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diff --git a/old/61393-0.txt b/old/61393-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 1ee6b1d..0000000 --- a/old/61393-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11492 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Singing Church, by Edmund S. Lorenz - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Singing Church - The Hymns It Wrote and Sang - -Author: Edmund S. Lorenz - -Release Date: February 13, 2020 [EBook #61393] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SINGING CHURCH *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - THE - SINGING CHURCH - - - THE HYMNS IT WROTE AND SANG - - By - Edmund S. Lorenz, LL.D., Mus. Doc. - - AUTHOR OF - MUSIC IN WORK AND WORSHIP - PRACTICAL HYMN STUDIES - PRACTICAL CHURCH MUSIC - CHURCH MUSIC - - COKESBURY PRESS - NASHVILLE - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - Copyright, MCMXXXVIII - By WHITMORE & SMITH - -All rights in this book are reserved. No part of the text may be -reproduced in any form without written permission of the publishers, -except brief quotations used in connection with reviews in a magazine -or newspaper. - - _Set up, electrotyped, printed, and bound by the Parthenon Press at - Nashville Tennessee, United States of America_ - - “_Be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and - hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart - to the Lord._” - (Eph. 5: 18, 19.) - - - - - PREFACE - - -In preparing this discussion of the Christian hymn, it has been my -ambition, not to be pre-eminently scholarly, but rather to be -pre-eminently helpful. The current treatment of this phase of church -worship is quite sufficiently thorough in its literary analysis and -historical research; there is nothing but praise for this aspect of -the study of the hymn in the many excellent treatises in America as -well as in England. - -The fathers of American hymnology, Professors Austin Phelps and -Edwards A. Parks and Rev. Daniel L. Furber, set a good example to -later hymnologists in their _Hymns and Choirs_ in laying stress on the -thought and sentiment of the hymns and in devoting nearly one-third of -their study to “The Dignity and the Methods of Worship in Song,” -discussing choirs, congregational singing, organs, and many other -practical phases in the use of hymns. They gave little consideration -to the historicity of individual hymns; that viewpoint had not risen -above the horizon. - -Later works have given more attention to the historical background. -The work of Dr. Louis F. Benson, the greatest hymnologist America has -produced, cannot be too highly commended for its scholarly -thoroughness and indefatigable research. His _The English Hymn_ and -_The Hymnody of the Christian Church_ should be found in the library -of every minister. Other valuable American treatises on hymns are -Ninde’s _Story of the American Hymn_, Gilman’s _Evolution of the -English Hymn_, Reeves’ _The Hymn as Literature_, Marks’ _Rise and -Growth of English Hymnody_, and Tillett’s _Our Hymns and Their -Authors_, all of which are most helpful and illuminating discussions -bearing on the literary and historical aspects of Christian hymns. On -the other side of the sea are other most valuable studies of the hymn. -Horder’s _The Hymn Lover_ is particularly fresh and inspiring. Others -are instructive regarding the individual hymns, such as Josiah -Miller’s _Singers and Songs of the Church_, John Telford’s _The -Methodist Hymn-Book Illustrated_ and _Evenings with the Sacred Poets_, -and W. T. Stead’s _Hymns That Have Helped_. Supreme above them all is -Julian’s _Dictionary of Hymnology_, which is a stupendous work of vast -comprehensiveness and indefatigable industry, the last word in the -history and critical study of Christian hymns of all lands and all -Christian ages. - -The justification of another survey of the field lies in the fact that -all these admirable books confine themselves to the purely literary -and historical data regarding each hymn, with side glances in only a -few cases at the practical values involved. While the fundamental urge -of expressing religious emotions back of Christian hymns is not denied -or even deprecated, the emotional values are not developed or -stressed. - -In order to assure this lacking element of practical helpfulness, this -discussion includes four chapters on the purposeful use of hymns in -the work of the Church. - -It is proper that I should recognize the sympathetic and cordial -helpfulness in an advisory way of Professor Herman von Berge, my -editorial associate in the musical work to which I have devoted the -larger part of my life. His scholarship and wide practical experience, -both as pastor and theological seminary professor, have helped me -solve some problems that rather daunted me. Acknowledgment is also due -to my son, Rev. Edward H. Lorenz, and to Mrs. F. C. Goodlin, my -private secretary, in typing and proofreading my longhand manuscript. -Last but not least, the co-operation of my brother, Dr. D. E. Lorenz, -organizer of the church of the Good Shepherd in New York City and its -pastor for thirty-four years, in the indexing and proofreading, calls -for grateful recognition. Only an experienced author can fully measure -the value of such efficient helpers. - - E. S. L. - -Dayton Ohio. - - - - - CONTENTS - - - INTRODUCTION 17 - THE PLACE AND IMPORTANCE OF THE HYMN. - The Impulse to Sing Is Constitutional in Man. - Biblical Authority for the Singing of Hymns. - The Use of Hymns in the Development of the Christian Church. - Cultural Value of Hymns. - Spiritual Value of Hymns. - The Value of Singing Hymns Too Often Overlooked. - The Need of Emphasis on Efficient Use of Hymns. - - - PART I - THE CHARACTER OF THE HYMN - - - CHAPTER I - WHAT IS A HYMN? 25 - I DEFINITION OF THE HYMN. - Importance of Accurate Definition. - Inadequate Definition. - Definition Must Be Based on Practical Considerations. - Types of Hymns. - Definition of the Congregational Hymn. - II THE HYMN MUST BE POETRY. - To Be Poetry, It Must Be Emotional. - It Must Have Poetical Form. - It Must Be Poetic in Spirit. - The Hymn Must Have Unity. - The Poetical Element Is Contributory Only. - III THE CHRISTIAN HYMN MUST BE DISTINCTLY RELIGIOUS. - Poems of Semi-religious Fancy Are No Hymns. - Mere Moralizing Will Not Serve. - Special Propaganda Is Not Admissible. - Christian Hymns Should Be Genuinely Christocentric. - IV SCRIPTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE HYMN. - Hymns Based on the Scriptures. - Use of Scriptural Forms Desirable. - V THE HYMN MUST BE FITTED FOR MASS SINGING. - Congregational Singing Is a Pronouncedly Christian Exercise. - Meter Essential to Mass Singing. - VI PRACTICABILITY FOR ACTUAL USE. - Ideas Must Be Plainly Evident. - Hymns May Not Be Extremely Individualistic. - Distracting Figures and Forms of Expression. - Verses Must Be Complete in Themselves. - Musical Limitations. - Outworn Hymns. - Mistaken Objections to Some Hymns. - - - CHAPTER II - THE PURPOSE AND VALUE OF HYMNS 40 - I THE IMPULSE TO WRITE HYMNS. - II PURPOSE IN WRITING HYMNS. - The Influence of Purpose. - The Purpose Must Affect Only the Practical Aspects. - III PURPOSE OF THE USER OF HYMNS. - IV PURPOSES SERVED BY SINGING HYMNS. - Hymns Unite Christians in Worship and Christian Activities. - Hymns Concentrate Interest and Attention. - Hymns Afford a Means of Expression for the Congregation. - Hymns Provide Help and Comfort in Dark Hours. - Hymns Afford Clear Expression of Christian Truth. - Hymns Give Opportunity for Active Participation by All. - Hymns Provide Variety. - Hymns Create a Religious Atmosphere. - Hymns in the Home. - Hymns in Personal Work. - V REASONS FOR THE MINISTER’S APPRECIATION OF HYMNS. - Hymns Are Evidence of the Effect of the Bible. - Hymns and Psalms Affected the Life of Church. - Hymns in Personal Christian Experience. - Hymns as Stimulating the Spiritual Life of the Minister. - Hymns Approved by Paul. - Hymns in the Early Church. - Hymns Prepared the Church for Periods of Marked Progress. - VI STRANGE INDIFFERENCE TO HYMNS. - The Minister’s Indifference. - Indifference of the Congregation. - - - CHAPTER III - THE LITERARY ASPECT OF HYMNS 53 - I WHAT MAKES THE HYMN LITERATURE? - Its Character as a Transcript of Life. - Its Wide Distribution. - Its Acceptance Through Many Generations. - Its Profound Influence. - II OBJECTIONS TO RECOGNIZING ITS LITERARY CHARACTER. - Due to Narrow Definition of Literature. - Due to Failure to Realize Limitations of Hymns. - Some Critics and Their Criticisms. - III THE WRITING OF HYMNS. - The Handicap of Thought and Diction. - The Handicap of Meter. - IV LITERARY QUALITY NOT TO BE OVERESTIMATED. - Literary Quality Not the Supreme Consideration. - Literary Quality Should Be Subconscious. - - - CHAPTER IV - THE EMENDATION OF HYMNS 63 - I THE CHANGES IN OUR HYMNS. - Early Changes. - The Abuse of the Editorial Revision. - The Return to the Originals. - II PRINCIPLES OF EQUITY INVOLVED IN THESE CHANGES. - The Rights of the Original Writer. - The Limits of the Author’s Rights. - III EFFECT OF CHANGES ON QUALITY. - Loss of Original Writer’s Vision. - Biblical Precedent. - IV ANALYSIS OF CHANGES MADE. - The Omission of Verses. - Reconstructing and Rewriting Faulty Hymns. - Minor Felicitous Changes. - - - CHAPTER V - THE CONTENT OF THE HYMN 76 - I ITS RELATION TO GOD. - Thanksgiving. - Prayer for Future Blessing. - Adoration. - The Hymn of Communion. - II RELATION TO THE SINGER. - The Hymn of Emotion. - The Hymn of Inspiration. - The Hymn of Personal Experience. - The Hymn of Meditation. - The Hymn of Exhortation. - The Didactic Hymn. - The Doctrinal Hymn. - The Homiletical Hymn. - The Hymn of Propaganda. - Hymns of the Social Gospel. - Special Hymns. - The Great Hymnic Themes. - - - CHAPTER VI - THE GOSPEL HYMN 89 - Lack of Discrimination. - Wrong Assumptions of the Opposition. - Unfairness in Comparisons Made. - Criteria for Evaluation. - Gospel Hymns and the Unsaved. - Gospel Hymns and the Demands of Worship. - Gospel Hymns in the Preparatory Service. - Gospel Hymns in the Laboratory. - The Advantages of Gospel Hymns. - Discrimination in the Use of Gospel Songs Needed. - - - PART II - HISTORY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN HYMN - - - CHAPTER VII - APOSTOLIC ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT 103 - SACRED SONG IN THE NEW CHRISTIAN CHURCH. - The Rise of Sacred Song in Apostolic Times. - Apostolic Emphasis of Sacred Song. - Traces of Hymns in the Epistles. - The Hymns of the Apocalypse. - “The Odes of Solomon.” - The Failure of Apostolic Spiritual Songs to Survive. - - - CHAPTER VIII - THE POST-APOSTOLIC HYMN 109 - The Post-Apostolic Church a Singing Church. - The Earliest Surviving Hymns. - The Relation of Hymns to Psalms and Canticles. - The Hymn as Propaganda. - - - CHAPTER IX - THE GREEK HYMNODY 114 - Introduction. THE SYRIAC HYMN-WRITERS. - I EARLY GREEK HYMNS. - II THE LATER GREEK HYMNS. - - - CHAPTER X - THE LATIN HYMNODY 119 - I THE BEGINNING OF LATIN HYMNODY. - II EARLY LATIN HYMN-WRITERS. - III GREAT LATIN HYMNS. - IV MEDIEVAL DEVOTIONAL POEMS. - V MEDIEVAL POPULAR HYMNODY. - - - CHAPTER XI - LUTHER AND THE GERMAN HYMN 130 - I PRE-REFORMATION VERNACULAR HYMNS. - II LUTHER’S RELATION TO GERMAN HYMNODY. - - - CHAPTER XII - THE LATER GERMAN HYMNODY 137 - I THE RISING STANDARD OF LITERARY VALUES. - II THE GOLDEN AGE OF GERMAN HYMNODY. - III THE PIETISTIC HYMN-WRITERS. - IV GERMAN REFORMED HYMNODY. - V TRANSITION TO RATIONALISTIC HYMNS. - VI RATIONALISM IN HYMNODY. - VII HYMNS OF RENEWED RELIGIOUS LIFE. - VIII HYMNS OF PIETISTIC TYPE. - - - CHAPTER XIII - METRICAL PSALMODY 148 - I CALVIN’S CONCEPTION OF CONGREGATIONAL SINGING. - II CALVIN’S FOLLOWERS MORE EXTREME. - III MAROT’S SUCCESSFUL VERSIONS. - IV DEVELOPMENT OF THE GENEVAN PSALTER. - V ENGLISH PSALM VERSIONS BEFORE STERNHOLD. - VI VERSION OF STERNHOLD AND HOPKINS. - VII THE SCOTCH VERSION. - VIII ROUS’ VERSION. - IX TATE AND BRADY’S “NEW VERSION.” - X AMERICAN PSALMODY. - XI THE VALUE OF THE PSALM VERSIONS. - - - CHAPTER XIV - THE ENGLISH HYMN BEFORE WATTS 158 - I THE EARLIEST ENGLISH HYMN. - II ENGLISH HYMNODY SUBMERGED BY REFORMED PSALMODY. - III ENGLISH LITERARY IDEALS UNFAVORABLE TO HYMN-WRITING. - IV THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TECHNIC OF WRITING SINGING HYMNS. - V THE IDEAL OF THE SINGING HYMN REALIZED. - - - CHAPTER XV - ISAAC WATTS AND HIS PERIOD 168 - I THE HYMNIC NEED OF THE TIME. - II THE LIFE OF WATTS. - III WATTS AS A HYMN-WRITER. - IV WATTS’ ARGUMENT FOR THE HYMN. - V WATTS’ INSISTENCE ON PRACTICABILITY. - VI THE INESTIMABLE VALUE OF WATTS’ HYMNS. - VII CONTEMPORARIES OF WATTS. - - - CHAPTER XVI - THE WESLEYS AND THEIR ERA 180 - I THE INFLUENCE OF WATTS ON THE WESLEYS. - II THE HOME OF THE WESLEYS. - III THE MORAVIAN INFLUENCE. - IV JOHN WESLEY. - V CHARLES WESLEY. - VI CHARLES WESLEY’S HYMNS QUITE SUBJECTIVE. - VII WATTS AND CHARLES WESLEY. - VIII ISSUES OF THE WESLEYAN HYMNS. - IX THE METHODIST TUNES. - X INFLUENCES OPPOSING THE WESLEYAN HYMNS. - XI OTHER METHODIST HYMN-WRITERS. - XII CALVINISTIC-METHODIST HYMN-WRITERS. - XIII BAPTIST HYMN-WRITERS. - - - CHAPTER XVII - HYMNS IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND 193 - I RISE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE IN THE ENGLISH CHURCH. - II EARLY COLLECTIONS OF EVANGELICAL HYMNS. - III EVANGELICAL HYMN-WRITERS. - IV HYMN-WRITERS OF THE ROMANTIC SCHOOL. - V CONTEMPORARY HYMN-WRITERS. - VI MINOR HYMN-WRITERS. - VII THE HYMNS OF THE OXFORD MOVEMENT. - - - CHAPTER XVIII - AMERICAN HYMNODY 209 - I THE TRANSITION FROM PSALMODY TO HYMNODY. - II THE INTRODUCTION OF WATTS’ HYMNS. - III THE BEGINNINGS OF AMERICAN HYMNODY. - IV COLLECTIONS OF AMERICAN HYMNS. - V EPISCOPAL HYMN-WRITERS. - VI UNITARIAN HYMNODY. - VII LATER ORTHODOX HYMN-WRITERS. - - - PART III - PRACTICAL HYMNOLOGY - - - CHAPTER XIX - THE STUDY OF HYMNS 229 - I IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY OF HYMNS. - II PERSONAL ADVANTAGES OF SUCH STUDY OF HYMNS. - Literary Pleasure. - Literary Culture. - Development of Emotional Nature. - III THE PRACTICAL VALUES OF INDIVIDUAL HYMNS. - Classifying Hymns by Their Nature. - Classifying Hymns by Their Fitness for Definite Purposes. - IV THE MINUTE STUDY OF HYMNS. - Analysis of the Hymn. - The Background of the Hymn. - Making a Hymnal of His Own. - Memorizing Hymns. - V A STUDY OF METHODS OF USE. - Using Hymns in Sermons. - Studying Responsiveness of the Congregation. - Studying Methods of Announcement and Securing Participation. - Studying Use of Hymnal for Specific Purposes. - VI A STUDY OF THE TUNES. - - - CHAPTER XX - THE PRACTICAL USE OF HYMNS 248 - I THE HYMN AS A MEANS TO AN END. - II ANALYSIS OF PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF HYMNS. - III THE USE OF HYMNS FOR CREATING RELIGIOUS INTEREST. - IV THE HYMN AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR TEACHING TRUTH. - V HYMN SERMONS AND HYMN SERVICES. - VI THE USE OF HYMNS IN EMERGENCIES. - - - CHAPTER XXI - THE SELECTION OF HYMNS 256 - I SELECTION SHOULD SECURE UNITY OF SERVICE. - Narrow Conception of Unity. - Broader Conception of Unity. - Unity Based on Purpose. - II SUGGESTIVE SELECTIONS OF HYMNS. - Hymns for Service on God’s Omnipotence. - Hymns for Service on God’s Love. - Hymns for a Missionary Service. - III IMPORTANCE OF THE TUNES. - - - CHAPTER XXII - THE ANNOUNCEMENT AND TREATMENT OF HYMNS 266 - I THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF HYMNS. - II THE TREATMENT OF HYMNS. - EPILOGUE 274 - REFERENCES AND NOTES 277 - GENERAL INDEX 285 - INDEX OF HYMNS 291 - - - - - INTRODUCTION - - - THE PLACE AND IMPORTANCE OF THE HYMN - -The Church of God has been and is a singing church. This was true in -the antediluvian centuries, which was its seminal period, for some of -its canticles have survived. In its pupal stage, the Old Testament -church life developed both the form and the content of the future -hymnody. - -To the solo forms of the preceding period, the Mosaic social and -religious organization now adds both the choral and the congregational -forms of vocal worship. To the fear and awe of previous generations, -the Christian development of the Church of God has added the intimate -phases of adoration, of gratitude, of love, based on consciousness of -communion with the Triune Deity. - -Outside of the Israelitish Church and its Christian consummation, -there has been little or no song in religious worship. The heathen -deities were honored only with rude vocal and instrumental noises made -by temple singers and players. It is the Church of God under all -dispensations which was a singing church. To this day the voice of -sacred song is practically absent from heathen temple. - - - _The Impulse to Sing Is Constitutional in Man._ - -In the beginning, song was a spontaneous expression of feeling, being -based on man’s original constitution as fully as breathing or -speaking. Its exercise did not rise high enough in the consciousness -of men, nor so conspicuously affect the current of events, that -account should be made of it in the sketchy outlines of the early -history of the race. None the less do we hear unrelated echoes from -Lamech and Jubal,[1] and from Laban’s complaint that Jacob gave him no -opportunity to bid farewell “with songs, with tabret, and with harp.” -[2] During the great Exodus, these echoes multiply and become more -articulate at the Red Sea,[3] at the digging of the well at Beer,[4] -about the walls of Jericho,[5] Deborah,[6] Barak,[7] and Hannah,[8] -and the school of the prophets,[9] developing a grand _crescendo_ -which culminates in the full-voiced chorus and orchestra of the times -of David and Solomon.[10] Undoubtedly all these were surviving -manifestations of the unbroken tide of social and religious song that -flowed on through the ages. The Hebrew church carried on the model -constructed by the organizing instinct of Samuel and the musical and -literary genius of David, through the succeeding ages, and passed on -the devotional impulse to the Christian Church. - - - _Biblical Authority for the Singing of Hymns._ - -If any authority for the use of hymns were needed beyond the unfailing -urge of a sanctified soul to find expression for its spiritual -experiences and to persuade other souls to seek a like blessed -privilege, there would be ample provision in the development of -religious song in the Jewish church, in the participation of Jesus in -such a song at so high a peak of religious solemnity as the -institution of “The Lord’s Supper,”[11] in the use of song by the -Apostles in their private meetings and in unusual personal experiences -from the very beginning,[12] in the exhortations of Paul[13] and -James,[14] and in the choral scenes of the great Apocalypse.[15] - - - _The Use of Hymns in the Development of the Christian Church._ - -But the use God has made of song through the succeeding centuries of -the development of the Christian Church, is an even more striking -indication of the high importance placed upon sacred song by the -divine mind. - -The results of the thoughtful use of song, both in ancient times and -the recent past, abundantly illustrate its value and are genuine -laboratory proof of its power in deepening the spirituality of -individuals, of communities, and even of nations. The hymns of Huss -and of Luther, the psalmody of Calvin and of Knox, the preparatory -effect of the hymns of Watts for the great Second Reformation in -England and its intensification by the hymns of the Wesleys, the -joyous singing of rudely fashioned psalms and the newly introduced -hymns in the Great Awakening in New England, the great evangelistic -movement in America and in England with its enthusiastic singing of -unpretentious Gospel songs—all establish on unquestionably scientific -basis the spiritual value of sacred song. - - - _Cultural Value of Hymns._ - -Compare the number of people in any given city or community who read -poetry in any of its forms with the number of church attendants who -read, even when they do not sing, from three to eight hymns every -Lord’s Day. In literary influence, unconsciously absorbed, this wide -use of hymns is vastly more effective upon the public at large than -the more intensive and conscious influence of distinctly literary -verse. - -Millions of homes in Great Britain and America have copies of the -Bible and of some hymnbook, while few of them have books of poetry. -Phrases from hymns and psalms are a large part of the religious -vocabulary of millions. They are quoted not only in sermons, but in -essays and general writings and in the public press, perhaps more -generally than are poems. - -They have been appreciated by the greatest minds, who found them to be -of great comfort and even delight, including such men as Benjamin -Franklin (who first issued Watts’ hymns in America), George -Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and William Ewart Gladstone. -They deeply interested the man, Matthew Arnold, although the literary -critic, Matthew Arnold, had no use for them. - - - _Spiritual Value of Hymns._ - -Hymns touch and influence the most intimate life of men, the moral and -spiritual, and are always influential for good. They concentrate the -comforting truths of the Gospel, make them rememberable; what is even -more important, they add the emotional vitality to those truths that -make them real and actual. - -To leave out the hymns from a single service might be an interesting -experiment; but omit them permanently, as was the former custom among -the Friends, and note how arid and flat the service becomes. - -To some, the hymnbook is simply the Bible in another form, bringing -its doctrines, its ideals, its hopes, its promises, its comforts, and -its spiritual inspirations in a more apprehensible form. Having passed -through the crucible of the actual personal experience of the writers -of the hymns, they are more concrete, more appealing, more actual. - - - _The Value of Singing Hymns Too Often Overlooked._ - -Since the hymn has so high a spiritual value, it is all the more -distressing that its possibilities of spiritual helpfulness are so -generally overlooked and ignored by our ministers and their people. -Even where it seems to be distinctly cultivated and emphasized, it is -often the merely physiological effects that are sought. In other -apparently earnest endeavors to develop its value, there is the -aridity of merely artistic and literary emphasis, or the formal -liturgical aspect that is stressed! - -There is an absence of clear comprehension of what the hymns are -intended to accomplish, of their meaning, of the emotions they are -supposed to express, and of the methods to be used to vitalize them -and to make them effective. They are used mechanically, in deference -to tradition and good ecclesiastical form. Most ministers select hymns -to fit the themes of their discourses, fitness depending solely on -logical relations. - -The spiritual life of the churches is not only the poorer and the -shallower because of this loss of the quickening influence of the -hymn, but this mechanical attitude is carried over to the other -exercises of the divine service. The preacher who sings mechanically -will pray mechanically, preach mechanically. - - - _The Need of Emphasis on Efficient Use of Hymns._ - -The actual fact is that in the hymn the preacher has a most valuable -factor in making his service spiritually effective. Even as a -perfunctory exercise it has at least a social value; but if its -emotional and spiritual possibilities are fully developed and -exploited, it becomes one of the most impressive and thrilling means -of securing genuinely religious results among his people. It is a -tragedy that so many clergymen have such dull and unattractive -services when through a proper use of hymns they might be made -thrillingly interesting. Professor H. M. Poteat, of Wake Forest -College, does not use too severe language in his _Practical Hymnology_ -when he says, “As a result of inexcusable ignorance, carelessness, and -laziness, the singing of hymns, in all too many churches, instead of -being an act of worship, has degenerated into a mere incident of the -service, holding its place solely because of immemorial custom.” - -It is the purpose of this treatise at least to prevent the ignorance -Professor Poteat complains of so bitterly. The other difficulties can -be removed only “by fasting and prayer.” - - - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - - - - - PART I - THE CHARACTER OF THE HYMN - - - - - _Chapter I_ - WHAT IS A HYMN? - - - I. DEFINITION OF THE HYMN - - - _Importance of Accurate Definition._ - -Before undertaking the study of the hymn in its various aspects and -relations, theoretical and practical, it should be very carefully -defined. This is all the more necessary because the word “hymn” is -used to cover so wide a sweep of religious poetry, and because our -discussion is to be largely limited to its practical use in church -work. - -Dr. Austin Phelps’ test of a genuine hymn, “Genuineness of religious -emotion, refinement of poetic taste, and fitness to musical -cadence—these are essential to a faultless hymn, as the three chief -graces to a faultless character,”[1] is a very clear and charming -statement of some essentials of a hymn, which needed emphasis in his -rather prosaic day, but does not include all the requisites of a -useful hymn. - - - _Inadequate Definition._ - -The narrow etymological definition of a hymn would confine it to -sacred poems that, in at least some part of them, are directly -addressed to some person of the Deity. St. Augustine limits the word -“hymn” to “songs with praise to God—without praise they are not hymns. -If they praise aught but God, they are not hymns.” Even now there are -hymnologists who insist upon this limited conception. No less a writer -than W. Garrett Horder, in his fresh and illuminating _The Hymn -Lover_, insists that “the cardinal test of a hymn should be that it is -in some one, if not the whole of its parts, addressed to God.” This -shuts out the use of sacred poetry in instruction, inspiration, -exhortation, and special practical applications of hymns. Moreover, if -the hymn is to be limited to worship, then the unconverted can never -sing sincerely in the public service, and the ancient and medieval -churches were justified in withdrawing the privilege of religious song -from the general laity. - - - _Definition Must Be Based on Practical Considerations._ - -The hymn is simply a means to the supreme end of all religious effort. -That form of the hymn, that method of its use, and that musical -assistance, which realize most fully the immediate and ultimate ends -in view under given circumstances can be approved and used. This -practical basis of actual spiritual results must govern in formulating -the conception of the Christian hymn, as well as in forms of worship -and prayer, in preaching, or in church organization. - -Since our discussion of the hymn has in view its contributing -efficiently to concrete spiritual results, its definition must have a -practical basis. Etymological, scholastic, traditional, abstractly -idealistic considerations can have only minor weight. - - - _Types of Hymns._ - -The hymn may be viewed from too many angles to confine it to any one -definition. Hence we must recognize different types of the hymn: (a) -There is the poem regarding religious life and feeling that cannot be -brought within the limitations of a musical setting, constituting the -_Reading Hymn_; (b) we have the formless, but elevated, expression of -worship or religious truth that at best can only be chanted, which we -may call the Canticle, in which may be included such hymns as the Te -Deum, the Sanctus, and unmetrical psalms; these, together with poems -that are expressions of emotion, yet are not fitted for mass singing -but may be effectively set to music of a different order, may be -recognized as Solo, or Choral, Hymns, such of The Stabat Mater, The -Dies Irae, and Sunset and Evening Star. - -There is left us the sacred poem of such a form and type that it may -be called the _Congregational_ or _Singing Hymn_, which is really the -subject of the present practical discussion, and may be strictly -defined as follows: - - - _Definition of the Congregational Hymn._ - -The Congregational Hymn is a poem expressing worship, praise, -thanksgiving, and prayer on the Godward side; personal spiritual -experience, emotion, and inspiration on the human side; and -instruction on the religious side. It must be adapted to mass thinking -and expression, in a form fitted to be sung by a Christian -congregation, and calculated to express and stimulate or create -religious feeling and purpose. - - - II. THE HYMN MUST BE POETRY - - - _To Be Poetry, It Must Be Emotional._ - -The initiating force of all poetry must be emotion of some kind. That -emotion may be mere earnestness, it may be satire, it may be -satisfaction in contemplation of beautiful scenes, or satisfaction in -ideas and memories, or displeasure at impressions painful or -abhorrent. Few of us realize how unfailing is the flow of emotion in -our minds responding to the world about us and in us. - -To view life and the world through the eye of reason is valuable, of -course; but if that vision lacks the support of the eye of emotion, it -brings only a silhouette, without perspective, wanting a sense of -reality. That is the weakness of abstract thinking, whether in -theology or political economy. - -If the hymn, therefore, is to perform its functions, it must be -definitely emotional to a greater or less extent. This is particularly -true of hymns of Christian experience or in the hymn’s functioning in -inspiration and exhortation. To confuse animal excitement with emotion -is bad psychology. The genuine emotionality of a hymn is the best -criterion of its practical value, for only through emotion can the -will be reached. - - - _It Must Have Poetical Form._ - -The first requirement in this definition is that the hymn must be -poetry. It should have meter and rhyme, else there can be no musical -setting practicable for congregational use. The first task Calvin and -his associates faced, after reaching the conclusion that only the -inspired Psalms could be sung in the public religious assembly, was -the preparation of a metrical version. True, the Psalms had been sung -by the Greek and Roman Catholic churches, but only as chants by -priestly choirs. In the English church service, these chants were -frequently only led by the choir, the congregation joining in their -singing. But this was practicable only in larger and long-established -congregations, and even then there was more or less confusion. In -general, this chanting was a failure, and the English church adopted -the metrical versions. The use of the Psalms for responsive readings -in our modern church services is a definitely practicable way of -utilizing their liturgical and spiritual values. - -The ostensible hymns of the Greek Church, of which Dr. Neale and Dr. -Brownlie have furnished translations, or rather transformations, are -not verse but prose. They were not sung by the congregations, or put -into their hands, but were reserved for the reading of the clergy. - -In like manner, the Latin hymns, although poetical in form—often -complicated to an absurd degree—were not sung by the people, but were -versified devotions inserted in the prose Psalms usually read by the -priests. - -In the Reformed churches for many centuries the word “hymn” referred -to verses of “human composure,” as opposed to metrified inspired -Psalms. - -The famous American hymnologist, Dr. Louis J. Benson, lays less stress -on this metrical form: “A Christian hymn, therefore, is a form of -words appropriate to be sung or chanted in public devotions.” This -opens the way for the inclusion of the “Te Deum Laudamus,” the -“Sanctus,” and other canticles among our hymns. But as these historic -texts are rarely or never sung by the people outside of the Church of -England service, and used chiefly as texts for more or less elaborate -musical compositions sung by choirs, we may accept the common -conception of the hymn as a metrical composition. - - - _It Must Be Poetic in Spirit._ - -While having the superficial music of the regularly recurring accents, -and the liquid harmony of the vowels and consonants of the words as -they flow through the lines, there must be also the deeper, more -entrancing music of the literary grace of spiritual thought singing -its beautiful expression. If poetry is “the expression of thought -steeped in imagination and feeling,” all the more must the hymn be -expressive of religious thought transfigured by deep and sincere -emotion. - -While a hymn may be didactic, formulating doctrine, or enforcing -obligation, it is not a really good and effective hymn unless the -thought or exhortation is vitalized by imagination and emotion. Arid -versification of Christian doctrines metaphysically conceived, or of -ethical discussions with no heat of conviction, will stir no pulses of -body, mind, or soul, but will conduce to the all too prevalent sense -of the unreality of religious ideas and life. - - - _The Hymn Must Have Unity._ - -It must have unity of thought, emotion, and expression, all growing -out of a definite vision of emotion, having a beginning, middle, and -end, which mark the progress of the idea or feeling seeking -formulation.[2] - - - _The Poetical Element Is Contributory Only._ - -Yet this element must be felt in the spirit of the hymn rather than in -intention. Preciosity of phrase, elaborate metaphors and similes, -obscure allusions, flights of fancy, are rarely in place. John Newton, -the great hymn writer, speaks to this point in his usual forceful way: -“Perspicuity, simplicity, and ease should be chiefly attended to; and -the imagery and coloring of poetry, if admitted at all, should be -indulged in very sparingly and with great judgment.” Sir Roundell -Palmer is more detailed in his criticism: “Affectation or visible -artifice is worse than excess of homeliness; a hymn is easily spoiled -by a single falsetto note.”