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J. Grigg
1720 - 1768 Person Name: Joseph Grigg, 1720-1768 Author of "Jesus, and Shall It Ever Be" in Hymnal and Liturgies of the Moravian Church Grigg, Joseph, was born in 1728, according to the D. Sedgwick’s Manuscript," but this date seems to be some six or eight years too late. He was the son of poor parents and was brought up to mechanical pursuits. In 1743 he forsook his trade and became assistant minister to the Rev. Thomas Bures, of the Presbyterian Church, Silver Street, London. On the death of Mr. Bures in 1747, he retired from the ministry, and, marrying a lady of property, look up his residence at St. Albans. He died at Walthamstow, Essex, Oct. 29, 1768. As a hymnwriter Grigg is chiefly known by two of his hymns, "Behold a stranger at the door"; and "Jesus, and can it ever be?" His hymnwriting began, it is said, at ten years of age. His published works of various kinds number over 40. Those in which his hymns are found are:—
(1) Miscellanies on Moral and Religious Subjects, &c, London, Elizabeth Harrison, 1756. (2) The Voice of Danger, the Voice of God. A Sermon Preached at St. Albans, and at Box-Lane, Chiefly with a View to the apprehended Invasion. By J. Grigg. London, J. Buckland, 1756. To this is appended his hymn, "Shake, Britain, like an aspen shake." (3) Four Hymns on Divine Subjects wherein the Patience and Love of Our Divine Saviour is displayed, London, 1765. (4) Hymns by the late Rev. Joseph Grigg, Stourbridge, 1806. (5) During 1765 and 1766 he also contributed 12 hymns to The Christians Magazine.
In 1861 D. Sedgwick collected his hymns and poems, and published them with a memoir as:
Hymns on Divine Subjects, * * * * London, 1861. This volume contains 40 "Hymns," and 17 "Serious Poems." In the “S. MSS." Sedgwick notes that in 1861 he omitted three hymns by Grigg, which were then unknown to him, viz.:—l) On "The National Fast," appended to a sermon preached at Northampton, Feb. 13, 1761, by W. Warburton, and published in London, 1761. (2) "A Harvest Hymn by the late Rev. Joseph Grigg," in 6 stanzas, in the Evangelical Magazine, July, 1822; and (3) On the Parable of Dives and Lazarus, dated "Feb. 15, 1767."
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
J. Grigg
Martin Luther
1483 - 1546 Author of "Give heed, my heart, lift up thine eyes" in Songs of the Christian Life Luther, Martin, born at Eisleben, Nov. 10, 1483; entered the University of Erfurt, 1501 (B.A. 1502, M.A.. 1503); became an Augustinian monk, 1505; ordained priest, 1507; appointed Professor at the University of Wittenberg, 1508, and in 1512 D.D.; published his 95 Theses, 1517; and burnt the Papal Bull which had condemned them, 1520; attended the Diet of Worms, 1521; translated the Bible into German, 1521-34; and died at Eisleben, Feb. 18, 1546. The details of his life and of his work as a reformer are accessible to English readers in a great variety of forms. Luther had a huge influence on German hymnody.
i. Hymn Books.
1. Ellich cristlich lider Lobgesang un Psalm. Wittenberg, 1524. [Hamburg Library.] This contains 8 German hymns, of which 4 are by Luther.
2. Eyn Enchiridion oder Handbuchlein. Erfurt, 1524 [Goslar Library], with 25 German hymns, of which 18 are by Luther.
3. Geystliche Gesangk Buchleyn. Wittenberg, 1524 [Munich Library], with 32 German hymns, of which 24 are by Luther.
4. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1529. No copy of this book is now known, but there was one in 1788 in the possession of G. E. Waldau, pastor at Nürnberg, and from his description it is evident that the first part of the Rostock Gesang-Buch, 1531, is a reprint of it. The Rostock Gesang-Buch, 1531, was reprinted by C. M. Wiechmann-Kadow at Schwerin in 1858. The 1529 evidently contained 50 German hymns, of which 29 (including the Litany) were by Luther.
5. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Erfurt. A. Rauscher, 1531 [Helmstädt, now Wolfenbüttel Library], a reprint of No. 4.
6. Geistliche Lieder. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1535 [Munich Library. Titlepage lost], with 52 German hymns, of which 29 are by Luther.
7. Geistliche Lieder auffs new gebessert. Leipzig. V. Schumann, 1539 [Wernigerode Library], with 68 German hymns, of which 29 are by Luther.
8. Geistliche Lieder. Wittenberg. J. Klug, 1543 [Hamburg Library], with 61 German hymns, of which 35 are by Luther.
9. Geystliche Lieder. Leipzig. V. Babst, 1545 [Gottingen Library]. This contains Luther's finally revised text, but adds no new hymns by himself. In pt. i. are 61 German hymns, in pt. ii. 40, of which 35 in all are by Luther.
For these books Luther wrote three prefaces, first published respectively in Nos. 3, 4, 9. A fourth is found in his Christliche Geseng, Lateinisch und Deudsch, zum Begrebnis, Wittenberg, J. Klug, 1542. These four prefaces are reprinted in Wackernagel’s Bibliographie, 1855, pp. 543-583, and in the various editions of Luther's Hymns. Among modern editions of Luther's Geistliche Lieder may be mentioned the following:—
Carl von Winterfeld, 1840; Dr. C. E. P. Wackernagel, 1848; Q. C. H. Stip, 1854; Wilhelm Schircks, 1854; Dr. Danneil, 1883; Dr. Karl Gerok, 1883; Dr. A. F. W. Fischer, 1883; A. Frommel, 1883; Karl Goedeke, 1883, &c. In The Hymns of Martin Luther. Set to their original melodies. With an English version. New York, 1883, ed. by Dr. Leonard Woolsey Bacon and Nathan H. Allen, there are the four prefaces, and English versions of all Luther's hymns, principally taken more or less altered, from the versions by A. T. Russell, R. Massie and Miss Winkworth [repub. in London, 1884]. Complete translations of Luther's hymns have been published by Dr. John Anderson, 1846 (2nd ed. 1847), Dr. John Hunt, 1853, Richard Massie, 1854, and Dr. G. Macdonald in the Sunday Magazine, 1867, and his Exotics, 1876. The other versions are given in detail in the notes on the individual hymns.
ii. Classified List of Luther's Hymns. Of Luther's hymns no classification can be quite perfect, e.g. No. 3 (see below) takes hardly anything from the Latin, and No. 18 hardly anything from the Psalm. No. 29 is partly based on earlier hymns (see p. 225, i.). No. 30 is partly based on St. Mark i. 9-11, and xvi., 15, 16 (see p. 226, ii.). No. 35 is partly based on St. Luke ii. 10-16. The following arrangement, however, will answer all practical purposes.
A. Translations from the Latin.
i. From Latin Hymns:
1. Christum wir sollen loben schon. A solis ortus cardine
2. Der du bist drei in Einigkeit. O Lux beata Trinitas.
3. Jesus Christus unser Heiland, Der von. Jesus Christus nostra salus
4. Komm Gott Schopfer, heiliger Geist. Veni Creator Spiritus, Mentes.
5. Nun komm der Beidenheiland. Veni Redemptor gentium
6. Was flirchst du Feind Herodes sehr. A solis ortus cardine
ii. From Latin Antiphons, &c.:
7. Herr Gott dich loben wir. Te Deum laudamus.
8. Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich. Dapacem, Domine
9. Wir glauben all an einen Gott.
iii. Partly from the Latin, the translated stanzas being adopted from Pre-Reformation Versions:
10. Komm, heiliger Geist, Herre Gott.
11. Mitten wir im Leben sind. Media vita in morte sumus.
B. Hymns revised and enlarged from Pre-Reformation popular hymns.
12. Gelobet seist du Jesus Christ.
13. Gott der Vater wohn uns bei.
14. Gott sei gelobet und gebenedeiet.
15. Nun bitten wir den heiligen Geist.
C. Psalm versions.
16. Ach Gott vom Himmel, sieh darein.
17. Aus tiefer Noth schrei ich zu dir.
18. Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott.
19. Es spricht der Unweisen Mund wohl.
20. Es wollt uns Gott genädig sein.
21. War Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit.
22. Wohl dem, der in Gotten Furcht steht.
D. Paraphrases of other portions of Holy Scripture.
23. Diess sind die heilgen zehn Gebot.
24. Jesaia dem Propheten das geschah.
25. Mensch willt du leben seliglich.
26. Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin.
27. Sie ist mir lieb die werthe Magd.
28. Vater unser im Himmelreich.
E. Hymns mainly Original.
29. Christ lag in Todesbanden.
30. Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam.
31. Ein neues Lied wir heben an.
32. Erhalt uns Herr bei deinem Wort.
33. Jesus Christus unser Heiland, Der den,
34. Nun freut euch lieben Christengemein.
35. Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her.
36. Vom Himmel kam der Engel Schaar.
In addition to these —
37. Fur alien Freuden auf Erden.
38. Kyrie eleison.
In the Blätter fur Hymnologie, 1883, Dr. Daniel arranges Luther's hymns according to what he thinks their adaptation to modern German common use as follows:—
i. Hymns which ought to be included in every good Evangelical hymn-book: Nos. 7-18, 20, 22, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 38.
ii. Hymns the reception of which into a hymn-book might be contested: Nos. 2, 3, 4, 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 33.
iii. Hymns not suited for a hymn-book: Nos. 1, 5, 6, 27, 31, 37.
[Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
Martin Luther
Anne Steele
1717 - 1778 Author of "Almighty Maker of my frame" in The Mennonite Hymnal Anne Steele was the daughter of Particular Baptist preacher and timber merchant William Steele. She spent her entire life in Broughton, Hampshire, near the southern coast of England, and devoted much of her time to writing. Some accounts of her life portray her as a lonely, melancholy invalid, but a revival of research in the last decade indicates that she had been more active and social than what was previously thought. She was theologically conversant with Dissenting ministers and "found herself at the centre of a literary circle that included family members from various generations, as well as local literati." She chose a life of singleness to focus on her craft. Before Christmas in 1742, she declined a marriage proposal from contemporary minister-hymnist Benjamin Beddome. All the same, some of Steele's sufferings were very real. She lost her mother at age 3, a potential suitor at age 20, her step mom at 43, and her sister-in-law at 45. She spent many years caring for her father until his death in 1769. For most of her life, she exhibited symptoms of malaria, including persistent pain, fever, headaches, and stomach aches. Caleb Evans, in his preface to Steele's posthumous Miscellaneous Pieces in Verse and Prose (1780), noted that she had been bed ridden for "some years" before her death: When the interesting hour came, she welcomed its arrival, and though her feeble body was excruciated with pain, her mind was perfectly serene. . . . She took the most affectionate leave of her weeping friends around her, and at length, the happy moment of her dismission arising, she closed her eyes, and with these animating words on her dying lips, "I know that my Redeemer liveth," gently fell asleep in Jesus. Historically, her most popular hymn has been "When I survey life's varied scene" (and its shortened form, "Father, whate'er of earthly bliss"), a hymn that turns earthly loss or denial into a spirit of thankfulness, published in over 800 North American hymnals since 1792. Not all of her work deals with personal agony. Her hymns span a wide doctrinal and ecclesiastical range, some crafted and used for her father's congregation. Her metrical psalms are among the finest of the genre. Steele's hymns and psalms were published in two volumes in 1760, Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional, under the pseudonym Theodosia, with an additional volume of material published after her death, in Miscellaneous Pieces in Verse and Prose, 1780. Another small collection, Verses for Children, was issued in 1788, with two other editions given in 1803 and 1806. Sixty-two of her hymns, including new material and some revisions by Steele, were published in a hymnal for Baptists in 1769, A Collection of Hymns Adapted to Public Worship, edited by Caleb Evans and John Ash. Forty seven were included in John Rippon's A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors in 1787; the only author with larger representation was Philip Doddridge, with 101. These collections represent the earliest attempts to anthologize Baptist hymns and were vital for bringing Steele's hymns into wider public worship, where they have been a mainstay for over two hundred years.
Chris Fenner adapted from The Towers (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, August 2015)
Recommended Bibliography:
Cynthia Y. Aalders, To Express the Ineffable: The Hymns and Spirituality of Anne Steele (Milton Keynes, U.K.: Paternoster, 2008).
Cynthia Y. Aalders, "In melting grief and ardent love: Anne Steele's contribution to eighteenth-century hymnody," The Hymn (summer 2009), 16-25.
J.R. Broome, A Bruised Reed: The Life and Times of Anne Steele (Harpenden, U.K.: Gospel Standard Trust Publications, 2007).
Joseph Carmichael, The Hymns of Anne Steele in John Rippon's Selection of Hymns: A Theological Analysis in the Context of the English Particular Baptist Revival (2012), dissertation, http://digital.library.sbts.edu/handle/10392/4112
Priscilla Wong, Anne Steele and Her Spiritual Vision (Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 2012).
Timothy Whelan & Julia B. Griffin, eds., Nonconformist Women Writers, 1720–1840, vols. 1 & 2 (London: Pickering & Chatto, 2011).
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Steele, Anne, born in 1716, was the daughter of Mr. Wm. Steele, a timber merchant, and pastor, without salary, of the Baptist Church at Broughton, in Hampshire. At an early age she showed a taste for literature, and would often entertain her friends by her poetical compositions. But it was not until 1760 that she could be prevailed upon to publish. In that year two volumes appeared under the title of Poems on Subjects chiefly Devotional, by Theodosia. After her death, which occurred in November, 1778, a new edition was published with an additional volume and a Preface by the Rev. Dr. Caleb Evans, of Bristol (Bristol, 1780). In the three volumes are 144 hymns, 34 Psalms in verse, and about 30 short poems. They have been reprinted in one vol. by D. Sedgwick, 1863….
Among Baptist hymnwriters Miss Steele stands at the head, if we regard either the number of her hymns which have found a place in the hymnals of the last 120 years, or the frequency with which they have been sung. Although few of them can be placed in the first rank of lyrical compositions, they are almost uniformly simple in language, natural and pleasing in imagery, and full of genuine Christian feeling. Miss Steele may not inappropriately be compared with Miss F. R. Havergal, our "Theodosia" of the 19th century. In both there is the same evangelic fervour, in both the same intense personal devotion to the Lord Jesus. But whilst Miss Steele seems to think of Him more frequently as her "bleeding, dying Lord "—dwelling on His sufferings in their physical aspect—Miss Havergal oftener refers to His living help and sympathy, recognizes with gladness His present claims as "Master" and "King," and anticipates almost with ecstasy His second coming. Looking at the whole of Miss Steele's hymns, we find in them a wider range of thought than in Miss Havergal's compositions. She treats of a greater variety of subjects. On the other hand, Miss Havergal, living in this age of missions and general philanthropy, has much more to say concerning Christian work and personal service for Christ and for humanity. Miss Steele suffered from delicacy of health and from a great sorrow, which befell her in the death of her betrothed under peculiarly painful circumstances. In other respects her life was uneventful, and occupied chiefly in the discharge of such domestic and social duties as usually fall to the lot of the eldest daughter of a village pastor. She was buried in Broughton churchyard. [Rev W. R. Stevenson, M.A.]
A large number of Miss Steele's hymns are in common use, the larger proportion being in American hymnbooks. In addition to "Almighty Maker of my frame," “Far from these narrow scenes of night," "Father of mercies in Thy word," and others annotated under their respective first lines, there are also:—
i. From her Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional, 1760, vols. i., ii.
1. Come, let our souls adore the Lord. Pleading for Mercy. One of two hymns "On the Fast, Feb. 11, 1757," the first being "While justice waves her vengeful hand."
2. Come, tune ye saints, your noblest strains. Christ Dying and Rising.
3. Deep are the wounds which sin has made. Christ, the Physician.
4. Enslaved by sin, and bound in chains. Redemption.
5. Eternal power, almighty God. Divine Condescension.
6. Eternal Source of joys divine. Divine Assurance desired.
7. Great God, to Thee my evening song. Evening.
8. Great Source of boundless power and grace. Desiring to Trust in God.
9. Hear, gracious [God] Lord, my humble moan [prayer] . The presence of God desired.
10. Hear, O my God, with pity hear. Ps. cxliii.
11. How long shall earth's alluring toys ? On Longing after unseen pleasures.
12. How lovely, how divinely sweet. Ps. lxxziv.
13. How oft, alas, this wretched heart. Pardoning Love.
14. In vain my roving thoughts would find. Lasting Happiness.
15. Jesus, the spring of joys divine. Christ the Way.
16. Lord, how mysterious are Thy ways. Providence.
17. Lord, Thou hast been Thy Children's God. Ps. xc.
18. Lord, we adore Thy boundless grace. Divine Bounty.
19. Lord, when my [our] raptured thought surveys. Creation and Providence.
20. Lord, when my thoughts delighted rove. Passiontide.
21. My God, 'tis to Thy mercy seat. Divine Mercy.
22. My God, to Thee I call. Lent.
23. O for a sweet, inspiring ray. The Ascended Saviour.
24. O Thou Whose tender mercy hears. Lent.
25. Permit me, Lord, to seek Thy face. Strength and Safety in God alone.
26. Should famine o'er the mourning field. During Scarcity.
27. So fades the lovely, blooming flower. Death of a Child.
28. Stretched on the Cross the Saviour dies. Good Friday.
29. The Lord, my Shepherd and my Guide. Ps.xxiii.
30. The Lord, the God of glory reigns. Ps. xciii.
31. The Saviour calls; let every ear. The Invitation.
32. There is a glorious world on high. True Honour.
33. Thou lovely [only] Source of true delight. Desiring to know Jesus.
34. Thou only Sovereign of my heart. Life in Christ alone.
35. To Jesus, our exalted Lord. Holy Communion.
36. To our Redeemer's glorious Name. Praise to the Redeemer.
37. To your Creator, God. A Rural Hymn.
38. When I survey life's varied scene. Resignation.
39. When sins and fears prevailing rise. Christ the Life of the Soul.
40. Where is my God? does He retire. Rreathing after God.
41. While my Redeemer's near. The Good Shepherd.
42. Why sinks my weak desponding mind? Hope in God.
43. Ye earthly vanities, depart. Love for Christ desired.
44. Ye glittering toys of earih adieu. The Pearl of great Price.
45. Ye humble souls, approach your God. Divine Goodness.
ii. From the Bristol Baptist Collection of Ash & Evans, 1769.
46. Come ye that love the Saviour's Name. Jesus, the King of Saints.
47. How helpless guilty nature lies. Need of Receiving Grace.
48. Praise ye the Lord let praise employ. Praise.
iii. Centos and Altered Texts,
49. How blest are those, how truly wise. True honour. From "There is a glorious world on high."
50. How far beyond our mortal view. Christ the Supreme Beauty. From "Should nature's charms to please the eye," 1760, st. iii.
51. In vain I trace creation o'er. True happiness. From "When fancy spreads her boldest wings," 1760, st. ii.
52. Jesus, and didst thou leave the sky? Praise to Jesus. From “Jesus, in Thy transporting name," 1760, st. iv.
53. Look up, my soul, with cheerful eye. Breathing after God. From No. 40, st. v.
54. Lord, in the temple of Thy grace. Christ His people's Joy. From "The wondering nations have beheld," 1760, st. iii.
55. My God, O could I make the claim. Part of No. 9 above.
56. My soul, to God, its source, aspires. God, the Soul's only Portion. From "In vain the world's alluring smile," st. iii.
57. O could our thoughts and wishes fly. Part of No. 11 above, st. iv.
58. O for the eye of faith divine. Death anticipated. From "When death appears before my sight," 1760, st. iii., vii., viii. altered, with opening stanzas from another source.
