I Had to Dig Lyrics

Through squinted eyes and gritted teeth, a hermit priest once said to me

Some words now seared in my conscience

He said, kid, it ain't so clear to me who is on the winning team

Or if there is a winner, we may never know for sure

I'm Catholic, right, but don't know why my people think they'll reconcile

The whole of humankind within our borders

Cause we all just grew out of the earth, tried out sounds, formed some words

Clumped up into cultures, made some art, and went to war

And now out there are a million tribes who never heard the words of Christ

Do you think that when they die they'll just simmer

Or could it be that Jesus meant He'd live in strands of every nation

Through their own traditions, bring the way, the truth, the life

And I know that I'll never find the secrets nobody ever held before

But I've found that life is in the seeking, Love cannot be stagnant and will always crave more

So I'll savor the good that I've been given, hold loose the things I'd like to keep

And I'll give all I have in search of freedom and live to set other prisoners free

Now I won't pretend to hold the truth of who is reconciled

And who is destined for eternal flames or torture

Cause the most hellish atrocities were caused by men like you and me

Who in the name of God desecrated human dignity

And I don't believe we'll ever heal until we learn to see and feel

The pain in the eyes of our victims

Cause this mystery and sacred text so many men had thought they pegged

But disagreed on what it said, like what defines humanity

And I know that I'll never find the secrets nobody ever held before

But I've found that life is in the seeking, Love cannot be stagnant and will always crave more

So I'll savor the good that I've been given, hold loose the things I'd like to keep

And I'll give all I have in search of freedom and live to set other prisoners free

Of course God is a mystery beyond human capacity,

But you know I can't pretend He's non-existent

He or She or It or We, Divine Abyss or Ground of Being

All is infant language that we use to comprehend

Providential serendipity that sometimes tells us where to be

But never gives our pain an honest answer

But amidst this ambiguity, divine belonging might just lead

A few fearless lovers to bring heaven here to earth

And I know that I'll never find the secrets nobody ever held before

But I've found that life is in the seeking, Love cannot be stagnant and will always crave more

So I'll savor the good that I've been given, hold loose the things I'd like to keep

And I'll give all I have in search of freedom and live to set other prisoners free

And then he handed me a seed and said your task is now to plant and tend

To every truth your teachers tried to give you

Cause the path that leads to life is thin, but if you keep pursuing it

There's no doubt in my mind you'll discover how a saint is made

When he'd said his final word, he gave a peaceful smile and turned

And disappeared into his little cabin

And all the truth he shared with me he packed into that little seed

Laid it in my palm and I knew I had to dig

And I know that I'll never find the secrets nobody ever held before

But I've found that life is in the seeking, Love cannot be stagnant and we'll always crave more

So I'll savor the good that I've been given, hold loose the things I'd like to keep

And I'll give all I have in search of freedom and live to set other prisoners free