[3] - -The emphasis of the literary and poetical elements in hymns has -produced some most valuable sacred lyrics, notably the hymns of Keble -and Heber; but occasionally it has also led to such refinement, to -such sought-out subtlety, and to such conscious preciosity that the -virility and emotional contagion of what might have been an otherwise -really effective hymn have been lost. - - - - - III. THE CHRISTIAN HYMN MUST BE DISTINCTLY RELIGIOUS - - - _Poems of Semi-religious Fancy Are Not Hymns._ - -Poems of fancy with a few religious allusions cannot be classed as -Christian hymns. The objection to the “Beautiful Isle of Somewhere”[4] -has been rather heatedly urged, and there is no small justification -for the criticism. The aboriginal idea of “the happy hunting grounds” -might be referred to by its rather invertebrate fancy, instead of the -heaven of the Christian faith. Eugene Field’s “The Divine Lullaby” so -vaguely suggests the divine care that it can hardly pass muster as a -hymn. For use as a hymn, a poem must be explicitly Christian in -thought and expression. - - - _Mere Moralizing Will Not Serve._ - -That a poem has a good moral does not authorize it to pose as a -Christian hymn. “Brighten the Corner Where You Are” cannot be -recognized as a Christian hymn, since it has no direct religious -significance. There are recent ostensible sociological and -humanitarian hymns that are open to the same criticism. It is not -enough that the underlying assumptions are of Christian origin; they -must be fundamentally religious, no matter what the application to -practical living may be. - - - _Special Propaganda Is Not Admissible._ - -The value of hymns as a method of introducing and enforcing doctrines -was recognized by the enemies of Christianity early in its history. -The Arians in Asia Minor and in Northern Africa, and later throughout -the Roman Empire, flooded the world with songs sung to the popular -melodies attacking the deity of Christ; and by their influence nearly -wrecked Christianity. In our own day various “sports” from -Christianity, and hybrids with other religions, are issuing -collections of songs and garbled Christian hymns to serve their -purposes. The Buddhists of Japan also are taking Christian songs -bodily, with such changes as seem to them necessary. Unitarian hymnal -editors have not hesitated to alter orthodox hymns to suit their own -views. - -That these emasculated hymns are no longer Christian hymns need not be -argued at length. The difficulty is that they have lost the kernel of -genuine Christian thought. The same is true of humanistic lyrics of -propaganda in behalf of brotherhood or social welfare or economic -justice, in which the religious motive is not urged. In general, a -controversial poem cannot be recognized as a hymn; there is no -religious help in controversy. Its emotions are combative, not devout. - - - _Christian Hymns Should Be Genuinely Christocentric._ - -A Christian hymn should express some definite recognition of God as -manifested in Jesus Christ. Even if, as in metrical psalms, the name -of Christ is not used, it should be implied, and unanimously accepted -as implied. It may be worship, praise, prayer, confession, acceptance -of salvation through Jesus Christ, spiritual experience, consecration, -Christian doctrine, Christian hopes—or any other aspect or activity of -the Christian faith. This is the very heart of the Christian hymn. - - - - - IV. SCRIPTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE HYMN - - - _Hymns Based on the Scriptures._ - -If the hymn is to be religious and Christian, it must be based on -scriptural ideas, of course; we have no other authoritative source for -our doctrines or experiences. All our other religious ideas and -methods—our doctrines, our ethics, our religious ideals and -impulses—find their roots there. We cannot afford to sing far-fetched -inferences from unrelated scriptural passages when we have such bodies -of stupendous truth awaiting our contemplation, and when the hymnic -expression of the emotions which those high and conspicuous doctrines -call forth is so freely available. Scriptural truth, so plain that he -who runs may sing, is the only raw material from which Christian hymns -can be produced. It will provide for every religious need of the -individual and of the Church. - - - _Use of Scriptural Forms Desirable._ - -There can be no question but that when scriptural phraseology is used -spontaneously, it adds very much to the impressiveness of the hymn -because of the devout associations it brings up in the minds of the -singers. The hymn by so much acquires an authoritativeness and -elevation beyond ordinary verbiage. - -But while the body of thought in a hymn must be distinctly religious, -and therefore scriptural, it does not follow that the forms of -expression must be scriptural as well. A distinguished writer on the -subject here seems to be at fault: “Nothing should be called a hymn -and nothing should be sung in our assemblies which is not virtually a -paraphrase—and that a very faithful one—of Scripture passages, whether -they are immediately connected in the Holy Word or not.” Apply that -rule to our hymnbooks and what would we have left? - -Although biblical phrases do occur in many hymns, a very close -adherence to this rule would stifle the poet’s spontaneity and make -his hymn stiff and mechanical, like most of the metrical psalms. Such -a rule may seem very devout to the cursory reader, but really it is -mischievous; it is sheer bibliolatry, an emphasis of the letter that -killeth at the expense of the spirit that maketh alive. - - - - - V. THE HYMN MUST BE FITTED FOR MASS SINGING - - -That the hymn is a distinctly social expression, participated in by -the varied personalities massed in a congregation, introduces marked -limitations that cannot be evaded. - - - _Congregational Singing Is a Pronounced Christian Exercise._ - -It is a remarkable fact that only in Hebrew and Christian worship is a -congregational use of hymns conspicuous. With all their literary and -poetic urge for expression, the Greeks had no singing connected with -their temple rites.[5] In so far as the Egyptians had musical elements -in their temple ritual, it was choral and not congregational. In -visiting pagan temples, one is struck by the utter absence of -organized assembled worship; what worship occurs is individual only. - -The Vedic hymns were not singing hymns, but reading hymns, for recital -and meditation. According to Max Mueller, the only share the women had -in the sacrifices was that the wife of the officiating priest, or head -of the house, should recite the necessary hymns. Although in India -there is singing connected with great festivals and processions, the -songs used are so obscene that respectable Hindus are making an effort -to have the public singing of them forbidden. They are usually sung by -the female attendants of the idol, temple prostitutes, who are the -professional singers of these ostensibly religious songs.[6] - -The reason for this absence of true hymns is correctly indicated by W. -Garrett Horder in his _The Hymn Lover_: “But so far as the material -before us enables us to form an opinion, it is that hymns, as an -essential of worship, have been mostly characteristic of the Christian -and, in a less degree, of its progenitor, the Hebrew religion. Nor is -this much to be wondered at, since it is the only religion calculated -to draw out at once the two elements necessary to such a form of -worship—awe and love—awe which lies at the heart of worship, and love -which kindles it into adoring song.” - - - _Meter Essential to Mass Singing._ - -The form of the verse is practically of commanding importance. The -musical form of the hymn tune definitely fixes the form of the stanza. -It must not be complicated or free in form, else the tune loses its -needed simplicity and symmetry. More elaborate forms of stanza may do -for solo or choral numbers, where skilled composers write music that -follows the vagaries of the form of the text; but the general -congregation cannot be expected to sing tunes of elaborate and -confusing structure. Although an occasional hymn of unusual form of -stanza is fortunate in finding a happy musical mate, like “Lead, -kindly Light” or “O Love, that wilt not let me go,” the usual hymn -must be adapted to one of about a dozen fundamental meters. Although -the Gospel song is not so circumscribed in its form, because its -setting goes with it, its forms are only rhythmical variations of the -standard meters. - - - - - VI. PRACTICABILITY FOR ACTUAL USE - - - _Ideas Must Be Plainly Evident._ - -The thought of a good hymn must lie on the surface. It must appeal not -only to the scholarly and subtle minds in a singing congregation, but -also to all who are expected to join the religious exercise. Paul’s -word regarding unknown tongues applies here: “Except ye utter by the -tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be understood, how -shall it be known what is spoken?” The practical Paul enforces the -parallel by saying a few verses further on, “I will sing with the -spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.” No matter how -high the thought or how deep the sentiment of a poem may be, or how -felicitously they may be expressed, it is not an effective hymn if -study (for which there is no time at the moment of singing) is -required to bring out its meaning and feeling. - - - _Hymns May Not Be Extremely Individualistic._ - -While a hymn may be the expression of the individual poet, it must be -an appropriate expression of the mind and heart of the whole -congregation as it sings. Yet in addition to the evident, clearly -expressed thought, there may be singing, _sotto voce_ between the -lines, of deeper experiences and higher soarings of the spirit that -only prolonged meditation can reveal. - -Some sacred poems express a religious emotion in so individual and -unusual a way that they are not at all fitted to express the emotion -of a congregation. As an illustration of a poem too personal and -individualistic, here are a few stanzas of a hymn of Rev. Samuel J. -Stone, which is found in an increasing number of current hymnals: - - “My feet are worn and weary with the march - On the rough road and up the steep hillside; - O city of our God, I fain would see - Thy pastures green where peaceful waters glide. - - * * * * * * * - - Patience, poor soul! The Saviour’s feet were worn, - The Saviour’s heart and hands were weary too; - His garments stained and travel-worn, and old, - His vision blinded with pitying dew.” - -This is a beautiful poem that would make an admirable text for a solo, -but it is out of place on the lips of a congregation. Compare with -this the very useful hymn by Bonar: - - “I was a wand’ring sheep, - I did not love the fold; - I did not love my Shepherd’s voice, - I would not be controlled.” - -Every one of the first eight lines of this once widely used hymn -begins with the pronoun of the first person singular, yet there is no -particular individuality in this confession; it is the expression of -the common experience in a straightforward manner, void of all -idiosyncrasy. - -In some hymns there is found an intensity of feeling that leads to an -apparent extravagance of expression that a single soul can sometimes -sincerely accept as the vehicle of its own experience, but which a -gathering of miscellaneous people cannot sing without the great mass -of them being insincere. For a careless person idly to sing with -Faber, - - “I love Thee so, I know not how - My transports to control,” - -or - - “Ah, dearest Jesus, I have grown - Childish with love of Thee,” - -is sheer blasphemy. It is the sin of Uzziah! - -The following verses from one of Charles Wesley’s hymns combine the -two faults of extravagance and too-intense individualism: - - “On the wings of His love I was carried above - All sin and temptation and pain; - I could not believe that I ever should grieve, - That I ever should suffer again. - - I rode in the sky (freely justified I), - Nor envied Elijah his seat; - My soul mounted higher in a chariot of fire, - And the moon it was under my feet.” - - - _Distracting Figures and Forms of Expression._ - -Other poems are so full of imagination, so crowded with unusual and -almost bizarre figures of speech, that they fail to be the natural -expression of the religious emotion of an assembly of religious -people. George Herbert wrote a great many religious poems whose beauty -and charm are only enhanced by their quaint and unusual imagery. -Occasionally a hymnal editor ventures on a selection, but it is so -foreign to the methods of thought and expression of the churches as -not to appeal to their taste and feeling. Take the beautiful poem on -the Sabbath day, “O day most calm, most bright.” The first line is -spontaneous, expressive, and musical, and appropriate for a hymn. The -second line, “The fruit of this, the next world’s bud,” with its -antithetical structure, is already somewhat formal and forced. But -when the third and fourth lines, - - “The indorsement of supreme delight, - Writ by a Friend and with His blood,” - -offer a purely legal and unpoetical figure, one’s sense of song is -entirely obscured. - -Yet, when Herbert’s imagery is most matter-of-fact and ungenial, there -is a body of thought and there are a certain fitness and a clearness -of relation that command admiration. - - - _Verses Must Be Complete in Themselves._ - -Hymns that have long, intricate sentences extending through two or -more verses are impracticable for use in a song service, as the break -between the stanzas dislocates the development of the idea. Every -verse must be practically complete in itself, no matter what its -relation to the development of the general idea of the hymn may be. - - - _Musical Limitations._ - -It must also be recognized that there are limits to the expression -congregational music can give. A poem that is vividly descriptive, or -is in part intensely dramatic, cannot be recognized as a practicable -hymn, since all stanzas have the same tune, a tune which cannot vary -its musical effect to suit the differing stanzas. - -Then there are hymns that are too majestic, too glowing, for a -hymn-tune composer to write a fitting tune out of the limited -resources of musical effects available to him. Such a hymn is that one -of Henry Kirke White, of lamented memory: - - “The Lord our God is clothed with might, - The winds obey His will; - He speaks, and in His heavenly height - The rolling sun stands still. - - * * * * * * * - - His voice sublime is heard afar, - In distant peals it dies; - He yokes the whirlwind to His car - And sweeps the howling skies.” - -With a chorus of a thousand trained singers, an organ of extraordinary -power, and an orchestra of five hundred instruments, all concentrated -on “St. Anne,” one might make the music adequate to the words, but in -an ordinary congregation the incongruity is painful. This must remain -a reading hymn. - - - _Outworn Hymns._ - -The efficient hymn must not distinctly belong to previous generations -in its style and vocabulary or in its peculiar formulation of -doctrine. Only as many of the older hymns have been purged of their -obsolete and archaic words and turns of thought have they survived. -For instance, we no longer sing, “Eye-strings break in death,” as -Toplady originally wrote it. - - - _Mistaken Objections to Some Hymns._ - -Some minds, although strong and keen, seem to have a very small visual -angle. Some such persons condemn all hymns that are not direct praise. -The line in Lyte’s “Abide with Me”—“Hold Thou Thy cross before my -closing eyes”—has been objected to as Romish by some, blind to the -fact that it is a prayer to Christ. - -Others exclude hymns in which the pronoun of the first person singular -occurs. Bishop Wordsworth, himself a hymn-writer of no mean merit -(_vide_ “O Day of rest and gladness” and “See, the Conqueror rides in -triumph”), says, in his introduction to his _Holy Year_, that while -the ancient hymns are distinguished by self-forgetfulness, the modern -hymns are characterized by self-consciousness. As illustrative -examples, he cites the following: “When I can read my title clear,” -“When I survey the wondrous cross,” “My God, the spring of all my -joys,” and “Jesus, Lover of my soul.” It is strange that so keen a -mind should not have seen that his objection would apply to all -liturgies! - -The minister with his eye fixed upon his spiritual purpose can afford -to ignore all these supersensitive critics who have refined refinement -until sensibility becomes hyperesthesia, a veritable disease. - -The use of hymns of a somewhat indifferent literary value is often -thoughtlessly condemned because the importance of the recognition of -its topic is overlooked. Such a topic as “Church Erection,” or -“Education,” may not occasion the deep feeling necessary to the -writing of a great hymn, and yet it must find a place in the practical -work of the church. Here again Dr. Phelps gives a useful warning: “The -severity of aesthetic taste must not be permitted to contract the -range of devotional expression in song.... Our desire to restrict the -number of hymns upon occasions, and other hymns of infrequent use, -ought not to banish such hymns entirely.... A hymn intrinsically -inferior, therefore, may be so valuable relatively, as justly to -displace a hymn which is intrinsically its superior.” - -Aside from the topical symmetry referred to, this principle will find -other applications in the practical use of hymns. Some inferior hymns -have for some occasions a greater immediate effect than much better -ones, perhaps because of a more singable tune or because its sentiment -fits into the situation or because it makes a desired impression in a -more efficient way. - - - - - _Chapter II_ - THE PURPOSE AND VALUE OF HYMNS - - - - - I. THE IMPULSE TO WRITE HYMNS - - -The writing of the best hymns of the Christian Church was not a matter -of ulterior purpose, any more than is the singing of the hermit thrush -in the wilderness. They are the result of the urge for expression that -lies back of all the best architecture, literature, and art of the -human race. There is the vision, the sense of reality, the subjective -response to truth, to beauty, and to exalted experiences that must -find an objective bodying-forth in some appropriate form. - -The great doctrines of Christianity loom up in their dignity and -majestic sweep, in their adequacy to the highest and deepest needs of -the human soul. The spontaneous hymn is but a cry of astonished -delight, of exalted inspiration, of self-forgetful contemplation of -the revealed glory, an instinctive appeal to other souls to share the -rapture of the vision. Such a hymn is not calmly planned; it forces -itself upon the mind of the rapt poet. - - - - - II. PURPOSE IN WRITING HYMNS - - - _The Influence of Purpose._ - -This instinct for sharing with others, for winning their attention and -participation in a blessed experience, may produce a measure of -premeditation and become a more or less clearly defined purpose. The -idea of the needs of other souls, or of the Church at large, may -become an additional factor, bringing in the recognition of the -importance of adaptation to the mental processes of those to be -helped, or of practical methods of reaching them. - -Also the originating impulse may grow, as in the case of Isaac Watts, -out of the call of some perceived need among the writer’s fellows, or -of some lack in the work of the Church. The emotional and poetic -elements may be marshaled by bringing up the memory of some past -exalted vision of the truth, or of some former quickening spiritual -experience, or (better yet!) by an abiding realization of the truth of -some doctrine, or by a perennial flow of devout feeling. - -Dr. Martineau insisted that “every spontaneous utterance of a deep -devotion is poetry in its essence, and has only to fall into lyrical -form to be a hymn.” But he went further and declared that “no -expression of thought or feeling that has an ulterior purpose (i.e., -instruction, exposition, persuasion, or impression) can have the -spirit of poetry.” His idealism failed to realize that the spirit of -poetry in a writer may be associated with a purpose of helpfulness -urging expression in an efficient form. To delete all the hymns in our -church collections that have definite spiritual purposes would rob the -Christian Church of most of its devoutest and most helpful hymns. - - - _The Purpose Must Affect Only the Practical Aspects._ - -Both the literary and devotional value of a hymn of purpose will -depend upon the writer’s ability to reproduce the mental conditions of -a purely spontaneous hymn. If the purpose can be confined to the -practical aspects of the hymn, while the spiritual and poetic impulses -control the thought and spirit, then the most valuable and effective -hymn may be produced. - -But if the ulterior purpose fully occupies the mind of the writer, the -hymn will be mechanical and uninspiring. In the more prolific hymn -writers, like Watts and Charles Wesley, the relative influence of -vision and purpose is easily detected. In their best hymns, the -purpose is still present, but latent, and its guidance unconscious. - - - - - III. PURPOSE OF THE USER OF HYMNS - - -When we speak of the purpose of the hymn, therefore, it is not so much -the mental attitude of the writer that is to be considered as that of -the user of the hymn. He finds a body of religious verse ready to his -hand, some of which is adapted to secure spiritual ends, or fitted to -the social conditions which he seeks to improve. His purpose controls -not the production of available verse, but the selection from existing -stores of religious lyrics. - -The choice of hymns by the user will be determined by the -characteristics and limitations which his practical purposes demand. -There are three inevitable factors: the end to be realized, the people -to be influenced, and the hymns adapted to affect both. - - - - - IV. PURPOSES SERVED BY SINGING HYMNS - - - _Hymns Unite Christians in Worship and Christian Activities._ - -The singing of hymns is the most practicable method of uniting -assembled Christians in worship and praise and of creating a common -interest in the various church activities. This is really the leading -purpose of such a gathering.[1] - -Worship in prayer, when it is spontaneous, must be largely individual; -when it is expressed in responsive ritual, there is great danger of -mechanical stiffness in the outward form of the prayers and in their -reading, and also in the limited area of the thought to be expressed. -But song is the natural and spontaneous vehicle for exalted feeling -and gives the greatest opportunity for varied sentiment. No one -individual could hope to strike all the strings of noble praise as -have a thousand saints who have written our hymns. - - - _Hymns Concentrate Interest and Attention._ - -There is a concentration of interest and attention. The common -thought, the common emotion, the common impulse of devotion, the -common expression, the unanimous attitude of will and purpose—all -quicken the susceptibilities and enlarge the spiritual horizon. God -seems nearer, more actual, and more realizable as the source of every -blessing. Abstract ideas of God as Father, of his Son Jesus Christ as -Saviour, of the Holy Spirit as Comforter, quicken into blessed -realities. It is easy to appropriate the joy, the reverence, the -adoration, the intimate communion with God, which the hymns so -clearly, so movingly, so contagiously, even so rapturously express, -and to make them intimately our own. This is true worship, the high -peak in man’s experience of God. - -The social elements in human nature come into play and intensify the -religious emotions. The personal distractions and inhibitions that -hamper devotion are eliminated. Under properly effective conditions -there is a mass attitude, a mass emotion, that needs only a mass -expression to affect every individual unit. The contagion of the crowd -in expression and in action will affect the most sluggish and -indifferent and carry them into an experience that they could not have -reached alone. Add to this the stimulation of the music and the -physical exhilaration of singing, and the worship is lifted to a pitch -of enthusiasm not otherwise possible. - -This worshipful use of hymns exercises a most inspiring and vitalizing -influence on the participants. The reaction of the mind and soul of -the singers to the exalted sentiments sung must have a profoundly -spiritualizing effect upon their natures. One cannot sing the old -Latin hymn, “Jesus, the very thought of Thee,” in any genuine way -without feeling an accession of greater love to Christ; or “My faith -looks up to Thee,” by Ray Palmer, without a deeper realization of -one’s dependence on Jesus Christ for salvation and for keeping grace. -[2] - - - _Hymns Afford a Means of Expression for the Congregation._ - -Another office of the church hymn is to give a voice to those deep -experiences in spiritual things that enrich the lives of the children -of God. Many excellent Christians are dumb, unable to give expression -to their genuine spiritual experiences. Others find their means of -voicing what they feel totally inadequate. The hymns they sing and -appropriate to themselves unstop their silent tongue. High tides of -spiritual blessings, times of refreshing when Christ is near to the -soul, hours of privilege when the whispering of the Holy Spirit is -heard, victories over fierce or subtle temptation when God’s grace -proves sufficient, moments of God’s overshadowing presence when the -whole world is transfigured, and a thousand other marvelous -experiences in the Christian life—all call for hymns to express them. -They must be tender hymns, ecstatic hymns, triumphant hymns that will -satisfy the craving of the soul to voice forth its deepest love, its -spiritual ecstasies, its strange sense of overcoming power. The dumb -soul, unable to speak of its explorations of divine grace, finds a -voice in these hymns written by saints who had the divine gift of -expressing like glimpses of the divine glory.[3] - - - _Hymns Provide Help and Comfort in Dark Hours._ - -These hymns not only bring the joy of giving articulate expression to -these mountain-top experiences, thus reviving them again and again, -but they validate these experiences by showing that others have shared -them and give them reality in the hours when faith fails and the -temptation arises to consider them mere mirages and illusions. Others -have been with us in Bunyan’s Beulah Land and verify our experiences -of its delights. - - - _Hymns Afford Clear Expressions of Christian Truth._ - -Another purpose in the use of hymns is to secure the clearest, most -impressive, most appealing, most rememberable statement of the leading -truths of the Christian faith that will fix them most ineradicably in -the consciousness and the life of the individual and of the church. -Such hymns must not be dry formulations of abstract doctrines, -desiccated by logical discussions and metaphysical hair-splittings. -Truth that is dry is no longer vital truth. Its vitamins of reality, -of the deep feelings called forth by a sense of its actuality, of -spiritual and poetic intuition, of self-propagating vitality, have -been lost. Aridity of orthodoxy begets aridity of heterodoxy and is -usually responsible for it. - -Didactic hymns that will serve the purposes of the Church must be -living hymns, expressing truth transfigured by the feelings aroused by -the contemplation of its glorious reality. “There is little heresy in -hymns.” Heresies for the most part arise from arid mechanical -reasonings; hymns flow from the intuitions of the heart.[4] This -explains why some of our best hymns about Christ were written by -Unitarians. - - - _Hymns Give Opportunity for Active Participation by All._ - -Another purpose of the singing of hymns is to secure the active -participation of the whole congregation in the service. Although the -responsive reading is valuable in this respect, the union of all the -voices of the people in song is more striking, calls for more -aggressive effort, and definitely wins the attention of all to the -sentiments expressed in the hymn. It creates more interest and -stimulates both body and mind. - - - _Hymns Provide Variety._ - -The singing of hymns also adds marked variety to the order of service -and so renders it more attractive. It supplies climaxes in different -parts of the program and relaxations of attention to the spoken word. -It represents a greater contrast with the other exercises because it -calls for active participation and produces entirely different -effects. The lack of song in the services of the Friends has been one -of the greatest factors in the limited growth of a movement -representing deep earnestness, conscientiousness, and spirituality. - -This variety and the opportunity to take a modest part in the service -have proved among the greatest attractions. The more singing, the more -people, is the universal experience. - - - _Hymns Create a Religious Atmosphere._ - -The use of hymns creates an atmosphere of religious interest and -feeling that is realized not only by the believers in the -congregation, but by the unregenerate as well. They may not enter -fully into the spirit of the exercises, but an intellectual interest -is awakened by the singing that may rise into spiritual interest and -into an approach to the spiritual life. Rev. George F. Pentecost, -famous in his day as a preacher and as a very successful evangelist, -recognized the aggressive and practical value of hymn-singing: “I am -profoundly sure that among the divinely ordained instrumentalities for -the conversion and sanctification of the soul, God has not given a -greater, besides the preaching of the Gospel, than the singing of -psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. I have known a hymn to do God’s -work in a soul when every other instrumentality has failed—I have seen -vast audiences melted and swayed by a simple hymn when they have been -unmoved by a powerful presentation of the Gospel from the pulpit.” - - - _Hymns in the Home._ - -No small practical value in Christian hymns is found in their use in -family life where young and old sing them together and so sanctify and -spiritualize the household atmosphere. The storing of the memories of -the children with the leading hymns of the church is no small factor -in their Christian nurture. The older members of the family also will -be stimulated spiritually, finding in the memorized hymns strength and -solace while they bear the heat and burden of the day. We have lost -the spiritual atmosphere in many of our Christian homes, not only by -the neglect of the family altar, but also by the neglect of the -singing and memorizing of the hymns and tunes of the church. - -One of the chief influences in the preparation of Ira D. Sankey for -his great life-work was the singing of hymns as the family gathered -around the great log-fire in the homestead. He not only familiarized -himself with the old hymns and tunes and popular sacred songs, but he -was impressed by their spirit and by their adaptation to the needs of -the human soul. - - - _Hymns in Personal Work._ - -The use of hymns in personal work, in the visitation of the sick, in -improvised religious gatherings in private homes, has been largely -abandoned, much to the loss of the churches. When D. L. Moody was -trying out Ira D. Sankey during the latter’s pregnant first visit to -Chicago, his singing to the sick and to the spiritually needy ones -they called upon was a notable item in the practical test. - -Prof. Waldo S. Pratt, of the Hartford Theological Seminary, whose most -valuable book has been quoted in these pages again and again, sums up -the results of an intelligent and devout use of hymns most admirably: -“Hymn-singing may surely be called successful when it affords an -avenue for true approach to God in earnest and noble worship; when it -exerts a wholesome and uplifting reflex influence on those who engage -in it, establishing them in the truth and quickening their -spirituality; and when it creates a diffused atmosphere of high -religious sympathy and vigorous consecration, so that even unbelievers -are affected and constrained by it.”[5] - -But if these purposes of the singing of hymns are to be realized and -their values exploited, they must be properly employed. They must be -made vital and their messages brought home to the hearts of the -people. There should be no listless, merely formal singing of noble -Christian hymns. There is unwitting sacrilege in doing that. The truth -of God, the high experiences of his saints, are rendered unreal and -lose their appeal—they become stale. - -There are multiplied millions of true believers who duplicate the -unhappy experience of a prominent London preacher who declared that he -did not exactly disbelieve the cardinal doctrines of Christianity, but -that they had become unreal to him. They were only abstractions, -playthings of his logical faculties, husks from which the living -kernel had fallen, which left his soul hungry. How could a minister by -the discussion of what seemed to him unrealities inspire and -spiritualize his hearers? How can any minister to whom the hymns in -his hymnal are dry and abstract rhymes about vague and uninteresting -platitudes at best, be able to make his song service a vital -contribution to the spiritual progress of his people? If the hymns -stir him, he can easily make them stir the people. - - - - - V. REASONS FOR THE MINISTER’S APPRECIATION OF HYMNS - - - _Hymns Are Evidences of the Effect of the Bible._ - -The hymnbook is an evidence of what the Bible can do with unregenerate -human nature. That the truth of the Bible should be able to take -Newton, the slave driver, and make of him a minister of God, not only -himself writing such hymns as “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,” -“Glorious things of Thee are spoken,” or “How sweet the name of Jesus -sounds,” but inspiring and encouraging the poor hypochondriac, William -Cowper, so that from his heart should well forth the hymns, “There is -a fountain filled with blood,” “God moves in a mysterious way,” and -“Sometimes a light surprises,” is in itself one of the great evidences -of Christianity. - - - _Hymns and Psalms Affected the Life of the Church._ - -The extraordinary result of the use of hymns and psalms in the life of -the church and of believers is another reason for the minister’s -valuing hymns highly. The awkward lines of Sternhold and Hopkins’ -version of the psalms entered into the speech and private devotion of -Scotch and English Christians as even the Bible itself did not, -becoming a very liturgy to the condemners and flouters of liturgies. -Thomas Jackson in his life of Charles Wesley remarks that “it is -doubtful whether any human agency has contributed more directly to -form the character of the Methodist societies than the hymns. The -sermons of the preachers, the prayers of the people, both in their -families and social meetings, are all tinged with the sentiments and -phraseology of the hymns.” - - - _Hymns in Personal Christian Experience._ - -Listen to the personal experiences of Christians in our own day and -you will hear more reference to hymns than to the Scriptures. There is -now no such committing to memory of passages of the Bible and of hymns -as there was in preceding generations, but almost without set purpose, -by simple absorption, the average Christian can quote more lines of -hymns than he can of Scripture verses. This extraordinary place in the -affections and life of Christian people is no derogation to the Bible, -for the hymns are simply the Bible in another form. - - - _Hymns as Stimulating the Spiritual Life of the Minister._ - -To some men who lack emotional and poetic insight, the hymnbook may -appear dry and uninteresting. It certainly is uninteresting to the -unspiritual man, no matter how poetical he may be, and this will -account for the occasional attack upon the hymns of the Christian -Church as being without poetical power or merit. But the Christian -minister, who deals with spiritual things, for whom the emotions of -the human heart give a great opportunity for sowing the seed of life, -ought to find the study of his hymnbook a great delight. - - - _Hymns Approved by Paul._ - -If there were no other reason why a minister should be profoundly -interested in hymns and their use in religious work, the example and -exhortations of Paul should be sufficient. He does not lay as much -stress upon preaching, nor upon praying, as he does on singing. He -admonishes the Ephesians that they “be filled with the Spirit”; and -that divine possession should manifest itself in “speaking to -yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making -melody in your heart to the Lord.” A part of this exercise of singing -was to consist of “giving thanks unto God and the Father in the name -of our Lord Jesus Christ.”