59. O Jesus, our exalted Head. Holy Communion. From "To Jesus, our exalted Lord." See No. 35.
60. O world of bliss, could mortal eyes. Heaven. From "Far from these narrow scenes of night."
61. See, Lord, Thy willing subjects bow. Praise to Christ. From "O dearer to my thankful heart," 1780, st. 5.
62. Stern winter throws his icy chains. Winter. From "Now faintly smile day's hasty hours," 1760, st. ii.
63. Sure, the blest Comforter is nigh. Whitsuntide. From "Dear Lord, and shall Thy Spirit rest," 1760, st. iii.
64. The God of my salvation lives. In Affliction. From, "Should famine, &c," No. 26, st. iv.
65. The Gospel, O what endless charms. The Gospel of Redeeming Love. From "Come, Heavenly Love, inspire my song."
66. The mind was formed lo mount sublime. The Fettered Mind. From "Ah! why should this immortal mind?" 1760, st. ii.
67. The once loved form now cold and dead. Death of a Child. From "Life is a span, a fleeting hour," 1760, st. iii.
68. Thy gracious presence, O my God. Consolation in Affliction. From "In vain, while dark affliction spreads," 1780, st. iv.
69. Thy kingdom, Lord, for ever stands. Ps. cxlv. From "My God, my King, to Thee I'll raise," 1760, st. xii.
70. Triumphant, Christ ascends on high. Ascension. From "Come, Heavenly Love, inspire my song," 1760, st. xxxii.
71. When blest with that transporting view. Christ the Redeemer. From "Almighty Father, gracious Lord," 1760, st. xi.
72. When death before my sight. Death Anticipated. From "When death appears before my sight," 1760.
73. When gloomy thoughts and boding fears. Com¬forts of Religion. From "O blest religion, heavenly fair," 1760, st. ii.
74. When weary souls with sin distrest. Invitation to Rest. From "Come, weary souls, with sin distressed," 1760.
75. Whene'er the angry passions rise. Example of Christ. From “And is the gospel peace and love?" 1760, st. ii.
All the foregoing hymns are in D. Sedgwick's reprint of Miss Steele's Hymns, 1863.
--Excerpts from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
====================
Steele, Anne, p. 1089, i., Additional hymns in common use:
1. Amazing love that stoop'd so low. Thankfulness. From "O dearer to my thankful heart," 1780, iii.
2. Bright scenes of bliss, unclouded skies. Saved by Hope. Poems, 1760, i. p. 228.
3. Jesus demands this heart of mine. Pardon De¬sired. Poems, 1760, i. p. 120.
4. Jesus, Thou Source divine. Christ the Way. Poems, 1760, i. p. 53, altered.
5. Lord, how mysterious are Thy ways. Mysteries of Providence. Poems, 1760, i. p. 131.
6. Lord^in Thy great, Thy glorious Name. Ps. xxxi. Poems, 1760, ii. p. 158.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
Anne Steele
John Keble
1792 - 1866 Person Name: John Keble (1792-1866) Author of "Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear" in The Oxford Hymn Book Keble, John, M.A., was born at Fairford, in Gloucestershire, on St. Mark's Day, 1792. His father was Vicar of Coln St. Aldwin's, about three miles distant, but lived at Fairford in a house of his own, where he educated entirely his two sons, John and Thomas, up to the time of their entrance at Oxford. In 1806 John Keble won a Scholarship at Corpus Christi College, and in 1810 a Double First Class, a distinction which up to that time had been gained by no one except Sir Robert Peel. In 1811 he was elected a Fellow of Oriel, a very great honour, especially for a boy under 19 years of age; and in 1811 he won the University Prizes both for the English and Latin Essays. It is somewhat remarkable that amid this brilliantly successful career, one competition in which the future poet was unsuccessful was that for English verse, in which he was defeated by Mr. Rolleston. After his election at Oriel, he resided in College, and engaged in private tuition. At the close of 1813 he was appointed Examining Master in the Schools, and was an exceedingly popular and efficient examiner. On Trinity Sunday, 1815, he was ordained Deacon, and in 1816 Priest, by the Bishop of Oxford, and became Curate of East Leach and Burthorpe, though he still continued to reside at Oxford. In 1818 he was appointed College Tutor at Oriel, which office he retained until 1823. On the death of his mother in the same year, he left Oxford, and returned to live with his father and two surviving sisters at Fairford. In addition to East Leach and Burthorpe, he also accepted the Curacy of Southrop, and the two brothers, John and Thomas, undertook the duties between them, at the same time helping their father at Coln. It should be added, as an apology for Keble thus becoming a sort of pluralist among "the inferior clergy," that the population of all his little cures did not exceed 1000, nor the income £100 a year. In 1824 came the only offer of a dignity in the Church, and that a very humble one, which he ever received. The newly-appointed Bishop of Barbadoes (Coleridge) wished Keble to go out with him as Archdeacon, and but for his father's delicate state of health, he would probably have accepted the offer. In 1825 he became Curate of Hursley, on the recommendation of his old pupil, Sir William Heathcote; but in 1826, on the death of his sister, Mary Ann, he returned to Fairford, feeling that he ought not to separate himself from his father and only surviving sister. He supplied his father's place at Coln entirely. 1827 was memorable for the publication of The Christian Year, and 1828 for the election to the Provostship of Oriel, which his friends, rather than himself, seem to have been anxious to secure for him. In 1829 the living of Hursley was offered to him by Sir William Heathcote, but declined on the ground that he could not leave his father. In 1830 he published his admirable edition of Hooker's Works. In 1831 the Bishop of Exeter (Dr. Philpotts) offered him the valuable living of Paignton, but it was declined for the same reason that Hursley had been declined. In the same year he was also elected to the Poetry Professorship at Oxford. His Praelectiones in that capacity were much admired. In 1833 he preached his famous Assize Sermon at Oxford, which is said by Dr. Newman to have given the first start to the Oxford Movement. Very soon after the publication of this sermon the Tracts for the Times began to be issued. Of these Tracts Keble wrote Nos. 4, 13, 40, and 89. In 1835 his father died, and Keble and his sister retired from Fairford to Coln. In the same year he married Miss Clarke and the Vicarage of Hursley, again becoming vacant, was again offered to him by Sir W. Heathcote, and as the reason for his previous refusal of it no longer existed, he accepted the offer, and in 1836 settled at Hursley for the remainder of his life. That life was simply the life of a devoted and indefatigable parish priest, varied by intellectual pursuits. In 1864 his health began to give way, and on March 29, 1866, he passed away, his dearly loved wife only surviving him six weeks. Both are buried, side by side, in Hursley churchyard.
In his country vicarage he was not idle with his pen. In 1839 he published his Metrical Version of the Psalms. The year before, he began to edit, in conjunction with Drs. Pusey and Newman, the Library of the Fathers. In 1846 he published the Lyra Innocentium, and in 1847 a volume of Academical and Occasional Sermons. His pen then seems to have rested for nearly ten years, when the agitation about the Divorce Bill called forth from him in 1851 an essay entitled, An Argument for not proceeding immediately to repeal the Laws which treat the Nuptial Bond as Indissoluble; and in the same year the decision of Archbishop Sumner in the Denison case elicited another essay, the full title of which is The Worship of Our Lord and Saviour in the Sacrament of the Holy Communion, but which is shortly entitled, Eucharistical Adoration. In 1863 he published his last work, The Life of Bishop Wilson (of Sodor and Man). This cost him more pains than anything he wrote, but it was essentially a labour of love.
In the popular sense of the word "hymn," Keble can scarcely be called a hymnwriter at all. Very many of his verses have found their way into popular collections of Hymns for Public Worship, but these are mostly centos. Often they are violently detached from their context in a way which seriously damages their significance. Two glaring instances of this occur in the Morning and Evening hymns. In the former the verse "Only, O Lord, in Thy dear love, Fit us for perfect rest above," loses half its meaning when the preceding verse, ending "The secret this of rest below," is excised, as it generally is in collections for public worship, and the same may be said of that most familiar of all Keble's lines, "Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear," which has of course especial reference to the preceding verse, "'Tis gone, that bright and orbed blaze," &c. The Lyra Innocentium has furnished but few verses which have been adopted into hymn collections; the Psalter has been more fortunate, but the translations from the Latin are almost unknown.
Taking, however, the word "hymn" in the wider sense in which Dr. Johnson defines it, as "a song of adoration to some superior being," Keble stands in the very first rank of hymnwriters. His uneventful life was the very ideal life for such a poet as Keble was, but not the sort of life which would be best adapted to train a popular hymnwriter. The Christian Year and the Lyra Innocentium reflect in a remarkable degree the surroundings of the writer. They are essentially the works of a refined and cultured mind, and require a refined and cultured mind to enter into their spirit. Keble, all his life long, and never more than in the earlier portion of it, before he wrote, and when he was writing The Christian Year, breathed an atmosphere of culture and refinement. He had imbibed neither the good nor the evil which the training of a public or even of a private, school brings. It was not even the ordinary home education which he had received. He had been trained, up to the very time of his going to college, by his father, who was clearly a man of culture and refinement, and had been himself successively Scholar and Fellow of Corpus. When he went to Oxford, he can scarcely be said to have entered into the whirl of university life. The Corpus of those days has been admirably described by Keble's own biographer, Sir John Coleridge, and by Dean Stanley in his Life of Dr. Arnold; and the impression which the two vivid pictures leave upon the mind is that of a home circle, on rather a large scale, composed of about twenty youths, all more or less scholarly and refined, and some of them clearly destined to become men of mark. When he removed across the road to Oriel, he found himself in the midst of a still more distinguished band. Whether at home or at college he had never come into contact with anything rude or coarse. And his poetry is just what one would expect from such a career. Exquisitely delicate and refined thoughts, expressed in the most delicate and refined language, are characteristic of it all. Even the occasional roughnesses of versification may not be altogether unconnected with the absence of a public school education, when public schools laid excessive stress upon the form of composition, especially in verse. The Christian Year again bears traces of the life which the writer led, in a clerical atmosphere, just at the eve of a great Church Revival, "cujus pars magna fuit." “You know," he writes to a friend, “the C. Y. (as far as I remember it) everywhere supposes the Church to be in a state of decay." Still more obviously is this the case in regard to the Lyra Innocentium. It was being composed during the time when the writer was stricken by what he always seems to have regarded as the great sorrow of his life. Not the death of his nearest relations—-and he had several trials of this kind—-not the greatest of his own personal troubles dealt to him so severe a blow as the secession of J. H. Newman to the Church of Rome. The whole circumstances of the fierce controversy connected with the Tract movement troubled and unsettled him; and one can well understand with what a sense of relief he turned to write, not for, but about, little children, a most important distinction, which has too often been unnoticed. If the Lyra had been written for children it would have been an almost ludicrous failure, for the obscurity which has been frequently complained of in The Christian Year, is still more conspicuous in the latter work. The title is somewhat misleading, and has caused it to be regarded as a suitable gift-book for the young, who are quite incapable of appreciating it. For the Lyra is written in a deeper tone, and expresses the more matured convictions of the author; and though it is a far less successful achievement as a whole, it rises in places to a higher strain of poetry than The Christian Year does.
