Hymn: Morning Has Broken
Eleanor Farjeon wrote this hymn as per a request from Percy
Dearmer, who was putting together a new songbook (Enlarged Songs of Praise, 1931) and wanted a hymn on the theme of
thanksgiving to the tune BUNESSAN. Carlton Young writes, “The text effectively
links and expresses the creation stories in Genesis 1 and John 1, and reminds
us that each new day is a gift from God. In stanza 3, God’s graceful acts of
‘re-creation’ are not divine recreational activity.”
Hymn: Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
LindaJo McKim writes, “William Williams, known as the ‘Sweet
Singer of Wales’ and ‘the Isaac Watts of Wales’ wrote this text, full of
biblical imagery in 1745.” A minister, Williams’ original title for the hymn
was “A Prayer for Strength to go through the Wilderness of the World.” Alan
Luff, a Welsh hymnody scholar, comments on the world of Williams: “[it] is a
mixture of his own Wales and the land of the Bible. So a preaching journey can
become both the toiling of the Israelites through the wilderness and Everyman’s
pilgrimage through life to the eternal home. The best known of his hymns in
English, ‘Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,’ shows the truth of this; in it we
are the Israelites seeking food and water in the wilderness and at the end we
are passing through the waters of the Jordan to reach final safety on the other
side.” Carlton Young notes that “the hymn draws upon strong biblical metaphors,
especially from Exodus 13 and 16: ‘manna,’ ‘crystal fountain,’ ‘fire and cloudy
pillar,’ ‘crossing the river Jordan to Canaan’s side.’
Hymn: Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound
It is good to have a thorough understanding of this hymn’s
history to understand the significance of it. From The Presbyterian Hymnal Companion:
John Newton
was born in London and at age eleven went to sea with his father. his mother
had die when he was six. By age seventeen he was in the British Royal Navy
assigned to a man-of-war. After serving as a sailor on a slave ship, he became
a captain, transporting Africans to port where they could be sold for the best
price. In 1748 he was caught in a storm at sea and experienced a spiritual
awakening…At age forty Newton was ordained in the Church of England despite his
formal education.
With
William Cowper, Newton penned Olney Hymns
(1779), from which four of the four we’ll sing today come. The fifth stanza is the
tenth stanza of another hymn, “Jerusalem, My Happy Home,” which was included in
another hymn collection; it is unclear when it was added to the four originals
by Newton. The hymn was not paired with the tune NEW BRITAIN (AMAZING GRACE in
our hymnal) until 1835.
Anthem: A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
Written in 1529 by Martin Luther, this hymn is based on
Psalm 46 and soon became the rallying cry of the Protestant Reformation. Luther
had it sung every day at his church in Coburg, Bavaria. Along with John Calvin, Luther is considered
a pillar of the Protestant Reformation, and is lauded by church musicians for
his emphasis on music in worship, as well as his excellent hymn writing.
Michael Burkhardt, a church musician from Texas, wrote today’s arrangement. The
third stanza is set in the isometric version of the tune, which is how Luther
originally wrote it.
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