war_poetry | Wilfred Owen, ' At a Calvary Near The Ancre'

At a Calvary Near The Ancre

One ever hangs where shelled roads part.
In this war He too lost a limb,
But His disciples hide apart;
And now the Soldiers bear with Him.

Near Golgotha strolls many a priest,
And in their faces there is pride
That they were flesh-marked by the Beast
By whom the gentle Christ's denied.

The scribes on all the people shove
And bawl allegiance to the state,
But they who love the greater love
Lay down their life; they do not hate.

By Wilfred Owen

[A "Calvary" is a statue of the crucified Christ; these crucifixes are erected at many crossroads in France.]