Christmas Day

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All hail, happy day, When enrobed in our clay

Author: Anonymous (1790)
Published in 48 hymnals

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Representative Text

All hail! happy day, when enroll'd in our clay,
The redeemer appear'd upon earth;
How can we refrain to join in the strain,
And to hail our Immanuel's birth.

Source: Harmonia Americana: containing a concise introduction to the grounds of music; with a variety of airs, suitable fore divine worship and the use of musical societies; consisting of three and four parts #85a

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Author: Anonymous

In some hymnals, the editors noted that a hymn's author is unknown to them, and so this artificial "person" entry is used to reflect that fact. Obviously, the hymns attributed to "Author Unknown" "Unknown" or "Anonymous" could have been written by many people over a span of many centuries. Go to person page >

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Text Information

Text Information

First Line:	All hail, happy day, When enrobed in our clay
Title:	Christmas Day
Author:	Anonymous (1790)
Meter:	11.9.11.9
Language:	English
Copyright:	Public Domain

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Notes

Very likely not by Charles Wesley. None of the stanzas found in a search of Wesley's poetry at Duke University (1); nor are any of the stanzas in Osborn 1868-1872 (2) nor Kimbrough 2017 (3). First appearance of the hymn is in Coke and Asbury 1790 (4).
(1) https://divinity.duke.edu/initiatives/cswt/
(2) Osborn, George. 1868-1872. The poetical works of John and Charles Wesley: Reprinted from the originals, with the last corrections of the authors; Together with the poems of Charles Wesley, not before published. London: Wesleyan-Methodist Conference Office. Volume 1, 1868. Volume 2, 1869. Volume 3, 1869. Volume 4, 1869. Volume 5, 1869. Volume 6, 1870. Volume 7, 1870. Volume 8, 1870. Volume 9, 1870. Volume 10, 1871. Volume 11, 1871. Volume 12, 1871. Volume 13, 1872.
(3) Kimbrough, S T, Jr. 2017. Alphabetical index to the first lines of all stanzas of poetry by John and Charles Wesley. Eugene, OR: Pickwick.
(4) Coke, Thomas, and Francis Asbury. 1790. Pocket hymn-book, designed as a constant companion to the pious, Eleventh Edition. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Pritchard and Hall.

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