Another marked feature of Keble's poetry is to a great extent traceable to his early life, viz. the wonderful accuracy and vividness of his descriptions of natural scenery. The ordinary schoolboy or undergraduate cares little for natural scenery. The country is to him a mere playing field. But Keble's training led him to love the country for its own sake. Hence, as Dean Stanley remarks, “Oxford, Bagley Wood, and the neighbourhood of Hursley might be traced through hundreds of lines, both in The Christian Year and the Lyra Innocentium.” The same writer testifies, with an authority which no other Englishman could claim, to "the exactness of the descriptions of Palestine, which he [Keble] had never visited.” And may not this remarkable fact be also traced to some extent to his early training? Brought up under the immediate supervision of a pious father, whom he venerated and loved dearly, he had been encouraged to study intelligently his Bible in a way in which a boy differently educated was not likely to do. Hence, as Sir John Coleridge remarks,
"The Christian Year is so wonderfully scriptural. Keble's mind was, by long, patient and affectionate study of Scripture, so imbued with it that its language, its train of thought, its mode of reasoning, seems to flow out into his poetry, almost, one should think, unconsciously to himself."
To this may we not add that the same intimate knowledge of the Bible had rendered the memory of the Holy Land so familiar to him that he was able to describe it as accurately as if he had seen it? One other early influence of Keble's life upon his poetry must be noticed. Circumstances brought him into contact with the "Lake poets." The near relation of one of the greatest of them had been his college friend, and John Coleridge introduced him to the writings not only of his uncle, S. T. Coleridge, but also of Wordsworth, to whom he dedicated his Praelectiones, and whose poetry and personal character he admired enthusiastically. To the same college friend he was indebted for an introduction to Southey, whom he found to be "a noble and delightful character," and there is no doubt that the writings of these three great men, but especially Wordsworth, had very much to do with the formation of Keble's own mind as a poet. It has been remarked that in Keble's later life his poetical genius seemed to have, to a great extent, forsaken him; and that the Miscellaneous Poems do not show many traces of the spirit which animated The Christian Year and the Lyra Innocentium. Perhaps one reason for this change may be found in the increased interest "which Keble took in public questions which were not conducive to the calm, introspective state of mind so necessary to the production of good poetry. The poet should live in a world of his own, not in a world perpetually wrangling about University Reform, about Courts of Final Appeal, about Marriage with Deceased Wife's Sister, and other like matters into which Keble, in his later years, threw himself—heart and soul.
It is not needful to say much about Keble's other poetical works, The Psalter was not a success, and Keble did not expect it to be. It was undertaken," he tells us, "in the first instance with a serious apprehension, which has since grown into a full conviction, that the thing attempted is, strictly speaking, impossible." At the same time, if Keble did not achieve what he owned to be impossible, he produced a version which has the rare merit of never offending against good taste; one which in every line reflects the mind of the cultured and elegant scholar, who had been used to the work of translating from other languages into English. Hymnal compilers have hitherto strangely neglected this volume; but it is a volume worth the attention of the hymn compiler of the future. There is scarcely a verse in it which would do discredit to any hymnbook; while there are parts which would be an acquisition to any collection. His translations from the Latin have not commended themselves to hymnal compilers. Some of his detached hymns have been more popular. But it is after all as writer of The Christian Year that Keble has established his claim to be reckoned among the immortals. It would be hardly too much to say that what the Prayer Book is in prose, The Christian Year is in poetry. They never pall upon one; they realise Keble's own exquisite simile:—
"As for some dear familiar strain
Untired we ask, and ask again;
Ever in its melodious store
Finding a spell unheard before."
And it would hardly be too bold to prophesy that The Christian Year will live as long as the Prayer Book, whose spirit Keble had so thoroughly imbibed, and whose "soothing influence" it was his especial object to illustrate and commend. [Rev. John H. 0verton, D.D.]
Keble's hymns, poetical pieces, and translations appeared in the following works :—
(1.) The Christian Year: Thoughts in Verse for the Sundays and Holy days Throughout the Year. Oxford: John Henry Parker, 1827. Preface dated "May 30th, 1827." The last poem, that on the “Commination," is dated March 9, 1827. The poems on the "Forms of Prayer to be used at Sea," "Gunpowder Treason," "King Charles the Martyr," "The Restoration of the Royal Family," "The Accession," and "Ordination," were added to the 4th edition, 1828. The Messrs. Parker have pub. a large number of editions to date, including a facsimile reprint of the first edition, and an edition with the addition of the dates of composition of each poem. A facsimile of Keble's manuscript as it existed in 1822 was also lithographed in 1882, by Eliot Stock, but its publication was suppressed by a legal injunction, and only a few copies came into the hands of the public. Since the expiration of the first copyright other publishers have issued the work in various forms.
(2.) Contributions to the British Magazine, which were included in Lyra Apostolica, 1836, with the signature of "γ."
(3.) The Psalter or Psalms of David; In English Verse; By a Member of the University of Oxford. Adapted for the most part, to Tunes in Common Use; and dedicated by permission to the Lord Bishop of Oxford. . . . Oxford, John Henry Parker: J. G. & F. Rivington, London, MDCCCXXXIX. Preface dated “Oxford, May 29, 1839."
(4.) The Child's Christian Year: Hymns for every Sunday and Holy-Day. Compiled for the use of Parochial Schools. Oxford: John Henry Parker, 1841. This was compiled by Mrs. Yonge. Keble wrote the Preface, dated “Hursley, Nov. 6, 1841," and signed it “J. K." To it he contributed the four poems noted below.
(5.) Lyra Innocentium: Thoughts in Verse on Christian Children, their Ways and their Privileges . . . Oxford: John Henry Parker : F. & J. Rivington, London, 1846. The Metrical Address (in place of Preface) “To all Friendly Readers," is dated "Feb. 8, 1846."
(6.) Lays of the Sanctuary, and otter Poems. Compiled and Edited by G. Stevenson de M. Rutherford... London: Hamilton, Adams & Co., 1859. This was a volume of poems published on behalf of Mrs. Elizabeth Good. To it Keble contributed the three pieces noted below.
(7.) The Salisbury Hymn-Book 1857. Edited by Earl Nelson. To this be contributed a few hymns, some translations from the Latin, and some rewritten forms of well-known hymns, as "Guide me, 0 Thou great Jehovah," &c.
(8.) Miscellaneous Poems by the. Rev. J. Keble, M.A., Vicar of Hursley. Oxford and London: Parker & Co., 1869. The excellent Preface to this posthumous work is dated "Chester, Feb. 22, 1869," and is signed "G.M," i.e. by George Moberly, late Bishop of Salisbury. This volume contains Keble's Ode written for the Installation of the Duke of Wellington as Chancellor of the University of Oxford, in 1834, his poems from the Lyra Apostolica, his hymns named above, his translations from the Latin, and other pieces not published in his works.
The most important centos from The Christian Year, which are in common use as hymns, and also the hymns contributed to the Salisbury Hymn Book, 1857, are annotated in full under the first lines of the original poems. The translations from the Latin and Greek are given under the first lines of the originals. There are also several of his more important pieces noted in the body of this work. Those that …have no special history, are the following (the dates given being those of the composition of each piece):—
i. From The Christian Year, 1827 and 1828.
1. Creator, Saviour, strengthening Guide. Trinity Sunday. (March 3, 1826.)
2. Father, what treasures of sweet thought. Churching of Women. (March 13, 1827.)
3. God is not in the earthquake: but behold. 9th Sunday after Trinity. The still mall voice. (Aug. 13,1822.)
4. In troublous days of anguish and rebuke. 9th S. after Trinity. The still small voice. (Aug. 13, 1822.)
5. Lessons sweet of spring returning. 1st Sunday after Epiphany. Spring. (May 17,1824.)
6. My Saviour, can it ever be? 4th Sunday after Easter. The promised Comforter.
7. 0 Father of long suffering grace. 18th Sunday after Trinity. God's longsuffering. (Oct. 6, 1823.)
8. 0 God of mercy, God of might, How should, &c. Holy Communion. (Jan. 31, 1827.)
9. 0 Lord my God, do Thou Thy holy will. Wednesday before Easter. Resignation. (Aug. 13, 1821.)
10. 0 say not, dream [think] not, heavenly notes. Catechism. (Feb. 16, 1827.)
11. 0 shame upon thee, listless heart. SS. Philip & James. (Aug. 3, 1825.)
12. 0 who shall dare in this frail scene? St. Mark's Day. (1820.)
13. Red o'er the forest peers the setting sun. 23rd Sunday after Trinity. The Resurrection of the body. (Nov. 12, 1825.)
14. Spirit of Christ, Thine earnest give. Ordination. (March 28, 1828.)
15. Spirit of light and truth, to Thee. Ordination. (March 28, 1828.)
16. Spirit of might and sweetness too. Confirmation. (Feb. 21, 1827.)
17. Sweet nurslings of the vernal skies. 15th S. after Trinity. Consider the lilies. Live for today. (Feb. 3, 1826)
18. The days of hope and prayer are past. 4th Sunday after Easter. The promised Comforter.
19. The live-long night we've toiled in vain. 5th Sunday after Trinity. Miracle of the Fishes. (1821.)
20. The midday sun with fiercest glare. Conversion of St. Paul. (Mar. 2,1822.)
21. The shadow of the Almighty's cloud. Confirmation. (Feb. 22, 1827.)
22. The silent joy that sinks so deep. 2nd Sunday after Epiphany. Turning Water into Wine.
23. Then, fainting soul, arise and sing. 4th Sunday after Easter. The promised Comforter.
24. When brothers part for manhood's race. St. Andrew's Day. (Jan. 27, 1822.)
25. Who is God’s chosen priest ? St. Matthias's Day.
26. Why doth my Saviour weep? 10th Sunday after Trinity. Christ weeping over Jerusalem. (1819.)
27. Why should we faint and fear to live alone? 24th Sunday after Trinity. God's goodness in veiling the future. (June 7, 1825.)
