Category: Reading the Hymns
Reading the Hymns: God Moves In a Mysterious Way
Christmas is almost here, and I once again feel like writing about a hymn. My hymn today is “God Moves in A Mysterious Way”, one of William Cowper’s contributions to the Olney Hymns. It is not, I admit, a very...
Reading the Hymns: The Gospel Brings Tidings
“The Gospel Brings Tidings,” by William Gadsby (1773–1844), was one of my favorite hymns during the Berkeley years. It is, I admit, obscure. It’s not on Cyberhymnal or any of the hymnals indexed on hymnary.org. Far as I can tell,...
Reading the Hymns – The Sands of Time Are Sinking
This weekend’s hymn is a follow-up to last weekend’s profile. Samuel Rutherford did not, to my knowledge, write any hymns. But in the 19th century, someone wrote one for him. Ann Cousin (1824-1906) was a Scottish poet and the wife...
Reading thy Hymns Bonus: O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Today’s selection is possibly the oldest Christmas carol that is still in use. It is a Victorian translation (by John M. Neale, 1851) of a 12th-century Latin carol, which was in turn adapted from a set of 8th century monastic...
Reading the Hymns: The Contrite Heart
This hymn is a new favorite of mine. It’s by William Cowper (1731-1800), and first appeared in the Olney Hymns collection, which he co-published with John Newton. Fred Sanders recently highlighted Cowper and the Olney collection. He introduces them so...
Reading the Hymns: Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior
Fanny Crosby was one of the great, and greatly prolific, hymnwriters of the 19th century. Considering how that century was a bit of a golden age of hymn writing, that’s saying something. Did I say prolific? She almost sets her...
Reading the Hymns: Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending
I have so enjoyed Matt’s weekly postings of hymnodic reflections that I’ve jumped at the opportunity to continue the series during his absence. This week’s hymn, another of the four most popular Anglican hymns, is often sung in the days...
Reading the Hymns: Blest Be the Tie that Binds
John Fawcett was a Baptist. If you listen to critics of Baptists (and evangelicals), he should have had no idea about the role that community played in the Christian life. The emphasis on individual salvation, personal piety, and going to...
Reading the Hymns: Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior
This week’s selection is from one of evangelicalism’s most prolific hymn writers, Fanny Crosby. Crosby, who was a Methodist, is best known for “Blessed Assurance,” which encapsulates the evangelical conviction in the reality of the atonement. But the other side...
Reading the Hymns: For the Beauty of the Earth
One of the most significant facts of Christian theology is that the death and resurrection of the man Jesus Christ empowers not only the redemption of all mankind, but the renewal of the entire created order. That’s a theological fact...