Little Town

 a reflection on Micah 5:2 

Just a little town

Not much more than a village really

A cluster of houses,

A merchant, and a baker

Some shepherds and a wood worker

A wee synagogue where the Rabbi read the scriptures 

and the people hung on his every word 

just a little town, that no one really took notice of

A prophet wrote about it once you know

but that was generations back; 

and nothing ever came of it

it was all a bit mysterious anyway

what could it mean?

An ancient prophecy about a birth

It means nothing

It means something

Who knows? 

It’s been a long time since prophets and prophecies

And what good can come from a wee backwater anyway?

Just a little town,

One of the towns of David’s tribe

But that was long ago

And no one really remembers

And no one really believes anymore

Do they?

It’s poor and mean and lowly

Just a collection of small houses, 

with a merchant and a baker

not much room for anyone there

a tiny inn

and a small synagogue with a Rabbi

who reads the holy words

and tries his best to communicate the 

mysteries of God  

And you – O Ephrathah

you, O Bethlehem

that little town,

that noble city

you will be remembered

And you, O little one

will house the holy one of God

you will welcome, in your darkened streets,

the Light of the World 

though you will not know it

and you may deny it, 

but the little ones,

the forgotten ones

the ignored ones

they will know

they will hear

Gloria! Gloria! Glory to God! 

Sung from the heavens down to earth

To the little town

the cluster of houses,

a merchant, and a baker

some shepherds and a wood worker

The holy town

That the world will never forget