Culture And Customs Of Jamaica

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Culture And Customs Of Jamaica

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.
124. Alleluia! sing to Jesus!
William C. Dix, 1837-98

Based on Rev. 5:9: “Thou hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out
of every nation.”

The original poem of five stanzas appeared in Dix’s Altar Songs,

1867, and was entitled “Redemption by the Precious Blood.” The
hymn was linked to the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. The third
and fourth stanzas, omitted here, are as follows:

Alleluia! Bread of Heaven,

Thou on earth our food, our stay!
Alleluia! here the sinful
Flee to thee from day to day:
Intercessor, friend of sinners,
Earth’s Redeemer, plead for me,
Where the songs of all the sinless,
Sweep across the crystal sea.

Alleluia! King eternal,

Thee the Lord of lords we own:
Alleluia! born of Mary,
Earth thy footstool, heav’n thy throne:
Thou within the veil hast entered,
Robed in flesh, our great High Priest:
Thou on earth both Priest and Victim
In the eucharistic feast.

For comments on William C. Dix see Hymn 78. 74

MUSIC. The tune was taken from St. Basil’s Hymnal, Chicago, 1918,
where it appears unnamed. It is a traditional Dutch melody. The
present arrangement of it is anonymous.

HIS COMING AGAIN

125. The King shall come when morning
dawns
From the Greek
Tr. by John Brownlie, 1859-1925

This hymn, setting forth the hope of Christ’s Second Coming in

triumph, comes from the Greek, but no information is at hand
concerning the original poem. It is not included in Julian’s Dictionary.

The translation is by John Brownlie, a Scottish minister, born in

Glasgow. He published several books of original hymns and
translations from the Greek.

MUSIC. JERUSALEM, JERUSALEM is wrongly attributed here to Thomas

Hastings though it is possible that the arrangement is his. The same
tune, named “St. Michel’s,” appears at No. 93, which see for
comments.

For comments on Thomas Hastings see Hymn 120.

126. Thou art coming, O my Savior

Frances R. Havergal, 1836-79

The first hymn Miss Havergal wrote after Advent Sunday, December
2, 1873, when she “first saw clearly the blessedness of true
consecration.”

Frances Ridley Havergal was the daughter of Rev. Wm. H. Havergal,

an Anglican clergyman who was greatly interested in the hymns and
music of the church and composed a number of tunes still in use.
His tune, “Evan,” is used in the Hymnary (153 and 253). Frances
thus grew up in a cultured religious environment in which hymns
and church music held a prominent place. She was handicapped by
a frail body and died at the early age of forty-three. But throughout
her short life, from the time of her confirmation at seventeen until
the end, she had an unbounded joy in Christian service. No suffering
could diminish her faith in the grace of God through Jesus Christ.
Despite her poor health, she was a devoted student of the Bible and
was able to repeat from memory the four Gospels, the Epistles,
Revelations, all the Psalms, Isaiah, and the Minor Prophets. Besides
writing many letters counselling those who sought her advice, she
wrote devotional books and composed sacred hymns and poems,
always emphasizing consecration and service. She made a
considerable contribution to the hymnody of the church. Six of 75
her compositions are to be found in the Hymnary (126, 190,
215, 219, 296, 380).

MUSIC. BEVERLEY was composed for this hymn for use in Hymns
Ancient and Modern, Rev. ed., 1875.

For comments on W. H. Monk see Hymn 40.

127. Christ is coming, let creation

John R. Macduff, 1818-95

A Scottish hymn setting forth the glowing hope and expectation of

the coming of Christ in glory. It is based on Rev. 22:20: “He which
testifieth these things saith, Surely, I come quickly. Amen. Even so,
come, Lord Jesus.”

John R. Macduff was minister of the Sandyford Parish, Glasgow. He

is the author of several books of devotions and wrote numerous
hymns. His ministry at Sandyford was singularly fruitful. George
Mattheson, blind Scottish preacher, then a boy in Macduff’s
congregation, afterwards said of him: “Dr. Macduff gave me my first
real conviction of the beauty of Christianity.” Macduff held strongly to
the premillennial view of the coming of Christ.
MUSIC. NEANDER. This famous tune has been associated with various
words. The composer first published it in 1680 set to the hymn,
“Unser Herrscher, unser König.” It is also used with Schmolk’s “Open
now the gates of beauty” (505), and in England it is almost
invariably associated with “Come, ye saints, and raise an anthem,”
by J. Hupton and others.

Joachim Neander, 1650-80, whose real name was Neumann, was

born at Bremen, where he spent most of his life. As a youth he was
somewhat wild but in time became converted and associated himself
with the Pietists of Germany. He was a friend of Spener, the leader
of the Pietists. His unconventional zeal brought him into conflict with
the authorities of the Reformed Church of which he was a member,
and he was dismissed for a time from his office as teacher in the
Düsseldorf schools. Being obliged to leave town, he lived for some
months in a cave in the region of the Rhine, where he composed
many of his hymns. He is the foremost hymn writer of the German
Reformed Church and is called “the Paul Gerhardt of the Calvinists.”
Neander, like Luther, was a man of scholarship and accomplishment
in poetry and music, as well as theology. He wrote more than 60
hymns and composed tunes for them.