[6] - -He exhorts the Colossians, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly -in all wisdom,” and one of the results of such indwelling was to be -“teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and -spiritual songs”; he even urges earnestness and sincerity in such -singing, “Singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”[7] Such -singing should not be with mere enthusiasm, for he assures the -Corinthians that his singing was not only devout but intelligent as -well: “I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the -understanding also.”[8] There is more than a suspicion that in some of -his most striking passages he is quoting a current hymn or -interjecting a part of an improvised hymn. - - - _Hymns in the Early Church._ - -The emphasis placed on the value of song by the early church is made -clear by Tertullian, who states that at the current “love feasts” each -person in attendance was invited at the close of the feast to sing -either from the Holy Scriptures or from the dictates of his own spirit -a song of adoration to God. - -In the middle of the third century St. Basil testifies to the value of -congregational singing as practiced in his day: “If the ocean is -beautiful and worthy of praise to God, how much more beautiful is the -conduct of the Christian assembly where the voices of men and women -and children, blended and sonorous like the waves that break upon the -beach, rise amidst our prayers to the very presence of God.” The -remark is made by one of the ancient fathers that the singing of the -churches often attracted “Gentiles”—i.e., unconverted persons—to their -services, who were baptized before their departure. - - - _Hymns Prepared the Church for Periods of Marked Progress._ - -While by no means the only cause for such progress, a great increase -in the writing and singing of hymns has been a conspicuous feature in -every great religious movement. The converse is also true that when -the privilege of congregational singing was curtailed or withdrawn, -spiritual declension followed. - -The victory of the Church over Arianism was a singing victory both in -the Eastern and Western churches. The Crusades were marked by -processional singing of religious songs. The singing Lollards and -Hussites heralded the Great Reformation, and the most effective -preaching of Huss and Luther and Calvin was the hymns and metrical -psalms they introduced. Watts prepared the way for the Wesleyan -revival, and the Wesley brothers entered the path he had blazed and -made a great highway of Christian song. Dour New England found its -voice during the Great Revival under Jonathan Edwards and later under -Nettleton. The preachers who saved the pioneers of the Appalachian -range of mountains and the budding Middle West from relapsing into -paganism and savagery were “singing parsons” with their repertoire of -“spiritual” revival choruses and religious ballads. - -Even Charles G. Finney, the great praying evangelist and later founder -of Oberlin College, whose revivals swept through New York and northern -Ohio like a prairie fire, had the popular _Christian Lyre_, edited by -Joshua Leavitt, as a breeze to fan the flame, although he often -forbade the singing of hymns in certain conditions in his meetings. -William B. Bradbury, S. J. Vail, Robert Lowry, William H. Doane, Fanny -Crosby, George F. Root, Philip Phillips, P. P. Bliss, and many others -had written and taught the American people the songs that prepared the -way for the Moody and Sankey revival movement which so profoundly -affected the religious life of both America and England and, through -the missionaries, intensified the faith of the Christian Church -throughout the world. - -Through all the centuries it has been the singing armies that have won -the religious wars. The successful denominations and individual -churches have been pre-eminently singing churches led by singing -preachers who swayed their communities. Cardinal Newman is now chiefly -remembered for his hymn, “Lead, Kindly Light.” Washington Gladden, a -great religious leader, will have his memory kept green by his hymn, -“O Master, let me walk with Thee,” and Bishop Phillips Brooks fifty -years hence will be chiefly remembered for his Christmas carol, “O -little town of Bethlehem.” - - - - - VI. STRANGE INDIFFERENCE TO HYMNS - - - _The Minister’s indifference._ - -In view of the considerations and facts here marshaled, how strange is -the general lack of interest among ministers toward their hymn -service, toward the hymns themselves, their history, their meaning, -the methods to be used in exploiting their great value. Is it saying -too much to suggest that three out of five ministers have no adequate -conception of the possibilities of hymn singing or appreciation of its -value? - - - _Indifference of the Congregation._ - -Outside of the lamentable weakness of egocentric human nature it is -difficult to discover why the part of the divine service devoted to -sacred song should be so utterly subordinated to the other parts of -the sacred program; but that it is true is so evident to any -reasonable observer that it needs little or no proof. The janitor -religiously postpones opening or shutting windows, or shaking down the -furnace, during the prayer, or sermon even, until the hymn is being -sung. Members of the congregation seize the opportunity to leave the -room, or to consult with others about church affairs in all too -audible voices. - -The hymn ought to be the consummate note of prayer and praise and -devout meditation on sacred themes, the great co-operative climax in -the worship of God. It is too often looked upon as a merely physical -stimulus to liven up the tedious service.[9] - -This ought not so to be! For the primary object of assembling the -saints is united worship—united praise. There can be no true public -prayer without an element of worship; but it has a recognition of -personal needs and even wants. This human factor makes it a composite -of the human and the divine and lowers its dignity. In genuine praise -there is a forgetfulness of the human element and a rising into the -pure realm of the divine. In true praise the human soul is unconscious -of self and utterly absorbed in God. - -Hence it is not too much to say that congregational song is the -supreme element in all worship. - - - - - _Chapter III_ - THE LITERARY ASPECT OF HYMNS - - - - - I. WHAT MAKES THE HYMN LITERATURE? - - - _Its Character as a Transcript of Life._ - -In so far as a hymn is a transcript of a genuine conviction, -intensified by emotion, or of a profound experience, it is literature. -There have gone into it vision, feeling, imagination, sincerity, -intimate experience—an appropriation of the influences life offers a -soul that gazes upon it with wide-open eyes. It is not the measure or -the rhyme that makes literature of a hymn. A bald formulation in -metrical form of doctrines dissected by metaphysical processes may be -called a hymn by courtesy, but it is not literature any more than -would be a textbook on mathematics. - -But a hymn in which the hurried pulse and the throbbing heartbeat of -deep human feeling can be felt is genuine literature, a revelation of -human personality and of the collective life of which it is -representative. It is the story of the experience of an exploring soul -seeking knowledge of the deeper spiritual relations with God and his -Kingdom.[1] - - - _Its Wide Distribution._ - -The importance of the hymn as literature is further attested by the -response to it of the many generations which have made it the vehicle -of their religious life. Dr. Reeves calls attention to the wide -distribution of hymnbooks; they have come from the printing press by -the multiplied millions during the last four hundred years. Three -millions of the _Methodist Hymnal_ have been broadcast over the United -States, sixty million _Hymns Ancient and Modern_ over the British -Empire. Hundreds of other contemporary hymnals, both official and -unofficial, aggregate even more millions. If we add collections of -Gospel Songs, we get many millions more. No other form of literature -has had so wide a distribution. A single hymnal has had more active -readers than all the poetry in the world, ancient and modern.[2] To -dispose of an edition of one hundred thousand volumes of Palgrave’s -_Golden Treasury_, the standard collection of the poems of the ages -approved by critics, would take a score of years. Moreover, they would -go largely into libraries, private and public, for occasional -reference. - - - _Its Acceptance Through Many Generations._ - -But wideness of distribution is no final criterion of literary -quality, else our newspapers might lay an earnest claim to literary -standing. But these hymnals do not severally represent individual -writers, as do most of the books of poetry; they contain a common body -of hymns representing the major portion of all of them. That selection -of hymns, fundamental to all of them, has been culled out from the -great mass of sacred lyrics written through many centuries, by the -consensus of different generations, of different backgrounds, of -different grades of social and literary culture, of different peoples -and even races, and accepted as the most complete expression of the -fundamental Christian life of them all. If that unanimity of -responsiveness and practical endorsement by continued use does not -confer the accolade of literature upon that body of hymns, the -accepted definition of literature is faulty and inadequate. - - - _Its Profound Influence._ - -No other verses have been read so often. They have not only shaped the -religious thought and experience of vast peoples and developed their -character, but have affected their general modes of thought and forms -of expression and influenced their secular literature. Without their -rugged, ax-hewn version of the Psalms, would the Scotch have become -the stern, dour, conscience-driven people the world has learned to -know and value? Without the vigorous “spirituals” and the lively -rhythms of its gospel songs, would the American church life have -developed the freedom from ecclesiastical tradition and formalism, and -the fearless aggressiveness that has lighted the beacons of salvation -in every land? The hymn has been the expression of life, and in turn -has become the wellspring of life. - -Whatever of culture and refinement other forms of literature have -brought has directly touched only a small minority, and but indirectly -the great mass of civilized peoples; but the hymn has had a direct -influence on the life and character of the mass of the people, and has -appealed to their instincts and imaginations and shaped their ideals -in the most immediate and striking way. Where one person has been -refined and enriched in mind by the poetry of Milton, or Wordsworth, -or Tennyson, a thousand have been comforted, inspired, and transformed -by Sternhold and Hopkins, Watts, or Wesley. - -Archbishop Trench, the fault of whose hymns was chiefly that they were -too few, was admonished by his friend, John Sterling, to give more -attention to hymn-writing: “You would influence millions whom poetry -in any other form would never reach.” - - - - - II. OBJECTIONS TO RECOGNIZING ITS LITERARY CHARACTER - - - _Due to Narrow Definition of Literature._ - -In spite of these facts that surely entitle the hymn to be considered -literature in the most vital sense of the word, there are critics who -look upon it with undisguised indifference, if not with scorn. Partly -due to an utter lack of sympathy with the use of it, partly to an -academic idea of what literature really is, emphasizing form and -rhetorical interest, partly because its appeal is emotional and not -mainly intellectual, these objectors are blind to the larger interests -involved. If there is any truth in the insistence of some literary -critics that there are few hymns that are good from a literary point -of view, Montgomery’s statement may give a sufficient reason: “Our -good poets have seldom been Christians and our good Christians have -seldom been good poets.”[3] - - - _Due to Failure to Realize Limitations of Hymns._ - -A better reason is that such critics have seldom realized the -limitations the singing hymn presents to the poet. Milton was a great -poet, but he could not condense his ideas sufficiently or give them -the needed terse expression. He needed a large canvas, while the -successful hymn-writer is confined to a miniature. Even Tennyson, who -succeeded in small lyrics, wrote only one hymn and that ill-adapted to -actual congregational use. - -Palgrave, in the preface to his _Treasury of Sacred Songs_, compares -secular and sacred verse as follows: “Secular verse covers many -provinces: manners, incident, love, landscape, the vast sphere of -drama—in a word, all the many-colored romance of life. Sacred verse -can hardly go beyond one province: to expect masterpieces in one field -approximately numerous as those in the secular lyric is unreasonable. -Even more unreasonable is it, when of this single province a district -only is chosen for censure, and treated as the whole domain. Hymns, -well-nigh limited to the functions of prayer and praise, are precisely -that region in which a practical aim is naturally, almost inevitably, -predominant!” - - - _Some Critics and Their Criticism._ - -Dr. Samuel Johnson’s criticism of hymns may be brushed aside as based -on a wrong conception of poetry, which to his mind called not for -simplicity, but for something near to that artificiality which he -conceived of as art: “Contemplative piety, or the intercourse between -God and the human soul, cannot be poetical.”... “The paucity of its -topics enforces perpetual repetition, and the sanctity of its matter -rejects the ornament of figurative diction.” - -In mitigation of the false judgment of the old literary dictator, it -may be said that the golden age of English hymnody had not yet -arrived. - -The later criticism of the hymn by Matthew Arnold represents more -fully the attitude of the literary critic in our own day. The -practical aspects of life were not ignored by him, but they did not -bulk large in his mind. Hence it is not surprising that, while he -fully comprehended the wide influence of the hymn, he had little or no -sympathy with its spirit and even less with its purpose, so that he -could write about it after this fashion: “Hymns, such as I know them, -are a sort of composition which I do not at all admire.... I regret -their prevalence and popularity among us.” Could anti-religious -rationalism go further? - -Among more recent critics, Edmund Clarence Stedman speaks of the hymn -as “the kind of verse which is, of all, the most common and -indispensable.” But Professor Boynton in the _Cambridge History of -American Literature_, gives as much space to “Yankee Doodle” as he -does to American Hymnody and refers to its “sentimental ornateness,” -“tawdry sentimentalism,” and “banalities of evangelistic song,” -unconsciously drawing an unhappy portrait of his own spiritual -condition.[4] - -The older criticism of the hymn had at least the merit of -thoughtfulness and serious consideration of its value and of its -shortcomings. - -The hymns that would have satisfied literary critics would have -required a spiritual delicacy and refinement, an elegance and artistry -of phrase, a vagueness of religious idea devoid of genuine feeling, -that would shut them out from use in the workaday world in which we -live. To set aside the “good and useful purpose” acknowledged by -Matthew Arnold in the consideration of the hymn is to ignore its whole -reason for being, and, what is vastly more important, to ignore the -deepest needs of the human soul. - - - III. THE WRITING OF HYMNS - - - _The Handicap of Thought and Diction._ - -Alfred Tennyson clearly recognized the limitations that handicap the -writer of hymns. “A good hymn is the most difficult thing in the world -to write!” The hymn he did write, “Sunset and Evening Star,” beautiful -as it is, failed in practicability for congregational use. Its -unfitness for mass singing in its various phases is the chief -stumblingblock. - -The hymn writer finds in the limitations, which he must bear in mind -as he writes, no small hindrance to spontaneity and poetic vision. He -must limit the thought not only to the comprehension, but to the -natural feelings of the people who are to sing what he writes. He must -not use unusual or polysyllabic words. Striking figures, startling -tropes, involved similes, obscure metaphors, allusions to things known -by but few, descriptive or dramatic lines, are all forbidden. Every -verse, whether in single or double meter, must be complete in itself, -whatever its relation in thought to what precedes or follows. There -must be unity, simplicity, condensation of thought, and yet a -clearness that shuts out involved thought or mysticism that cannot be -instantly grasped. The hymn writer is like a violinist called upon to -play on a single string.[5] - -Thomas Hornblower Gill, an English hymn writer who is slowly gaining -recognition in current hymnals—_The Revised Presbyterian Hymnal_ has -five of his hymns—gives his conception of what hymns should be, in his -preface to his first volume, issued in 1868. He insists that the true -hymn is a true poem in every case, while it is debarred from liberties -of luxuriance which may be claimed by other poetry. “It may easily be -too figurative; it cannot be too glowing or imaginative... They should -exhibit all the qualities of a good song—liveliness and intensity of -feeling, directness, clearness and vividness of utterance, strength, -sweetness, and simplicity and melody of rhythm: excessive subtlety and -excessive ornament should be alike avoided.” - - - _The Handicap of Meter._ - -Not the slightest handicap is the necessity of choosing a form of -stanza that will at the same time fit the writer’s sentiment and be -adapted to singable tunes known to the congregations which are to be -lyrically served. This range of form is quite limited. Most of these -tunes call for iambic or trochaic measure, because anapaestic or -dactylic numbers lack the dignity and the impressiveness necessary for -general hymns. - -The form of the stanza may take the elevated, heavy “Long” Meter, the -more widely expressive “Common” Meter, the sententious “Short” Meter, -“Sevens and Sixes,” “Eights and Sevens,” plain “Sevens” or “Sixes,” or -the more lively “Sixes and Fours” or “Sixes and Fives.”[6] - -These different meters have very marked characteristics. It is really -marvelous how the instinct of true hymn writers in all generations has -unconsciously, or at most subconsciously, taken account of them and -with practical unanimity observed them. - -The Long Meter is stately and dignified. It is the fit expression of -noble praise like the Long Meter Doxology, “Lord of all being, throned -afar,” “From all that dwell below the skies,” “Before Jehovah’s awful -throne,” or elevated sentiment like “God is the refuge of His saints,” -“When I survey the wondrous cross,” and “’Tis midnight, and on Olive’s -brow.” Its long, even lines, broken by no strong stops, afford a -smooth, graceful expression for general truths and Christian doctrine -in poetic form, such as “O Jesus, our chief cornerstone,” “Jesus shall -reign where’er the sun,” and “O Love! how deep, how broad, how high!” - -The Common Meter is much more varied in its possibilities of -expression, as its unequal lines and alternate rhymes give greater -freedom. It is the prevailing meter of the old English ballad. It is -really the most adaptable and pliable form of stanza open to the hymn -writer, giving equal opportunity of expression to all emotions and -classes of truth. It is a fit vehicle alike for the elevated praise of -“All hail the power of Jesus’ name,” the majesty of “I sing th’ -almighty pow’r of God,” the doctrinal statement of “There is a -fountain filled with blood,” the tenderness of “Jesus, the very -thought of Thee,” the vigor of “Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve,” -and the quiet resignation of “Father, whate’er of earthly bliss.” On -account of this adaptability it has become the Common Meter in fact as -well as in name. Its exclusive use in some of the collections of -metrical psalms shut out the use of tunes in other meters and so led -to the singing of only a few of the more popular Common Meter tunes; -the result was that the congregational singing in the churches in -England, Scotland, and America was nearly wrecked. - -S. M. might stand for sententious meter as well as for Short Meter, as -the two short lines and the long pauses at the end of each of them -give it an emphatic, terse, even epigrammatic style. This may be seen -in “My soul, be on thy guard,” “Welcome, sweet day of rest,” “Stand up -and bless the Lord,” “Crown Him with many crowns,” and “Come, Holy -Spirit, come.” John Fawcett was not happy in the selection of this -meter for his otherwise very useful and precious hymn, “Blest be the -tie that binds,” as the strong pause at the end of the first line in -all but one of his stanzas cuts his sentences in two and makes the -hymn alike difficult to read and sing. The same difficulty will be -found in the reading of other hymns in this meter, the limitations of -which have not always been recognized by writers using it. It would be -a very slow, heavy meter did not the longer third line give it needed -movement. - -The meter known as 6s lacks the longer third line and is therefore -peculiarly grave and disjointed. It is well adapted for hymns of -passive faith or resignation, such as “My Jesus, as Thou wilt,” “Thy -way, not mine, O Lord,” or for dolorous prayers like “My spirit longs -for Thee,” and “I hunger and I thirst.” - -The meter 6s and 4s in its various forms might be supposed to be even -slower than the 6s because of the additional short lines of four -syllables each. The opposite is true. In some cases the first four -lines are rhythmically equivalent to two lines of ten syllables each, -so slight is the pause of actual thought at the end of the -six-syllable line, with the result that the slowness is quickened into -simple dignity and elevation. But even where the pauses at the end of -the first and third lines are long, the shorter second and fourth -lines, as in common meter, give added movement. In the other form of -6s and 4s, the first two six-syllable lines are so knit together by -their common rhyme and, if properly written, have so markedly a common -goal of completeness of thought in the third line toward which they -hurry that again the movement is hastened and the severity of the 6s -is mitigated. The same principle applies to the following three or -four lines, depending on the form examined. Hence we have in the -various forms of this meter some of our noblest hymns of prayer, -praise, and victory, such as “Nearer, my God, to Thee,” “More love to -Thee, O Christ,” “We are but strangers here,” “Fade, fade, each -earthly joy,” “My faith looks up to Thee,” “Rise, glorious Conqueror, -rise,” “Come, Thou Almighty King,” and “My country, ’tis of thee.” - - - IV. THE LITERARY QUALITY NOT TO BE OVERESTIMATED - - - _Literary Quality Not the Supreme Consideration._ - -Although poetical feeling and imagination and nice literary -craftsmanship are not to be undervalued, but rather to be earnestly -sought for in our hymns, after all, they are not the supreme -considerations. Practical use has proved many hymns that conspicuously -lacked them to have been supremely useful because of their spiritual -content, sincerely and lucidly expressed. When hymn writers like Watts -and Newton have deliberately ignored and even avoided literary values, -and yet have written among the most useful hymns in our collections, -the critic who insists on poetical quality has by no means a _prima -facie_ case. Charles Wesley was a poet, but in his valuable hymn “A -charge to keep I have” he is a pedagogue without poetic afflatus. -Standards of literary value, when not artificial, as in Samuel -Johnson’s case, have their place, but a place that is modest and not -supreme. - - - _Literary Quality Should Be Subconscious._ - -The danger in unduly emphasizing the literary aspect of hymns is well -expressed by Dr. Louis F. Benson: “The hazard is implicit in the very -motive of hymn singing; the heightening of religious emotion. The -danger is of mistaking sugary sentiment for true feeling and its -rhetorical expression in ‘soft, luxurious flow’ for true poetry.” In -other words, the conscious seeking of the hymn writer after literary -atmosphere and skill of treatment is fatal to genuineness of feeling, -and to his success in producing a true hymn. - -It will do no harm to iterate here that the two essentials to a -successful hymn are spirituality and the power to express it so as to -reach the understanding as well as the hearts of the people who are to -sing. According to Paul, the first commandment in hymn writing and -singing is: “I will sing with the spirit”; the second is like unto it: -“I will sing with the understanding also.” - - - - - _Chapter IV_ - THE EMENDATION OF HYMNS - - - I. THE CHANGES IN OUR HYMNS - - - _Early Changes._ - -The question of changes made in hymns by others than their writers -deserves consideration. The point is not that the individual preacher -is supposed to air his critical skill, but that he should understand -why changes have been made by hymnal editors and better appreciate the -principles involved and the literary niceties that are to be observed. - -In the first compilations of hymnbooks, the rights of the authors of -the individual hymns were entirely below the horizon. Many hymns were -published without the names of their writers. To this day Charles -Wesley’s claim to “Jesus, Lover of My Soul,” as against that of his -brother John, depends wholly on considerations of style and form of -stanza. There is not even a well-founded tradition. - -It was the adaptation of the hymn to immediate actual needs that -counted, not the writer. There was no moral copyright, much less -legal, to stay the hand of the mutilator. - -Watts did not hesitate to incorporate in his hymns lines and even -whole stanzas from the hymns of others. John Wesley had no scruples in -rewriting lines and stanzas and even whole hymns already in print. -Toplady’s alterations were often quite radical, as, for example, his -drastic revision of Charles Wesley’s “Blow ye the trumpet, blow”[1] to -suit his intensely Calvinistic views. - - - _The Abuse of the Editorial Revision._ - -Dr. Worcester, in this country, who issued several collections of -psalms and hymns, chiefly by Watts, was lavish in his alterations, -mostly for the worse—so much so that the New England churches -revolted. Lord Selborne said of these mutilations by many hands, -“There is just enough of Watts left here to remind one of Horace’s -saying that ‘you may know the remains of a poet even when he is torn -to pieces.’” - -The needless alteration of hymns that occurred in these early days is -to be greatly deplored, especially of those most widely known. “Rock -of Ages” and “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” were fair targets for the -editorial spear—out of the twenty-four lines of the former only eleven -have escaped change. The line “When mine eyestrings break in death” -was the only one peremptorily demanding a change, although a few other -alterations may be accepted as slight improvements, as, for instance, -“wounded” instead of “riven” side. So many people have committed this -hymn with its differing lines to memory that when it is sung there is -frequently the clash of these variations instead of the desirable -uniformity of utterance. - -The same is true of Wesley’s hymn. In spite of John Wesley’s warning -against changes in the Methodist hymns—“Hymn-cobblers should not try -to mend them. I really do not think they are able”—more than thirty -variations occur in the first stanza of “Jesus, Lover of My Soul.” - -The pity is that while uniformity is extremely desirable in these and -many other hymns, it is now out of the question. The several -variations have their partisan upholders. - -James Montgomery spent years of his life amending and modifying the -hymns of others, but asked that others should not change his verses. -He insisted that if good people could not conscientiously adopt his -doctrines and diction, it was a little questionable in them to impose -theirs on him. - -It is interesting to note that Montgomery could not “conscientiously -adopt the doctrine and diction” of the first verse of Cowper’s “There -is a fountain filled with blood” and substituted a verse of his own of -which he said, “I think my version is unexceptionable.” But hymnal -editors did not find it so and unanimously repudiated it. It was -regarded as “faultily faultless, icily regular, splendidly null.” - - - _The Return to Originals._ - -This abuse of the editorial revision produced a reaction, and in the -last half century, under the leadership of Dr. Louis F. Benson, a -strong movement appeared among hymnal editors whose slogan was “Back -to the originals!” In many cases that was not practicable, as the -changes made were evident improvements, but the new tendency often -proved to be a very useful one in restoring many a good original -phrase in place of a much inferior alteration. - - - II. PRINCIPLES OF EQUITY INVOLVED IN THESE CHANGES - - - _The Rights of the Original Writer._ - -There are some principles of equity that lie upon the surface. The -writer of hymns has rights that must be recognized. His name should be -given as its author. No name other than his own should be connected -with the product of his pen. Unless there are sufficient reasons, the -hymn should be given as he wrote it. If his name is given, no doctrine -or experience should be interpolated. In business affairs that would -be adjudged forgery in the second degree. If interpolations or changes -of ideas become necessary for practical reasons, due notice should be -given that the original writer is not responsible for the new ideas or -the changes of phraseology. Unitarian hymnal editors have not always -recognized this obligation. Our recent well-edited hymnals have been -scrupulous in this particular. - - - _The Limits of the Author’s Rights._ - -But there are distinct limits to the author’s rights. If the hymnal -were a merely literary compilation, the liberty to make changes would -not be admissible. But the hymnal is not an anthology; it is a -collection of hymns for a definite and practical purpose of an exalted -character—to aid congregations in the worship of God and in the -realization of the spiritual aims he has set before them. That purpose -has the right of eminent domain. If the original hymn has faulty lines -or weak verses that jeopardize its otherwise practical effectiveness, -competent editors of collections of hymns for congregational use have -the right to amend, or condense, and so add to its usefulness in the -work of the church, in so far as it does not affect the general spirit -and tenor of the original. Isaac Watts recognized this principle, -saying, “Where an unpleasing word is found, he that leads the worship -may substitute a better one.” Indeed, in 1737, he acknowledged that -“Many a line needs the file to polish the roughness of it and many a -thought wants richer language to adorn and make it shine—but I have at -present neither inclination nor leisure to correct and I hope I never -shall.” - - - III. EFFECT OF CHANGES ON QUALITY - - - _Loss of Original Writer’s Vision._ - -It has been strongly urged that the emendation of hymns is dangerous -to their quality; that the original writer was a better judge of both -thought and phrasing than the cold critic whose very attitude prevents -the high feeling that must inspire the most appealing forms of -expression. - -But the protest overlooks the fact that the very fervor and urge of -fresh vision and its consequent emotion may prevent attention to nice -details of phraseology or even to the proper balance of parts of a -hymn. Furthermore, the writer with the creative urge may lack the -critical faculty and fine discrimination necessary to polish up his -verses after the impulse of writing has spent its force. - -This being true, the editor who supplies the wanting critical attitude -shows no presumption, provided his vision is clear and his skill in -supplying more accurate, more melodious, or more practical phraseology -adds value to the hymn. Martin Madan was no hymn writer, but when he -rewrote Watts’ hymn, - - “He dies, the Heavenly Lover dies! - The tidings strike the doleful sound - On my poor heartstrings; deep he lies - In the cold caverns of the ground,” - -and gave us the noble stanza, - - “He dies, the Friend of sinners, dies; - Lo! Salem’s daughters weep around; - A solemn darkness veils the skies, - A sudden trembling shakes the ground,” - -he not only gave it a dignified and Biblical content and form, but he -rescued the hymn for the spiritual edification of coming generations. - - - _Biblical Precedent._ - -There is plenty of Biblical precedent. The original compiler and -editor of the Psalms, be he Asaph or Ezra, inserted a version of the -eighteenth psalm differing from the original as found in the -twenty-second chapter of Second Samuel. It cannot escape the most -casual reader of the New Testament that its quotations from the Old -Testament, whether poetical or prose, are by no means accurately -reproduced. Moreover, the writers of psalm versions from Marot and -Luther down to Watts did not hesitate to condense, alter, or -interpolate new ideas in their transcriptions of the sacred originals. -They had no sense of presumption; their minds were preoccupied with -the practical ends they were trying to serve. - - - IV. ANALYSIS OF CHANGES MADE - -It may be instructive to study more in detail the occasions for -changes made in our hymns and learn the justification for many of -them. If some of them seem somewhat microscopic and even captious, -none the less they make for exactness, for nice discrimination, and -for more intelligent appreciation of the literary and spiritual values -of our magnificent body of hymns.