28. Wish not, dear friends, my pain away. 16th Sunday after Trinity. Resignation. (1824.)
ii. From The Psalter, 1839.
29. From deeps so wild and drear. Ps. cxxx.
30. God our Hope and Strength abiding. Ps. xlvi.
31. How pleasant, Lord of hosts, how dear. Ps. lxxxiv.
32. Lord, be my Judge, for I have trod. Ps. xxvi.
33. Lord, Thy heart in love hath yearned. Ps. lxxxv.
34. Lord, Thou hast search'd me out and known. Ps. cxxxix
35. My God, my God, why hast Thou me? Ps. xxii.
36. My Shepherd is the living God. Ps. xxiii.
37. My Shepherd is the Lord; J know. Ps. xxiii.
38. Praise the Lord, for He is love. Ps. cxxxvi.
39. Praise ye the Lord from heaven. Ps.cxlviii.
40. Sing the song unheard before. Ps. xcvi.
41. Sound high Jehovah's Name. Ps. cxxxv.
42. The earth is all the Lord's, with all. Ps. xxiv.
43. The mercies of the Lord my God. Ps. lxxxix.
44. The seed of Jacob, one and all. Ps. xxii.
iii. From The Child's Christian Year, 1841, and later editions.
45. Bethlehem, above all cities blest. Innocents’ Day.
46. Lo, from the Eastern hills the Lord. l0th Sunday after Trinity. The Gospel. (Late editions.)
47. Our God in glory sits on high. 1st Sunday after Easter. The Epistle.
48. When Christ to village comes or town. 16th Sunday after Trinity. The Gospel. (Late editions.)
iv. From Lyra Innocentium, 1846.
49. Christ before thy door is waiting. Presence of Christ in His poor; or, Offertory.
50. How [When] the new-born saints, assembling. Offertory.
51. Once in His Name Who made thee. Holy Baptism.
52. Who for the like of me will care? Naamans' Servant-maid
v. From Lays of the Sanctuary, 1859.
53. Lord, lift my heart to Thee at morn. Emigrant's Midnight Hymn.
54. O Love unseen, we know Thee nigh. Cento from No. 53.
55. Slowly the gleaming stars retire. Morning Hymn for Emigrants at Sea.
56. The twilight hour is sweet at home. Evening hymn for Emigrants at Sea.
The editor of Keble's Miscellaneous Poems says concerning Nos. 53, 55, and 56:—
"The three hymns for Emigrants, for use at Midnight, Morning, and Evening, were written at the request of his friend Sir Frederic Rogers, at that time Emigration Commissioner. They were printed in the first edition of the ‘Prayers for Emigrants, which he had compiled, but were subsequently omitted, perhaps as being thought not sufficiently simple for the class of people for whose use the Book of Prayers was chiefly intended." Preface, p. vi.
It is found that nearly 100 hymns (counting centos as such) by Keble are in common use at the present time, and of these some rank with the finest and most popular in the English language.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
John Keble
William Wordsworth
1770 - 1850 Person Name: William Wordsworth, 1770 - 1850 Author of "Blest are the moments, doubly blest" in Service Book and Hymnal of the Lutheran Church in America Wordsworth, William, the poet, the son of an attorney, was born at Cockermouth in 1770, and educated at St. John's College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A. in 1791. Devoting himself to literature, and especially to poetry, he gradually rose into the front rank of English poets. His works include Lyrical Ballads, 1798; Poems; The Prelude; The Excursion, 1814, &c. All his poetical productions were collected and republished under his own supervision in 7 vols., in 1842. He died at Kydal Mount, near Grasmere, in 1850. Notwithstanding his rank and reputation as a poet, his pieces used as hymns are limited to the following extracts from his poems:—
1. Not seldom clad in radiant vest. Christ, the Unchangeable. This is No. v. of five "Inscriptions supposed to be found In and near a Hermit's cell, 1818." It is in 5 stanzas of 4 lines, and is given in his Poetical Works, 1831, vol. iii., p. 290. It is in Stowell's Selection of Hymns, 1831-77; the American Plymouth Collection, 1855, &c.
2. Up to the throne of God is borne. Noonday. This is entitled "The Labourer's Noon-Day Hymn," is dated 1834, and is in 6 stanzas of 4 lines. (Poetical Work, 1837, vol. v. p. 122.) It is in common use in an abridged form, beginning with stanza i., and the latter part is also given in Martineau's Hymns, 1840, as "Look up to heaven, the industrious sun," as No. 535.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
William Wordsworth
St. Francis of Assisi
1182 - 1226 Person Name: St. Francis of Assissi Author of "God, Make Us Servants of Your Peace" in Voices United St. Francis of Assisi (Italian: San Francesco d'Assisi, born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, but nicknamed Francesco ("the Frenchman") by his father, 1181/1182 – October 3, 1226) was an Italian Catholic friar and preacher. He founded the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women’s Order of St. Clare, and the Third Order of Saint Francis for men and women not able to live the lives of itinerant preachers followed by the early members of the Order of Friars Minor or the monastic lives of the Poor Clares. Though he was never ordained to the Catholic priesthood, Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in history.
Francis' father was Pietro di Bernardone, a prosperous silk merchant. Francis lived the high-spirited life typical of a wealthy young man, even fighting as a soldier for Assisi. While going off to war in 1204, Francis had a vision that directed him back to Assisi, where he lost his taste for his worldly life. On a pilgrimage to Rome, he joined the poor in begging at St. Peter's Basilica. The experience moved him to live in poverty. Francis returned home, began preaching on the streets, and soon amassed a following. His Order was authorized by Pope Innocent III in 1210. He then founded the Order of Poor Clares, which became an enclosed religious order for women, as well as the Order of Brothers and Sisters of Penance (commonly called the Third Order).
In 1219, he went to Egypt in an attempt to convert the Sultan to put an end to the conflict of the Crusades. By this point, the Franciscan Order had grown to such an extent that its primitive organizational structure was no longer sufficient. He returned to Italy to organize the Order. Once his community was authorized by the Pope, he withdrew increasingly from external affairs. In 1223, Francis arranged for the first Christmas manger scene. In 1224, he received the stigmata, making him the first recorded person to bear the wounds of Christ's Passion.He died during the evening hours of October 3, 1226, while listening to a reading he had requested of Psalm 140.
On July 16, 1228, he was pronounced a saint by Pope Gregory IX. He is known as the patron saint of animals, the environment, and is one of the two patron saints of Italy (with Catherine of Siena). It is customary for Catholic and Anglican churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on his feast day of October 4. He is also known for his love of the Eucharist, his sorrow during the Stations of the Cross, and for the creation of the Christmas creche or Nativity Scene.
Francis of Assisi was one of seven children born to Pietro, and his wife Pica de Bourlemont, about whom little is known except that she was a noblewoman originally from Provence, France. Pietro was in France on business while Francis was born in Assisi, and Pica had him baptized as Giovanni. When his father returned to Assisi, he took to calling him Francesco ("the Frenchman"), possibly in honour of his commercial success and enthusiasm for all things French. Since the child was renamed in infancy, the change can hardly have had anything to do with his aptitude for learning French, as some have thought.
As a youth, Francesco became a devotee of troubadours and was fascinated with all things Transalpine. Although many hagiographers remark about his bright clothing, rich friends, and love of pleasures, his displays of disillusionment toward the world that surrounded him came fairly early in his life, as is shown in the "story of the beggar." In this account, he was selling cloth and velvet in the marketplace on behalf of his father when a beggar came to him and asked for alms. At the conclusion of his business deal, Francis abandoned his wares and ran after the beggar. When he found him, Francis gave the man everything he had in his pockets. His friends quickly chided and mocked him for his act of charity. When he got home, his father scolded him in rage.
In 1201, he joined a military expedition against Perugia and was taken as a prisoner at Collestrada, spending a year as a captive. It is possible that his spiritual conversion was a gradual process rooted in this experience. Upon his return to Assisi in 1203, Francis returned to his carefree life and in 1204, a serious illness led to a spiritual crisis. In 1205, Francis left for Puglia to enlist in the army of the Count of Brienne. A strange vision made him return to Assisi, deepening his ecclesiastical awakening.
According to the hagiographic legend, thereafter he began to avoid the sports and the feasts of his former companions. In response, they asked him laughingly whether he was thinking of marrying, to which he answered, "yes, a fairer bride than any of you have ever seen," meaning his "Lady Poverty". He spent much time in lonely places, asking God for enlightenment. By degrees he took to nursing lepers, the most repulsive victims in the lazar houses near Assisi. After a pilgrimage to Rome, where he joined the poor in begging at the doors of the churches, he said he had a mystical vision of Jesus Christ in the country chapel of San Damiano, just outside of Assisi, in which the Icon of Christ Crucified said to him, "Francis, Francis, go and repair My house which, as you can see, is falling into ruins." He took this to mean the ruined church in which he was presently praying, and so he sold some cloth from his father's store to assist the priest there for this purpose.
His father, Pietro, highly indignant, attempted to change his mind, first with threats and then with beatings. In the midst of legal proceedings before the Bishop of Assisi, Francis renounced his father and his patrimony, laying aside even the garments he had received from him in front of the public. For the next couple of months he lived as a beggar in the region of Assisi. Returning to the countryside around the town for two years, he embraced the life of a penitent, during which he restored several ruined chapels in the countryside around Assisi, among them the Porziuncola, the little chapel of St. Mary of the Angels just outside the town, which later became his favorite abode.
At the end of this period (on February 24, 1209, according to Jordan of Giano), Francis heard a sermon that changed his life forever. The sermon was about Matthew 10:9, in which Christ tells his followers they should go forth and proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven was upon them, that they should take no money with them, nor even a walking stick or shoes for the road. Francis was inspired to devote himself to a life of poverty.