128. Ye servants of the Lord

Philip Doddridge, 1702-51

“The Active Christian” is the author’s title of this hymn. It appeared

first in Job Orton’s posthumous edition of Hymns founded on 76
Various Texts, 1755. It is founded on Luke 12:35-37:

Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he
will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh,
they may open unto him immediately.
 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall
find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and
make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve
them.

Doddridge, known for his sound learning and genuine Christian

character, was a first-rate hymn writer. He taught Hebrew, Greek,
algebra, trigonometry, logic, philosophy, and theology to classes of
candidates for the Congregational ministry.

For further comments on Doddridge see Hymn 56.

MUSIC. OLD 134TH (ST. MICHAEL) is one of the greatest of short-meter

tunes, derived from the tune composed by L. Bourgeois for Psalm
101 in the Genevan Psalter of 1551.

For comments on L. Bourgeois see Hymn 34.

129. Come, Lord, and tarry not

Horatius Bonar, 1808-89

A plaintive, sad hymn bordering almost on pessimism, by an able,

pious author who held the doctrine of the premillenarian coming of
Christ. All his life, Bonar’s mind was occupied with the subject of the
second advent, an interest which inspired much of his writing.

Horatius Bonar, born in Edinburgh, was the prince of Scottish hymn

writers. Educated at the University of Edinburgh, he was ordained in
1837 and became a minister in the Established Church of Scotland at
Kelso. At the Disruption in 1843, Bonar “came out” and was one of
the founders of the Free Church of Scotland (Presbyterian). Leaving
Kelso, he became the minister of Chalmer’s Memorial Church in
Edinburgh, where he served, a greatly beloved man, until his death.
He was known as a man of wide scholarship and culture. His mind
was saturated with Scripture and his heart possessed by a broad and
generous faith.

His son, Rev. H. N. Bonar, wrote his father’s Life which gives some
interesting information concerning his hymn writing. Bonar carried
notebooks with him in which he jotted thoughts, verses, and hymns
as they came to his mind.

“These notebooks,” writes the son, “contain most of the better-

known hymns, hastily written down in pencil in his spare moments.
They are full of contractions, with an occasional word or phrase in
shorthand; sometimes a line is struck out and another substituted,
yet in nearly every case the complete hymn, almost as it was 77
afterwards published, can be gleaned from this rough draft.”

MUSIC. SHIRLAND was composed by Samuel Stanley, 1767-1822,

English composer and precentor of Carr’s Lane Congregational
Chapel, in Birmingham. Through his skilled leadership the music of
this church became famous. The hymn singing attracted attention
and resulted in a great growth in the congregation.

For further comments on Stanley see Hymn 20.

130. Lo, He comes, with clouds descending

John Cennick, 1718-55

A hymn on the Second Advent, based on Rev. 1:7: “Behold He

cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also
which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because
of him. Even so, Amen.”

The author, John Cennick, came from a Quaker family though he

grew up in the Church of England. For some years his religious
convictions were unsettled. Then while engaged in land surveying,
he came under the influence of Wesley and became one of his lay
preachers. Later he became a follower of George Whitefield, and
finally he joined the Moravians. While limited in culture and outlook,
he possessed genuine lyric fire; and his name is of note among the
hymnists, even though only a few of his many hymns survive.

This hymn has been much revised. It owes not a little to Charles
Wesley who changed Cennick’s first line, “Lo! he cometh; countless
trumpets,” to the familiar “Lo, He comes with clouds descending.”
Martin Madan, who issued the hymn in his Collection of Psalms and
Hymns, also gave it certain finishing touches. The hymn possesses a
scriptural vividness and impressive treatment of theme which have
carried it throughout the English speaking world, despite the
apocalyptic form of the description it sets forth.

MUSIC. HOLYWOOD is attributed to Samuel Webbe, probably the

elder, 1740-1816, a London organist and composer and a member of
the Roman Catholic Church. His son, Samuel Webbe, Jr., 1770-1843,
following his father in the musical profession, likewise became an
organist and composer.

Its solidity and triumphant note give this tune a worthy place in the
music of the church.

78

THE HOLY SPIRIT

131. Come, Holy Ghost, in love

Ray Palmer, 1808-87
Tr. from the Latin

Veni, Sancte Spiritus,

Et emitte caelitus
Lucis tuae radium:
Veni, Pater pauperum;
 Veni, Dator munerum;
Veni, Lumen cordium.

Consolator optime,
Dulcis Hospes animae,
Duce Refrigerium,
In labore Requies,
In aestu Temperies,
In fletu Solacium.

O Lux beatissima,
Reple cordis intima
Tuorum fidelium.
Sine tuo numine
Nihil est in homine.
Nihil est innoxium.

Lava, quod est sordidum,

Riga, quod est aridum,
Rege, quod est devium,
Fove, quod est languidum,
Flecte, quod est rigidum,
Sana, quod est saucium.

Da tuis fidelibus
In te confidentibus
Sacrum septenarium;
Da virtutis meritum,
Da salutis exitum,
Da perenne gaudium. Amen.

This truly great Latin hymn, addressed to the Holy Spirit, comes
from the 12th or 13th century. Its authorship is uncertain.
Archbishop Trench characterized it as “the loveliest of all the hymns
in the whole cycle of Sacred Latin Poetry.” Many translations have
been made of it, this one by Ray Palmer.
Ray Palmer, who held pastorates at Bath, Me., and Albany, N. Y., was
for a time corresponding secretary for the American Congregational
Union. His name remains the greatest among hymnists and
translators in the American Congregational church. His hymn, “My
faith looks up to Thee” (150), is known all over the world.