[2] - - - _The Omission of Verses._ - -A very important change from the original of many hymns is the -omission of some of the less valuable stanzas, or even a condensation -of some of them by omitting unattractive lines. - -“Oh for a thousand tongues to sing,” the fine hymn that opens all but -recent Methodist hymnals, originally began, “Glory to God and praise -and love,” and had eighteen stanzas. The hymn as now used consists of -stanzas 7 to 12 of the original. Some hymnals omit stanza 10. - -In the Trinity hymn sometimes ascribed to Charles Wesley, “Come, Thou -Almighty King,” the second of the original five stanzas is always -omitted: - - “Jesus, our Lord, arise, - Scatter our enemies, - And make them fall; - Let thine almighty aid - Our sure defense be made, - Our souls on thee be stayed; - Lord, hear our call.” - -The evident imitation of the second stanza of the British National -anthem is too obvious: - - “O Lord, our God, arise, - Scatter his enemies, - And make them fall. - Frustrate their knavish tricks, - Confound their politics, - On Him our hearts we fix; - God save the King.” - -In Bishop Brooks’ original of “O little town of Bethlehem,” so widely -known and used, the fourth stanza is omitted: - - “Where children, pure and happy, - Pray to the Blessed Child; - Where misery cries out to thee, - Son of the Mother mild; - Where charity stands watching, - And faith holds wide the door, - The dark night wakes, the glory breaks, - And Christmas comes once more.” - -The reasons are not far to seek: the double rhyme in the third line is -so forced as to be awkward; the first two lines refer to Jesus in the -third person, but the next two in the second; more important still, -the stanza does not make a sufficient addition to the value of the -hymn to warrant the added length. - -The stanza, - - “Thy body slain, sweet Jesus, thine, - And bathed in its own blood, - While all exposed to wrath divine, - The glorious suff’rer stood,” - -if retained, despite its medieval picture of our suffering Lord, would -have added nothing to Watts’ noble hymn, “Alas! and did my Saviour -bleed,” but rather would have hemmed the progress of its thought and -feeling. - -Few of the lovers of Robinson’s classic hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of -every blessing,” would have enjoyed singing and visualizing the -omitted fourth stanza, - - “O that day when freed from sinning, - I shall see thy lovely face! - _Richly clothed in blood-washed linen_, - How I’ll sing thy sovereign grace!” - -A stanza was omitted from a hymn by Isaac Watts by Dr. Worcester, and -he was compelled by public sentiment to replace it in his next -collection. Who was right—Dr. Worcester, or Watts and the church -public? - - “But while I bled and groaned and died, - I ruined Satan’s Throne; - High on my cross I hung and spy’d - The monster tumbling down.” - -What a travesty in this stanza of Christ’s words, “I beheld Satan as -lightning fall from heaven”! - -The omission of all the older hymns regarding “the state of the -unpenitent dead” in our more recent hymnals is due to their usually -rather lurid expressions, going beyond those of the Scriptures, to the -reaction in the church at large against the rather mechanical and -heartless emphasis of the painful doctrine—not only in hymns, but in -sermons as well—and also to the realization that it is not a theme -fitted for singing. - -What modern congregation could sing Watts’ stanza formulating the -doctrine, - - “Up to the courts where angels dwell, - It [the soul] mounts triumphant there; - Or devils plunge it down to hell - In infinite despair”? - -When we come to the hymns constructed by selecting stanzas from long -poems—e.g., by John Keble or by John Greenleaf Whittier—we reach -marvels of skill in selection and co-ordination that have greatly -enriched English hymnody. - - - _Reconstructing and Rewriting Faulty Hymns._ - -John Wesley inveighed against “hymn-cobblers,” but he was a most -efficient and skillful “hymn-cobbler” himself. He deserves high -commendation for his literary skill and taste in cutting the rough -diamonds that passed through his editorial hands. A few instances will -illustrate his success. - -“Before Jehovah’s awful throne” is recognized as one of Watts’ noblest -hymns of worship. But it is Wesley’s reconstruction that brought out -its essential nobility. - -Watts began it in rather mechanical fashion, - - “Sing to the Lord with joyful voice, - Let every land his name adore; - The British Isles shall send the noise - Across the ocean to the shore.” - -Wesley omitted this stanza entirely. Beginning with the second stanza, - - “With gladness bow before his throne, - And let his presence raise your joys; - Know that the Lord is God alone - And formed our soul and framed our voice” - -(which shows that Watts’ inspiration had begun to rise), Wesley -transformed it into a majestic expression of pure worship: - - “Before Jehovah’s awful throne, - Ye nations, bow with sacred joy; - Know that the Lord is God alone, - He can create and he destroy.” - -He was equally successful with Watts’ third stanza: - - “Infinite power, without our aid, - Figured our clay to human mould; - And when our wandering feet had strayed, - He brought us to his sacred fold.” - -The first line is faulty: the accent of “infinite” is on the first -syllable: Watts placed it on the second. The second line conveys no -clear idea: how is clay “figured”? The third and fourth lines are bald -and ordinary, lacking in poetic grace. See how deftly Wesley took -Watts’ material and gave it grace and dignity: - - “His sovereign power, without our aid, - Made us of clay and formed us men; - And when like wand’ring sheep we strayed, - He brought us to his fold again.” - -Transforming Watts’ fourth stanza in like manner, he added a majestic -fifth stanza of his own: - - “Wide as the world is thy command, - Vast as eternity thy love; - Firm as a rock thy truth shall stand - When rolling years shall cease to move,” - -completing one of the noblest hymns in the language. - -Another hymn of Isaac Watts was enriched by passing through the hands -of John Wesley. Besides correcting minor infelicities and curtailing -its impracticable length, he rewrote the third stanza of the very -popular hymn, “Come, ye that love the Lord,” transforming Watts’ - - “The God that rules on high - And thunders when he please, - That rides upon the stormy sky - And manages the seas,” - -into - - “The God that rules on high, - That all the earth surveys, - That rides upon the stormy sky - And calms the roaring seas.” - -He might have gone further and obviated the break of the sentence -occurring between the third and fourth stanzas. Some hymnal editors -meet the difficulty by omitting both. - -Rev. Martin Madan wrote no hymns; his only claim to immortality rests -on his emendations of the hymns of greater men. But he well deserves -to be remembered for some of his happy improvements of important -hymns. His revision of Watts’ hymn “He dies! the Heavenly Lover dies!” -has already been referred to. - -Madan very fortunately changed Charles Wesley’s - - “Hark how all the welkin rings, - Glory to the King of Kings,” - -into the much more poetical lines: - - “Hark! the herald angels sing, - ‘Glory to the newborn King.’” - - - _Minor Felicitous Changes._ - -No small improvement in our hymns consists of the change of individual -phrases because of misplaced accents, unfortunate consonantal -combinations, inept metaphors, and phrases that are secular in spirit -and associations. - -In Cowper’s “Jesus, where’er thy people meet,” the second line had the -word “inhabitest,” difficult to sing; it was changed to “Dost dwell -with those.” - -In Bishop Ken’s “Evening Hymn” some bad cases of wrong accents have -been corrected. “Under thy own almighty wings” now is “Beneath the -shadow of thy wings,” and “Triumphing rise at the last day” is become -“Rise glorious at the judgment day.” - -Isaac Watts’ theory that hymns should eschew poetic grace was carried -too far—into euphonic slovenliness. In “Welcome, sweet day of rest” he -wrote “One day amidst the place,” ignoring the fact that “amidst” is -not singable. “One day in such a place” is much more suave. In “Joy to -the world! The Lord is come!” he wrote in the first line of stanza -three “let sins and sorrows grow”; the excessive sibilation has been -removed by using singular nouns. - -In Charles Wesley’s very useful hymn, “Ye servants of God, your Master -proclaim,” “The praises of Jesus” is substituted for “Our Jesus’ -praises,” distributing the hissing s’s more musically. The second and -third stanzas are wisely omitted; few congregations could sing, with -the solemnity the rest of the hymn calls for, such lines as - - “When devils engage, the billows arise, - And horribly rage and threaten the skies.” - -Charles Wesley in his hymn, “Jesus, let thy pitying eye,” had a very -realistic vision of the crucifixion and wrote “My Saviour _gasped_, -‘Forgive!’” which for singing purposes was well emended to “prayed.” -How did it escape the eagle eye of his brother John? Or did the -influence of the Moravians, who were fond of these physical touches in -writing of the crucifixion, affect both the Wesleys? - -The “Protestant Te Deum,” “All hail the power of Jesus’ name,” has -fared well—or ill, according to the point of view—at the hands of -“hymn-tinkers.” Revisers have omitted - - “Let highborn seraphs tune the lyre - And, as they tune it, fall - Before His face who tunes their choir, - And crown him Lord of all.” - -They have transformed the stanza, - - “Let every tribe and every tongue - That bound creation’s call - Now shout in universal song - The crowned Lord of all,” - -into the nobler stanza, - - “Let every kindred, every tribe - On this terrestrial ball, - To him all majesty ascribe, - And crown him Lord of all.” - -Omitting one or two more stanzas, Dr. John Rippon has added a last -stanza that puts a fitting climax to the whole hymn: - - “Oh, that, with yonder sacred throng, - We at his feet may fall! - We’ll join the everlasting song, - And crown him Lord of all.” - -Edward Mote began his widely-used hymn, “My hope is built on nothing -less,” with a “stumble on the threshold,” writing “Nor earth nor hell -my soul shall move,” a very unintelligent plunging _in medias res_. -Was it Bradbury, who wrote the popular and effective tune that gave -the hymn wings, that had the happy impulse to combine parts of the -first and second stanzas, using the first two lines of the second -stanza and the last two of the first? This gave an arresting first -line and eliminated a line impossible to put on the lips of a general -congregation, “Midst all the hell I feel within.” - -The very familiar and useful hymn of George Heath, “My soul, be on thy -guard,” is a notable example of the value of a competent editor’s -emendations. In stanza three Heath wrote, - - “Ne’er think the vict’ry won, - Nor _once at ease sit down_; - _Thy arduous work_ will not be done - Till thou _hast got thy_ crown.” - -Again in the fourth stanza he wrote, - - “Fight on, my soul, till death. - God will thy work applaud, - Reveal his love at thy last breath, - And take to his abode.” - -The improvement in both stanzas, as found in our hymnals, is obvious -at a glance. - -Even so finished a poet as the distinguished historian Milman -disfigured his noble Palm Sunday hymn, “Ride on, ride on in majesty,” -by such a line as “Thine humble beast pursues its road,” which Murray -changed to the graceful and appealing line, “Saviour meek, pursue thy -road.” - -Space is wanting to exhaust the various changes in hymns that are -amply justified if their most effective use is to be secured. It is -sufficient to say that changes of text must increase the perspicuity, -precision, propriety, and force of the hymn. Single phrases may wisely -be modified if a change corrects a wrong accent, makes a line more -euphonious, adds to its vividness, expressiveness, or vigor, increases -its dignity, clarifies the sense, or better adapts it to public use. - - - - - _Chapter V_ - THE CONTENT OF THE HYMN - - -The hymn is not an independent entity, sufficient unto itself, whose -whole purpose is to be beautiful and to give pleasure to those -responsive to its charm. The hymn has a definite message, is big with -purpose. - -It is related to its writer in satisfying the urge for expression of -ideas that will give him power over the thoughts and feelings of -others, or of emotions that demand to be voiced forth in the mystic -expressiveness of rhythm and rhyme. - -It is related to God as the original source of its impulse and as the -recipient of its response in love and praise. - -It is related to the church in the aid it affords to its collective -life and to the reader or singer whose spirituality is to be inspired, -developed, and expressed. - -It is the content expressing these several relations and purposes that -separates the hymn from purely literary ideals and criticisms. - - - I. ITS RELATION TO GOD - - - _Thanksgiving._ - -The first impulse is a recognition of the blessings and privileges -that God bestows upon his creatures in general and upon the writer and -the singer in particular. There is consciousness of self in this -expression of gratitude. The soul still has its feet upon the ground. - -There is nothing unworthy in this recognition of self as the recipient -of God’s favor, for the soul honors God in its realization of its -dependence on him and in its clear vision of the source of its -blessedness. Indeed, God asks it as his due. - - - _Prayer for Future Blessing._ - -The cynic who declares that gratitude is usually tinctured with the -hope of favors to come may not properly represent the soul as it gives -thanks to God, but there is a kinship between thanksgiving and prayer -that makes it easy and logical to pass from the one to the other. The -memory of benefits received inevitably suggests needs yet to be -supplied. - -In its relation to God the hymn may well be a vehicle for the prayer -that envisages the spiritual lack that God alone can supply, and -vitalizes the recognition with a desirous urgency that must -characterize true prayer. - -Here again we find not only divine authority, but encouragement and -assurance. Whether the hymn is an individual or a collective prayer -matters not. The individual need is also a need common to all -petitioners, and the prayer by a congregation is still the individual -prayer of its units, only intensified objectively toward God and -subjectively toward the singers by its mass expression. This -intensification is multiplied not arithmetically but geometrically. - - - _Adoration._ - -The hymn of adoration lifts the soul into a higher plane, into a -contemplation of the glory and majesty of the infinite perfections of -its God in which self is forgotten and a consciousness of the -infinitude of divine beauty, nobility, and spiritual elevation remains -to thrill the soul. It rises on wings of selfless delight and -rejoicing in God into a very ecstasy that only song can express. - -Whether the soul stands on some high peak of earth and surveys the -billowing world that stretches far and wide with its beetling cliffs -and rocky headlands, its forests and fields, its meadows and orchards, -filled with the overwhelming mystery of life and force obeying -implicitly the laws formulated only in inherent nature; or gazes into -the great vault of the sky, with the silent majesty of circling stars -and developing universes, it will find the anonymous hymn of more than -a century ago voicing its deepest awe, its noblest joy: - - “Praise the Lord! ye heavens adore him, - Praise him, angels in the height; - Sun and moon rejoice before him, - Praise him, all ye stars of light.” - -When the soul on some mountaintop of inner experience and vision -glimpses something of the sublimity of the divine character, its -justice, its truth, its purity, its invincible power and will guided -by infinite knowledge and wisdom, its boundless mercy and forgiving -grace flowing from the eternal Source of its all-embracing love, again -it can adopt as its very own the solemn notes of Tersteegen, echoed in -English by John Wesley: - - “Lo! God is here; let us adore - And own how dreadful is this place; - Let all within us feel his power, - And humbly bow before his face.” - -This is the highest office of the hymn and should be made its largest -use; in no other way can the minds and hearts of Christian worshipers -be filled and thrilled with a consciousness of an indwelling God as by -hymns of praise, fully comprehended and sung with unflawed sincerity. - - - _The Hymn of Communion._ - -Beyond the hymn of exultant praise is the hymn of communion with God, -where the soul expresses its joy, not simply in the objective glories -of the divine nature, but in actual communion, companionship, and -conscious unity with God in desire, ideals, and purposes. The soul -thinks the thoughts of God, delights in what God approves, walks in -his ways with spontaneous gladness, and lives in absolute harmony with -his will, not mechanically under a stress of duty, but by urge of the -deepest depths of the soul. Objective praise may pull out all the -stops of the soul’s enthusiasm and the high imaginings of the spirit, -but the hymn of communion may express itself in tenderness and -sweetness, in upwelling love and quiet affection. It often is a -personal rather than a collective hymn. - - - II. RELATION TO THE SINGER - - - _The Hymn of Emotion._ - -Given a definite emotion based on realization of some religious truth, -man will urgently call for some expression of it, directly by speaking -or writing, or by means of some provided method.[1] Christians are -stimulated by being impressed by the experiences of others. There is a -blessed contagion in these expressions of the profound experiences of -the saints of God as found in the hymnbooks of all our churches. One -feels the accelerated spiritual heartbeat as one reads (or, better -yet, sings) Watts’ emotional cry as he stands before the cross of -Christ: - - “When I survey the wondrous cross - On which the Prince of glory died, - My richest gain I count but loss - And pour contempt on all my pride.” - -Who can fail to follow him in his final consecration, - - “Love so amazing, so divine, - Demands my soul, my life, my all”? - -Medley’s hymn, “Oh, could I speak the matchless worth,” in not a -single phrase directly addresses the Deity. It is a purely subjective -expression of delight in the Lord Jesus Christ; and yet how -impressive, how delightful, how eminently worthy of the feelings of -any great congregation, is this hymn of Christian joy. - -The hymn of emotion, therefore, supplies the soul’s demand, for it -satisfies the instinct for expression. It clarifies the intellectual -basis of the emotion and in so doing intensifies it. The collective -singing and mass expression of a common emotion intensify it still -further and fit it more fully to affect the will and the character, -and so give permanence to the influence of the truth underlying the -feeling. Where at the beginning the truth is but dimly perceived and -passively accepted, the resulting shallow feeling will be deepened. In -this way the hymn becomes a very generator of desirable religious -emotion. - - - _The Hymn of Inspiration._ - -It follows that the hymn may be a means of stimulating interest and -enthusiasm in connection with a topic or proposed course of action, -and may become the hymn of inspiration. Any line of thought or method -of presentation appealing to any emotion or impulse that creates -courage, hopefulness, confidence, assurance of success, will be -pertinent and desirable. The intenser element of direct exhortation -may be added, making a hortative hymn of one of mere inspiration. - - - _The Hymn of Personal Experience._ - -The hymn of personal experience differs from that of emotional -expression in being more subjective, more analytical of the effect -produced on the mind by the apprehension of the religious truth. The -latter is based on the realization of some objective truth or -doctrine, while the hymn of personal experience emphasizes the inner -experience in prayer, in specific exercise of faith, in a reaction of -the soul to some accomplished task, or to a season of communion with -God. The hymn of the blind poet, George Matheson, which has been so -widely used, - - “O Love that wilt not let me go, - I rest my weary soul on Thee,” - -is distinctly a hymn of Christian experience; while Isaac Watts gives -poignant expression to the emotions of the Christian, as he -contemplates the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ, borne to atone -for his sins, - - “Alas! and did my Saviour bleed? - And did my Sovereign die? - Would he devote that sacred head - For sinners such as I!” - -The hymn of personal experience has been rather heatedly objected to -by critics like Bishop Wordsworth. In some cases these “I and My” -hymns have been rewritten to meet the objection. - -These critics who find their own “ego” offended by the apparent -emphasis of the hymn writer’s “ego” forget some rather important -factors in the situation. - -1. It would have been rather presumptuous on the part of the writer to -speak for the collective “We” and “Us” who presumably were to sing his -verses. - -2. As a spontaneous expression of personal experience, the hymn had to -be individualistic. Not often, if ever, are particular religious -experiences common to a body of believers at a given moment. - -3. The high peaks of religious experience which are most valuable as -furnishing ideals and stimulus to the members of a singing -congregation can be reached only by individuals, not by a mass of -people. To restrict the expression of religious experience to that -common to all Christians, would be to omit the most inspiring and -helpful hymns, and keep our song service at a dead level of inferior -value. - -4. It must not be forgotten that it is not the congregation that -sings; it is its individual units! The congregation is an abstraction, -a merely mental conception. The singing of each member is -fundamentally as purely individual as if he were absolutely alone! -Hence the “I and My” hymn is entirely fitting. Each sings what is, or -ought to be, his own individual experience. Indeed, he makes his best -contribution to the collective effect if he is intensely -individualistic in his singing. - -5. In all ages this individualistic participation in mass singing has -been natural and spontaneous. The children of Israel sang an -individualistic “I and My” hymn in rejoicing over the army of Pharaoh. -The psalms are largely “I and My” hymns of praise, of prayer, and of -confession. David sings, “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” - -It is too much to expect that every singer shall apprehend the full -import of the words he sings; to accuse him of insincerity and -hypocrisy if he fails to rise to their level, or if he takes them on -his lips thoughtlessly, is uncharitable. In most cases the fault lies -with the leader of the service who does not bring out the meaning and -does not prepare the minds and hearts of the singers for the hymn -about to be sung. - -It is, therefore, not a question of the first person singular, but of -the kind of personal experience that finds a voice. Is it artificial -or genuine? Is it morbid or wholesome? Is it depressing or stimulating -to the spiritual life? Is it an experience to which all have attained -or may attain, in terms all can accept, or is it morbid, fanatical, -extravagant? - -No congregation should be expected to sing offhand with Faber, - - “I love Thee so, I know not how - My transports to control,” - -or - - “Oh, dearest Jesus, I have grown - Childish with love of thee.” - -There are other limits that need to be considered. A hymn may properly -be the vehicle for a confession of sin or of spiritual unworthiness; -but it should not take exaggerated forms of expression that only a few -could honestly adopt. The same is somewhat true of hymns of -consecration. Some hymns are title deeds to gifts to Jesus Christ so -comprehensive that few could sincerely subscribe to them. All these -hymns, though they may have been spontaneous outbursts from the hearts -of the writers, will seem unreal and forced to the singer, and will -only aggravate the mechanical unreality and the unwitting insincerity -that vitiate the average service of song. - - - _The Hymn of Meditation._ - -The hymn of meditation is less emotional than that of personal -experience or feeling. It is quiet in rhetorical style and gentle in -mood. Its purpose is not didactic, although it often superficially -seems to be so. It is occupied with doctrinal truth only in an -inferential way. It contemplates all religious truth, whether -doctrinal or ethical, in an objective, impersonal way and notes its -implications and corollaries. It is, therefore, emotionally negative, -blending with the other elements of the service rather than -controlling them. - -Perhaps as typical an instance as can be cited is Bishop Bickersteth’s - - “Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin? - The blood of Jesus whispers peace within.” - -Charles Wesley’s meditation on the Christian’s duties, “A charge to -keep I have,” is another hymn of this class. Faber’s “There’s a -wideness in God’s mercy” (“Was there ever kinder shepherd”) is also in -the meditative mood. - - - _The Hymn of Exhortation._ - -At first blush it may seem a little absurd that the members of a -congregation should sing at each other such a hymn as “Stand up, stand -up for Jesus” or “Work, for the night is coming.” But this is an -artificial and not a genuine objection. The instinct of the human race -is toward the singing of just such hortatory songs as these. The -Marseillaise Hymn, which was one of the strongest influences leading -to the French Revolution, is simply an exhortation, but it swept the -French people off their feet and helped prepare the way for the great -transformation of the social structure of the nation. The Church has -gone on producing and singing these hortatory hymns throughout all -generations from the time of David until now, because the impulse is -native to the human heart. - - - _The Didactic Hymn._ - -The hymn may be used to teach truth as well as to express emotion. If -we are to accept Paul’s statements regarding the use of song in the -churches in his early day, the didactic hymn is the oldest form of the -Christian hymn. “Teaching and admonishing one another” is his phrase -in Colossians 3:16. Indeed, we can go back to Moses for authority for -it, for the ninetieth Psalm is largely didactic. In the Psalms we find -more instruction than worship. There is really no reason why an -assembly should not sing truth, as well as recite it, as it does in -the Apostles’ or in the Nicene Creed. - -The didactic value of the hymn is too great that we should refuse its -help in laying a foundation of doctrine in the hearts of the people of -God. Never was it more necessary than now. It is significant of John -Wesley’s appreciation of its didactic value that in his announcement -of his hymnal of 1780, _The Large Hymn Book_, he refers to his -grouping of the hymns under subjects, making the hymnal “a little body -of experimental and practical divinity.” - -Many of our most frequently used hymns are unfeignedly didactic. -Bishop Wordsworth’s “O day of rest and gladness” is a resume of the -arguments for the validity of the Christian Sabbath. “The Church’s one -foundation” is one of a series of hymns by Samuel J. Stone expounding -the Apostles’ Creed. Heber’s hymn, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God -Almighty” is suffused with poetical feeling, but is none the less a -didactic hymn emphasizing the doctrine of the Trinity. - -At the same time, this religious truth must have a poetic element. It -is the great value of a hymn as a teaching method that it puts heart -and feeling into the doctrine it expresses, and so gives it reality -and appeal. Despite Dr. Austin Phelps’ rejection of Montgomery’s -“Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire” as “without the wings of song,” -the Church at large has been singing it for a century. Even if the -last stanza were omitted, it would still be a good hymn, because the -doctrine of prayer is clothed in such beautiful and inspiring language -that it is eminently fitted for the expression of a congregation in -song. - - - _The Doctrinal Hymn._ - -The doctrinal hymn is simply a limited form of the didactic hymn in -that it is devoted to the promulgation of the leading Christian -doctrines, while the general didactic hymn may be used to inculcate -any truth or duty, whether of a fundamental character or not. - -The use of the hymn to teach the doctrines of the Church has numerous -advantages. It is clear and succinct, not obscuring the truth with -philosophical or metaphysical subtleties. It is dogmatic and not -argumentative. It has the mnemonic advantage of rhythm and rhyme and -is easily remembered. It has the inspiration of collective singing. -Above all it is vivid and poetical, emotionalizing and vitalizing what -in the philosopher’s hands becomes abstract and dry. - -America’s most distinguished hymnologist clearly differentiates the -doctrinal theologian and the doctrinal hymn writer: “The theologian -and the hymn writer traverse day by day the same country, the Kingdom -of our Lord. They walk the same paths; they see the same objects; but -in their methods of observation and in their reports of what they see, -they differ. So far as theology is a science, the theologian deals -simply with the topography of the country: he explores, he measures, -he expounds. So far as hymn-writing is an art, the writer deals not -with topography, but with the landscape: he sees, he feels, he sings. -The difference in method is made inevitable by the variance of -temperament of the two men, the diversity of gifts. But both methods -are as valid as inevitable. Neither man is sufficient in himself as an -observer or a reporter. It is the topography and the landscape -together that make the country what it is. It is didactics and poetry -together that can approach the reality of the spiritual Kingdom.”