Clad in a rough garment, barefoot, and, after the Gospel precept, without staff or scrip, he began to preach repentance. He was soon joined by his first follower, a prominent fellow townsman, the jurist Bernardo di Quintavalle, who contributed all that he had to the work. Within a year Francis had eleven followers. Francis chose never to be ordained a priest and the community lived as "lesser brothers," fratres minores in Latin. The brothers lived a simple life in the deserted lazar house of Rivo Torto near Assisi; but they spent much of their time wandering through the mountainous districts of Umbria, always cheerful and full of songs, yet making a deep impression upon their hearers by their earnest exhortations.
Francis' preaching to ordinary people was unusual since he had no license to do so. In 1209 he composed a simple rule for his followers ("friars"), (the Regula primitiva or “Primitive Rule”) which came from verses in the Bible. The rule was “To follow the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ and to walk in his footsteps.” In 1209, Francis led his first eleven followers to Rome to seek permission from Pope Innocent III to found a new religious Order. Upon entry to Rome, the brothers encountered Bishop Guido of Assisi, who had in his company Giovanni di San Paolo, the Cardinal Bishop of Sabina. The Cardinal, who was the confessor of Pope Innocent III, was immediately sympathetic to Francis and agreed to represent Francis to the pope. Reluctantly, Pope Innocent agreed to meet with Francis and the brothers the next day. After several days, the pope agreed to admit the group informally, adding that when God increased the group in grace and number, they could return for an official admittance. The group was tonsured. This was important in part because it recognized Church authority and prevented his following from possible accusations of heresy, as had happened to the Waldensians decades earlier. Though Pope Innocent initially had his doubts, following a dream in which he saw Francis holding up the Basilica of St. John Lateran (the cathedral of Rome, thus the 'home church' of all Christendom), he decided to endorse Francis' Order. This occurred, according to tradition, on April 16, 1210, and constituted the official founding of the Franciscan Order. The group, then the "Lesser Brothers" (Order of Friars Minor also known as the Franciscan Order), preached on the streets and had no possessions. They were centered in Porziuncola, and preached first in Umbria, before expanding throughout Italy.
From then on, his new Order grew quickly with new vocations. When hearing Francis preaching in the church of San Rufino in Assisi in 1209, Clare of Assisi became deeply touched by his message and she realized her calling. Her cousin Rufino, the only male member of the family in their generation, also joined the new Order.
On the night of Palm Sunday, March 28, 1211, Clare sneaked out of her family's palace. Francis received Clare at the Porziuncola and hereby established the Order of Poor Ladies, later called Poor Clares. This was an Order for women, and he gave a religious habit, or dress, similar to his own to the noblewoman later known as St. Clare of Assisi, before he then lodged her and a few companions in a nearby monastery of Benedictine nuns. Later he transferred them to San Damiano. There they were joined by many other women of Assisi. For those who could not leave their homes, he later formed the Third Order of Brothers and Sisters of Penance. This was a fraternity composed of either laity or clergy whose members neither withdrew from the world nor took religious vows. Instead, they carried out the principles of Franciscan life in their daily lives. Before long this Order grew beyond Italy.
Determined to bring the Gospel to all God's creatures, Francis sought on several occasions to take his message out of Italy. In the late spring of 1212, he set out for Jerusalem, but he was shipwrecked by a storm on the Dalmatian coast, forcing him to return to Italy. On May 8, 1213, he was given the use of the mountain of La Verna (Alverna) as a gift from Count Orlando di Chiusi, who described it as “eminently suitable for whoever wishes to do penance in a place remote from mankind.”[21][22] The mountain would become one of his favourite retreats for prayer. In the same year, Francis sailed for Morocco, but this time an illness forced him to break off his journey in Spain. Back in Assisi, several noblemen (among them Tommaso da Celano, who would later write the biography of St. Francis) and some well-educated men joined his Order. In 1215, Francis went again to Rome for the Fourth Lateran Council. During this time, he probably met a canon, Dominic de Guzman (later to be Saint Dominic, the founder of the Friars Preachers, another Catholic religious order). In 1217, he offered to go to France. Cardinal Ugolino of Segni (the future Pope Gregory IX), an early and important supporter of Francis, advised him against this and said that he was still needed in Italy.
In 1219, accompanied by another friar and hoping to convert the Sultan of Egypt or win martyrdom in the attempt, Francis went to Egypt where a Crusader army had been encamped for over a year besieging the walled city of Damietta two miles (3.2 km) upstream from the mouth of one of the main channels of the Nile. The Sultan, al-Kamil, a nephew of Saladin, had succeeded his father as Sultan of Egypt in 1218 and was encamped upstream of Damietta, unable to relieve it. A bloody and futile attack on the city was launched by the Christians on August 29, 1219, following which both sides agreed to a ceasefire which lasted four weeks.It was most probably during this interlude that Francis and his companion crossed the Saracen lines and were brought before the Sultan, remaining in his camp for a few days. The visit is reported in contemporary Crusader sources and in the earliest biographies of Francis, but they give no information about what transpired during the encounter beyond noting that the Sultan received Francis graciously and that Francis preached to the Saracens without effect, returning unharmed to the Crusader camp. No contemporary Arab source mentions the visit. One detail, added by Bonaventure in the official life of Francis (written forty years after the event), concerns an alleged challenge by Francis offering trial-by-fire in order to prove the veracity of the Christian Gospel.Although Bonaventure does not suggest as much, subsequent biographies went further, claiming that a fire was kindled which Francis unhesitatingly entered without suffering burns. Such an incident is depicted in the late 13th-century fresco cycle, attributed to Giotto, in the upper basilica at Assisi (see accompanying illustration). According to some late sources, the Sultan gave Francis permission to visit the sacred places in the Holy Land and even to preach there. All that can safely be asserted is that Francis and his companion left the Crusader camp for Acre, from where they embarked for Italy in the latter half of 1220. Drawing on a 1267 sermon by Bonaventure, later sources report that the Sultan secretly converted or accepted a death-bed baptism as a result of the encounter with Francis. The Franciscan Order has been present in the Holy Land almost uninterruptedly since 1217 when Brother Elias arrived at Acre. It received concessions from the Mameluke Sultan in 1333 with regard to certain Holy Places in Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and (so far as concerns the Catholic Church) jurisdictional privileges from Pope Clement VI in 1342.
At Greccio near Assisi, around 1220, Francis celebrated Christmas by setting up the first known presepio or crèche (Nativity scene). His nativity imagery reflected the scene in traditional paintings. He used real animals to create a living scene so that the worshipers could contemplate the birth of the child Jesus in a direct way, making use of the senses, especially sight. Thomas of Celano, a biographer of Francis and Saint Bonaventure both, tell how he only used a straw-filled manger (feeding trough) set between a real ox and donkey. According to Thomas, it was beautiful in its simplicity with the manger acting as the altar for the Christmas Mass.
By this time, the growing Order of friars was divided into provinces and groups were sent to France, Germany, Hungary, Spain and to the East. When receiving a report of the martyrdom of five brothers in Morocco, Francis returned to Italy via Venice. Cardinal Ugolino di Conti was then nominated by the Pope as the protector of the Order. The friars in Italy at this time were causing problems, and as such, Francis had to return in order to correct these problems. The Franciscan Order had grown at an unprecedented rate, when compared to prior religious orders, but its organizational sophistication had not kept up with this growth and had little more to govern it than Francis' example and simple rule. To address this problem, Francis prepared a new and more detailed Rule, the "First Rule" or "Rule Without a Papal Bull" (Regula prima Regula non bullata) which again asserted devotion to poverty and the apostolic life. However, it introduced greater institutional structure, although this was never officially endorsed by the pope.
On September 29, 1220, Francis handed over the governance of the Order to Brother Peter Catani at the Porziuncola. However, Brother Peter died only five months later, on March 10, 1221, and was buried in the Porziuncola. When numerous miracles were attributed to the deceased brother, people started to flock to the Porziuncola, disturbing the daily life of the Franciscans. Francis then prayed, asking Peter to stop the miracles and to obey in death as he had obeyed during his life. The reports of miracles ceased. Brother Peter was succeeded by Brother Elias as Vicar of Francis. Two years later, Francis modified the "First Rule" (creating the "Second Rule" or "Rule With a Bull"), and Pope Honorius III approved it on November 29, 1223. As the official Rule of the order, it called on the friars "to observe the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, living in obedience without anything of our own and in chastity." In addition, it set regulations for discipline, preaching, and entry into the order. Once the Rule was endorsed by the Pope, Francis withdrew increasingly from external affairs. During 1221 and 1222, Francis crossed Italy, first as far south as Catania in Sicily and afterwards as far north as Bologna.
While he was praying on the mountain of Verna, during a forty-day fast in preparation for Michaelmas (September 29), Francis is said to have had a vision on or about September 14, 1224, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, as a result of which he received the stigmata. Brother Leo, who had been with Francis at the time, left a clear and simple account of the event, the first definite account of the phenomenon of stigmata. "Suddenly he saw a vision of a seraph, a six-winged angel on a cross. This angel gave him the gift of the five wounds of Christ." Suffering from these stigmata and from trachoma, Francis received care in several cities (Siena, Cortona, Nocera) to no avail. In the end, he was brought back to a hut next to the Porziuncola. Here, in the place where it all began, feeling the end approaching, he spent the last days of his life dictating his spiritual testament. He died on the evening of October 3, 1226, singing Psalm 142(141) – "Voce mea ad Dominum".
--en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_of_Assisi (excerpts)
St. Francis of Assisi
Catherine Winkworth
1827 - 1878 Translator of "Give heed, my heart, lift up thine eyes" in Songs of the Christian Life Catherine Winkworth (b. Holborn, London, England, 1827; d. Monnetier, Savoy, France, 1878) is well known for her English translations of German hymns; her translations were polished and yet remained close to the original. Educated initially by her mother, she lived with relatives in Dresden, Germany, in 1845, where she acquired her knowledge of German and interest in German hymnody. After residing near Manchester until 1862, she moved to Clifton, near Bristol. A pioneer in promoting women's rights, Winkworth put much of her energy into the encouragement of higher education for women. She translated a large number of German hymn texts from hymnals owned by a friend, Baron Bunsen. Though often altered, these translations continue to be used in many modern hymnals. Her work was published in two series of Lyra Germanica (1855, 1858) and in The Chorale Book for England (1863), which included the appropriate German tune with each text as provided by Sterndale Bennett and Otto Goldschmidt. Winkworth also translated biographies of German Christians who promoted ministries to the poor and sick and compiled a handbook of biographies of German hymn authors, Christian Singers of Germany (1869).