MUSIC. MALVERN is from The Hallelujah, a series of compilations of

tunes, edited by J. J. Waite and H. J. Gauntlett, first published in
1842. The work was intended to encourage the congregation to sing
in parts, an altogether novel principle in the English churches of that
time. To make the music easy to read, the notes were numbered,
the tonic sol-fa system having, as yet, not been developed. The
present arrangement is by John Roberts, 1822-77, Welsh Methodist
pastor and musician of extraordinary ability. He did much to improve
congregational singing in the church and was an eminent conductor
of school music festivals. Roberts wrote a number of tunes 79
that are high in favor throughout Wales and was incomparable
as an arranger of congregational hymn tunes.

132. Lord God, the Holy Ghost

James Montgomery, 1771-1854

One of the few hymns which deals distinctively with the Day of
Pentecost. For this reason, as well as for its inherent quality, it is
especially valuable.

For comments on James Montgomery see Hymn 62.

MUSIC. OLD 134TH. For comments on this tune see Hymn 128.

133. Spirit of God, descend upon my heart

George Croly, 1780-1860
Based on Gal. 5:25: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the
Spirit.”

George Croly was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. After

ministering in Ireland for a number of years, he went to London to
engage in literary pursuits. He had varied talents and became well
known for his poetry, fiction, plays, and contributed articles to
magazines. In 1835, he entered parish work in London, where he
was greatly admired and loved. His outspoken utterances attracted
large congregations of all ranks to his church. He prepared, at the
request of his people, a collection of Psalms and Hymns for Public
Worship, of which only one edition was printed. Dr. Croly dropped
dead while walking one day on Holborn Street. A man of scholarship
and culture, and author of many volumes, he is remembered chiefly
through this hymn.

MUSIC. MORECAMBE, originally called “Hellespont,” was written to be

sung with “Abide with me,” for use in the church at Mannington,
England, where its composer was serving as organist.

Frederick Cook Atkinson, 1841-97, was an English organist and

choirmaster, having received his musical education at Cambridge.

134. Holy Ghost, dispel our sadness

Paul Gerhardt, 1607-76

A hymn of entreaty for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

The original is as follows:

O Du allersüsste Freude,
O Du allerschönstes Licht,
Der Du uns in Lieb und Leide
Unbesuchet lässest nicht;
Geist des Höchsten, höchster Fürst
 Der Du hältst und halten wirst
Ohn’ Aufhören alle Dinge
Höre, höre, was ich singe.

Du bist ja die beste Gabe 80

Die ein Mensch nur nennen kann;
Wenn ich Dich erwünsch’ und habe,
Geb’ ich alles Wünschen d’ran.
Ach, ergib Dich, komm zu mir,
In mein Herze, das Du Dir,
Eh ich in die Welt geboren
Selbst zum Tempel auserkoren.

Sei mein Retter, führ’ mich eben;

Wenn ich sink’, mein Stab sei Du;
Wenn ich sterbe, sei mein Leben;
Wenn ich lieg’, sei meine Ruh;
Wenn ich wieder aufersteh’,
O so hilf mir, dass ich geh
Hin, da Du in ew’gen Freuden
Wirst die Auserwählten weiden.

The first translation was made by John Christian Jacobi, 1670-1750,

for his Psalmodia Germanica. His rendering began

“O Thou sweetest source of gladness”

which Augustus Montague Toplady recast into the familiar

“Holy Ghost, dispel our sadness.”

For comments on Toplady see Hymn 148.

Paul Gerhardt, next to Martin Luther, is the most noteworthy hymn

writer of the Evangelical Church in Germany. Even the hymns of
Luther are not as widely used today in the English speaking world as
those of Gerhardt. He was born March 12, 1607, in Gräfenhynichen,
a village near the celebrated Wittenberg. At 21 he began the study
of theology in Wittenberg, but he received no church position until
45, when he was ordained and appointed provost at Mittenwalde, a
small village. During his six years there, his hymns were published
and he became widely known. In 1657, he was appointed third
assistant pastor of the famous Church of St. Nicholas in Berlin. From
this position he was deposed because he refused to sign a document
promising that all clergymen would abstain from any references in
their sermons to doctrinal differences between the Lutherans and
Calvinists. Though he felt the blow keenly, he met it with Christian
patience and fortitude. “This,” he said, “is only a small Berlin
affliction; but I am also willing and ready to seal with my blood the
evangelical truth, and, like my namesake, St. Paul, to offer my neck
to the sword.” Additional sorrows came into his life with the death of
his wife and four of his children. He was left with a single child, a
boy of six, when he was called to the church at Lübden, where he
labored faithfully and successfully until his death on June 7, 1676.
Most of his life being spent in the distractions and disasters of 81
the Thirty Years War, which left Germany in misery and ruins,
Gerhardt knew the depths of human sorrow. Out of the depths came
his hymns of comfort and hope which have been a source of
strength to a multitude of believers.

MUSIC. INVOCATION was composed by Uzziah C. Burnap, 1834-1900,

organist at the Church of the Heights, Brooklyn, and co-editor with
John K. Paine, Professor of Music at Harvard, of Hymns and Songs of
Praise.

