Anton van Duinkerken: 'Ballade van de Katholiek'

  

A. Mussert founded the Dutch nazi party in 1931

To see the original tekst, go to here:

 

 

The Ballade of the Catholic

 

To Ir. A. Mussert, who in his propaganda publication

of Friday, 6 December 1935 took the liberty of writing

about ‘the self-named Catholic Van Duinkerken’

 

 

Oh yes, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure –

Two thousand years this word can well explain

to you and your psychotic clique whose score

of twenty years should please it for a reign,

when our God you lets you calm the noisy bane

of Sieg Heil shouts, a savage-learned acclaim,

and when your movement starts to tune its lore

and music to our scale of time and space.

In politics the Church of Rome’s done more

than dissonantly screech one in the face.

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!

 

You scarcely know it, back in history

with Rome’s great glory by dictators shorn,

when their great zeal removed each enemy

or rival if their fame seemed to forewarn,

in Bethlehem the Son of God was born

of a pure virgin, whose name you but scorn,

which leads to conflict and to heresy:

a Jewish maiden you should deem a blight

– for in your eyes the Jews are all impure –

but who in darkest night is our bright light,

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!

 

You live too much in days now highly stressed

to realise, although it’s taken place,

that few of those who this name once professed

seemed to protect those realms that seek to trace

our civilised existence – are its base.

You preach, but have no texts, thus have no case!

What is your future, if our past’s suppressed?

Just think, if we by thousands should diminish,

how once Pope Leo, mysticism pure,

resisted hordes of Huns right at the finish!

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!

 

You have perhaps forgotten the old story,

or do not know it, learn it then from me,

how those who Dutchmen say once brought us glory

and from the Papists and from Spain did free,

under their commander Willem van Lumey 

committed murder. You refuse to see

what conscience should reject as simply gory!

Vile lying slogans always lead to crime

once swallowed by the many, they endure!

I choose the side of martyrs, every time.

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!

 

In Brabant ‘rebel’ is a harsh term that folk say.

There I learned what a patriot should be

Though  I kneel down and to the Lord will pray

for him to keep his people safe and free

from power-lust, tyranny, fidelity

misplaced in those who rule oppressively:

I never learned to raise my arm to bray

a heil to some fake Prussian who’s mere dross.

My Church dislikes such saviours that would lure

It has its own true Saviour on the cross.

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!

 

Prince:

Sweet Jesus of our one true Church the Prince

which, holy, apostolic, shall endure,

In serving Him shall all our strength evince,

That’s why, Sir, I’m a Catholic for sure!