Bert Polman
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Winkworth, Catherine, daughter of Henry Winkworth, of Alderley Edge, Cheshire, was born in London, Sep. 13, 1829. Most of her early life was spent in the neighbourhood of Manchester. Subsequently she removed with the family to Clifton, near Bristol. She died suddenly of heart disease, at Monnetier, in Savoy, in July, 1878. Miss Winkworth published:—
Translations from the German of the Life of Pastor Fliedner, the Founder of the Sisterhood of Protestant Deaconesses at Kaiserworth, 1861; and of the Life of Amelia Sieveking, 1863.
Her sympathy with practical efforts for the benefit of women, and with a pure devotional life, as seen in these translations, received from her the most practical illustration possible in the deep and active interest which she took in educational work in connection with the Clifton Association for the Higher Education of Women, and kindred societies there and elsewhere. Our interest, however, is mainly centred in her hymnological work as embodied in her:—
(1) Lyra Germanica, 1st Ser., 1855. (2) Lyra Germanica, 2nd Ser., 1858. (3) The Chorale Book for England (containing translations from the German, together with music), 1863; and (4) her charming biographical work, the Christian Singers of Germany, 1869.
In a sympathetic article on Miss Winkworth in the Inquirer of July 20, 1878, Dr. Martineau says:—
"The translations contained in these volumes are invariably faithful, and for the most part both terse and delicate; and an admirable art is applied to the management of complex and difficult versification. They have not quite the fire of John Wesley's versions of Moravian hymns, or the wonderful fusion and reproduction of thought which may be found in Coleridge. But if less flowing they are more conscientious than either, and attain a result as poetical as severe exactitude admits, being only a little short of ‘native music'"
Dr. Percival, then Principal of Clifton College, also wrote concerning her (in the Bristol Times and Mirror), in July, 1878:—
"She was a person of remarkable intellectual and social gifts, and very unusual attainments; but what specially distinguished her was her combination of rare ability and great knowledge with a certain tender and sympathetic refinement which constitutes the special charm of the true womanly character."
Dr. Martineau (as above) says her religious life afforded "a happy example of the piety which the Church of England discipline may implant.....The fast hold she retained of her discipleship of Christ was no example of ‘feminine simplicity,' carrying on the childish mind into maturer years, but the clear allegiance of a firm mind, familiar with the pretensions of non-Christian schools, well able to test them, and undiverted by them from her first love."
Miss Winkworth, although not the earliest of modern translators from the German into English, is certainly the foremost in rank and popularity. Her translations are the most widely used of any from that language, and have had more to do with the modern revival of the English use of German hymns than the versions of any other writer.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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See also in:
Hymn Writers of the Church
Catherine Winkworth
Frances Ridley Havergal
1836 - 1879 Person Name: Frances Ridley Havergal, 1836-1879 Author of "Lord, speak to me, that I may speak" in The Hymnary of the United Church of Canada Havergal, Frances Ridley, daughter of the Rev. W. H. Havergal, was born at Astley, Worcestershire, Dec. 14, 1836. Five years later her father removed to the Rectory of St. Nicholas, Worcester. In August, 1850, she entered Mrs. Teed's school, whose influence over her was most beneficial. In the following year she says, "I committed my soul to the Saviour, and earth and heaven seemed brighter from that moment." A short sojourn in Germany followed, and on her return she was confirmed in Worcester Cathedral, July 17, 1853. In 1860 she left Worcester on her father resigning the Rectory of St. Nicholas, and resided at different periods in Leamington, and at Caswall Bay, Swansea, broken by visits to Switzerland, Scotland, and North Wales. She died at Caswell Bay, Swansea, June 3, 1879.
Miss Havergal's scholastic acquirements were extensive, embracing several modern languages, together with Greek and Hebrew. She does not occupy, and did not claim for herself, a prominent place as a poet, but by her distinct individuality she carved out a niche which she alone could fill. Simply and sweetly she sang the love of God, and His way of salvation. To this end, and for this object, her whole life and all her powers were consecrated. She lives and speaks in every line of her poetry. Her poems are permeated with the fragrance of her passionate love of Jesus.
Her religious views and theological bias are distinctly set forth in her poems, and may be described as mildly Calvinistic, without the severe dogmatic tenet of reprobation. The burden of her writings is a free and full salvation, through the Redeemer's merits, for every sinner who will receive it, and her life was devoted to the proclamation of this truth by personal labours, literary efforts, and earnest interest in Foreign Missions.
[Rev. James Davidson, B.A.]
Miss Havergal's hymns were frequently printed by J. & R. Parlane as leaflets, and by Caswell & Co. as ornamental cards. They were gathered together from time to time and published in her works as follows:—
(1) Ministry of Song, 1869; (2) Twelve Sacred Songs for Little Singers, 1870; (3) Under the Surface, 1874; (4) Loyal Responses, 1878; (5) Life Mosaic, 1879; (6) Life Chords, 1880; (7) Life Echoes, 1883.
About 15 of the more important of Miss Havergal's hymns, including "Golden harps are sounding," "I gave my life for thee," "Jesus, Master, Whose I am," "Lord, speak to me," "O Master, at Thy feet," "Take my life and let it be," "Tell it out among the heathen," &c, are annotated under their respective first lines. The rest, which are in common use, number nearly 50. These we give, together with dates and places of composition, from the Havergal mss. [manuscript], and the works in which they were published. Those, and they are many, which were printed in Parlane's Series of Leaflets are distinguished as (P., 1872, &c), and those in Caswell’s series (C., 1873, &c).
1. A happy New Year! Even such may it be. New Year. From Under the Surface, 1874.
2. Certainly I will be with thee. Birthday. Sept. 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1871.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
3. Church of God, beloved and chosen. Sanctified in Christ Jesus, 1873. (P. 1873.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
4. God Almighty, King of nations. Sovereignty of God. 1872. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
5. God doth not bid thee wait. God faithful to His promises. Oct. 22, 1868, at Oakhampton. (P. 1869.) Published in Ministry of Song, 1869, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
6. God of heaven, hear our singing. A Child's hymn for Missions. Oct. 22, 1869, at Leamington. Published in her Twelve Sacred Songs for Little Singers, 1870, and her Life Chords, 1880.
7. God will take care of you, All through the day. The Good Shepherd. In Mrs. Brock's Children's Hymn Book, 1881.
8. God's reiterated all. New Year. 1873, at Winterdyne. (C. 1873.) Published in Loyal Responses, 1878, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
9. Have you not a word for Jesus? Boldness for the Truth. Nov. 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1872.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
10. He hath spoken in the darkness. Voice of God in sorrow. June 10,1869, at Neuhausen. (P. 1870.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and in Life Mosaic, 1879.
11. Hear the Father's ancient promise. Promise of the Holy Spirit. Aug. 1870. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
12. Holy and Infinite! Viewless, Eternal. Infinity of God. 1872. Published in Under the Surf ace, 1874, and L. Mosaic, 1879.
13. Holy brethren, called and chosen. Election a motive for Earnestness. 1872. Published in Snepp's Songs of Grace & Glory, 1876.
14. I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus. Faith. Sept. 1874, at Ormont Dessona. (P. 1874.) Published in Loyal Responses, 1878, and Life Chords, 1880. Miss Havergal’s tune, Urbane (Snepp's Songs of Grace & Glory, 1048), was composed for this hymn. The hymn was the author's "own favourite," and was found in her pocket Bible after her death.
15. I bring my sins to Thee. Besting all on Jesus. June, 1870. (P. 1870.) Printed in the Sunday Magazine, 1870, and Home Words, 1872. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Chords, 1880.
16. I could not do without Thee. Jesus All in All. May 7, 1873. (P. 1873.) Printed in Home Words, 1873, and published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
17. In full and glad surrender. Confirmation. Miss Havergal's sister says this hymn was “The epitome of her [Miss F. R. H.'s] life and the focus of its sunshine." It is a beautiful hymn of personal consecration to God at all times.
18. In the evening there is weeping. Sorrow followed by Joy. June 19, 1869, at the Hotel Jungfraublick, Interlaken. "It rained all day, except a very bright interval before dinner. Curious long soft white clouds went slowly creeping along the Scheinige Platte; I wrote “Evening Tears and Morning Songs” (Marg. reading of Ps. xxx. 5.)" (P. 1870.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874.
19. Increase our faith, beloved Lord. Increase of Faith desired. In Loyal Responses, 1878, in 11 stanzas of 4 lines, on St. Luke xvii. 5. It is usually given in an abridged form.
20. Is it for me, dear Saviour? Heaven anticipated. Nov. 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1872.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
21. Israel of God, awaken. Christ our Righteousness. May, 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1872.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
22. Jehovah's covenant shall endure. The Divine Covenant, 1872. Published in Snepp's Songs of Grace & Glory, 1876.
23 Jesus, blessed Saviour. New Year, Nov. 25, 1872, at Leamington. (P. 1873.) Printed in the Dayspring Magazine, Jan. 1873, and published in Life Chords, 1880.
24. Jesus only! In the shadow. Jesus All in All. Dec. 4, 1870, at Pyrmont Villa. (P. & C. 1871.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and in Life Mosaic, 1879.
25. Joined to Christ by [in] mystic union. The Church the Body of Christ. May, 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1872.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, Life Mosaic, 1879.
26. Just when Thou wilt, 0 Master, call. Resignation. In Loyal Responses, 1878, in 5 stanzas of 4 lines, and Whiting's Hymns for the Church Catholic, 1882.
27. King Eternal and Immortal. God Eternal. Written at Perry Villa, Perry Barr, Feb. 11, 1871, and Published in Snepp's Songs of Grace & Glory, 1876; Under the Surface, 1874 ; and Life Mosaic, 1879.
28. Light after darkness, Gain after loss. Peace in Jesus, and the Divine Reward. In Sankey's Sacred Songs and Solos, from her Life Mosaic, 1879.
29. Like a river glorious, Is God's perfect Peace. Peace. In her Loyal Responses, 1878, in 3 st. of 8 1., with the chorus, "Stayed upon Jehovah." In several collections.