135. Breathe on me, breath of God

Edwin Hatch, 1835-89

An earnest prayer for an inbreathing of the Holy Spirit and a greater

consecration of life. The hymn was first published in a privately
printed leaflet called, Between Doubt and Prayer, 1878. It is based
on John 20:22: “He breathed on them and saith unto them, Receive
ye the Holy Ghost.”

Edwin Hatch, Church of England clergyman and University Reader of

Ecclesiastical History at Oxford, was a scholar of world reputation.
His Bampton Lectures, The Organization of the Early Christian
Church, 1881, were translated into German by Prof. Adolph Harnack,
who wrote of Hatch: “In his learning that of England’s great old
theologians, Ussher and Pearson, lived to me again. He was a
glorious man, whose loss I shall never cease to mourn.” Though a
man of profound learning, his faith was as simple and unaffected as
that of a child.

MUSIC. TRENTHAM is a tune of great beauty, well fitted for these

words of devotion. The tenor part is especially melodious.

Robert Jackson, 1840-1914, English composer of many anthems,

hymn tunes, songs and part songs, succeeded his father as organist
and choirmaster at St. Peter’s church, Oldham, the father and son
together having a record of continuous service at the same church
for 92 years. His whole life was devoted to music. He was a member
of Sir Charles Halle’s orchestra and conductor of the Oldham Musical
Society.

136. Holy Spirit, Truth divine

Samuel Longfellow, 1819-92

Entitled a “Prayer for Inspiration,” this superb hymn of the Holy Spirit
appeared in Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, edited by Samuel Johnson
and the author. Stanzas 5 and 6 are omitted.

For comments on Samuel Longfellow see Hymn 28.

MUSIC. MERCY is an arrangement of a piano composition called, “The

Last Hope,” by Louis Gottschalk, 1829-69, American composer,
conductor, and popular concert pianist. Among Gottschalk’s works
are two operas, two symphonies, and some piano pieces and songs
—most of which are forgotten today. The arrangement of the 82
tune is the work of Dr. Edwin P. Parker, 1836-1925,
hymnologist and distinguished Congregationalist minister at
Hartford, Conn.

137. Holy Spirit, faithful Guide

Marcus M. Wells, 1815-95

The hymn and tune were written by Marcus M. Wells, a farmer and
maker of farm implements who lived all his life in New York State.
Born at Otsego, N. Y., he was converted in a mission at Buffalo.
Regarding the origin of the hymn and tune he wrote:

On a Saturday afternoon, Oct. 1858, while at work in my cornfield,

the sentiment of the hymn came to me. The next day, Sunday,
being a very stormy day, I finished the hymn and wrote a tune for
it and sent it to Prof. I. B. Woodbury.

The hymn sets forth God as a Presence, near the Christian’s side,
friendly and helpful and true, guiding him through the storms and
floods and desert wastes of his pilgrimage from earth to his heavenly
home. It was first published in the New York Musical Pioneer, edited
by Isaac B. Woodbury.

138. Our blest Redeemer, ere He breathed

Harriet Auber, 1773-1862

One of the finest of our hymns on the Holy Spirit. It was written for
Whitsunday and published in the author’s The Spirit of the Psalms,
1829, in seven stanzas, the second and third being omitted here.
The hymn appears in most modern hymnals and has been translated
into several languages.

Harriet Auber, whose grandfather went from Normandy to England in

1685 as a Huguenot refugee, was born in London. She was a woman
of refinement and culture who spent most of her life in the quiet
villages of Broxbourne and Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire. She wrote
numerous poems and hymns, but her name survives as the author
of this exquisite lyric.

MUSIC. ST. CUTHBERT was composed for these words by J. B. Dykes

for the original edition of Hymns Ancient and Modern, 1861.

For comments on Dykes see Hymn 1.

139. Spirit divine, attend our prayer

Andrew Reed, 1787-1862
Samuel Longfellow, 1819-92

This is a revision by Samuel Longfellow of a hymn written by Andrew

Reed, an English Congregational minister. Reed, a philanthropist and
great organizer, and founder of six asylums and orphanages, wrote
21 hymns and published several hymn books. He was an 83
ardent supporter of missionary work at home and abroad.
Writing to his son who suggested that the father should write his
autobiography, Dr. Reed summed up his own life in these words:

I was born yesterday, I shall die tomorrow, and I must not spend
today in telling what I have done, but in doing what I may for HIM
who has done all for me. I sprang from the people, I have lived
for the people—the most for the most unhappy; and the people
when they know it will not suffer me to die out of loving
remembrance.
MUSIC. BRECON. The origin of this tune has not been traced. It is a
useful tune as a choir response after the prayer.

THE CHRISTIAN LIFE—THE CALL OF CHRIST

140. Jesus calls us o’er the tumult

Cecil Frances Alexander, 1823-95

A hymn of consecration which has had far-reaching influence

especially over young people. It is based on Matt. 4:18, 19: “And
Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon, called
Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they
were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make
you fishers of men.” There is also a reference to the incident by the
lake recorded in John 21:15: “So when they had dined, Jesus saith
to Simon Peter, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?”

The hymn appeared first in Hymns, 1852, published by the Society

for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge. In the Episcopal Church in
the United States and Canada, it has been adopted as the hymn of
the Brotherhood of St. Andrew.

Mrs. Alexander is known principally as a writer of children’s hymns

(410 and 412), but she also contributed excellent church songs for
adults.

