisiana where he attends a GOA parish.
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