Mission Bells

From the still born cradle where the nations sleep To the halls of learning where the new gods meet No one knows the reason why the shadows swell But the distant ringing of the mission bells There is no Heaven and there is no Hell But they still keep ringin' up the mission bells Dead men have no tales to tell But they still keep ringin' up the mission bells The bland lead the bland in a pale new world Where dreams and democracy are now unfurled On the lips of infallicy a peace proclaimed Breath of revolution without change There is no Heaven... Hear the words of the prophets, see the men on stilts As they bow to the effigies that they have built Once faith was a virtue, now its use denied And the bones bleach white under western skies There is no Heaven... There is no Heaven and there is no Hell But they still keep ringin' up the mission bells We were there the day the red god fell But they still keep ringin' up the mission bells