Antoine Court
Antoine Court (27 March 1696 – 13 June 1760) was a French reformer called the "Restorer of Protestantism in France." He was born in Villeneuve-de-Berg, in Languedoc, on 27 March 1696. His parents were peasants, adherents of the Reformed church, which was then undergoing persecution. When 17 years old, Court began to speak at the secret meetings of the Protestants, held literally "in dens and caves of the earth," and often in darkness, with no pastor present to teach or counsel.
In 1685, Louis XIV of France revoked the Edict of Nantes, referred to as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes or the Edict of Fontainebleau. This caused mass exodus of Protestants. There were those who stayed and continued to secretly practice Protestantism, called "The Church of the Desert", or "Christians of the Desert". His followers were always hounded, persecuted, and put to death.
Proposals
He entertained a great desire to build up the church which was persecuted; and to this end he proposed four things:
One Way Donkey Ride
There you may stand in your splendour and jewels
Swaying me in both directions
One is the right one, the other for fools
How do I make my selection?
The city lies silent in the warm morning light
The sand is as golden as saffron
Oasis of love sweet water of life
God bless the poor ones who have none though they've tried
Someone is drowning down there in the flood
But this river will dry by tomorrow
Is it's ocean or stream this love in my blood?
Bringer of joy and sorrow?
The end of the journey must soon be in sight
Birth is the start of the swansong
Oasis of love sweet water of life
God bless the poor ones who want some by are denied
No one is given the map to their dreams
All we can do is to trace it
See where we go to
Know where we've been
Build up the courage to face it
While we fumble in the darkness where once there was light
Roaming the land of the ancients
Oasis of love sweet water of life
God bless the poor ones whose patience never died
While we stumble in blindness where once there was sight
Searching for trees in the forest
Oasis of love sweet water of life
God bless the poor ones who have none though they have tried
God bless the poor ones who want some but are denied
God bless the poor ones whose patience never died
