Christian musician Steven Curtis Chapman shared a video of a new song, a “Desperate Benediction” as he referred to it, the same day rioters stormed the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. After seeing the troubling events unfold, Chapman shared a song he’d been working on for a year but waiting to release until the timing was right.
“I’m so heavy hearted at the brokenness and division that we are witnessing and experiencing in our world today, and I am processing in the way most natural to me as a singer-songwriter: with a song,” Chapman wrote in a Facebook post on January 6, 2021.
The word benediction usually refers to the blessing a clergy member prays for the congregation before dismissing them from a worship service, but it can also mean “something that promotes goodness or well-being” and “an expression of good wishes,” according to Merriam-Webster.
Read Chapman’s beautiful lyrics below:
Peace on the mountain
Peace in the valley
Peace on the bulls on Wall Street
And the lost sheep in the alley
Peace on the painted desert
And down the Mississippi River
Peace on the takers
Peace on the givers
Peace in the blessing and the cursing
Oh let there be
Peace on Earth
Oh let there be
Peace on Earth
Peace on the lovers
Peace on the believers
Peace on the doubters
Peace on the true believers
The star in the spotlight
The addict in the shadows
The divers in the deep end
The drowners in the shallows
For all I’m not and all it’s worth
Oh let there be
Peace on Earth
Oh let there be
Peace on Earth
Peace on the poor man
Peace on the king
Radio fliers and the broken wings
Let there be peace
Oh let there be peace on
The babies being born
And the rose on the grave
The loser and the winner
And the fearful and the brave
We’re all brothers and sisters
Crying to the Father for
Peace on Earth
Oh let there be
Peace on Earth
And let it start with me
Along with the video, Chapman wrote the following words, expressing his “sadness” related to the events that unfolded at the Capitol:
Words can’t describe the sadness that I feel as I watch the events currently unfolding in our country. I’m so heavy hearted at the brokenness and division that we are witnessing and experiencing in our world today, and I am processing in the way most natural to me as a singer-songwriter: with a song. I actually started writing this song about a year ago with my brilliant songwriter friend Tom Douglas, but have been waiting for the right time to share it, and I feel like now is that time. Now more than ever before, it seems like the soul of our world (& our nation) is aching, longing and desperate for PEACE. Whoever & wherever we are, I’m convinced that at our core we are all brothers and sisters crying out for the same thing, what the bible calls “shalom”… a Hebrew word meaning peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness. And ultimately, I believe that true peace…the peace that transcends all understanding and guards our hearts and minds…comes from the Prince of peace, Jesus Christ. So it is with a heavy yet hopeful heart that I share this new song with you…as a prayer…a cry…a Desperate Benediction for all of us….praying for peace, and praying that it starts with me, with you, with each of us.
(Thank you to my son Caleb and daughter-in-law Jillian for joining me on this song.)
Peace be with you,
scc