[2] - -It follows that the doctrinal hymn is not simply reluctantly -admissible, it is actually peremptorily necessary if the doctrines of -the Christian faith are to be impressed upon each rising generation. -This function of the hymn is all the more important because of the -decline of doctrinal preaching. It is the “substance of doctrine” the -hymns supply rather than the rigid philosophical shell which the -creeds and the catechism offer. It is this shell that is “dry,” not -the realities it too often hides. - - - _The Homiletical Hymn._ - -The homiletical hymn is a homily, as its name implies—a sermonette. -The term refers to its form, not to its content, for that is usually -doctrinal and always didactic. It is sermonic because it proceeds from -point to point, leading the way to a practical application. This form -of hymn makes up the great body of the older hymnody, because it was -written by sermonizers who applied homiletical methods to their hymns. - -Take Doddridge’s hymn, “Ye servants of the Lord”: the first stanza -makes the general appeal for service; the second emphasizes the need -of readiness for that service; the third, attention to the Lord’s -commands; the fourth exclaims over the joy and the reward of service; -the fifth, the honors that Christ shall heap on his servant. That -makes a fine outline for a sermon! - -The homiletical hymn was often dry because the sermon was dry. They -were both too frequently “proses” in a sense different from the -medieval use of the word. - - - _The Hymn of Propaganda._ - -The hymn of propaganda calls for consideration. It is a didactic hymn, -of course, but its purpose is not to express the fundamental doctrines -of the faith, but to urge some subordinate article of it out of all -proportion to its intrinsic importance, or to win adherents for some -new religious ideas. There are hymns of Perfectionism, of Holiness, of -Unity, of Premillenialism, of Second Adventism, of Christian Science, -of phases of Theosophy, that fall within this category. - -The spiritual value of some of these is not to be underrated, but each -hymn must be judged on its own merits. The danger of exaggeration is -the chief point calling for circumspection. Hymns of propaganda -criticizing or antagonizing the Christian Church must be rejected. - - - _Hymns of the Social Gospel._ - -A few years ago, when the sociological aspect of Christianity won wide -attention, it was seriously proposed to rewrite the whole hymnbook and -inject the “Social Gospel.” A few desirable hymns on Brotherhood were -written which fill out a previously somewhat neglected rubric. -Brotherhood is not a discovery of the twentieth century, but has been -an integral part of Christianity from the beginning and was never so -fully exemplified as at that period. - -In so far as the “Social Gospel” is simply the application of the -gospel of Christ to old wrongs that yet need to be righted, like -slavery, and war, and alcoholism, or to new social complexes in our -modern economic life where there is injustice, or where there is need -of help for body, mind, or soul, hymns may prove desirable helps. They -will, however, be written spontaneously, not as propaganda, and will -be used freely in so far as there is practical and emotional -justification for them. The onward progress of the Kingdom in these -unfinished tasks will most likely depend on the stimulation of the -great motives that have given victory in the past. It is the appeal to -these motives that gives vitality to such a hymn as “Where cross the -crowded ways of life,” by Frank Mason North. - - - _Special Hymns._ - -It is a little difficult to supply hymns for subordinate topics which -do not stir the spiritual pulses, and hence the poorest hymns in our -hymnbooks are found in these divisions. The doctrines of Human -Depravity, Regeneration, Sanctification, the State of the Impenitent -Dead, do not lend themselves to attractive hymnic expression. - -These hymns have no wings; they are unemotional and without appeal to -the imagination. Yet the selectors of hymns who have a purely -homiletical point of view demand that a hymnal shall supply -appropriate lyrics to fit subjects and occasions that have no lyrical -possibilities. If the demands of symmetrical completeness in a hymnal, -or of close fitness of theme in a service, must be met, then one must -be content with prosaic verses lacking in poetic charm or emotional -inspiration. - - - _The Great Hymnic Themes._ - -There are certain doctrines, certain experiences, that appeal so -strongly to Christian hearts that the impulse to write and sing about -them far exceeds that growing out of less general, less striking -themes. There may be a great difference in the favorite themes of -different persons, under different circumstances, in different -generations. The Latin medieval hymnists greatly stressed the -suffering Christ; Watts sang of the majesty and glory of God and of -his reign in the moral and spiritual world, and his hymns are found -largely in the purely worshipful rubrics of our hymnals; Charles -Wesley wrote in the midst of a great revival, and his hymns emphasize -the plan of salvation and voice the personal experiences of the saved. -In our own day the ideas of service, of public welfare, of works of -philanthropy and mercy, and of social justice find expression. - -The supreme theme, of course, is Christ. Whatever phases of Christian -doctrine or experience may seem to absorb the mind of any generation, -still the songs cluster about the person of Jesus Christ. As Dr. -Austin Phelps eloquently insists, “here the rapture of holy song -culminates on earth, as it does in heaven. Here every grace of -religious character, and every experience of a devout life, has found -freedom to express itself in hymns of worship. Where can another such -body of sacred poetry be found in any language, as that which -comprises the Christology of the songs of the Church?” - -This hymnody is all the more appealing in that it sings a living and -not a dead Christ, a present personality, near and dear, and not -merely a historical character. The singer does not strain his power of -thought and elevation of expression to hymn adequately the perfections -of an infinite God, but spontaneously rejoices in a Friend who -“sticketh closer than a brother”! - - - - - _Chapter VI_ - THE GOSPEL HYMN - - -If this were a purely scholastic and literary treatise on the hymnody -of the Church, the subject of this chapter might be ignored; but this -discussion purports to be practical, and the Gospel hymn is too large -a factor in the life and work of our churches to be thus brushed -aside. It is a conservative estimate to say that four out of five -churches in our land make use of these hymns to a greater or less -extent. They even elbow their way into the most exclusive hymnals -issued by ecclesiastical authorities. Collections of them are found -not only in rural or village communities, but in urban churches as -well. Great denominational publishing houses issue them by the hundred -thousand. They are heard in the great ecclesiastical gatherings and -conventions of the land. Great evangelistic movements depend on them -for inspiration and for aggressive energy. - -Yet the Gospel hymn has been treated as a convenient “punching bag” -for the literary and musical idealist. One respects the antagonistic -attitude of the high liturgist to whom the form is so significant, or -of the literary or scholarly man whose susceptibilities are outraged -by the acknowledged shortcomings and banalities of many of these -popular religious lyrics. Nonetheless, one is astonished that persons -of high intelligence, in their devotion to exclusively literary and -musical standards, should be blind to the great spiritual value of the -better specimens of this indiscriminately condemned class of hymns, -and to the extraordinary effectiveness and the immense results in -aggressive religious work which this people’s hymnody has -demonstrated. - -This is really only the recrudescence of an ancient feud between the -conception of the hymn as exclusively worshipful and belonging to the -liturgical service, and as the free lyrical expression of the -religious life of the people adapted to all phases of Christian -life—individual, domestic, and social, as well as ecclesiastical. As -the church life of the early Christians began to crystallize, the -former improvisations were discouraged. In time, the service of song -was taken from the laity in the interest of greater dignity and -churchliness. The Arian controversy with its hymnic outburst freed the -wings of popular religious song, only for them to be restrained again -by the rigid formalism organized and enforced by Gregory the Great. - -The Waldenses, the Hussites, the Lollards, each group had its own -popular hymnody. In the general breaking of bonds in the Reformation, -the popular hymns of Huss and Luther and their associates, and the -metrical psalms of Marot and Sternhold set to popular secular -melodies, were the first manifestations of the new freedom. - -The same outcry was heard against the hymns of Watts, and a little -later against those of the Wesleys, not only in Great Britain, but in -New England as well. In the latter the outcry was heard against the -“camp-meeting ditties” of the aggressive Methodists as they spread -into the West. - -Even now, in Germany there is frequent protest against the use in -church service of the simpler “folk” hymns, like “Harre des Herrn” -(Wait on the Lord), “Ich will streben” (I will strive), and “Sei -getreu bis in den Tod” (Be faithful unto death), because they are more -recent in origin and have not the severe dignity of the older hymns -and chorals. - -And so the feud between the devout formalism of the liturgical spirit -and the free attitude of aggressive spirituality has gone on from -century to century and from land to land, and will continue to do so -“until He come.” - - - _Lack of Discrimination._ - -There is an utter lack of discrimination shown in the opposition to -Gospel hymns. - -It is no more true that all Gospel and Sunday-school hymns are crude, -illiterate, and undignified than is the anti-foreign Chinese’s charge -that all Americans are liars and thieves. Many of the Gospel hymns -were written by devout, cultured people of high intelligence. Fanny -Crosby has had wide recognition, and there have been many others of -equal ability, but lacking her adventitious appeal for sympathy. There -are many Gospel hymns which deserve the harshest denunciations that -have been expressed. In a people’s hymnody that was inevitable; but -there are others so fine that the line of essential values between the -Gospel and the standard hymn is difficult to trace. Lowell Mason and -Thomas Hastings’ _Spiritual Songs_ was practically a people’s Gospel -songbook, used for the same purposes and in the same relative spirit, -and largely made up of new materials in text and music just like a -modern Gospel songbook, being even issued in parts. Among its new -hymns were Palmer’s “My faith looks up to Thee” and Smith’s “The -morning light is breaking,” now recognized as leading standard hymns. -The same is true of Gilmore’s “He leadeth me, O blessed thought!” and -Kate Hankey’s “I love to tell the story” and Mrs. Hawks’ “I need Thee -every hour.” Mrs. Gates’ “I will sing you a song of that beautiful -land,” E. E. Hewitt’s “More about Jesus would I know,” Hopper’s -“Jesus, Saviour, pilot me,” Stite’s “Simply trusting every day,” -Walford’s “Sweet hour of prayer,” Hunter’s “In the Christian’s home in -glory,” Bliss’ “Almost persuaded,” Spafford’s “It is well with my -soul,” and Pres. Dr. J. E. Rankin’s “God be with you till we meet -again” are none of them illiterate or undignified. Indeed, many of the -writers of these despised hymns were college professors, clergymen of -high standing, editors, women of education and culture and of profound -spiritual life. Many Gospel song writers are far and away superior to -the average of the hymnists of the eighteenth century—indeed, have -written nothing so unpoetical and so distinctly offensive to good -taste as some of the hymns published by Watts and Wesley, the hymnic -giants of that age. - -There is an impulse to distinguish between Gospel hymns and Gospel -songs, accepting the former and rejecting the latter; but that is -playing with words. Good Gospel songs are to be baptized Gospel hymns -and allowed to enter the golden gates of approved hymnody. Others draw -the line at the end of the Moody and Sankey campaigns, closing the -canon at that time and regarding all later Gospel songs as apocryphal! -But the worst specimens that have appeared were issued before that -date and many excellent ones have been written since. No such -mechanical criteria can be applied. The acid test of actual usefulness -must be employed with Gospel songs as it was to formal hymns. That -many of the former have won a permanent place without the emendation -needed by the latter shows how unjustified is the indiscriminate -condemnation of this whole class of sacred lyrics. - - - _Wrong Assumptions of the Opposition._ - -In much of the discussion there seems to be an underlying assumption -that there is an inherent antagonism between the standard and the -Gospel hymn, that the latter is intended to displace the former. -Nothing can be farther from the truth. It is true there is an -occasional church where the standard hymns are neglected, but they are -a negligible minority. The current Gospel song collections practically -all supply a large department of standard hymns and their tunes, in -many cases all that are in actual general use. The value of the -standard hymn is recognized everywhere as having a most important -place in the work of the church. - -But its very dignity and strength occasion the limitations to its use, -and beyond those limitations the Gospel hymn comes as a complementary -help. The wise preacher does not use Gospel hymns in his formal, -worshipful services, but finds them indispensable in popular evening -services, where not awe and solemnity but spirit and aggressiveness, -and appeal to the person of average or less culture, are needed. His -prayer meeting and other subordinate meetings of groups need the -individual feeling and intimacy with religious things supplied by the -Gospel hymns. - -In evangelistic meetings a few of the standards can express the high -peaks of interest, but the Gospel songs lead up to those heights. The -great revivals of the nineteenth and of the early decades of this -century were distinctly characterized by the use of Gospel songs, many -of them not even of the higher type. - - - _Unfairness in Comparisons Made._ - -While the worst specimens of Gospel hymns have usually been selected -as the basis of attack, the very best of the standard hymns have been -held up as the criterion of value; the utter unfairness of such -comparison is evident enough. Gospel hymns should be judged by their -best specimens when compared with standard hymns. - -The inequity of such a comparison is made more flagrant by the fact -that these standard hymns, only hundreds in number, which are justly -appreciated and lauded, are the survivors of multiplied tens of -thousands that were written through the generations. Of the more than -seven hundred written by Isaac Watts, twenty-three appear in the -recent _Presbyterian Hymnal_. Of the nearly seven thousand hymns of -Charles Wesley, the new _Methodist Hymnal_, naturally biased in -judgment by tradition, uses only fifty-five, while the _New -Presbyterian Hymnal_ finds space for only eighteen. This tremendous -mortality is not necessarily due to offensive weakness and faults, for -hundreds served their day and generation most acceptably and well. In -like manner the older Gospel hymns, which have had their day of -usefulness are fading out of these collections, making way for new -ones that express the feelings of the present generation more -intimately. This is as it should be. - -But when the detractor of current Gospel hymns finds some delectable -bit of vulgarity or of literary clumsiness or of grammatical solecism, -let him remember that Watts published lines like these: - - “Tame heifers here their thirst allay - And for the stream wild asses bray.” - - “I’ll purge my family around - And make the wicked flee”; - -and that John Wesley allowed his brother to publish - - “Idle men and boys are found - Standing on the devil’s ground; - He will give them work to do, - He will pay their wages too.” - -Remember also that William Cowper, the poet acclaimed by literary -critics as the father of a new movement in poetical writing, issued -such a stanza as this: - - “Not such as hypocrites suppose - Who with a graceless heart - Taste not of Thee, but drink a dose - Prepared by Satan’s art.” - -If the great poets and hymn writers of that age wrote such lines, what -must have been the character of the verses of the obscure scribblers -and poetasters of their day! - -Not only do the best of the standard hymns alone survive, but those -survivors have been rewritten and amended by a half-century of editors -and hymn revisers, their revisions being re-revised by succeeding -critics, as we have seen in a previous chapter. Every line and phrase -has been submitted again and again to the microscope of the literary -critic, until we have a body of hymns established in every detail by -the consensus of the best literary minds of the last century. This is -no derogation of our accepted hymns, but a great advantage to them; -but it must not be overlooked in making a fair comparison. - - - _Criteria for Evaluation._ - -Much of the criticism of the Gospel hymn is due to excessive emphasis -on the literary and poetical aspects of the verses to which objection -is made. But we have already insisted on the fact that these are not -the final criteria of the value of hymns, although they are important -factors not to be overlooked. - -Speaking of a hymnal containing material of inferior literary quality, -Dr. Austin Phelps, of Andover Seminary, who shared with his colleague -in the faculty of that institution the honor of being the fathers of -American hymnology, wisely remarks: “It is a shallow judgment either -to approve or to condemn such a work in the spirit of a connoisseur in -aesthetics. The very conditions of excellence in a body of popular -psalmody must extend its limits out of the range of a purely Attic -taste.” - -The approval or rejection of a hymn, or of a body of hymns, is not a -question of personal taste or liking, nor even of personal religious -reactions, but a question of the needs of the people to be stimulated -and helped, and the results of interest and spiritual impression -secured among them by the hymns under consideration. - - - _Gospel Hymns and the Unsaved._ - -There is a distressing lack of understanding both of the real function -of the hymn and of the needs of the body of Christians as a whole, and -even a greater ignorance of the psychology of reaching the unsaved. If -the body of our standard hymns fails to develop needed interest among -a large element in our churches, how much less will it appeal to these -outside the fold! If these intellectually and culturally less -privileged masses in and out of the Church are to follow the Apostolic -example and “sing with the understanding,” the songs must lie within -the range of their understanding. Professor A. S. Hoyt, D.D., of -Auburn Theological Seminary, sums up the situation very wisely: “A few -of the modern revival hymns make quick appeal to the modern heart, are -easily sung, and may be teachers of religious life. The majority of -them are shallow in thought and without musical worth. But in all -matters of education we must help men as we find them and patiently -lift them to better things.” - - - _Gospel Hymns and the Demands of Worship._ - -Perhaps the most misleading assumption among those who reject the -Gospel hymn is that the chief use of hymns is in worship. They will -sing didactic hymns, hortative hymns, inspirational hymns, addressed -solely to human ears and hearts in the stated church service and then -cast out the Gospel hymn because it is not fitted for solemn worship. -That attitude conceives the Divine Being as a literary connoisseur, or -as a music critic who applies conventional academic criteria in -accepting what his people bring him. Their slogan is that we must -bring to God only our best, insisting that anything but our best is an -insult to him, forgetting that we do not bring the hymn, but the -spiritual results of the hymn in devotion and love and consecration, -and that hymn which produces these in the given congregation is the -best. - -Moreover, the approach to God is not the sole function of effective -hymns; it may instead be the approach to men. The best hymn in that -department is the one that succeeds most fully in affecting the souls -to be influenced. There, not the abstract values of the hymn count, -but its psychological adaptation to the actual mental, moral, and -spiritual condition of the minds and hearts to be helped, not -overlooking even the physical factors essential to religious results. - -Furthermore, there are lines of church activity which need the -religious atmosphere and suggestiveness but are concerned with social -and administrative work, with the temporalities of church life, for -which many of these Gospel hymns are eminently fitted. There are -campaigns, drives, and movements that need musical help such as many -of the less subjectively pious Gospel hymns can give. - - - _Gospel Hymns in the Preparatory Service._ - -There are large and miscellaneous church gatherings where there is no -preparation of mind to sing worthily and deeply religious hymns, and -where it would be a sacrilege to ask the miscellaneous crowd to take -upon their lips such a hymn as “O Love that wilt not let me go” or -“Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above.” Better to sing the -semi-religious and shallow “Brighten the corner where you are” until -the crowd has been psychically organized. - - - _Gospel Hymns in the Laboratory._ - -When we come to organized campaigns to persuade unconverted persons, -old and young, to accept Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord, the need of -these informal, stimulating, emotional folk songs becomes immediately -apparent. Awe, impressiveness, spiritual elevation of mind, such as -are supposed to be produced by the standard hymns, are not the stimuli -that create aggressiveness of mind among Christian workers, nor are -they calculated to awaken a response among the unspiritual. It is -proved as surely by actual laboratory experiment that Gospel songs -produce the conditions needed for securing a religious revival as that -hydrochloric acid and water poured over zinc clippings will produce -hydrogen. - -Lord Shaftesbury, the great English philanthropist and Christian -worker, speaking in Ireland in the interest of evangelistic work -there, said: “Therefore go on circulating the Scriptures. I should -have been glad to have had also the circulation of some well-known -hymns, because I have seen the effect produced by those of Moody and -Sankey. If they would only return to this country, they would be -astonished at seeing the influence exerted by those hymns which they -sing.” - -It is worthy of incidental note that the most of those to whom the -Gospel hymn is anathema are not much in sympathy with any evangelistic -methods; nay more, they seem to shrink from popular manifestations of -religious life. They have sharpened the edge of their religious -refinement until it will no longer cut. - - - _The Advantages of Gospel Hymns._ - -These Gospel hymns have several distinct advantages that should not be -overlooked. They are simple, easily understood by everybody, quickly -appropriated as his own expression by the most limited in education or -culture. They are quite emotional, expressing feeling and creating it. -They are spontaneous and free, with no labored subtlety or recondite -allusion. They are usually more or less rhythmical and stimulating, -physically as well as mentally. They are adaptable to various -situations and states of feeling. Even more than standard hymns they -express personal religious experiences, and are more direct in their -hortative method. The chorus, if intelligently written, emphasizes the -fundamental idea of the hymn in an unescapable way. As a tool for -aggressive effort it has no substitute, and but one rival—earnest and -spirit-filled preaching. - - - _Discrimination in the Use of Gospel Songs._ - -It should be said, however, that the inventory of its values mentioned -above applies to only a comparatively small part of the Gospel songs -offered to the public, just as the accepted standard hymns are a very -small part of the formal hymns from which they have been gleaned. -Usually its faults are aridity, vapidity, and shallowness. Yet in all -these shortcomings, specimens of equal weakness and futility can be -found in verses by accepted hymn writers. - -The better Gospel songs are after all the sincere expression of a -certain stage of culture of mind and soul. That stage may not be high -nor admirable, but it must be allowed its spontaneous expression. - -Every generation has had its own ephemeral hymnody and will continue -to have it in spite of all the scolding critics. When our religious -people stop writing and singing new songs and are satisfied to sing -over and over again the songs of preceding ages, it will prove that -the process of ossification has set in and that vital force is passing -away. Better that literary unskillfulness and mediocre musical talent -shall continue to write, better to have ephemeral, shallow, and -unsatisfying songs written by the thousands, than that the impulse to -express spontaneously the vital godliness within should be entirely -lost. - - - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - - - - - PART II - HISTORY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF HYMNS - - - - - _Chapter VII_ - APOSTOLIC ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT - - -In considering the origin of the Christian hymn, one must remember -that it is an outgrowth of man’s innate impulse to express his -feelings in hymns and songs. That impulse is constitutional; man sings -because he was so made that he cannot help singing. - -Furthermore, the Christian hymn is the natural development of the -Hebrew psalm, just as Christianity is the consummation of the Jewish -religion. The two systems of religion are related as closely as the -foundation and the superstructure of a great temple. We shall find the -Hebrew voice of worship not only leading the songs of the Apostolic -Church, but through all the succeeding ages sounding the controlling -note of all Christian praise. David and the sons of Asaph led the -choirs and congregations in chapel and church and cathedral as truly -as they did those in the temple and synagogues. Christianity gave the -Psalms a larger, more inspiring message and a more literary and more -musical setting; but the thrumming of David’s harp has been heard -through all the long centuries and is still heard around the world. - -The Greek atmosphere in which the Early Church developed might be -supposed to have influenced the character of the Apostolic hymnody; -but the Greek Christians were not literary in culture, and the Greek -religion had no congregational singing. It took several generations -before it began to affect the form and music of the Christian hymnody, -but eventually it was to become a formative force. - - - I. SACRED SONG IN THE NEW CHRISTIAN CHURCH - - - _The Rise of Sacred Song in Apostolic Times._ - -But when the baptism of the Holy Spirit vitalized and organized the -Christian Church, the tide of sacred song began to swell. It had a -great heritage from the dying Jewish church: its fundamental ideas, -its laws, its prophets, its hope of the Messiah now transformed into a -reality; but not the least of its inheritances were the habit of -praise and worship, and the lyrics that gave them form. - -We read that the Church was filled with joy and praised God. -Incidentally, we learn that, despite sufferings from cruel scourging, -Paul and Silas sang hymns in the Philippian prison, showing that with -the new wine of Christian joy there were created new bottles to -contain it. We may be sure this was not an isolated instance, but the -occurrence of an established practice. - - - _Apostolic Emphasis of Sacred Song._ - -James says, “Is any merry, let him sing psalms.” Whether he meant -David’s or “private” psalms is left open to conjecture. The American -Revised Version translates it “praise.” Paul is most definite in -recognizing “hymns and spiritual songs” as distinguished from -“psalms.” Some commentators have interpreted the latter as David’s -psalms, the “hymns” as the already accepted canticles, and the -“spiritual songs” as the new songs, more or less improvised, that were -sung by individuals, “teaching and admonishing one another,” “singing -with grace in the heart.” - -Paul’s conception of the hymn, therefore, was not a collective hymn, -sung by all, but a hymn of edification sung by individual singers. The -practice of solo singing assumed in Paul’s exhortations in Ephesians -and Colossians, due to the perennial danger of governmental raids and -persecutions, still continued in the time of Tertullian (circa 198). -He writes that after their common meal “each man, according as he is -able, is called on, out of the Holy Scriptures, or of his own mind, to -sing publicly to God. Hence it is proved in what degree he hath -drunken”—a refutation of the common charge of gluttony and -drunkenness. - - - _Traces of Hymns in the Epistles._ - -In the eagerness to unearth traces of the supposed hymnody of the -Apostolic church, the wish has been father to the thought, and -passages have been pointed out as probable quotations from hymns -current in the churches. Some of them are quite plausible, but others -are examples of the periodic structure so manifest in the style of -both Christ and Paul and in the Oriental proverbial form, but lacking -the parallelism of the Psalms. - -In Ephesians 5:14, Paul has the formula of quotation from the Old -Testament, but no such passage, or anything approaching it, can be -found in either the canonical or uncanonical books of the Old -Testament. If we should substitute “it” for “he,” the second word of -the passage “it” might refer to a hymn in common use. Westcott and -Hort put it in metrical form, but the Revised Versions do not. It is -very plausible, however; even in the English translation the structure -is distinctly metrical: - - “Awake, thou that sleepest, - And arise from the dead, - And Christ shall give thee light.” - -Equally plausible is the passage in 1 Timothy 3:16, although not -formally quoted: - - “God was manifested in the flesh, - Justified in the spirit, - Seen of angels, - Preached unto the Gentiles, - Believed on in the world, - Received up into glory.” - -This is particularly true of such passages as have rhetorical warmth -rather than inherent lyric quality. The extraordinary flight of the -Spirit that has been called the “Hymn of Love” (1 Cor. 13) can be -called a hymn only by stretching the limits of the definition beyond -all reasonable bounds. Noble as it is, no composer has ever succeeded -in setting it to worthy music. As well call Lincoln’s Gettysburg -address a Memorial Day Hymn. The same may be said of the ecstatic -passage which opens Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (1:2-12). - - - _The Hymns of the Apocalypse._ - -It has been suggested that the choral passages of the Book of -Revelation are quotations from current hymns. If that were true, how -could the little gatherings of Christians have risen to the majesty of -these marvelous hymns of adoration, either vocally or spiritually? -They are so intimately a part of the stupendous scenes in which they -appear as to make their being merely quotations seem impossible. Only -the itch of a German-type scholarship to press out the last drop of -possibility from any given historical material, and the calm assurance -that the results must be true, since it has recognized them, can -explain this hypothesis. - -These hymns are too integral a part of the scenes, too consonant with -their elevated spirit, and logically too inevitable, that they should -have been mechanically introduced or even adapted from current -hymns—they are too choral in the grand manner. - -In general, we may accept the same judgment of Dr. Lyman Coleman, in -his work _The Primitive Church_. “The argument is not conclusive, and -all the learned criticism, the talent and the taste, that have been -employed on this point, leave us little else than uncertain conjecture -on which to build a hypothesis.” - - - “_The Odes of Solomon._” - -“The Odes of Solomon” is a Syriac collection of hymns which good -authorities claim to be of the Apostolic Age; one authority, Mrs. -Gibson, insists that it precedes Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, while -the most conservative concede that it belongs to the first century, or -the first half of the second. - -Its discoverer, Dr. Rendell Harris, Director of studies at Woodbrooke, -the Quaker center at Selly Oak, England, says of the “Odes”: “They are -utterly radiant with faith and love, shot through and through with -what the New Testament calls ‘the joy of the Lord.’” He quotes one of -them: “A great day has shined upon us; marvelous is He who has given -us of His glory. Let us, therefore, all of us unite together in the -name of the Lord, and let us honor Him in His goodness, and let us -meditate in His love by night and by day.”[1] - -The first stanza of Ode XXVI is translated as follows: - - I poured out praise to the Lord, - For I am his: - And I will speak his holy song, - For my heart is with him, - For his harp is in my hands, - And the odes of his rest shall not be silent. - I will cry unto him from my whole heart; - I will praise and exalt him with all my members. - For from the East and even to the West - Is his praise; - And from the South and even to the North - Is his confession: - And from the top of the hills to their utmost bound - Is his perfection. - - - _The Failure of Apostolic Spiritual Songs to Survive._ - -It is likely that the reason why no definitely recognized collection -of hymns has survived from Apostolic times, and immediately -thereafter, is that the singing, outside of the Psalms and Gospel -canticles, was largely extemporaneous. The later hymnic form and -structure had not yet developed. Dr. Neale, who deserves to be -recognized as a high authority, referring to the apostolic “hymns” and -“spiritual songs,” says: “From the brief allusions we find to the -subject in the New Testament we should gather that the hymns and -spiritual songs of the Apostles were written in metrical prose.” -Rhyming did not come into use until very much later. The singing was -in recitative with rather formless melodies. Such extemporizations as -appealed to the body of believers were passed on from place to place, -the very best from generation to generation, from memory and by word -of mouth, for illiteracy was the common lot of the mass of early -believers. These people’s spiritual songs were presently lost, much as -were most of our early American “spirituals” that served so excellent -a purpose. - -Indeed, it would be entirely correct to conceive of the stream of -devout song flowing steadily on from the “hymns and spiritual songs” -of the Apostolic times down through the centuries until our own time, -sometimes finding temporary subterranean channels, as with the -Albigenses, the Hussites, and the Lollards, but always inspiring, -refreshing, and comforting the generations as it passes. It was the -_Laus Perennis_, the unfailing sacrifice of praise, that day and night -rose without break or intermission to the ears of the Almighty. In -every generation, hymns that had nobly served preceding generations -were replaced by new ones fresh from throbbing hearts that had -re-experienced the vital truths of Christianity. - -It is no condemnation of a hymn that the Church lays it aside. That it -served only for a season may have been due to its peculiar adaptation -to the individuality of the age, to the temporary conditions and needs -among God’s saints of that particular time. - - - - - _Chapter VIII_ - THE POST-APOSTOLIC HYMN - - - _The Post-Apostolic Church a Singing Church._ - -Whatever conclusion we reach regarding the song service during the -Apostolic age, because of the meager facts we have regarding it, we -have sufficient information regarding the second, third, and fourth -centuries to be sure that the hymn had become a more and more -important feature of the religious life. The tide of song swells -louder and higher as the generations pass. Clement of Alexandria, the -reputed writer of the earliest surviving Christian hymn, “Shepherd of -tender youth,” writes, “We cultivate our fields, praising; we sail the -sea, hymning.” Jerome writes to Marcellus, “You could not go into the -field, but you might hear the plowman at his hallelujahs, the mower at -his hymns, and the vinedresser singing David’s psalms.” Tertullian, a -little earlier, when the antiphonal singing was still in vogue, -objects to the marriage of a Christian with an unbeliever, because -they cannot sing together, whereas the Christian mates each would -challenge the other “which shall better chant to the Lord.” The early -church was, therefore, a singing church. - -Tertullian was not a writer of hymns, for he declared “We have a -plenty of verses, sentences, songs, proverbs.” We do not have their -hymns, but we have the names of prominent hymn writers who sealed -their faith with their blood: Ignatius, Athenogenes, Hippolytus, and -many others who did not win a martyr’s crown. - -All these hymns blossomed out of the consuming love for the Lord Jesus -Christ, for which the Jewish psalms could give no expression. That -they were used for public worship we have the testimony of Pliny (A.D. -110). His report from Bithynia to the Emperor Trajan was that “the new -sect have a custom of meeting before dawn on a stated day and singing -by turn a hymn to Christ as God.” - - - _The Earliest Surviving Hymns._ - -Unless we accept the Syriac “Odes of Solomon” as an apostolic -hymnbook, none of the “spiritual songs” of that age survive. The hymn -written (or quoted?) by Clement in 170 is accepted as the earliest -hymn handed down to us, with the “Candlelight Hymn” as possibly -contemporaneous. - -Clement’s hymn “Shepherd of tender youth” is found in most of our -hymnals and is in actual use.