For comments on Mrs. Alexander see Hymn 104.

MUSIC. GALILEE was written for this hymn by William H. Jude, 1852-
1922, English organist, composer, and lecturer on musical subjects.
The tune becomes waltz-like when sung in quick tempo. Recognizing
this danger, some hymn books are using other tunes with this hymn.
141. Behold a stranger at the door
Joseph Grigg, 1720-68

A lyric revealing in a remarkable manner the tenderness and love of

Christ. It is based on Rev. 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door and
knock.” Bishop How’s hymn, “O Jesus Thou art standing” 84
(144), with which this may be compared, is based on the
same passage.

Joseph Grigg, an English Presbyterian minister, began writing hymns

when only ten years old. After a brief pastorate, he retired from the
active ministry to devote himself to literary work. He published about
40 volumes, including several collections of hymns. Only two of his
43 hymns are found in modern hymnals, this one and “Jesus, and
shall it ever be” (192), the latter written when he was only ten years
of age.

MUSIC. BERA, a very useful tune, was composed by John Edgar

Gould, 1822-75, an American musical editor, dealer in musical
instruments, choral conductor, and publisher of music books. He was
born in Maine, but spent most of his adult life in New York City and
Philadelphia.

142. I heard the voice of Jesus say

Horatius Bonar, 1808-89

Based on John 1:16: “Of his fulness have all we received, and grace
for grace,” and originally published with the title, “The Voice from
Galilee.”

The hymn is constructed on three sayings of Jesus: (1) “Come unto

me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,”
Mt. 11:28; (2) “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give
shall never thirst,” John 4:14; (3) “I am the light of the world; he
that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light
of life.” John 8:12. In the hymn, these three sayings, blended into a
perfect unity, have sounded down the ages by the “Voice from
Galilee.”

The hymn, as C. S. Robinson reminds us, employs the personal

pronoun to emphasize the intimate relationship between Christ and
the individual. “Christ says, ‘Come to me,’ and the Christian says, ‘I
come.’ Christ says, ‘I give the living water’; and the listener answers,
‘My thirst was quenched’; Christ says, ‘I am the light’; and the child
of God replies, ‘I found in him my Star, my Sun.’”

For comments on Horatius Bonar see Hymn 129.

MUSIC. VOX DELECTI was composed by J. B. Dykes for this hymn in

Hymns Ancient and Modern, Appendix, 1868. The musical difficulties
of the tune are more apparent than real. They can be overcome and
its possibilities appreciated by careful study and practice. The first
half is written in the minor key to carry the quiet, invitational words
of Jesus. The second part, the glad acceptance of the invitation, is
written in the strongly contrasting major key.

For comments on J. B. Dykes see Hymn 1.

85

143. Art thou weary, heavy laden

Stephen the Sabaite, 725-94
Tr. John M. Neale, 1818-66

A restful, appealing lyric on the theme, “Come unto me, all ye that
labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” Matt. 11:28.

It is one of the few dialog hymns. [Others are “Watchman, tell us of

the night” (66), and “Who is He in yonder stall?” (96)]. It may be
sung antiphonally, the choir singing the questions and the
congregation the answers.
Neale published this hymn in his Hymns of the Eastern Church,
1862, as a translation of a Greek hymn by Stephen the Sabaite. It is
a paraphrase, however, rather than a translation.

For comments on John Neale see Hymn 67.

Hymnody in the Eastern Church reached its height in the 8th

century. Stephen was a nephew of John of Damascus. At the age of
10 he was placed by his uncle in the monastery of Saint Sabas,
located on a lofty cliff overhanging the ravine of the Kidron, between
Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Here he lived for more than half a
century, known as Stephen the Sabaite. The monastery, many of the
cells cut out of solid rock, still stands. The monks have been
subjected to persecution, at various times, at the hands of Persians,
Moslems, and Bedouin Arabs, and the monastery looks much like a
fortress.

MUSIC. STEPHANOS was composed for this hymn by Henry W. Baker,

and was first published in the appendix of the original edition of
Hymns Ancient and Modern, 1868. The tune was harmonized by W.
H. Monk (See 40).

Henry Williams Baker, 1821-77, was educated at Cambridge,

ordained in 1844, and served as vicar of Monkland, Herefordshire,
from 1851 till his death in 1877. He was editor-in-chief of the epoch-
making book, Hymns Ancient and Modern, to which he contributed
several of his own hymns and tunes. As a High Churchman, he held
to the doctrine of the celibacy of the clergy and was never married.

144. O Jesus, Thou art standing

William W. How, 1823-97

Based on Rev. 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any
man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup
with him, and he with me.” It was composed after the author had
been reading the beautiful poem by Jean Ingelow, entitled “Brothers
and a Sermon,” describing two brothers listening to an old parson in
a fishing-village church. A part of the poem is as follows:

The parson knew that he had lost the eyes

And ears of those before him for he made
A pause ...
... then with a sigh
Fronted the folk, lifted his grand gray head, 86
And said, as one that pondered now the words
He had been preaching on with new surprise,
And found fresh marvel in their sound, “Behold!
Behold!” saith He, “I stand at the door and knock.”

Open the door with shame, if ye have sinned;

If ye be sorry, open it with sighs.
Albeit the place be bare for poverty,
And comfortless for lack of plenishing,
Be not abashed for that, but open it,
And take Him in that comes to sup with thee;
“Behold!” He saith, “I stand at the door and knock!”

