BEATITUDE by AUBREY THOMAS DE VERE

Blessed is he who hath not trod the ways
Of secular delights, nor learned the lore
Which loftier minds are studious to abhor:
Blessed is he who hath not sought the praise
That perishes, the rapture that betrays;
Who hath not spent in Time's vainglorious war
His youth; and found, a schoolboy at four-score,
How fatal are those victories which raise
Their iron trophies to a temple's height
On trampled Justice, who desires not bliss,
But peace; and yet when summoned to the fight,
Combats as one who combats in the sight
Of God and of His angels, seeking this
Alone, how best to glorify the right.

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