[1] Dr. Henry M. Dexter’s version, as -generally used, is an attenuation suited to the taste of our day -rather than a faithful reproduction of the original, which begins with -a rather violent figure, “Curb for stubborn steed” (E. H. Plumptre). - -The date of the “Candlelight Hymn” is very uncertain. It was so old in -370 that another St. Basil could throw no light on its origin: “It -seemed fitting to our fathers not to receive the gift of light at -eventide in silence, but on its appearing immediately to give thanks.” -The version by John Keble is still in use: - - “Hail, glad’ning Light, of His pure glory poured - Who is the immortal Father heavenly, blest, - Holiest of holies, Jesus Christ, our Lord! - Now we are come to the sun’s hour of rest; - The lights of evening round us shine; - We hymn the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit divine.” - - - _The Relation of Hymns to Psalms and Canticles._ - -In the very nature of the case, these individual songs and hymns and -psalms had no authority back of them. They were the “spirituals,” the -Gospel songs of their day and generation. Most of them were -improvisations for a single service—flying sparks from the anvil of -the Spirit. Undoubtedly others had a longer life, were written out and -passed from hand to hand and even from generation to generation. - -These hymns were mostly in Greek, though some were in Syriac, and as -far as they were given a standard form they used Greek classical -meters. Some were modeled on the Septuagint psalms and were known as -“private psalms.” Many were odes, like the “Odes of Solomon.” - -But it is quite evident that this body of song was never regarded as -on an equality with the Psalms of the Jewish church, or with the -Canticles of the New Testament. These had the sanctions of the rapidly -crystallizing canon of the New Testament, and the established canon of -the Old, which gave an authority that was lacking in the current -hymnody. The relation was even more pronounced than that in our own -day between the body of hymns surviving through the generations -recognized as “standard” and the current religious songs of the hour. - -In addition to the Psalms taken over from the Jewish psalter (not over -one-half of which were ever sung) and the Canticles of Luke’s Gospel, -there gradually rose a subsidiary body of canticles which by the -fourth century had been for the most part fully formulated. They were -developments of passages from both the Old and New Testament. In -addition to the ejaculatory responses, “Alleluia” and “Hosanna,” the -following were hymns authorized to be used in Christian services: - -1. The _Gloria in Excelsis_, developed from the song of the angels as -found in Luke, known as the Greater Doxology. - -2. The _Ter Sanctus_, based on Isaiah 6:3, possibly later associated -with Revelation 4:8, and called the Cherubical Hymn. - -3. The _Benedicite_, the song of the three Hebrew children in the -furnace, a paraphrase of the forty-eighth Psalm, likely taken from the -Apocrypha. - -4. The _Gloria Patri_ or Lesser Doxology, apparently handed down from -the Apostolic time, developed from the baptismal formula. It was -expanded during the Arian controversy, adding “As it was in the -beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.”[2] - - - _The Hymn as Propaganda._ - -The inferiority of the popular hymnody became ever more pronounced as -the hymn was employed by heretical sects as a means of propagating -their pernicious doctrines. Bardesanes and his son Harmonius in -Edessa, Asia, a little later composed an entire psalter of one hundred -and fifty psalms, “deserting David’s truth and preserving David’s -numbers,” as Ephrem Syrus expressed it. - -The Gnostic hymns during the third century were slowly undermining the -faith of the people, but it was not until Arius appeared with his -denial of the deity of Jesus Christ and spread broadcast his “Thalia,” -a collection of practical hymns emphasizing practical duties and the -value of the daily life of the people, as well as magnifying the -humanity of Jesus, that the full extent of the revolution in the -religious sentiment of the people became evident. He fitted his -measures to well-known popular tunes, sung only by those “who sing -songs over their wine with noise and revel.” - -Arius, an ungainly giant of tremendous force of personality and -unbounded energy, thus began a movement that was to convulse with its -controversy the whole Roman Empire through many generations, even down -to our own times, and was to prepare Asia and Northern Africa for the -superimposition of the Mohammedan personality and cult upon an -emasculated Christianity. - -In 269, Paul of Samosata, an Arian Bishop, banished from his churches -the hymns that had come down from the second century because they were -addressed to Christ as God and “as being innovations, the work of men -of later times.” He began the Arian fashion of propaganda by means of -hymns. As an answer to this came the great hymnic outburst of the -fourth century, headed by Gregory of Nazianzus and participated in by -St. Chrysostom.[3] - -It is not surprising, therefore, that the Synod that met in Laodicea -in 363 ordered that “psalms composed by private men must not be read -in the church, nor uncanonical books, but only the canonical of the -New and Old Testament.” - -Nor need we wonder that with the Arian fanatics interrupting orthodox -services by starting their heterodox hymns, the same Synod decided -that “beside the psalm singers appointed thereto who mount the ambo -and sing out of the book, no others shall sing in church.” - -This robbing the lips and the hearts of the congregation of its share -of the public praise, in order to prevent Gnostic and Arian heretics -from profaning public services with their strife and contention, -hardened into a perpetual prohibition, and in the Greek church the -people are mute to this day.[4] - -It should be remembered that these prohibitions applied only to public -services and their liturgies. Outside the walls of the larger churches -the people were still singing. Indeed, the popular song was used by -the orthodox to displace the heretical songs of the Arians, as was -done by Chrysostom in Constantinople, in order to stem the tide of -attack on the doctrine of the deity of Christ. - - - - - _Chapter IX_ - THE GREEK HYMNODY - - - I. EARLY GREEK HYMNS - -The reaction of the Greek Church to the hymnic attack of Arians -interests us because of its influence on the general development of -the Christian hymn. - -Of the earliest hymn writers we know little, and their work has not -come down to us. We have a hymn of Methodius (311) based on the -parable of the ten virgins, of considerable vigor and merit. - -The most prominent figure that greets us is that of Gregory of -Nazianzus (327-389). He was called to Constantinople by the Emperor -Theodosius to lead the orthodox forces against the Arian enemy. He was -appointed court preacher, Patriarch of the Eastern Church, and -president of the Ecumenical Council of Constantinople; but the pious, -gentle monk, while a great preacher and a fertile hymn writer (it is -said that he wrote thirty thousand hymns), was not fitted for the -strife and intrigue rampant in the Capital; within a few years he -returned to his cell at Nazianzus in Cappadocia. His hymns are ranked -very high. Dr. Brownlee has given an excellent version of his “Evening -Hymn”: - - “O word of truth! In devious paths - My wayward feet have trod; - I have not kept the day serene - I gave at morn to God. - - And now ’tis night, and night within, - O God, the light hath fled! - I have not kept the vow I made - When morn its glories shed. - - For clouds of gloom from nether world - Obscured my upward way; - O Christ, the Light, thy light bestow, - And turn my night to day!” - -Synesius (375-430), Bishop of Cyrene, was a brilliant man, a friend of -Hypatia, whom most general readers know as the heroine of Charles -Kingsley’s great historical romance. He wrote some very tender hymns -and poems that have been widely appreciated. He is best known by his -hymn, “Lord Jesus, think on me,” a free paraphrase of which (by Allen -W. Chatfield) is found in some of our hymnals. - -Anatolius (d. 458) is known to us, not as the able and noble Byzantine -pontiff, but as the original writer of two quite different hymns, -translated by Dr. Mason Neale: the evening hymn, “The day is past and -over,” and the descriptive hymn, “Fierce was the wild billow.” He was -one of the first to forsake the classical forms and to put his -thoughts into harmonious prose. He wrote few hymns, but all of great -excellence. - - - II. THE LATER GREEK HYMNS - -The earlier Greek hymn writers wrote in the classical measures and -evinced an admirable sense of form; but the later hymnists, following -the example of Anatolius, wrote in rhythmical prose and not by any -means as felicitously. Moreover, the later Greek language greatly -degenerated, losing its lucidity and subtlety of expression.[1] - -The later Greek hymns had many ecclesiastical and theological phrases -difficult to render. They were filled with grotesque figures; the -worship of Mary, and even of the saints, is offensive. Being mostly in -rhythmical prose, they were not intended to be sung—at most only to be -chanted. Really they were not hymns in the ordinary sense of the word; -rather they were the raw materials of hymns. As Dr. Brownlie says, -“The writers are not poets, in the true sense, and their language is -not Greek as we have known it.” - -The more conspicuous of these later Greek devotional writers do not -appear until the eighth century. - -Andrew of Crete (660-732), an archbishop, was a very voluminous -devotional writer. Among his more important works are the “Great -Canon,”[2] the “Triodion,” and the “Pentecostarion.” The “Great Canon” -has more than three hundred stanzas, illustrating by Scripture -examples the feelings of a penitent confessing his sins. He is -represented in some of our hymnals by the hymn, “Christian, dost thou -see them?” translated by Dr. John Mason Neale and said to be taken -from the “Great Canon.” - -The other hymnists of this century are John of Damascus (d.780), his -foster-brother Cosmas, the Melodist (d.760), and Stephen the Sabaite, -his nephew (725-794). - -John of Damascus wrote the best Greek of his generation and was most -poetical in spirit and style. Gibbon calls him the “last of the Greek -Fathers.” His verse is characterized by being written in iambics (the -most common measure in modern hymns). His best-known hymn is “’Tis the -day of resurrection,” taken from his great Easter canon, styled the -“Queen of Canons” and the “Golden Canon” by the Greek Church. - -John’s foster-brother, Cosmas, survives in the Christmas hymn, “Christ -is born! exalt his name.” Although his canons are very thoughtful, his -style is often turgid and difficult to follow. - -Stephen the Sabaite, the nephew of John of Damascus, the third of this -“nest of singing birds” (to use Dr. Gillman’s phrase), came to Mar -Saba as a boy and remained there all his life. Dr. Neale found the -inspiration of his hymn “Art thou weary, art thou languid?” in some -lines of Stephen. - -These three Greek hymn writers were monks in the monastery of San -Saba, to be seen to the north from the highway between Jerusalem and -Jericho, on the rugged heights overlooking the Jordan valley. - -Another group of Greek hymn writers appears a little later, headed by -Theodore (759-826), abbot of the Studium, a great monastery at -Constantinople. The group was quite controversial, the occasion being -not the Deity of Christ, but the enforced destruction of ikons, or -images. The hymns of this group were not all controversial. -Theoctistus (c.890), an obscure and later member of it, when the heat -of strife had presumably subsided, could write this devout hymn of -praise to Christ: - - “Jesu, name all names above, - Jesu, best and dearest. - Jesu, fount of perfect love, - Holiest, tend’rest, nearest. - - Jesu, source of grace completest, - Jesu purest, Jesu sweetest. - Jesu, well of power divine, - Make me, keep me, seal me thine.” - -Joseph of the Studium (c.840), because of his many hymns, was called -the Hymnographer. He wrote too much to write well. His work is -characterized as tautological, tawdry, tedious. Three of his hymns, -however, had enough suggestiveness to inspire Dr. Neale to write “Let -our choir new anthems raise,” “O happy band of pilgrims,” and “Safe -home, safe home in port.” Dr. Neale’s pump seems to have needed but -slight priming to bring up stirring lyrics from the deepest spiritual -experiences and emotions! - -The most striking characteristic of the Greek hymnody is its sheer -objectivity. It is self-forgetful in its rapt, ecstatic contemplation -of the doctrines and facts of the Christian faith. It is never -experiential or self-analytical except when it confesses sin and -unworthiness. The sustained dignity and elevation of its praise and -adoration are other admirable traits. Its consciousness of God, its -unflawed acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, its assurance -of the indwelling Spirit, give it a liturgical value beyond that of -any other ancient hymnody. - - - - - _Chapter X_ - THE LATIN HYMNODY - - - I. THE BEGINNINGS OF LATIN HYMNODY - -The early disciples in the West were accustomed to use the Greek -language, as may be gathered from Paul’s writing his Epistle to the -Romans in Greek. It is probable that their religious services were -largely in that language until there were Romans enough added to the -churches to make the use of Latin necessary. - -That great ode, the “Te Deum,” comes to us only in a Latin form. The -tradition is that it was an antiphon improvised by Ambrose and -Augustine on the occasion of the latter’s baptism, but that is -doubtless a hero-worshiping fancy of the ninth century. That a good -deal of it came from the Greek was to be expected and is quite -certain, whether the Dacian Bishop, Nicetius of Remisiana, gathered up -the Greek material or not (circa 400). - -On the other hand, there is no Greek version extant, except a much -later one which is evidently a translation from the Latin. - -It may have been written (or compiled) during the Arian controversy as -a creedal song to be sung by clerical or monastic choirs. It may have -grown by gradual accretion, from generation to generation, like the -Easter hymn “Jesus Christ is risen today,” which, begun in the -fourteenth century, was not given final form until 1816. - -This magnificent ode, for it is a hymn only by a considerable -extension of the definition, appears in our modern hymnals only as a -chant, and is practically never sung in our non-liturgical -congregations. It has been used as a choral text throughout all its -history, never as a congregational hymn. It has had unnumbered -settings by the greatest composers of Christendom. - -It is the high festival ode of the ages, used in celebrating victories -or other stately occasions of great public interest. Its -comprehensiveness, nobility of thought, and elevated style befit the -coronation of kings or the investiture of popes. For the mass of our -churches, great as it is, it has only a historical interest. It might -find impressive use as a responsive reading. - - - II. EARLY LATIN HYMN WRITERS - -Bishop Hilary of Poitiers (circa 300-367), “the hammer of the Arians,” -was exiled into Phrygia by Constantius because he called the Arian -emperor “The Antichrist.” In his exile he came in touch with the -fierce propaganda waged on both sides by means of hymns. His -controversial zeal recognized the opportunity, and he wrote a great -many anti-Arian hymns, which he gathered on his return to France into -his _Liber Mysteriorum_. That his book was lost was no great calamity, -for his fiery, combative spirit, valuable enough at the time, had no -message for future generations. He woke a new interest in singing and -furnished a more practicable model. He undoubtedly suggested the -antiphonal singing he found in the “Hinterland” of Asia Minor and thus -prepared the way for his fellow-countryman, Ambrose, Bishop of Milan. -If the latter is recognized as the father of Latin hymnody, and even -of all the Western hymnody, Catholic and Protestant, Hilary is its -grandfather. - -Ambrose (340-397) had been a lawyer, not a product of the -ecclesiastical system, and he brought to his office a freshness of -insight and of resources that might have been atrophied in the -mechanical clerical education of his day. The value of song in -supporting the spirits of his followers when besieged for days in his -cathedral suggested to his practical mind, stimulated by his musical -nature, its wider use when the battle was won. - -Ambrose broke new ground for Latin hymnody in several essential -particulars. He transformed the merely reading hymn, confined to the -clergy, to a singing hymn for the congregation, writing hymns for the -express purpose of promoting congregational song. He passed by the -artificial classical meters for the simplest of lyrical meters, four -lines of four iambic measures each, which has come down to us through -the centuries as Long Meter. He also introduced the free use of -rhymes. - -Ambrose was not only a learned man of great ability, but—what is more -to our present purpose—a man of great piety and devotion. He sought to -vitalize and actualize the devotions, personal and collective, of the -Christian Church, to make them genuine and heartfelt as against the -formalists to whom the mere letter is all-important. His hymns are -evidences of his spirituality. There is room for stanzas from only a -few of them: - - “O splendor of the Father’s face, - Affording light from light, - Thou Light of light, thou fount of grace, - Thou day of day most bright. - - Thee, in the morn with songs of praise, - Thee, in the evening time, we seek; - Thee, through all ages, we adore, - And suppliant of thy love we speak.” - -In spite of the opposition of the Roman See, and the later effort of -Charlemagne, in his zeal for the Gregorian system, to destroy all -copies of the Ambrosian hymns and tunes, the “Ambrosiani” still keep a -small place in the Roman Breviary. - -Among the contemporaries of Ambrose, no hymnist stands out more -conspicuously than the Spaniard, Prudentius (348-424). He also had -been a lawyer and a man of affairs. He had more literary gifts than -Ambrose, and his poems show more personality, more charm, more -unaffected sincerity. Bentley calls him “the Horace and Virgil of the -Christians.” A single stanza may illustrate his spirit and style: - - “The bird, the messenger of day, - Cries the approaching light; - And thus doth Christ, who calleth us, - Our minds to life excite.” - -Mention should be made of Fortunatus (530-609). He was, like the later -Marot of psalm-version fame, “the fashionable poet of the day,” a -precursor of the troubadours. Later in life he became religious, a -priest, an almoner of a monastery, and finally Bishop of Poitiers. He -wrote a processional to be used at the reception of a piece of the -true cross presented by Queen Rhadegunda. The hymn “Vexilla regis -prodeunt” has come down the ages. Dr. Neale calls it “one of the -grandest in the treasury of the Latin church.” We make room for the -first and last stanzas of Dr. Neale’s translation: - - “The royal banners forward go; - The cross shines forth in mystic glow; - Where he in flesh, our flesh who made, - Our sentence bore, our ransom paid. - - * * * * * * * - - Hail, altar! Hail, O Victim! Thee - Decks now thy passion’s victory - Where life for sinners death endured, - And life, by death, for man procured.” - -The influence and power of the Roman hierarchy were steadily exercised -against the use of hymns and in behalf of the sole use of Scripture -psalms and canticles. It is a far cry from Gregory the Great to John -Calvin and John Knox, demanding the sole use of canonical material in -the services of the church; and a like far cry from the Council of -Toledo in Spain in 633, which made a strong plea for the use of hymns -in the church’s devotions, to Isaac Watts and his prefaces to his -several collections of modified psalms and of hymns. It was only -toward the end of the twelfth century that hymns of “human composure” -were used in Roman churches, and then were sung by clerical choirs in -the larger basilicas of the capital city. The people were still shut -out from their use. - -But the impulse to write devotional material for the church service -persisted. The Venerable Bede (672-735), scholar, theologian, -philosopher, historian, general encyclopedist, wrote both Latin and -Anglo-Saxon hymns in his faraway monastery at Yarrow, England. -Theodulph (d.821), Paulus Diaconus, Odo of Cluny, Cardinal Damiana, -and other minor hymnists wrote hymns, some of which, transformed by -skillful translators, have found use in our day. - -Notker, called Balbulus (850-912), of St. Gall in Eastern Switzerland, -became weary of the long-drawn-out notes of the cadences of the final -syllable of the “Alleluia,” which was prolonged to enable the deacon -to ascend to the rood-loft to chant the Gospel. It was suggested that -a text be supplied, a syllable for every note. At first these texts -had no metrical form and were called Proses. Later they were given a -definite form and were called sequences, because they followed the -“Alleluia.” These sequences continued to be written for over three -centuries and were brought to technical perfection by Adam of St. -Victor. - -These sequences, however, were an evidence of the abiding urge for -lyrical expression rather than a step in the progressive development -of the Christian hymn. - - - III. GREAT LATIN HYMNS - -A more important figure in our study of Latin hymns is Rabanus Maurus -(776-856), archbishop of Mainz, Germany, a great scholar, an -influential teacher, a profound theologian, a voluminous writer, as -well as a great hymn writer. He had been a notable figure in German -church history before hymnological investigators proved that he was -the writer of the great hymn, “Veni, Creator Spiritus,” the worthy -successor of Fortunatus’ “Vexilla regis prodeunt.” Its authorship had -been credited at different times to Ambrose, Gregory the Great, -Charlemagne, and Notker Balbulus. It is the only metrical hymn -officially recognized by the early English Church. It is sung at high -ceremonies like the coronation of kings or the consecration of -bishops. The accepted version is by Bishop Cosin. It appears in our -leading hymnals. - -The next bead in our rosary of great hymns is “Veni, Sancte Spiritus,” -by the helpless little paralytic and humpback, Hermannus Contractus -(1013-1054). An excellent historian, a renowned philosopher and -theologian, a mathematician of unusual attainments, in short a -universal and encyclopedic scholar, his chief glory now is that he -wrote this hymn which Archbishop Trench rated “as the loveliest of all -the hymns in the whole cycle of Latin sacred poetry.” There is space -for one stanza only, the third of this great hymn: - - “O most blessed Light divine, - Shine within these hearts of thine, - And our inmost being fill; - Where thou art not, man hath naught, - Nothing good in deed or thought, - Nothing free from taint of ill.” - -The tide of the years had been flowing quietly with only here and -there rapids or an eddy, but now the current was hastening toward the -great whirlpool of the Crusades. Hildebert, Peter the Hermit, Bernard -of Clairvaux, Abelard, Peter the Venerable, Adam of St. Victor, stand -out as lighthouses on an uncharted sea. - -Not the least of these was Bernard, the abbot of Clairvaux -(1091-1153), scholar, orator, statesman, and man of affairs, of whom -Archbishop Trent declares: “Probably no man during his lifetime ever -exercised a personal influence in Christendom equal to his; the stayer -of popular commotions, the queller of heresies, the umpire between -princes and kings, the counsellor of popes.” This does not suggest the -writer of such a hymn as “Jesu dulcis memoria,”[1] the tenderest, -sweetest sacred lyric of the Middle Ages. But he was credited with it -for centuries until it was found in a manuscript of the eleventh -century and there credited to a Spanish Benedictine abbess, an origin -more consonant with its spirit and with its finished Latinity. Would -we knew more about her, this medieval precursor of Anne Steele, Sarah -F. Adams, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Elizabeth P. Prentiss, and Fanny -Crosby! Dr. S. W. Duffield holds “Bernard to be the real author of the -modern hymn—the hymn of faith and worship”; but now the iconoclastic -modern hymnologist denies him even the authorship of the “Salve Caput -Cruentatum.”[2] - -We know very little about the other Bernard, who was a monk in the -greater abbacy of Cluny; but his authorship of the great indictment of -the Roman church of his time, “De Contemptu Mundi,” is undoubted. His -great poem of three thousand lines[3] occupied itself with the vice -and moral filth which his pure soul detested. In his disgust with the -moral ordure in which his feet were immersed, he suddenly takes wing -and rises to the heights to contemplate “the Heavenly Land.” Dr. -Neale, out of scattered lines and phrases of the original, with -additions of his own, constructed the wondrous mosaics which we -delight to sing: “Brief life is here our portion,” “Jerusalem, the -Golden,” “For thee, O dear, dear country.” - -One thinks of Thomas Aquinas (1227-1274) as the Aristotelian logician, -the profound Augustinian theologian, the philosopher, the invincible -protagonist of medieval orthodoxy, rather than as a hymn writer; yet -some of our present day hymnals contain two communion hymns of -profound thought and deep feeling written by him. “Pange, lingua, -gloriosi” is perhaps the finer; here is one stanza of Edward Caswell’s -version: - - “Now, my tongue, the mystery telling - Of the glorious body sing, - And the blood, all price excelling - Which the Gentile’s Lord and King - Once on earth amongst us dwelling - Shed for this world’s ransoming.” - -The other, “Lauda, Sion, Salvatorem,” has been rendered by Alexander -R. Thompson, as follows: - - “Zion, to thy Saviour singing, - To thy Prince and Shepherd bringing - Sweetest hymns of love and praise, - Thou wilt never reach the measure - Of thy most ecstatic lays.” - - - IV. MEDIEVAL DEVOTIONAL POEMS - -We now reach the consideration of hymns and poems of great excellence -in themselves but without the appeal, or practicability as hymns, -possessed by the foregoing. Some of them appear in liturgical hymnals, -or in more formal hymnals of non-liturgical churches, but their use is -limited. - -Among these is Francis of Assisi’s “Canticle of the Sun,”[4] not a -hymn, but a psalm of praise for all created things. For our day it has -chiefly literary and antiquarian interest. - -His follower and biographer, Thomas of Celano (?-1255), however, wrote -a sequence or hymn that has intrigued the interest of generation after -generation. Mozart’s “Requiem” uses parts of it as its text. Goethe -introduces it in his “Faust.” Unnumbered translations of it have been -made into all civilized languages. Theodore Parker called it the -“damnation lyric.” In the original “Dies irae” there were eighteen -stanzas. The version of W. J. Irons has fourteen stanzas of three -lines each, a few of which follow: - - “Day of Wrath! O day of mourning! - See fulfilled the prophets’ warning, - Heaven and earth in ashes burning! - - Oh, what fear man’s bosom rendeth, - When from heaven the Judge descendeth, - On whose sentence all dependeth.” - -Sir Walter Scott’s version is in four-line stanzas, three of which are -used to make a practicable hymn. But who in our self-complacent age -cares to sing any of these versions, portraying “The Last Judgment”? - -Another famous hymn, written by a follower of Francis of Assisi, -perhaps Jacopone da Todi, “the fool for Christ’s sake,” is the “Stabat -Mater Dolorosa.” It celebrates the sufferings, not of Christ on the -cross, but of Mary, his mother, standing at its foot. It is the -supreme Mariolatrous hymn in sentiment and in diction. It is Roman, of -course, not Catholic, and interests us only as marking the sincerity -and the depth of the medieval sentiment and devotion to the Madonna. - -This great hymn is noteworthy because of the many translations into -modern languages which have been made, seventy-eight into German alone -and as many more into English, in whole or in part. Its emotional -possibilities have appealed to many music composers, including -Palestrina, Pergolesi, Haydn, Rossini, and Dvorak—settings varied in -style from Palestrina’s high dignity to Rossini’s almost theatrical -treatment. - -It must be remembered that the Greek hymns of the Eastern church, and -the Latin hymns of the Western, were not in dead languages, as they -appear to us, but in living languages, the vernacular of the persons -producing and using them. While the common people may have spoken a -different dialect, the monks and clergy used the classic speech as a -very mother tongue. The hymns were for the most part a perfectly -spontaneous expression of religious conviction and feeling, a living -product of vital experience, an instinctive expression of profound -faith. - -In closing this rapid survey of a thousand years of Greek and Latin -hymns, one is impressed that they are all clerical—even monastic—in -type and character. There are in many of them spontaneity, genuine -feeling, and personal experience, a profound sense of spiritual -realities; yet over all of them falls the shadow of the tonsured -ecclesiastic, with his heart set on the impressiveness of the forms of -worship rather than on the ultimate result in creating spiritual -reactions in the individuals of the congregation. - - - V. MEDIEVAL POPULAR HYMNODY - -Although the hymns whose origin we have been tracing were used in -enriching the services of the Roman Church, and for guiding the -meditations and devotions of the clerical spiritually-minded readers, -we get hints of a people’s hymnody used privately and in public -processions, usually in the common speech of the region. It was the -age of the Troubadours, a time of universal song. It is unthinkable -that a people in whose lives religion was a commanding influence -should have no songs of their own about it. - -But among the Albigenses and Waldenses and other pietistic sects in -remoter regions there must have been a hymnody all their own. They had -no clergy, no connection with the Romish Church—were in utter -opposition to its forms and organization. Hence their natural impulse -for worship and praise compelled the creation of hymns of their own. -They were spontaneous utterances expressing their spiritual life in a -native vocabulary all could understand and appropriate. - -Although this people’s hymnody has perished, because it was produced -and used by the populace and contemptuously ignored or denounced by -the clerical custodians of the literature of their day, or by those of -succeeding generations, the hymns were widely sung in the homes, on -the streets, at popular religious festivals, and even in the remoter -village churches where the clerical choirs were wanting. - -It was these popular religious songs, rather than the more stately -hymns read and chanted by clerical and monastic choirs, that kept -alive the vital spark of religious feeling and devotion to Christ. If -most of the doves of song hovered over the head of the Madonna during -this long period, it was because she was the mother of Jesus. It was -as the representative of all motherhood that she brought home the true -manhood of our Lord. - -That this popular hymnody of the medieval period has failed to survive -is no proof of its worthlessness. It is no condemnation of the sermons -of Chrysostom, of Peter the Hermit, of Martin Luther, or of a thousand -sermons preached every Sunday that they perish with the breath that -gave them utterance. They served a good purpose in their brief hour. -That hundreds of Watts’ hymns, and thousands by Charles Wesley, are no -longer sung, does not establish their uselessness, but only that their -spiritual as well as verbal idiom is not adapted to the needs of our -day. - - - - - _Chapter XI_ - LUTHER AND THE GERMAN HYMN - - - I. PRE-REFORMATION VERNACULAR HYMNS - -While there has been a traceable logical progress in the development -of the Christian hymn, as in that of material creation, the generative -relations are not always clear. The link between Greek and Latin -hymnody may be found in Hilary of Poitiers in the fourth century, but -thereafter for five centuries they developed side by side along -independent lines. - -The same may be said regarding the Latin and German hymns, Luther -furnishing the connection. But his connection is not so apparent with -the clerical Latin hymn as with the general impulse toward the -vernacular hymn. - -Luther did not directly build upon the Latin hymns, although he did -translate a few of them, but on the popular songs and hymns that were -current in his day. Since the eleventh century vernacular hymns and -religious songs had been in private use. The Gregorian rule that -Scripture psalms and canticles only should be sung in public services -had been strictly enforced in the monasteries and larger centers; but -even there the proses and sequences had been allowed—in Latin, of -course. The first hymns sung in the common speech were enlargements of -the short responses allowed the people, “Kyrie eleison” and “Christe -eleison” being surviving Greek phrases which were used as refrains to -the stanzas of the hymns. They were called “Leisen,” or “Leichen.” Our -English word “lay” is a derivative from the same source. Many of these -“Leisen” mingled German and Latin words. - -Back of the wrong conception of the way of salvation and the -fanaticism expressed in self-torture, the Flagellant Monks of the -later medieval period had an intensity of conviction and a selfless -devotion that inevitably found expression in song. Bands of them made -pilgrimages through Christian lands in processions, singing hymns to -Mary and her Son in the common speech, little recking that they were -helping to fertilize the soil from which should spring the Great -Reformation. - -When King Conrad was anointed in 1024, our information is that -“joyfully they marched, the clergy singing in Latin, the people in -German, each after his own fashion”, but this was not a church -service, it was a festival procession. - -Vernacular hymns became more and more numerous during the twelfth and -thirteenth centuries. The troubadours and minnesingers could not but -stimulate their production, furnishing the metrical and rhythmical -models and no small part of the hymns themselves, especially those -glorifying the divine motherhood of Mary. The monks, the custodians of -the literary and scholarly product of this age, had no motive for -making a record of these hymns, much less of their tunes, for which, -indeed, no adequate system of notation existed; hence but little of -this popular hymnody survives. It was not until Gutenberg brought in -the age of printing that some of it was handed down to us.