Speak, then, O rich and strong:

Open, O happy young, ere yet the hand
Of Him that knocks, wearied at last, forbear;
The patient foot its thankless quest refrain.
The wounded heart forevermore withdraw.

Holman Hunt’s picture, “The Light of the World,” is an exquisite

illustration of the spirit of this hymn.

William Walsham How was born at Shrewsbury, England, educated

at Oxford, and ordained to the ministry in 1846. He served various
churches as pastor and declined offers of positions of more
distinction. He refused the bishopric of Durham, one of the most
distinguished posts in the Anglican Church, with an income more
than double what he then had. He was a man of broad sympathies
and apostolical zeal, and was a master of the pastoral art. He
collaborated with Thos. Baker Morrell in editing Psalms and Hymns,
1854, and in 1871 was joint editor of Church Hymns, published by
the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, the latter
becoming the greatest rival of Hymns Ancient and Modern which
that book had had to date. His poems are marked by simplicity and
beauty of diction and constitute some of the richest treasures of
modern hymnody.

MUSIC. ST. HILDA, also known as “St. Edith,” is an arrangement by

Rev. Edward Husband of a tune published by Justin H. Knecht in
Vollständige Sammlung, Stuttgart, 1799.

For comments on Knecht see Hymn 511.

Edward Husband, 1843-1908, was an English clergyman with a great

deal of musical talent and interest and was a well-known lecturer on
the subject of church music.

87

PENITENCE AND CONFESSION

145. Savior, when in dust to Thee

Robert Grant, 1779-1838

A hymn of penitence which has had a wide use. It was published in

the Christian Observer, 1815, as a Lenten “Litany.” The last line of
each stanza (five in the original) read, “Hear our solemn litany,” here
changed to “Hear thy people when they cry.” Stanzas 2 and 4 have
been much altered by an unknown hand. Grant’s original hymn of
five stanzas reads as follows:

1.
Savior, when in dust to Thee
Low we bow the adoring knee,
When, repentant, to the skies
Scarce we lift our weeping eyes,
Oh, by all Thy pains and woe
Suffered once for man below,
Bending from Thy throne on high,
Hear our solemn litany!

2.
By Thy helpless infant years,
By Thy life of want and tears,
By Thy days of sore distress
In the savage wilderness,
By the dread, mysterious hour
Of the insulting Tempter’s power,
Turn, O turn, a favoring eye,
Hear our solemn litany!

3.

By the sacred griefs that wept

O’er the grave where Lazarus slept;
By the boding tears that flowed
Over Salem’s loved abode;
By the anguished sigh that told
Treachery lurked within Thy fold;
From Thy seat above the sky
Hear our solemn litany!

4.

By Thine hour of dire despair,

By Thine agony of prayer,
By the cross, the nail, the thorn,
Piercing spear, and torturing scorn,
By the gloom that veiled the skies
O’er the dreadful sacrifice,
Listen to our humble cry,
Hear our solemn litany!

88

5.

By Thy deep expiring groan,

 By the sad sepulchral stone,
By the vault whose dark abode
Held in vain the rising God,
Oh, from earth to heaven restored,
Mighty, reascended Lord,
Listen, listen, to the cry
Of our solemn litany!

For comments on Robert Grant see Hymn 7.

MUSIC. SPANISH HYMN, also called “Spanish Chant,” is from an old

17th century melody of unknown origin.

146. Come, let us to the Lord our God

John Morison, 1750-98
Scottish Paraphrase, 1781

A version, from the Scottish Presbyterian Church, of Hosea 6:1-4:

Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he
will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two
days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we
shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know
the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning: and he shall
come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the
earth.

O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do

unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the
early dew it goeth away.

Our hymn is one of the 67 “Translations and Paraphrases, in Verse,

of Several Passages of Sacred Scriptures,” together with five hymns,
that are appended to the Scottish Psalter for use in public worship in
the Scotch Presbyterian Church.
John Morison was a Scotch scholar, teacher, and minister. He wrote a
number of paraphrases of scriptural passages, seven of which were
accepted into the authorized collection of Scottish Paraphrases,
1781.

MUSIC. BALLERMA. For comments on this tune see Hymn 57.

147. Lord, thy mercy now entreating

Mary Ann Sidebotham, 1833-1913

A hymn of penitence which was contributed to The Children’s Hymn

Book, 1881, published by the Society for the Promotion of Christian
Knowledge, London.

The author, Mary Ann Sidebotham, was an accomplished musician

and a lifelong friend of Henry Smart, the eminent organist and
composer. She spent much of her life in her brother’s vicarage, 89
St. Thomas-on-the-Bourne, Surrey, England, where she served
as organist. She composed numerous songs for children and was the
music editor of the above-mentioned Children’s Hymn Book.

MUSIC. RINGE RECHT. For comments on this tune see Hymn 563.

FAITH AND VISION

148. Rock of Ages, cleft for me

Augustus M. Toplady, 1740-78

Few hymns are more generally familiar or more treasured in the

affections of all ranks of people than this. It appeared first in the
Gospel Magazine, edited by Toplady, March, 1776, at the end of an
article entitled, “A remarkable calculation Introduced here for the
sake of the Spiritual Improvements subjoined. Questions and
answers relating to the National Debt.” The article points out that
the national debt is so large that the government will never be able
to pay it off. The author then proceeds to calculate the number of
sins each human being commits. Figuring the rate to be one per
second, he arrives at this:

Our dreadful account stands as follows: At ten years old each of

us is chargeable with 315 millions and 360,000 sins. At twenty,
with 630 millions and 720,000. At thirty with 946 millions and
80,000.... At eighty, with 2,522 millions and 880,000.

