Religion
Heretics All
From Verses (1916 edition)
Heretics all, whoever you be,
In Tarbes or Nimes, or over the sea,
You never shall have good words from me.
Caritas non conturbat me.
But Catholic men that live upon wine
Are deep in the water, and frank, and fine;
Wherever I travel I find it so,
Benedicamus Domino.
On childing women that are forlorn,
And men that sweat in nothing but scorn:
That is on all that ever were born,
Miserere Domine.
To my poor self on my deathbed,
And all my dear companions dead,
Because of the love that I bore them,
Dona Eis Requiem.
Codex Note
'Heretics all, whoever you be, / You never shall have good words from me.' The Latin tags in the refrain close on 'Dona eis requiem', and Catholic men who live on wine are praised.
Cite this poem
MLA
Belloc, Hilaire. “Heretics All.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/belloc/14/.
Chicago
Belloc, Hilaire. “Heretics All.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/belloc/14/.
Read this poem with the Codex →