[1] - -The great mystic, John Tauler (1290-1361), a Dominican monk of -Strassburg, and others, wrote hymns of profound personal religious -experience that were widely sung. John Huss of Prague (1369-1415), the -renowned Bohemian martyr, wrote hymns in both Czech and Latin. In 1501 -and 1505 Czech hymnbooks were issued, the first congregational -hymnbooks in the vernacular, the latter containing no less than four -hundred hymns, while Luther’s first collection, in 1524, nineteen -years later, contained only eight. - -It will be seen that the foundations of vernacular singing by the -people, with popular tunes, had been laid, deep and wide, foundations -on which Luther could later build his German hymnody. In almost every -particular he had been anticipated by the Bohemian reformers, in -vernacular hymns and psalms, in the use of the people’s tunes, in the -revision of hymns current among the Catholics—by discarding their -worship of Mary and the saints—in the emphasis placed on music as a -vehicle for conveying Gospel truths and for the intensifying of the -needed propaganda. - -In France, in England and Scotland, in the Netherlands, the same -impulses were felt. The fullness of the times had been prepared, and -the great protagonist and organizer of the spiritual revolt against -the hierarchy of Rome made of the hymn, which the ecclesiastical -builders had rejected, one of the cornerstones of the new Church. - - - II. LUTHER’S RELATION TO GERMAN HYMNODY - -Luther’s objective in regard to the hymn was entirely different from -that of these representatives of traditional worship. He did not have -in mind the perfecting of a liturgical service on the lines of -ecclesiastical tradition, but the spiritual edification of the mass of -the people whom the liturgic monks had been ignoring. While too -appreciative of the Latin liturgy to cast aside psalms and canticles, -as well as sequences, he rejected them as models for his hymns, and -his creative impulse made the more appealing and practical folk songs -his basis of form and spirit. - -Luther was a great lover of poetry and music. In his youth he went -about singing in the streets and in private homes. He knew both the -popular and the churchly music and was well prepared for his future -post of liaison officer between the Latin and the coming German -hymnody. - -His great work in hymnody is that he took both the psalm and the hymn -from the clergy, put them into the vernacular in metrical form, with -popular tunes, and restored them to the people. He added to the -function of the hymn as worship those of instruction, meditation, and -exhortation. He added an entirely new dimension to the value of the -hymn, making it a means of creating a religious atmosphere for the -whole life of the Christian—personal, family, community. He made the -German people a singing people and laid the foundations for their -later musical pre-eminence. As Dr. Benson says, “He took it [the hymn] -out of the liturgies and put it into the people’s hearts and homes. He -revived, that is to say, Paul’s conception of hymnody as a spiritual -function.”[2] - -Luther’s hymns are the root out of which grew all our Protestant -hymnody. They are like Ambrose’s in their plainness but, owing to -their popular models, are superior in their metrical variety and in -their cheerfulness. They are purposely cheerful: “When we sing, both -heart and mind should be cheerful and merry.” They had also a more -definite evangelical content, both objective and subjective, more -personal experience, more exhortation, thus immensely widening the -horizon of the hymn. Much of this was doubtless due to the Hussite -influence. - -Luther anticipated Isaac Watts in demanding that the psalm should be -transformed into a hymn, retaining its important subject matter, but -excluding “certain forms of expression and employing other suitable -ones.” - -The most important characteristic of the hymns of Luther and his -associates was the burden of biblical truth. “What I wish is to make -German hymns for this people, that the Word of God may dwell in their -hearts by means of song also,” gives us his ideal and his practical -purpose. - -Luther’s hymns bear the characteristics of their writer. They were -straightforward, clear, and unpretentious, full of force and strong of -conviction. He was no poet. He was not conscious of literary impulses. -His diction often is more forcible than elegant. Indeed, he was a -peasant within whose horizon the elegant did not appear. Dr. Philip -Schaff says of him: “He had an extraordinary faculty of expressing -profound thought in the clearest language. In this gift he is not -surpassed by any uninspired writer; and herein lies the secret of his -power.... His style is racy, forcible, and idiomatic.” - -Lord Selborne, an English hymnologist, remarks on Luther’s hymns, -“Homely and sometimes rugged in form, and for the most part objective -in tone, they are full of fire, manly simplicity, and strong faith.” - -Luther wrote thirty-eight hymns. Twelve of them were based on Latin -hymns, among others, “Veni, Redemptor gentium,” “Veni, Creator -Spiritus,” “O Lux beata Trinitas,” and “Te Deum Laudamus”; four were -rewritten pre-Reformation hymns; seven were versions of Latin psalms; -six were paraphrases of other portions of Scripture, such as the Ten -Commandments and the Lord’s Prayer; nine were original hymns. - -Nine collections were issued by Luther, beginning with the “Achtlieder -Buch,” the first evangelical hymnbook in the German language, issued -in 1524. It contained but eight hymns, four by Luther, three by Paul -Speratus, court chaplain at Koenigsberg, and one of unknown -authorship. Later in the year it was increased to twenty-five hymns, -bringing fourteen new hymns by Luther; it was called the “Erfurt -Enchiridion.” During this year, 1524, he wrote twenty-one of his -thirty-eight hymns. Five years later, 1529, he issued another hymnbook -containing fifty-four hymns. The issue of 1553, seven years after his -death, contained one hundred and thirty-one hymns. Three of these nine -issues had prefaces, as noteworthy as those of Watts to his several -books of psalms and hymns in formulating the principles of the new -Christian hymnody. - -Luther’s masterpiece, “Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott” (“A mighty -fortress is our God”), is based on the forty-sixth Psalm. It is one of -the greatest hymns in the whole Christian hymnody, great in itself, -great in its influence on the Protestantism of northern Europe. Ranke, -the noted church historian, says: “It is the production of the moment -in which Luther, engaged in a conflict with a world of foes, sought -strength in a consciousness that he was defending a divine cause, -which could never perish.” Carlyle recognized its majesty, “a sound of -Alpine avalanches, or the first murmurs of earthquakes.” Calling up -the inspiration it brought to the Protestant armies, German and -Swedish, in the religious wars after the Reformation, Heine -characterized it as “the Marseillaise of the Reformation.” It has been -recognized as the national hymn of Protestant Germany. - -A number of translations into English have been made. Carlyle -successfully reproduces its rugged strength in his version, but for -congregational use the translation of Rev. Frederick H. Hedge, made in -1853, is more practicable. - -Luther’s tune is worthy of the text in its ponderous majesty. A small -congregation, or a larger one that does not know it very well, can do -little with it; only a large congregation singing lustily and in the -characteristically German slow _tempo_ can do it justice. - -His Christmas hymn, “Vom Himmel hoch da komm’ ich her” (“From heaven -above to earth I come”), his praise of Jesus Christ, “Gelobet seist -du, Jesu Christ” (“All praise to Thee, eternal Lord”), a revision of a -pre-Reformation popular hymn, and his doctrinal hymn, rejoicing over -the salvation wrought out by Jesus Christ, “Nun freuet euch, lieb’ -Christen G’mein” (“Dear Christian people, now rejoice”), have been -very much beloved and were very effective in building up the -Protestant cause. - -Luther deserves well of the Christian Church, not only because of his -own hymns, but because of the inspiration he afforded others among his -contemporaries, and to the generations since his day, to take up the -writing of hymns. Among the co-laborers in this field in his own -generation were Justus Jonas, Paul Eber, Erasmus Alber, Lazarus -Spengler, Paul Speratus, and Nicolaus Decius. Luther furnished the -idea, the inspiration, and the model for all these hymnists. According -to Koch, fifty-one writers contributed hymns to swell the Lutheran -hymnody between 1517 and 1560. - -As was to be expected, the early German hymnody was also enriched by a -number of excellent hymns from the Bohemian Brethren. They were -translated by Michael Weiss and Johann Roh, German ministers who had -been associated with them. - -No small part of the immediate success of Luther’s hymns was the tunes -which he provided. He used the melodies already current among the -people. He had providentially associated with him musical helpers like -Johann Walther and Ludwig Senfl, who did the musical editorial work on -his issues. His settings of his “Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott” and -“Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ” are still a valuable part of the -melodic treasury of the Christian Church. - - - - - _Chapter XII_ - THE LATER GERMAN HYMNODY - - - I. THE RISING STANDARD OF LITERARY VALUES - -After Luther’s death, the impetus of his hymnic influence gradually -lost its evangelical force, and a more self-consciously literary -coterie raised both the literary and musical standards. Prominent -among them was Bartolomaeus Ringwaldt (1530-1598), who wrote “Es ist -gewisslich an der Zeit”—the German “Dies Irae”—which probably -suggested the English hymn, “Great God! what do I see and hear?” He -was a very fertile writer. Equally fertile was Nicolaus Selnecker -(1530-1592), who wrote nearly one hundred and fifty hymns. - -More important than either was Philipp Nicolai (1556-1608), a -Westphalian pastor, whose “Wie schoen leuchtet der Morgenstern” (“O -Morning Star, how fair and bright”) and “Wachet auf, ruft uns die -Stimme” (“Sleepers, wake, a voice is calling”) have been and are the -most widely used of all German hymns outside of Luther’s two -masterpieces. Nicolai wrote them while a great pestilence was raging -in Unna, during which fourteen hundred persons perished. He wrote the -hymns for his own comfort and that of his people. He also wrote the -chorales to which they are sung and which have been called -respectively the “Queen” and “King” of German chorales. On the basis -of their intrinsic value rather than on that of adaptation to American -spirit and type of church life, they occasionally appear in our -hymnals, but they are rarely or never sung. Miss Winkworth’s -translation of the “King” may be judged by the first stanza: - - “Wake, awake, the night is flying; - The watchmen on the heights are crying, - Awake, Jerusalem, at last! - Midnight hears the welcome voices, - And at the thrilling cry rejoices; - Come forth, ye virgins, night is past! - The Bridegroom comes, awake, - Your lamps with gladness take; - Alleluia! - And for his marriage-feast prepare, - For ye must go to meet him there.” - -This chorale was used by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy as one of the -climaxes of his great oratorio, “St. Paul.” - -The popular “Te Deum” of Germany, “Nun danket alle Gott” (“Now thank -we all our God”), was written by Martin Rinkart (1586-1649). Miss -Winkworth’s version is found in most modern hymnals and deserves wide -use, for it is entirely practicable in a congregation of average size. -Mendelssohn used this chorale in his cantata “Lobgesang” with much -effectiveness. This great hymn was written at the conclusion of the -horrible and disastrous Thirty Years’ War. Michael Altenburg -(1584-1640) wrote the famous battle hymn of Gustavus Adolphus with -which the great Warrior King has been credited; “Verzage nicht, du -Haeuflein klein” (“Fear not, O little flock, the foe”) is still used -in Germany. However, Luther’s “Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott” was the -more usual battle hymn, as Altenburg’s hymn was not introduced until -late in Gustavus Adolphus’ campaigns—indeed, has been called his “Swan -song.” Martin Opitz (1597-1639) deserves mention as a valuable -influence in regulating the meters and in stressing poetical values. -One of the immortal hymns written during this period was that of Georg -Neumark (1621-1681), librarian of the Duke of Weimar, “Wer nur den -lieben Gott laesst walten” (“If thou but suffer God to guide thee”). -Other hymn writers during this distressful period were Johann Heermann -(1585-1647), who wrote distinctive hymns of prayer in a correct style -and good versification; Johann Rest (1607-1667), who wrote six hundred -and eighty hymns intended to cover the whole domain of theology (two -hundred of which were in common use in the German churches); and -Matthaeus Apelles von Loewenstein (1594-1648), Johannes Matthaeus -Meyfart (1590-1642), and Paul Fleming (1609-1640). - -This was a period of tribulation, calamity, and desperation, which, as -Miss Winkworth remarks, “caused religious men to look away from this -world” and led to a more subjective type of hymn, expressing personal -feeling. In general, the literary value of the hymns of this period, -in form and diction and imagination, exceeded that of those of the -previous generation. - - - II. THE GOLDEN AGE OF GERMAN HYMNODY - -The spiritual deepening of this age of sorrow, the widening of the -scope of the hymn by the inclusion of more subjective elements, and -the literary advance in the structure and diction were preparing the -way for the Golden Age of German hymnody which followed the conclusion -of the great religious war. It extended from Paul Gerhardt (1604-1676) -to Christian Fuerchtegott Gellert (1715-1769). - -Gerhardt had spent his young manhood amid the desolation and -difficulties of the Thirty Years’ War. He did not enter the ministry -until he was nearly fifty years old, having written no hymns up to -that time. A great preacher and a devoted pastor, he was a man of deep -piety and of unflinching loyalty to the truth, as it was given to him -to see it. As calamity followed calamity, under strict divine -discipline in preparation for his great work in the writing of hymns, -not only for the German church, but also for the whole Christian -world, he united in himself the two tendencies, the one of viewing God -and divine things in an objective way, characteristic of the early -Lutheran hymns, and the other, the expression of the emotion produced -by such contemplation in the heart of the Christian, characteristic of -the subsequent period. He had the body of the older hymnody and the -spirit of the new. - -Moreover, Gerhardt was a poet. Indeed, his writings were extensive -lyrics rather than hymns. Some of them have furnished several hymns. -He was the Keble of German hymnody, and his influence upon subsequent -hymn writing has been most helpful. There is a poetic fertility in the -man lacking in his predecessors. - -He wrote one hundred and twenty-three hymns, of which Dr. Philip -Schaff declares that they “are among the noblest pearls in the -treasury of sacred poetry.” They are of such uniform excellence that -it is difficult to select those of outstanding merit. “Befiehl du -deine Wege” (“Give to the winds thy fears”) was translated by John -Wesley. “O Jesu Christ, mein schoenstes Licht” (“Jesus, thy boundless -love to me”) is another most successful translation by the same hand. -“O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden” (“O sacred head, now wounded”) leans -hard on “Salve, caput cruentatum,” but has a spirituality the older -hymn does not so fully display. Thirty of his hymns are in general use -in the German churches, and Germany recognizes him as her prince of -hymnists, superior even to Luther. - -Gerhardt’s contemporaries, John Franck (1618-1677) and John Scheffler -(1624-1677), while fairly prominent do not compare with him in -thoughtfulness and literary felicity. Both are more pietistic. The -latter has a somewhat exuberant style, intense and enthusiastic. John -Wesley translated and adopted one hymn known to our hymnals as “Thee -will I love, my strength, my tower.” - - - III. THE PIETISTIC HYMN WRITERS - -In the latter decades of the seventeenth century, Philipp Jacob -Spener, August Hermann Francke, and Johann Anastasius Freylinghausen -led a strong movement of protest, called Pietism, against the arid -scholasticism and cold formalism of the Lutheran church. It was a -second Reformation, emphasizing piety and sincere emotionalism. It -postponed the blight of Rationalism for a few decades and led a -generation into a devouter, more genuine, religious life. - -Spener was a great leader and a good man, but no hymn writer; Francke -wrote but few hymns, and so this phase of their work devolved on -Freylinghausen. He was full of spirit, with attractive rhythms and -florid music. His songs were very popular, but lacked permanent merit. -Other writers of this school were Schade, Schutz, and Rodigast. - -Less immediately connected with the Pietistic movement, but under its -influence, are Hiller of South Germany, Arnold, a professor at the -University of Giessen, and Tersteegen of Westphalia, a mystic, all of -whom wrote very acceptable hymns. Tersteegen was highly appreciated by -John Wesley, who translated his “Gott rufet noch; sollt’ ich nicht -endlich hoeren?” (“God calling yet! shall I not hear?”). “Gott ist -gegenwaertig! lasset uns anbeten” (“Lo! God is here; let us adore”) -and “Jedes Herz will etwas lieben” (“Something every heart is loving”) -are others found translated in current hymnals. Lord Selborne speaks -of him as “of all the more copious German hymn writers after Luther, -perhaps the most remarkable man, pietist, mystic, and missionary, he -was also a great religious poet.” That he was a layman makes his -religious life all the more remarkable. - -A more widely known and striking personality was Count von Zinzendorf -(1700-1760), a very devout but somewhat erratic man. He became the -patron saint of the Moravian Church and shared—perhaps created—its -zeal for foreign missions. He spent some time in the United States, in -eastern Pennsylvania, and in the West Indies, doing evangelistic work. -He wrote two thousand religious lyrics, disfigured to a large extent -by extravagances and by repulsive materialistic similes and phrases. -His associate and successor, Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg, long -resident in America, and Bishop Christian Gregor also wrote very -useful hymns. The Moravian hymnody is all the more noteworthy in that -it had a great influence over the hymnic work of the Wesleys. - - - IV. GERMAN REFORMED HYMNODY - -The Reformed Church in Germany long followed Calvin in exclusively -using the Psalms of David, but finally felt the impulse of the -Lutheran hymnody. Tersteegen, mentioned above, leaned to this branch -of the German church, although not officially connected with it. -Joachim Neander (1650-1680), a Reformed minister at Bremen, wrote some -extremely valuable and popular hymns of praise and was called the -Psalmist of the New Covenant. Among his best are “Sieh, hier bin ich, -Ehren-Koenig” (“Behold me here in grief draw near”), “Lobe den Herren, -den maechtigen Koenig der Ehren” (“Praise to the Lord! He is King over -all the creation”), “Unser Herrscher, unser Koenig” (“Sovereign Ruler, -King victorious”), still sung in every pious home in Germany. - - - V. TRANSITION TO RATIONALISTIC HYMNS - -The transitional personality between this Pietistic and the succeeding -Rationalistic era, was Christian F. Gellert (1715-1769), a professor -in Leipzig University. He was a man of sincere piety; he was a -teacher, not only in the classroom, but in all his literary efforts. -He wrote moral _Tales and Fables_, _Moral Poems_, _Didactic Poems_, as -well as _Sacred Odes and Hymns_. There were fifty-four of these, all -in the same didactic style. They lacked the rugged strength of Luther, -the poetical element of Gerhardt, and the mystic insight of -Tersteegen; but this very matter-of-factness made his writings -immensely popular. Of all his hymns, but one survives in our modern -hymnals, his Easter hymn, “Jesus lebt, mit ihm auch ich” (“Jesus -lives, no longer now”). - - - VI. RATIONALISM IN HYMNODY - -German hymnody suddenly fell from its exalted Pietistic rhapsodies -into a crass materialism. Dr. Philip Schaff gives a vivid glimpse into -the situation: “He (Klopstock) was followed by a swarm of hymnological -tinkers and poetasters who had no sympathy with the theology and -poetry of the grand old hymns of faith; weakened, diluted, mutilated, -and watered them, and introduced these misimprovements into the -churches.... Conversion and sanctification were changed into -self-improvement, piety into virtue, heaven into the better world, -Christ into Christianity, God into Providence, Providence into fate. -The people were compelled to sing rhymed sermons on the existence of -God, the immortality of the soul, the delights of reunion, the dignity -of man, the duty of self-improvement, the nurture of the body, and the -care of animals and flowers.” - -There is no poetical, much less religious, lyrical impulse in -rationalism, and the church lyrics of this period have left little -impress on the hymnody of the Christian Church. It was the classic -period of German literature, but it had few Christian elements in it. -Athens and Rome, not Jerusalem, were the centers of intellectual -interest; and it might almost be said that it is a pagan literature. - - - VII. HYMNS OF RENEWED RELIGIOUS LIFE - -As in the immediate pre-Reformation age, in spite of the decadence of -religious life among the Roman Catholic leaders, there was a -semi-submerged piety that forced the Reformation inside the church; so -in this recrudescence of paganism in the German church, there was a -great body of earnest, pious Christians who kept the spirit of true -German devoutness alive. - -These were represented by Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock (1724-1803), -who, although he set the disastrous fashion of re-writing the older -hymns in order to improve their literary value by removing archaisms -and harsh lines, was yet a devout man, writing the great German epic -“Messias” and also some deeply religious hymns that were too poetic -for the common people. Another devout writer was Johann Kasper Lavater -(1741-1801), better known by his treatise on physiognomy, who wrote -some hymns after the style of Klopstock, but with greater popular -success, for his “O suessester der Namen all” (“O name than every name -more dear”) has been translated and used in English hymnals. - -When the first intoxication of the new freedom from churchly, and even -moral, restraint passed away, the German church again found able -representatives to give expression to its religious life. Friedrich -von Hardenberg (1772-1801), also called “Novalis,” a mining engineer -of fine literary ability, wrote some hymns of deep feeling and -beautiful style. Friedrich de la Motte Fouque (1777-1843), chiefly -known as the author of _Undine_, and as an outstanding representative -of the Romantic school in literature, wrote some very beautiful hymns, -including two missionary hymns of great excellence. There is a -literary and imaginative charm in these hymns, as in his general -German style, that betrays his Huguenot heredity. Both these writers -had the literary emphasis that somewhat discounted the value of their -hymns for the common people. They stand, however, as landmarks of the -subsidence of the rationalistic period in German hymnody. - - - VIII. HYMNS OF PIETISTIC TYPE - -In the reaction from Rationalism, Pietism again came into its own and -a noble roster of sacred lyrists have given it expression. This -includes Ernst Moritz Arndt, professor of history at the University of -Bonn, whose “Wahres Christentum” was as necessary to every Christian -home as the Bible itself, a patriot who won the hatred and persecution -of Napoleon Bonaparte by his patriotic songs, and whose hymns are no -small part of the treasury of later German hymnody. Among them are -“Ich weiss, an wen ich glaube” (“I know in whom I put my trust”), -which is one of the German classics. - -Friedrich Adolf Krummacher (1767-1845) is best remembered by his hymn -“Mag auch die Liebe weinen” (“Though love may weep with breaking -heart”) and his missionary hymn, “Eine Herde und ein Hirt” (“One -shepherd and one fold to be”). Still others are Friedrich Ruckert -(1789-1866) whom Dr. Schaff calls “one of the greatest masters of -lyric poetry,” Albert Knapp (1798-1864), editor of the outstanding -critical collection of German hymns, “Der Liederschatz,” and writer of -many widely used hymns, and Meta Heusser-Schweizer (1797-1876), of -Switzerland, “the most eminent and noble among all the female poets of -our whole evangelical Church.”[1] - -The primate of them all is Karl Johann Philipp Spitta (1801-1859), -“the most popular hymnist of the nineteenth century.” The fifty-fifth -edition of his _Psalter und Harfe_ appeared in 1889. He was an -Hanoverian pastor. He had been under rationalistic teachers at the -University of Goettingen, but toward the end of his university course -had a profound religious experience that affected all his future life; -he wrote no secular verse after that time. He was recognized as a -mystic and pietist and his promotion was antagonized on that ground. - -Many of his hymns have been translated into English. Among the most -successful are “O Jesu, meine Sonne” (“I know no life divided”), “Es -kennt der Herr die Seinen” (“He knoweth all His people”), “O selig -Haus, wo man dich aufgenommen” (“O happy home, where thou art loved -the dearest”), “O treuer Heiland, Jesu Christ” (“We praise and bless -thee, gracious Lord”). - -Spitta may be called “the Gerhardt of the nineteenth century,” for he -has many of that great hymn writer’s qualities as well as his -popularity. He was sincerely devout, a man of an abiding sense of -God’s care and nearness; his style is smooth and melodious as well as -poetical. - -Spitta’s hymns are very practical in length and form of stanza, and -his themes grow out of the common needs and experiences of general -humanity. For this reason they have been very largely translated into -English—no less than thirty-three of them—and, what is more -significant, selected by editors of hymnals, especially in England. - -Karl von Gerok (1815-?) is another exceedingly popular religious -lyrist of the nineteenth century, hardly second to Spitta. His -“Palm-blaetter,” issued in 1857, reached its fifty-sixth edition in -1886. By this time it has likely reached the century mark. But his -verses are religious poetry, not hymns, and but a few centos have been -admitted to German hymnbooks. - -Recently the new rationalism and sensual materialism have again -submerged the religious life of Germany and the impulse to write hymns -has lost its urgency. Whether the shattering of the illusion of -world-wide power, and the sobering effect of its terrible losses of -men and of wealth, will bring Germany back to her religious senses -must be patiently awaited by those eager for her highest welfare. The -recrudescence of paganism and its threat of renewed striving after -world dominance need not blast this pious hope. God’s hand is still on -the tiller of the German national bark, and the heart of the German -people is not represented by the bulletins on the surface of its -current events, caused by the pride of nationalism in the shallow -vocal stratum that stridently claims the world’s attention. - -In this hurried review of the development of the German hymn from -Luther to Spitta much that is interesting and profitable has been -omitted. But it is manifest that this German hymnody holds the supreme -place in the hymnody of the Christian Church in all ages and nations. -The reasons for this lie on the surface: the German people are a -singing people, and the instinct to sing their thoughts and feelings -is stronger than in any other race. Again, they did not lose two -centuries under the spell of Calvin’s devotion to the Hebrew Psalms, -as did Great Britain and America. In contrast with the Latin and Greek -hymnodies, it is the voice of the people, not the restrained -liturgical voice of the clergy. - -The German hymnody is often ponderous and heavy, often tediously -prolix and dull, but at the heart of it is a profound realization of -the actualities of the Christian faith, and a responsiveness to its -appeals to the hearts of men, that one cannot find elsewhere to the -same extent. - - - - - _Chapter XIII_ - METRICAL PSALMODY - - - I. CALVIN’S CONCEPTION OF CONGREGATIONAL SINGING - -While Luther recognized the value of hymns as pre-eminent in his work, -he still left a large place for the Psalms, himself making some -admirable versions and inciting others to do the same. But there were -limits to his sympathy with an undue and merely formal emphasis of -them. He canceled the obligation of repeating the whole Psalter once a -week, instituted by Cardinal Quimonez, as “a donkey’s burden.” Luther -was a reformer, changing only what needed changing in order to secure -a deeper spirituality. Calvin and Zwingli were not reformers, but -re-creators, setting wholly aside all the liturgy, the ecclesiastical -organization, the clerical rules, and the distinctive doctrines of the -Roman church, and building up an entirely new church with no other -sanction than their interpretation of the Word of God. - -Perhaps unconsciously, Calvin harked back to the Roman attitude of -Gregory the Great, in insisting on purely Scriptural sources for the -service of song. He was too good a Biblical scholar not to know that -the Apostolic Church used “hymns and spiritual songs” as well as -Psalms; indeed he never categorically forbade hymns of “human -composure.” But the people had been forbidden the Bible. The Psalms -had been sung by the clergy alone in an already dead language. Calvin -declared that “if a man sang in an unknown tongue, he might as well be -a linnet or a popinjay.” So he reacted somewhat violently. He had a -profound sense of the authority of the Word of God, and his mind was -possessed by the idea of the divine sovereignty; hence religious rites -of human origin seemed trifling and negligible. - -This attitude was emphasized all the more by the Latin hymns sung and -read in the churches, and on religious occasions, whose chief burden -was worship of the Madonna, and even of the saints, against which his -mind rose in outraged horror. - - - II. CALVIN’S FOLLOWERS MORE EXTREME - -Human nature being what it is, it was inevitable that Calvin’s -followers should carry his ideas to an extreme, and mechanically add -the conclusion that hymns independent of the lyrics of the Scriptures -should be forbidden. - -While Luther stressed the Biblical content of the hymns and exalted -the Psalms as the source of religious lyrical impulses, Calvin and his -disciples added a rigid and almost superstitious regard for the mere -form of the Scripture lyrics. They accepted their distortion and -mutilation in giving them a metrical form as justified by the -congregational necessity, and by the evident devotional results among -the people. - - - III. MAROT’S SUCCESSFUL VERSIONS - -Beneath his austerity Calvin evidently had an appreciation of literary -beauty and grace, for he developed an ambition to clothe the Hebrew -Psalms in a literary French metrical dress. It was while this problem -was exercising his mind that there fell into his hands the French -version of some of the Psalms by Clement Marot (1497-1544), who had -come under the influence of Marguerite de Valois, the Huguenot -princess, whose _valet de chambre_ he was during his early twenties. -It is possible that he and Calvin met at Ferrara in 1535. Though the -work of a Huguenot poet, these lyrics were admired in high political -and social circles in France. Written in measures fitting them to -popular tunes, they were very popular among the royal courtiers, -Catholics as well as Protestants, and were soon introduced into other -countries. - -That he was later persecuted by the Roman ecclesiastics only -recommended him the more to Calvin. Here was a poet of high -reputation, a skillful versifier of the Psalms, a fellow-sufferer at -the hands of the Roman hierarchy—why not commit to his hands the task -of supplying Calvin’s new church with its needed book of Psalms? So -Marot was called to Geneva. - - - IV. DEVELOPMENT OF THE GENEVAN PSALTER - -In 1543, nineteen years after Luther’s first venture, the _Acht -Liederbuch_, appeared, _The Genevan Psalter_ was issued in the French -language. It contained fifty psalms by Marot. Marot died in 1544. The -completion of the Psalter was committed to Theodore Beza of Burgundy, -who revised Marot’s verses, eliminating the classical allusions and -offensive gaiety. With the help of Bourgeois, and later of Goudimel, -in completing and harmonizing the tunes, he finished the Psalter in -1562.