The conclusion is that the debt can only be paid by the blood of
Christ. The hymn follows his “calculation,” under the heading, “A
living and dying Prayer for the Holiest Believer in the World.”

For 45 years after its publication, the hymn had little acceptance in
England. Its merits then became recognized, and it became very
popular. In the last century and a quarter it has had world-wide use,
in a form altered somewhat from the original. The hymn has been
criticized for its mixed metaphors (“cleft rock,” “riven side,” “to thy
cross I cling,” “to the fountain fly”), for its false rhymes, and its over-
emphasis upon sin obsession; but it has certain heart-piercing
qualities which override all its faults. Like other hymns of the first
rank (e.g., “Jesus Lover of my soul,” “Lead kindly light,” and “Nearer
my God to Thee”) it voices the universal need of divine help.
Professor Saintsbury, a literary critic, says of this hymn: “Every word,
every syllable, in this really great poem has its place and meaning.”

The central imagery of the hymn is found in the following Scripture

passages: Ex. 33:22: “While my glory passeth by, I will put thee in a
cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by”;
Isa. 26:4: “Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord 90
Jehovah is the rock of ages” (margin); I Cor. 10:4: “and that
Rock was Christ.”
A picturesque story, which originated about 1850, had it that Toplady
composed the hymn while he was sheltering from a thunder storm in
a great cleft of a limestone rock, some twelve years before the
publication of the hymn. The story is without foundation. Toplady
was fascinated by the thought of Christ as a rock and in a sermon on
Isa. 42:11: “Let the inhabitants of the rock sing,” he said: “Chiefly
may they sing who inhabit Christ the spiritual Rock of Ages. He is a
Rock in three ways: as a Foundation to support, a Shelter to screen,
and a Fortress to protect.”

The hymn has had a wide use among German speaking people in a
translation made by Ernst Gebhardt, 1832-99.

Fels des Heils, geöffnet mir,

Birg’ mich, ew’ger Hort in dir!
Lass das Wasser und das Blut,
Deiner Seite heil’ge Flut,
Mir das Heil sein, das frei macht
Von der Sünden Schuld und Macht!

Dem, was dein Gesetze spricht,

Kann mein Werk genügen nicht.
Mag ich ringen wie ich will,
Fliessen auch der Tränen viel,
Tilgt das doch nicht meine Schuld,
Herr, mir hilft nur deine Huld.

Da ich denn nichts bringen kann,

Schmieg’ ich an dein Kreuz mich an
Nackt und bloss—o kleid’ mich doch.
Hülflos—ach erbarm’ dich noch.
Unrein, Herr, flieh’ ich zu dir.
Wasche mich, sonst sterb’ ich hier.

Jetzt, da ich noch leb’ im Licht,

Wenn mein Aug’ im Tode bricht,
 Wenn durch’s finst’re Tal ich geh’,
Wenn ich vor dem Richter steh’,
Fels des Heils, geöffnet mir,
Birg’ mich, ew’ger Hort in dir!

Augustus M. Toplady, born at Farnham, England, was educated at

Trinity College, Dublin. His conversion occurred at the age of 16
while on a visit in Ireland. The service was held in a barn and the
text was Eph. 2:13: “But now, in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes
were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” The preacher was
an illiterate but warm-hearted layman named Morris. 91
Concerning his conversion Toplady wrote:

Strange that I, who had so long sat under the means of grace in
England, should be brought nigh unto God in an obscure part of
Ireland, amidst a handful of God’s people met together in a barn,
and under the ministry of one who could hardly spell his name.
Surely this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous.

Toplady was ordained to the ministry of the Church of England in

1762 and in 1768 became vicar of Broadhembury. The last years of
his life were passed in London preaching in a chapel of French
Calvinists. He was a powerful preacher, and large congregations
came to hear him. A strong Calvinist, and bitterly opposed to what
he considered the reproach of Arminianism, he became involved in
unfortunate controversies with John Wesley, during which neither
disputant showed himself at his best. He died of consumption at the
early age of 38.

MUSIC. TOPLADY was composed for this hymn by Thomas Hastings,

1784-1872. It is a popular easily sung tune, and universally used in
America with this hymn. Hastings was not a great musician and this
tune, with its “sentimentality and rocking-chair rhythm,” can hardly
be considered great music. But it has been a blessing to millions of
people and will doubtless continue to be sung for years to come. In
England the hymn is invariably set to other tunes and some
American hymn books have introduced alternative tunes. The tune
“Petra” (109) is used with this hymn, as is also Grosser Gott wir
loben Dich (519).

For comments on Thomas Hastings see Hymn 120.

149. Strong Son of God, immortal love

Alfred Tennyson, 1809-92

From the prologue of Tennyson’s great poem, “In Memoriam,” 1850,

containing eleven stanzas; these are 1, 4, 5, and 7, unaltered.

