TO HEAR THE FALCONER: SONG AND PROPHECY FOR THE TIME OF WAR, WANT, AND WARMING

Webber offers spiritual verses about what he sees as man’s destructive avarice and the hope that man can heal himself and the world through faith.

Webber’s 72 verses range in tone from that of the majestic beauty of the psalms to the fire and brimstone of Old Testament prophets. His poetry is best suited to Christian readers, as he uses images from the Gospels throughout and weaves in scripture from both the Old and New Testaments to help reinforce his points. In his introduction, the author writes that “God is still speaking,” and another phrase, “Change or be destroyed,” is a major theme. In verse 37, amid two pieces from the New Testament, Webber writes, “Pluck fear from your heart, the Advocate says / erase it from your mind,” apparently inspired by the words of St. Paul. “But the silence is not silence / but the deep rush of inarticulate sound in the ears, / the overtone of a thousand subtle energies,” he writes in verse 57, describing “echoes of the steady work of the Spirit.” Each verse has its own rhythm and builds on its themes; Webber varies his line structure, giving a staccato, urgent feel to the words and message. In one verse, he writes about the language of God: “The true character of words is to shape the persons and occasions they / contain / in the figure of right, / the elastic tug of words / is the force of spirit to the conditions of the world.” Each line is tightly written, sometimes harsh in its message, but always true to Webber’s themes.

A well-written book of verses for the thoughtful Christian reader.