I’ve recently written a number of hymns as part of my the communications module of my masters degree in Sustainability and Behaviour Change. This is the first I’m publishing on this blog and was inspired by a challenge from one of my lecturers to imagine a day in 2050. My immediate thoughts were dystopian, but then I decided I wanted to capture a vision of hope. It builds on the secular song I posted earlier but takes in feedback that the tune I’d selected wasn’t sufficiently upbeat.

The first two verses are essentially secular, indeed they could be sung on their own at non-religious or interfaith meetings. The final verse uses strong Christian images and language and I hope convey how a Christian vision can be a driver of societal progress. The last four lines of the final verse are inspired by the vision of a new earth that occurs at the end of the book of Revelation (Rev 22:1-5).

You can read a vision of what Zero Carbon Britain might look like at this link.  

Fossil fuels have been abandoned,
panels now lap up the sun,
turbines cartwheel through the heavens,
silenced forests sing again.
Poverty is part of history,
healthy food brings blooming health,
corporate greed has been defeated,
nations choose to share their wealth.

All it took was love of neighbour,
rev’rence for God’s fragile sphere,
active hope for resurrection,
vision of God’s kingdom here.
Through the city runs a river,
crystal clear, infused with grace,
lined with trees whose leaves bring healing,
everyone can see God’s face.

Can be sung to several tunes of metre 87.87D, I suggest Ode to Joy by Beethoven. Try this singalong video or download the PowerPoint at this link.