The story of “In Memoriam” is familiar. At Cambridge University,

Tennyson and Arthur Hallam became intimate friends. Hallam
became engaged to Tennyson’s sister, and, after graduating from the
University, took a trip to the Continent. At Vienna, he became sick
and died, which prompted Tennyson to write the following brief but
beautiful words:

“In Vienna’s fatal walls,

God’s finger touched him, and he slept.”

In 1850, seventeen years after Hallam’s death, Tennyson published

“In Memoriam,” a memorial to Hallam, but also to himself as well.
Among the individual verses of the poem which have become 92
immortal are the familiar lines beginning, “Ring out, wild bells,
to the wild sky.” (See 379).

Alfred Tennyson was the son of Rev. George C. Tennyson. He was

educated at Cambridge and wrote poetry while an undergraduate.
Upon the death of Wordsworth in 1850, Tennyson was appointed
Poet Laureate. He is regarded as one of England’s greatest poets. He
was not a hymn writer, yet several of his poems are used as hymns.
Tennyson died October 6, 1892, and was buried in Westminster
Abbey.
MUSIC. ST. CRISPIN was composed for the hymn “Just as I am,
without one plea.” The tune was used at the funeral of the
composer.

For comments on the composer, George Elvey, see Hymn 118.

150. My faith looks up to Thee

Ray Palmer, 1808-87

This hymn was written when the author had just left Yale at the age
of 21 and was looking forward to his lifework in the Congregational
ministry. The origin of the hymn is given in Duffield’s English Hymns,
as follows:

The hymn was written in 1830, but not published (as a hymn)
until 1882. The author was in New York City, “Between his college
and theological studies,” and was in poor health, and a teacher in
a ladies’ school. Dr. Palmer says: “I gave form to what I felt by
writing, with little effort, the stanzas. I recollect I wrote them with
very tender emotion, and ended the last lines with tears.” The
manuscript was then placed in a pocket-book, where it remained
for some time. Its true discoverer was Lowell Mason, the musician,
who asked young Palmer if he had not some hymn or hymns to
contribute to his new book. The pocket-book was produced and
the little hymn, then between two and three years old, and never
previously utilized, though it had been in print as a poem, was
brought to light. Dr. Mason was attracted by it, and desired a copy.
They stepped together into a store (it was in Boston), and the
copy was made and taken away without further comment. On
carefully reading the hymn at home, Dr. Mason was so interested
that he wrote for it the tune “Olivet,” to which it is usually sung.
Two or three days later, he again met the author in the street, and
scarcely waiting to salute him, he said, “Mr. Palmer, you may live
 many years, and do many good things, but I think you will be best
known to posterity as the author of ‘My Faith looks up to Thee.’”

The hymn appeared first in Spiritual Songs for Social Worship, 1831,
by Thomas Hastings and Lowell Mason. It has been translated into
many languages on the mission fields.

MUSIC. OLIVET. For comments on the composer, Lowell Mason, 93

see Hymn 12.

151. How firm a foundation

“K” in Rippon’s Selection, 1787

A great song of faith, calling to mind such scripture passages as

Heb. 13:5: “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee”; Isa. 43:1, 2:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed thee: I have called thee by thy
name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will
be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee;
when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned;
neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.”

The authorship is uncertain. The hymn appeared in A Selection of

Hymns from the Best Authors, 1787, edited by John Rippon, 1751-
1836, pastor of the Baptist Church in Carter’s Lane, London, where it
was signed “K.” Who “K” was remains uncertain. The best guess
seems to be that it refers to Robert Keene, precentor in Dr. Rippon’s
church. It is one more example of a writer sending forth an immortal
song to bless and strengthen the faith of millions, and then hiding
himself completely from public notice.

MUSIC. ADESTE FIDELIS. For comments on this tune see Hymn 80.

152. We walk by faith, and not by sight

 Henry Alford, 1810-71

Based on the story of the incredulity of Thomas in John 20:25-29:

“Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my
finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I
will not believe ... blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have
believed.”

Henry Alford was educated at Cambridge for the Anglican ministry.

After serving various churches, he finally, in 1857, became Dean of
Canterbury, the highest post in the church. He was a renowned
scholar and the author of numerous volumes. His Greek Testament
was his greatest work and remained the standard critical
commentary of the latter 19th century. He was a member of the
New Testament Revision Company, whose work resulted in the
revised version in 1881. Greatly interested in hymnology, he himself
wrote and translated many hymns, and published several collections
of hymns. Dean Alford was a strenuous worker, never idle, always
broad-minded and throughout his life maintained cordial relations
with non-conformists. A lifelong desire to visit the Holy Land
remained unfilled; which fact suggested the beautiful inscription on
his tombstone: “Deversorium viatoris proficiscentis
Hierosolymam”—“the inn of a pilgrim travelling to Jerusalem.”

MUSIC. ARLINGTON is a tune from Thos. A. Arne’s opera Artaxerxes,

arranged by Rev. Ralph Harrison, 1748-1810, an English 94
Presbyterian minister who published it in his Sacred Harmony,
1784.

Thos. A. Arne, 1710-1778, was educated for the legal profession. He

turned away from law to become the foremost English composer of
the 18th century. He received his degree of Doctor of Music from
Oxford in 1759. Arne wrote the patriotic air, “Rule Britannia,” besides
many other popular songs. His sister, a famous contralto, was
chosen by Handel as one of the soloists for the first performance of
The Messiah in Dublin, April 13, 1742.