October 16, 2011

"Come, Christians, Join to Sing" was written by Christian Henry Bateman and was published in several children's songbooks. In fact, the first line of the hymn originally read, "Come, children, join to sing." The line was changed in The Hymnal (1933), an early Presbyterian (USA) hymnal, to make the hymn available to all age groups. The tune MADRID is also called SPANISH HYMN or CHANT, as its origins are found in a popular Spanish folk melody. The tune is easily sung, with the first, second, and fourth lines all being identical, and the third line having two repeated phrases. The language is clear and simple, making it easy for children and adults alike to sing it with understanding. It is easy to see why this hymn and tune were matched together to be included in children's hymnals.

"This Is My Father's World" has Presbyterian fingerprints all over it. Maltbie Babcock attended New York's Auburn Theological Seminary and was ordained to the Presbyterian ministry. His original poem, from which this hymn comes, was sixteen stanzas long, praising God for the wonder of creation. TERRA BEATA, translated "blessed earth," reflects the hymn's intent to laud the greatness of the Lord's work.

"Jesus Loves Me!" is another hymn written specifically with the faith of children in mind. In The Presbyterian Hymnal Companion, author Lindajo McKim writes this:

"The text was written by Anna Bartlett Warner for her novel Say and Seal (c. 1859). The main characters of the novel were a dying child Johnny Fax, his Sunday school teacher John Linden, and Linden's fiancee, Faith Derrick. Toward the end of the book, Linden carries the child and sings to him what has now become the familiar children's hymn." The musical setting for the text was provided by William Bradbury, a pupil of Lowell Mason, and an organist who held annual children's music festivals.