Red is the colour I see when I look at deformed babies
Red is the blood flowing down the streets of Iraq
Red is the colour of the carpet for the VIPs
Red is the colour of the bishop's hoped-for hat.
Red is the traffic light when it is warning you to stop
Red is the colour of the flames in hell for the wicked
Red is the colour of a shameful face that caused misery
And red are the flowers in the Rose Garden as they take their tea.

Black is the hopelessness of unfair trade
Black is the oil looted from the poor countries
Black is the night in North Korea where there's no electricity
Black are the clothes warn by the Satanists
Black are the mourners clothes in Beslan
Black are the pupils of the seeing person's eye
Black is the only colour seen by the blind
Black is the page when you have joined all the dots.

White is the clean page when you forgive or repent
White is the wedding garment of the woman in love
White is the snow in Alaska now melting
White is the light of a nuclear bomb
White is the collar of the man of God
White is the hair of those who got old
White are the teeth of the black African
White is milk in its bottle on the step

The world is made of these three colours
Life and death
Sight and blindness
Having and not having
Pride and humility
They all have their colours
They are colours we all share
These are the colours in the pictures of our lives.

Iraq

Far from the madness
Weeping on a step
Draped in mourning sadness
Other lives are wrecked.
Somebody's gone, somebody's son,
Somebody'wife, somebody's life.

And the Cardinals sit in their gardens there
Comfort surrounding them.

Don't call me, I will call you up
Although I know you just won't listen.
Drenched in blood
The people shaken wake into
A nightmare situation.
Somebody's gone, somebody's mum,
Somebody's limb, somebody's bomb.

And the Cardinals sit there in the Vatican
Not thinking of anyone.