30. Master, speak! Thy servant heareth. Fellowship with and Assistance from Christ desired. Sunday evening, May 19, 1867, at Weston-super-Mare. Published in Ministry of Song, 1869, and L. Mosaic, 1879. It is very popular.
31. New mercies, new blessings, new light on thy way. New Life in Christ. 1874, at Winterdyne. (C. 1874.) Published in Under His Shadow, 1879, Life Chords, 1880.
32. Not your own, but His ye are. Missions. Jan. 21, 1867. (C. 1867.) Published in Ministry of Song, 1869; Life Mosaic, 1879; and the Hymnal for Church Missions, 1884.
33. Now let us sing the angels' song. Christmas. In her Life Mosaic, 1879; and W. B. Stevenson's School Hymnal, 1880.
34. Now the daylight goes away. Evening. Oct. 17, 1869, at Leamington. Published in Songs for Little Singers, 1870, and Life Chords, 1880. It originally read, " Now the light has gone away."
35. Now the sowing and the weeping. Sorrow followed by Joy. Jan. 4, 1870, at Leamington. Printed in Sunday at Home, 1870 ; and published in Under the Surface, 1874, and L. Mosaic, 1879.
36. 0 Glorious God and King. Praise to the Father, Feb. 1872. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
37. 0 Saviour, precious [holy] Saviour. Christ worshipped by the Church. Nov. 1870, at Leamington. (P. 1870.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
38. O thou chosen Church of Jesus. Election. April 6, 1871. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and L. Mosaic, 1879.
39. O what everlasting blessings God outpoureth on His own. Salvation everlasting. Aug. 12, 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1871.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and L. Mosaic, 1879.
40. Our Father, our Father, Who dwellest in light. The blessing of the Father desired. May 14, 1872. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879. Miss Havergal's tune, Tertius, was composed for this hymn.
41. Our Saviour and our King. Presentation of the Church to the Father. (Heb. ii. 13.) May, 1871, at Perry Barr. (P. 1871.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and L. Mosaic, 1879.
42. Precious, precious blood of Jesus. The precious Blood. Sept. 1874, at Ormont Dessons. (C.) Published in Loyal Responses, 1878, and Life Chords, 1880.
43. Sing, O heavens, the Lord hath done it. Redemption. In her Life Mosaic, 1879, and the Universal Hymn Book, 1885.
44. Sit down beneath His shadow. Holy Communion. Nov. 27, 1870, at Leamington. (P. 1870.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
45. Sovereign Lord and gracious Master. Grace consummated in Glory. Oct. 22, 1871. (P. 1872.) Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
46. Standing at the portal of the opening year. New Year. Jan. 4, 1873. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Chords, 1880.
47. To Thee, 0 Comforter divine. Praise to the Holy Spirit. Aug. 11, 1872, at Perry Barr. Published in Under the Surface 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879. Miss Havergal's tune, Tryphosa, was written for this hymn.
48. True-hearted, whole-hearted, faithful and loyal. Faithfulness to the Saviour. In her Loyal Responses, 1878, and the Universal Hymn Book, 1885.
49. What know we, Holy God, of Thee? God's Spirituality, 1872. Published in Under the Surface, 1874, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
50. Who is on the Lord's side? Home Missions. Oct. 13, 1877. Published in Loyal Responses, 1878, andLife Chords, 1880.
51. With quivering heart and trembling will. Resignation. July, 10, 1866, at Luccombe Rectory. (P. 1866.) Published in Ministry of Song, 1869, and Life Mosaic, 1879.
52. Will ye not come to Him for life? The Gospel Invitation. 1873. Published in Snepp's Songs of Grace and Glory, 1876.
53. Worthy of all adoration. Praise to Jesus as the Lamb upon the throne. Feb. 26 1867, at Oakhampton. Published in Ministry of Song, 1869, and Life Mosaic, 1874. It is pt. iii. of the "Threefold Praise," and was suggested by the "Worthy is the Lamb," the "Hallelujah" and "Amen" choruses in Handel's Messiah.
54. Ye who hear the blessed call. The Invitation of the Spirit and the Bride. March, 1869, at Leamington. (P. 1869.) Published in Ministry of Song, 1869, and Life Mosaic, 1879. Suggested by, and written for, the Young Men's Christian Association.
55. Yes, He knows the way is dreary. Encouragement. 1867. Published in Ministry of Song, 1869.
Most of these hymns are given in Snepp's Songs of Grace and Glory, 1872]and 1876, his Appendix, 1874, and the Musical edition, 1880, and many of them are also in several other hymnbooks, including Hymns Ancient & Modern, Thring, Church Hymns, Hymnal Companion, &c, and some of the leading American collections.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Havergal, Frances Ridley, p. 496, i. Miss Havergal's Poetical Works were published in 2 vols. in 1884 (Lond., J. Nisbet); and the hymns therein are accompanied by notes. From these volumes, and the Havergal manuscript, we gather the following facts concerning additional hymns in common use:
1. In God's great field of labour. Work for Christ.
Written Feb. 27, 1867, and published in her Ministry of Song, I860, and later works. In Snepp's Songs of Grace and Glory, 1872, it begins with stanza ii., "Sing to the little children." “The poem expresses her own life-ministry of song, and relates true incidents" in that life. [Hav. mss.]
2. Only a mortal's power. Consecration of Self to Christ. Published in her Loyal Responses, 1878, in 7 stanzas of 4 lines, and headed "Only.” In Common Praise, 1879, stanzas ii.-vi., are given for Confirmation as, "Only one heart to give."
3. Through the yesterday of ages. Jesus always the same. Written at Leamington, Nov. 1876, and published in her Loyal Responses, 1878.
4. What hast Thou done for me, 0 Thou my mighty Friend. Good Friday. Written at Leamington, Jan. 1877, and pub. in Loyal Responses, 1878.
5. Yes, He knows the way is dreary, p. 498, i. 55. This hymn was written at Shareshill Parsonage, Nov. 17, 1865, and first printed as one of Parlane's leaflets; then in Lyra Britannica, 1867; and later, in several of her books. It was "suggested by a letter from her niece, A. M. S., at school, and written to console her when weary, lonely, and the only absentee at the rejoicings for her brother J. H. S.'s coming of age." [Hav. mss.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
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Havergal, Frances R., pp. 426, ii., 1569, ii. During the past fifteen years Miss Havergal's hymns have been in great request by compilers of hymnals for Missions and Conventions. In addition to the large number already annotated in this Dictionary, the following are also in common use:—
1. Begin at once! in the pleasant days. [Temperance.] From her Poetical Works, vol. i., p. 303, into The Sunday School Hymnary, 1905. In her Poetical Works. It is given as a "Band of Hope Song," and dated "May, 1876."
2. God in heaven, hear our singing. An altered form of her "God of heaven, hear our singing," p. 497, i. 6.
3. Holy Father, Thou hast spoken. [Holy Spirit desired.] Written May 5, 1876. P. Works, 1874, ii., p. 261.
4. I love. I love my Master. [Jesus the object of love.] Written at Fins, Hants., July 16, 1876. In her Loyal Responses, 1878, and her Poetical Works, 18S4, ii., p. 274.
5. I love to feel that I am taught. [Love of Divine Teaching.] Written at Morecambe Bay, Aug., 1867, for her Ministry of Song, 1869. Included in her Poetical Works, 1884, i., p. 36.
6. Jesus, Thy life is mine. [Union with Christ.] Written June 2, 1876. Poetical Works, 1884, ii., p. 268.
7. Looking unto Jesus, Never need we yield. [Jesus, All in All.] Dated 1876. P. Works, 1884, ii., p. 253.
8. Master, how shall I bless Thy Name! [Holy Service.] Written at Whitby, Sept. 27, 1875. A long hymn of 17 stanzas of 6 lines. P. Works, 1884, ii., p. 280.
9. Resting on the faithfulness. [Union with Christ.] A metrical epitome of a dozen or more of the attributes of Our Lord and His manifestation of loving kindness towards men, in which the word "Resting" is used eighteen times. Written June 11, 1876. Poetical Works, 1884, ii., p. 260.
10. Singing for Jesus, our Saviour and King. [Praise of Jesus.] Written at Winterdyne, June 12. 1872; published in her Under the Surface, 1874, p. 94, and her P. Works, 1884, ii., p. 70.
11. Unfurl the Christian Standard with firm and fearless hand. [Courage for the Christian Warfare. This begins with st. iv. of her hymn, "Unfurl the Christian Standard, lift it manfully on high," written at Perry Barr, Sep. 23, 1872 ; published in her Under the Surface, 1874; and her Poetical Works, 1884, ii.
12. Unto him that hath Thou givest. [Growth in Grace.] Written at Leasowes, April 12, 1876. P. Works, 1884, ii. 259.
Of these hymns Nos. 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 12 were published in the first instance in J. Mountain's Hymns of Consecration and Faith, 1876. At the present time (1907) the number of Miss Havergal's hymns in common use reaches nearly one hundred.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
Frances Ridley Havergal
Samuel Sebastian Wesley
1810 - 1876 Person Name: Samuel Sebastian Wesley, 1810-1876 Composer of "WINSCOTT" in The Hymnary of the United Church of Canada Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b. London, England, 1810; d. Gloucester, England, 1876) was an English organist and composer. The grandson of Charles Wesley, he was born in London, and sang in the choir of the Chapel Royal as a boy. He learned composition and organ from his father, Samuel, completed a doctorate in music at Oxford, and composed for piano, organ, and choir. He was organist at Hereford Cathedral (1832-1835), Exeter Cathedral (1835-1842), Leeds Parish Church (1842-1849), Winchester Cathedral (1849-1865), and Gloucester Cathedral (1865-1876). Wesley strove to improve the standards of church music and the status of church musicians; his observations and plans for reform were published as A Few Words on Cathedral Music and the Music System of the Church (1849). He was the musical editor of Charles Kemble's A Selection of Psalms and Hymns (1864) and of the Wellburn Appendix of Original Hymns and Tunes (1875) but is best known as the compiler of The European Psalmist (1872), in which some 130 of the 733 hymn tunes were written by him.
Bert Polman
Samuel Sebastian Wesley
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