[1] - - - V. ENGLISH PSALM VERSIONS BEFORE STERNHOLD - -There had been English versions of some of the Psalms before Sternhold -undertook the task. Bishop Aldhelm of Sherborne, who died in 709 A.D., -composed a complete psalter. Two versions were due to Lutheran -influence. That of Miles Coverdale, _Ghoostly Psalms and Spiritual -Songs_, appearing sometime between 1530 and 1540, used some of the -German chorales, including the great “Ein’ feste Burg.” - -The Wedderburn brothers of Dundee, Scotland, issued the _Compendious -Booke of Gude and Godlie Ballates_, also known as _Dundee Psalms_, on -the return of John Wedderburn, soon after 1539, from Wittenberg, where -he had been under the influence of both Luther and Melanchthon. Latin -psalms and hymns had no value with young people, he insisted in his -preface; “but when they hear it sung into their vulgar tongue, or sing -it themselves, with sweet melody, then shall they love their God with -heart and mind, and cause them to put away bawdry and unclean songs.” -While considerably better than the songs the collection displaced, the -new book was too cheaply popular, and undignified in many of its -religious parodies of popular songs, to satisfy the elders of the -Scottish Kirk (!) and they tried to suppress it. - -But the lines of religious, social, doctrinal, and political influence -connected England and Scotland with France and Geneva so closely that -it happened that the new English and Scotch psalmody was based on the -work of Marot and Calvin and not on that of Luther. To human minds -with some sense of literary dignity and style and of a more -spontaneous expression of religious life and experience, it seems a -great pity! - -The first response in England to the new version of Marot was the -Latin version of George Buchanan in 1548. Latin was an entirely dead -language to the commonalty, but was quite generally familiar to people -of scholarship and culture. This version, in the scholarly language of -all Europe (like the Mandarin in China), found wide appreciation in -intellectual circles and many editions of it were issued. Of course, -the mass of the English people was not affected by it, and it had -little or no influence on the development of English psalmody. - -That there were vernacular versions already in use, is quite certain. -Robert Cowley anticipated Sternhold and Hopkins in the versifying of -the whole Psalter, issuing his work in 1549. In the preface to this -collection he refers to previous versions which had passages “obscure -and hard.” Probably they were Lollard or Wycliffite in origin, for -these “sweet singers,” precursors of the Reformation to come, worked -among the lower classes in the Low Countries as well as in England, -singing the Gospel in the vernacular. - - - VI. VERSION OF STERNHOLD AND HOPKINS - -Undoubtedly it was the French Psalms of Marot, and their great -popularity in the highest circles in France, that incited Thomas -Sternhold to undertake a like version in the English language. His -first issue, probably in 1547 and 1548, contained nineteen Psalms. In -1549 he published another edition containing thirty-seven Psalms. -Sternhold died in 1549, leaving but nineteen additional Psalms -unpublished. Another poet, John Hopkins, a near neighbor in -Gloucestershire, contributed to the edition of 1551. In 1562 the -psalter was completed. Of the one hundred and fifty Psalms, Sternhold -had supplied fifty-one, Hopkins sixty, all in common meter, and the -rest were contributed by various writers. It also contained metrical -versions of the Canticles, the Ten Commandments, the Athanasian Creed, -the Te Deum, the Lord’s Prayer, an English version of the festival -hymn, “Veni, Creator Spiritus,” and several original English hymns. - -This psalter had a popularity equaled only by _Hymns Ancient and -Modern_ and the _Gospel Hymns_ series in the recent past. Within half -a century more than fifty editions were issued. By 1841 no less than -six hundred and fifty different editions had been absorbed by the -religious public—more than all other metrical versions combined. - -This version was adopted by the Church of England in 1562 and -continued to be used for nearly two hundred and fifty years, despite -its notorious crudities and imperfections, and despite the many -efforts made to supersede it by other versions and by hymns. The -singing of Psalms became universal. At St. Paul’s Cross, after the -service, there were sometimes six thousand persons engaged in singing -Psalms. It was a time of genuine community singing. - - - VII. THE SCOTCH VERSION - -In 1556, John Knox issued his _Anglo-Genevan Psalter_, based on the -1551 edition of Sternhold and Hopkins, with some alterations and -additions. It naturally was greatly influenced by Calvin’s _Genevan -Psalter_. The _Anglo-Genevan Psalter_ is significant chiefly because -of its influence on the Scotch Psalter. Through that, it is the source -of some psalms and tunes still in use—notably, “All people that on -earth do dwell” and “Old Hundredth” to which the Long Meter Doxology -is sung. - -The Scotch Psalter developed on a different line. The Psalm editors of -the Scottish Church accepted eighty-seven of the Anglo-Genevan Psalms, -added and somewhat altered forty-two from the final Sternhold and -Hopkins editions, and supplied twenty-one from their own versifiers. -It appeared in 1564 and was adopted by the General Assembly as its -authorized Psalm book. - -In 1600 James I began a revision and himself wrote thirty-five of the -Psalms before his death. This psalter was completed by William -Alexander and was issued in 1630, being known as the _Royal Psalter_. -Charles I bound up a revised edition of it with a new liturgy prepared -by the Scotch bishops in 1536, and ordered its exclusive use. But the -Scotch clergy declined with thanks, having no use for “the mass in -English.” - -But the question of a revision of this Psalter having been raised, its -deficiencies, which had been passively accepted, rose up into -consciousness. Rous’ version, adopted by the Westminster Assembly in -1643, and hence widely used in England, was made the basis of the new -Scotch Psalter and, after seven years of amending and revision, was -adopted in 1650. It is still used in Scotland and in American -Presbyterian churches whose eyes look back reverently to Scotland. - - - VIII. ROUS’ VERSION - -Rous’ version was made by Francis Rous, Provost of Eton College, -Oxford, a Presbyterian lawyer and a man of public affairs. It was an -improvement on Sternhold and Hopkins, but still left much to be -desired in smoothness of versification and grace of diction, owing to -the continued loyalty to the original phraseology of the Psalms. Hence -it had some “awful examples,” to use Matthew Arnold’s phrase, whose -repetition here might amuse but not edify. But it also had some happy -stanzas that we still are glad to sing, e.g.: - - “The Lord’s my Shepherd, I’ll not want; - He makes me down to lie - In pastures green; he leadeth me - The quiet waters by.” - -Compare this with Archbishop Parker’s version of the Shepherd Psalm -written in 1557: - - “To feed my neede: he will me leade - To pastures green and fat: - He forth brought me: in libertie - To waters delicate.” - -But with the blindness of the versifiers to the need of diversifying -their meters in the interest of varied and attractive tunes, all the -psalms were written in Common Meter.[2] - - - IX. TATE AND BRADY’S “NEW VERSION” - -A new version by two Irishmen, Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady, appeared -in 1696. Tate was a literary man, a playwright, a poet, and finally -poet laureate. Brady had a rather varied clerical career in Ireland -and in England, becoming chaplain to King William. This will partly -explain why this version received royal endorsement and gradually -replaced Sternhold and Hopkins in the English Church. It was adopted -by the Protestant Episcopal Church of America in 1789. The fact that -the Nonconformist churches remained faithful to the “Old Version” and -to Rous’ version, no doubt had its bearing on the final acceptance of -the “New Version” by the Established Church. - -This “New Version” was a little smoother than the “Old Version,” and -had a little more literary grace, but still was shackled by devotion -to “purity”—to the exact thought and phraseology of the Hebrew Psalms. -Nevertheless, as Gillman says, “this book contained a plentiful supply -of chaff, but perhaps a few more grains of golden corn than -Sternhold’s.” “As pants the hart for cooling streams” and “Through all -the changing scenes of life” are still highly prized, and Tate’s -Christmas Carol, “While shepherds watched their flocks by night” -(which appeared in a supplement to the “New Version”) is a masterly -adaptation of the Nativity story. On the other hand, Montgomery, in -comparing the “New Version” with the “Old Version,” remarks: “It is -nearly as inanimate as the former, though a little more refined.” Of -the “Old Version” he says: “The merit of faithful adherence to the -original has been claimed for this version and need not be denied, but -it is the resemblance which the dead bear to the living.” Old Thomas -Fuller wittily says of Sternhold and Hopkins that “They are men whose -piety was better than their poetry, and they had drunk more of Jordan -than of Helicon.” Thomas Campbell even more harshly exclaims: “With -the best intensions and the worst taste, they degraded the spirit of -Hebrew poetry by flat and homely phraseology, and, mistaking vulgarity -for simplicity, turned into bathos what they found sublime.” From the -literary point of view these dicta are correct enough, but they -overlook what is vastly more important—the high moral and spiritual -uses which these homely versions so amply served. - - - X. AMERICAN PSALMODY - -The Pilgrims brought with them from Leyden Ainsworth’s version of the -Psalms, published in Amsterdam—Genevan rather than English in -character. Its use was largely confined to the Pilgrims and their -descendants. Presently the copies of both versions became rare and the -service of song depended on the “lining out” of the verses. - -The first book printed in America was the _Bay Psalm Book_, an -independent version of the Psalms made by Thomas Welde, Richard -Mather, and John Eliot, the apostle to the Indians, a committee -appointed in 1636. It was proposed to make it more scriptural than -either of the previous versions used. It appeared in 1640. Its preface -consisted of a discourse urging that psalm-singing was both lawful and -necessary. During the next century and a half no less than seventy -editions were printed. It was improved by Dunster and Lyon and -reprinted in Great Britain, eighteen editions being called for in -England and twenty-two in Scotland. This was America’s first -contribution to the song service of the Mother Country, but by no -means the last. - -It may be interesting to see just what literary style this _Bay Psalm -Book_ could display, and a few specimens are herewith given. The one -hundred and thirty-seventh Psalm, for instance, was given the -following form: - - 1. “The rivers on of Babilon - There when wee did sit downe: - Yea, even then wee mourned when - wee remembred Sion. - - 2. Our Harp wee did hang it amid - Upon the willow tree, - Because there they that us away - led in captivitee, - - 3. Required of us a song and thus - ask mirth: us waste who laid, - sing us among a Sion’s song - unto us then they said. - - 4. The Lord’s song sing can wee? being - in stranger’s land. Then let - loose her skill my right hand, if I - Jerusalem forget. - - 5. Let cleave my tongue my pallate on - if minde thee doe not I - if chief joys or’e I prize not more - Jerusalem my joy.” - -Cotton Mather’s rhymeless version was much more sensible in its form, -for it eliminated the chief handicap in producing a literal version in -metrical form. - -As in the Psalm versions of England and Scotland, there was a vivid -consciousness of literary and poetic shortcomings; but the sense of -obligation to supply a literal translation of the Hebrew overrode all -impulses toward a smoother rendering. The preface frankly states the -position of the committee: “If therefore the verses are not always so -smooth and elegant as some may desire or expect; let them consider -that God’s altar needs not our polishing (Ex. 20), for we have -respected rather a plaine translation, than to smooth our verses with -the sweetness of any paraphrase, and soe have attended Conscience -rather than Elegance, fidelity rather than poetry, in translating the -Hebrew words into English language and David’s poetry into English -meetre.” - -There were other American Psalm versions, but the only versions worth -considering are the revisions of Isaac Watts’ Psalms, which will come -up in introducing American hymnody later. - - - XI. THE VALUE OF THE PSALM VERSIONS - -In smiling over this rude psalmody of England, Scotland, and America, -it is always to be remembered that these versions were not a literary -endeavor. Their ambition was to secure ‘purity,’ loyalty to the rather -prosaically conceived doctrines of the originals. There was no thought -of poetry or of literary finish. The meter and rhyme were practical -devices to make congregational singing possible. - - - - - _Chapter XIV_ - THE ENGLISH HYMN BEFORE WATTS - - - I. THE EARLIEST ENGLISH HYMN - -Just as Gregory the Great did not create the music that bears his -name, nor Luther the congregational hymnody, so Isaac Watts did not -originate the English hymnody of which he is often termed the father. -The Lollards, or Wickliffites, sang metrical psalms, and also hymns, -in the Low Countries, as well as in England, long before Luther, or -Marot, or Sternhold. - -Moreover, the emphasis of the Psalms was an ecclesiastical, clerical -attitude, while the people at large to whom the Scriptures had been a -closed book, and the Psalms an unknown language, sang such vernacular -hymns as sprang up among them; so, while we cannot doubt but that they -sang some metrical psalms, based on the Wickliffe English Bible, the -body of their singing was presumably hymnic. - -Indeed, we must go back much farther to find the spring of religious -song that was to become a great river of praise. Caedmon, a monk, -originally a swineherd, of the early seventh century, supplied the -earliest recorded English hymns: - - “Now must we hymn the Master of heaven, - The might of the Maker, the deeds of the Father, - The thought of his heart.” - -Undoubtedly the times before Caedmon were resonant with earlier songs, -for the Venerable Bede (673-735) in the next generation records the -fact of a great deal of singing among the people. Indeed, he himself -wrote hymns in Anglo-Saxon, as well as in Latin. Patrick and Colombo -sang psalms and hymns and made them a means of converting the pagans -of Ireland and Scotland. - - - II. ENGLISH HYMNODY SUBMERGED BY REFORMED PSALMODY - -The urge, not only for versifying all parts of the Scriptures, -including genealogies, but of actually singing them with fervor, -submerged the native impulse of song. The religious loyalty to the -letter of the Scriptures that followed closed the door against the -development of the English hymn.[1] - -Professor Reeves in his _The Hymn as Literature_ remarks: “As vigorous -and variegated and prevalent as this union of popular poetry and -popular music was in England, it strangely weakened and paled at the -one time in English history when it might have been expected most to -flourish. The Reformation, born of that new freedom of thought and -worship which produces the best hymnody, did not in England, as it -gloriously did in Germany, speak out richly in the native vernacular -hymn.”[2] - - - III. ENGLISH LITERARY IDEALS UNFAVORABLE TO HYMN-WRITING - -But it was not only the blight of a narrow bibliolatry that prevented -the development of the English religious lyric. English poetry had -lost its spontaneity and its gracious simplicity in a self-conscious -devotion to false literary ideals. - -The conception of a congregational hymn did not exist among the -literary men of the Reformation and later. Indeed, that Reformation -among the cultured and intellectual classes was not so much a -religious transformation as a political and cultural repudiation of -clerical bonds, and an enjoyment of new liberties. There was some -religious feeling, of course, but it was expressed in elaborate forms, -not in spontaneous simple lyrics that the people could sing. - -The technic of the singing hymn had not been developed, nor its -limitations recognized. It took nearly a century before even an -approximation could be reached to the practicability of the Lutheran -hymns, which were written, not by literary connoisseurs, but by men in -close touch with the people, men who had with singleness of mind -striven to win and edify them. As we study the English lyrics, -written, not to be sung, but simply to express the personal feelings -of the writer in the current style and in complicated measures, we see -how far English poets had to go before a practicable singing hymn -could be written. - -The conceptions of poetry, the prevalent grandioseness of style, the -studied phrasemaking, the excessive Latinity of vocabulary among -distinctively literary men, made the simplicity needed in a -congregational hymn impossible. Despite Mr. Horder’s enthusiasm over -the possible use Luther would have made of John Milton, the German -hymnody creator could have done nothing with the ponderous -large-planning author of _Paradise Lost_, with his wealth of classical -allusions and mythology, and his phrasing rich with preciosity. -Milton’s Psalm versions, fine as they are, were simply not singable by -the commonalty of his time who were to be depended on to do the -singing. He was a writer of odes, not of singing hymns. - -Here is a literary hymn—balancing phrases, piling up antitheses, -consciously seeking striking and euphonious combinations of words: - - “I praise Him most, I love Him best, all praise and love is His; - While Him I love, in Him I live, and cannot live amiss. - Love’s sweetest mark, laud’s highest theme, man’s most desired - Light, - To love Him life, to leave Him death, to live in Him delight.” - -The writer of the foregoing, Robert Southwell, a Romanist martyr, -writing in prison, could write simple lyrics out of the fullness and -genuineness of his religious experience, but it was not in the -accepted fashion. What Protestant dare refuse to sing this simple hymn -of his? - - “Yet God’s must I remain, - By death, by wrong, by shame; - I cannot blot out of my heart - That grace wrought in his name.” - - - IV. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TECHNIC OF WRITING SINGING HYMNS - -All these writers, and many others that might be mentioned, had not -acquired the technic of congregational hymn writing. They either did -not recognize the limitations of the singing hymn, or refused to be -hampered by its restraints. - -But presently the idea of the singing hymn defined itself. Thomas -Campion in 1613 issued a number of lyrics that combined spiritual -insight, literary grace, and practical availability to a hitherto -unattained degree. Dr. Benson characterizes his - - “Never weather-beaten sail - More willing beat to shore,” - -as “among the loveliest of the lyrics expressing the heavenly -homesickness.” Campion was a musician as well as a poet, which partly -accounts for the singability of his hymns. - -In 1623 George Withers issued a complete hymnbook for the Established -Church. It was made up of Scriptural paraphrases and hymns for special -occasions. The hymns are superior to previous attempts in structure -and method, in their simple piety and practical purpose, and in their -availability for actual congregational singing. But in the midst of -admirable lines there were strange lapses in taste. The hymn whose -first verse began so auspiciously, - - “Come, oh, come, in pious lays - Sound we God Almighty’s praise; - Hither bring in one consent - Heart and voice and instrument,” - -makes the singing congregation a conductor directing a vast chorus: - - “From earth’s vast and hollow womb - Music’s deepest bass may come; - Seas and floods, from shore to shore, - Shall their counter-tenors roar,” etc. - -Clever in a way, but hardly devotional! - -Withers’ “Musicians’ Hymn” has a very practical hint to the “singers’ -gallery,” as well as to the congregation: - - “He sings and plays - The songs which best Thou lovest, - Who does and says - The things which Thou approvest.” - -What Withers’ influence on subsequent English hymnody might have been -we can only conjecture: the Company of Stationers boycotted his book -because he had secured the king’s order to bind it up with the Psalter -and shut it out from the regular channels of trade. His second -collection, “Hallelujah,” was even more practicable and candidly -didactic in style. But Withers had but a slight, if any, influence, -for Sternhold and Hopkins still ruled the worship of the churches. - -His immediate successors in hymn writing, Herbert, Donne, Crashaw, and -Vaughan, were not influenced by his practical spirit and sang to -please themselves, not to lead the congregation. - -George Herbert (1593-1633) was a devout soul, full of a usually -charming fantasy and fertile in imagery; but antithesis was still an -allurement to poets in his generation. His “Antiphon” makes an -effective hymn, but the inevitable contrast is still there: - - “The heavens are not too high, - His praise may thither fly; - The earth is not too low, - His praises there may grow.” - -Donne, Crashaw, and Vaughan all share in the quaintness of Herbert and -also in his general hymnic impracticability. - -Robert Herrick (1591-1674), the singer of rather worldly songs, but a -literary artist withal, in his “Litany to the Holy Spirit” reaches -more nearly up to the ideal of the singing hymn: - - “In the hour of my distress, - When temptations me oppress, - And when I my sins confess, - Sweet Spirit, comfort me.” - -But when in the second stanza he descends to a description of a -feverish sleepless night, - - “When I lie within my bed - Sick in heart and sick in head, - And with doubts discomforted, - Sweet Spirit, comfort me,” - -a doubt of its congruity on the lips of a crowd of worshipers begins -to rise. But when in the fourth and fifth verses one is asked to sing, - - “When the artless doctor sees - No one hope but of his fees, - And his skill runs on the lees, - Sweet Spirit, comfort me. - - When his potion and his pill, - His or none or little skill, - Meet for nothing but to kill, - Sweet Spirit, comfort me,” - -one understands why, despite some fine lines, hymnal editors hesitate -to use it. - -Richard Baxter (1615-1691), chiefly remembered by his _Saints’ -Everlasting Rest_ and _Call to the Unconverted_ and a mass of other -most useful writings, prepared a metrical psalter which found little -response; he also wrote some poetry, but, as a child of his age, -delighted in antithesis. One of his books of poetry had as its -subtitle _The Concordant Discord of a Broken-healed Heart_. His hymns, -however, are simple in style and make a close approach to the -practicable type. Two of them are still largely in use: “Lord, it -belongs not to my care” and “Ye holy angels bright.” Had the churches -in his day given a fair opportunity, or furnished the inspiration of -demand, Baxter might have been one of our great hymnists, superior to -Watts in his deeper spirituality. - -John Austin (?-1669) wrote some excellent hymns for a book of -“Devotions” for family use. Among them is - - “Blest be Thy love, dear Lord, - That taught me this sweet way, - Only to love Thee for Thyself - And for that love obey,” - -which still finds a worthy place in our hymnals. - -About this time (1616) the long poem, “Hierusalem, my happie home,” -appears to have been written. Only the initials F. B. P. are attached -to the manuscript, now in the British Museum. It is conjectured that -they stand for Francis Baker Priest. Out of it have been fashioned two -very useful hymns: “Jerusalem, my happy home,” by Joseph Bromehead in -1795, and “O mother dear, Jerusalem,” by an unknown hand. The debt of -the original to the Latin is quite evident, but it has original values -as well. Aside from its length, a common fault in its time, it -approaches the final type of the congregational hymns very nearly in -its simplicity, devoutness, and in its practicable measure. - -Closely allied to the Herbert school of religious lyrics, Bishop -Thomas Ken (1637-1711) had the advantage of belonging to a later -generation in which the conception of the congregational hymn had -begun to crystallize into a definite form. His Morning and Evening -Hymns are both simple in structure—in Ambrose’s iambic long meter—free -from affectations and bizarre rhetoric, easily comprehensible, and -devout and spiritual. They have been accepted as among the best hymns -in the language. - -The doxology with which the two hymns close has been sung more -frequently and with greater elevation of mind and heart than any other -four lines in all earth’s literature. There is in this doxology a -nobility, a majesty, a comprehensiveness of praise which have not been -approached elsewhere outside of the choruses found in the Book of -Revelation. English hymnody had at last found its voice, its spirit, -and its model. - -The conception of the congregational hymn had now been clearly defined -and, from Bishop Ken on, English hymnody was established as a distinct -department of English lyrical poetry. Hymn writers thenceforward were -content to accept the mediocrity Montgomery later called for. The -difficulty was that the English Protestant churches, still -psalm-fanatic, were not ready to sing the hymns they needed so much -for their highest spiritual development, and which now began to be -supplied. - -That the idea of singing hymns of “human composure” was making -progress is evidenced by the issue in 1659 of the first collection of -hymns, _A Century of Select Hymns_, by William Barton (1603-1678). He -had issued a collection of versified Psalms in 1644 and a little book -of Psalms and hymns of thanksgiving in 1651. A little later he -published a review of the current Psalm version discussing its -“errors” and “absurdities.” He issued six collections during his -lifetime, most of whose content we would recognize as hymns. His work -has little interest to us except as it, as well as that of Wither, -Baxter, and Mason, helped to clarify the ideas of the young man Watts. - - - V. THE IDEAL OF THE SINGING HYMN REALIZED - -It was the lack of preparation on the part of the churches, rather -than any essential inferiority to Isaac Watts, that prevented John -Mason (?-1694) from being recognized as the father of English hymnody. -Watts’ superiority lay in his having an intenser consciousness of the -greater value of the free hymn and the strength and ability to force -the issue to a final conclusion. - -Mason’s hymns were the first to be used in regular congregational -worship. Twenty editions of his _Spiritual Songs_ were issued; -considering the times and the small population, this was a marvelous -success. This collection may be considered the thin edge of the wedge, -later driven by Watts, between the churches and psalmody. Horder in -his _Hymn Lover_ declares that “rarely did Watts rise to the height of -thought and beauty of expression which are found in Mason’s hymns.” - -One of Mason’s most widely used hymns is - - “Now from the altar of my heart - Let incense flames arise; - Assist me, Lord, to offer up - Mine evening sacrifice. - - Awake, my Love! awake, my Joy; - Awake, my Heart and Tongue: - Sleep not: when Mercies loudly call, - Break forth into a Song.” - -High authority claims that Mason’s hymn, “Thou wast, O God, and Thou -wast blest,” is one of the best in the language. Its third verse is -particularly noble: - - “To whom, Lord, should I sing but Thee, - The Maker of my tongue? - Lo, other lords would seize on me, - But I to Thee belong. - As waters hasten to their sea, - And earth unto its earth, - So let my soul return to Thee, - From whom it had its birth.” - -His influence on Watts was very considerable. George MacDonald says of -Mason’s hymns: “Dr. Watts was very fond of them; would that he had -written with similar modesty of style.” Mason was made to supply many -a good line to the hymns of Watts, we are told by those who have -compared the hymns of the two writers.[3] - -The hymns are good, because the writer was good! Richard Baxter styled -him “the glory of the Church of England,” saying that “the frame of -his spirit was so heavenly, his deportment so humble and obliging, his -discourse of spiritual things so weighty, with such apt words and -delightful air, that it charmed all that had any spiritual relish.” - -Before closing this chapter, mention must be made of Joseph Addison -(1672-1719), who is so widely known because of his connection with the -famous _Spectator_, a weekly devoted to essays on various topics, -literary and otherwise. While his essays are his chief claim to -literary honor, he wrote five hymns, three of which are found in most -of our larger hymnals: “The spacious firmament on high,” “When all thy -mercies, O my God,” “How are thy servants blest, O Lord.” These hymns -are all most thoughtful and felicitously expressed. They are admirably -adapted for the worship of God, but they too unanimously ignore the -higher attributes of the divine nature as manifested in Jesus Christ, -and the salvation he wrought out for fallen and needy humanity, to -take a high place in Christian Hymnody. The same is true of Psalms, of -course, but they were written before Christ appeared. - - - - - _Chapter XV_ - ISAAC WATTS AND HIS PERIOD - - - I. THE HYMNIC NEED OF THE TIME - -We have now reached the point in the development of the English hymn -where the shortcomings of the metrical versions of the Psalms were -keenly realized, and where the conception of the practicable -congregational hymn was clarified and the model definitely -established. - -Someone of combative courage and of organizing ability was needed who -would break down the wall of mere usage and custom in the churches—of -the sheerly mechanical tradition and mental inertia; all the better, -if he could replace the outworn Psalm versions with practicable -congregational hymns that would more intelligently and efficiently -voice the faith and the experience of God’s people. He needed to be a -man of clear vision of the essential lyric needs of the church, of a -clear conception of the type of hymns best fitted to supply those -needs, of literary culture and adaptativeness, and of a high moral -courage to face and overcome the extreme conservativeness that seems -to be inherent in all ecclesiastical organizations. - - - II. THE LIFE OF WATTS - -In the distinct providence of God, the man appeared, exactly fitted -for the important task. Isaac Watts was born at Southampton, England, -July 17, 1674, the son of a very intelligent and devout schoolmaster, -who during the reign of Charles II was imprisoned and exiled from his -family for his nonconformity. Isaac was extraordinarily precocious, -studying Greek and Hebrew at the age of eight years, writing verses -when a mere child, and attempting Latin and English poetry in his -schooldays. His brilliant scholarship brought him offers of a career -at one of the universities, but he refused, being staunch in his -nonconformity. - -He became a Nonconformist minister in 1698 and pastor of the -Independent Church, Berry Street, London, in 1702. His health being -frail, owing to his excessive study as a student, he was given an -assistant, Rev. Samuel Price, with whom he spent “many harmonious -years of fellowship in the Gospel.” - -Visiting Sir Thomas Abney, a staunch Dissenter living at Theobalds in -Hertfordshire, for a week, Watts was persuaded to remain with him and -his wife permanently, making his home with them the rest of his life. -He never married. His health was always precarious, and his pastorate -at the Berry Street Independent Church, which ended only with his -death, was largely nominal. - -We rarely think of Isaac Watts as anything more than a hymn writer, -but his intellectual activities were wide and his writing outside of -hymnody extensive. He wrote a number of treatises on Theology. His -textbooks on Geography, Astronomy, and Logic were used in the English -universities, and at Yale and Harvard. - - - III. WATTS AS A HYMN WRITER - -Watts had been recognized from childhood as having a talent in the -making of verses. Returning from a church service in Southampton, he -sharply criticized the hymns of Barton—an inferior contemporary of -John Mason. His devout father, a deacon in the church, playfully, -perhaps seriously, replied that he should try his skill in supplying a -better one. The challenge was accepted and he brought his father the -hymn: - - “Behold the glories of the Lamb - Amidst his Father’s throne; - Prepare new honors for his name, - And songs before unknown.” - -He little realized that it was his life’s most illustrious task to -fulfill the exhortation of the last two lines. - -The success of the new hymn when lined out to the congregation and -sung by them led to a demand for more. Thus unconsciously and -unpretentiously was ushered in a new epoch in the devotional singing -of the Christian Church. Presumably this occurred in his twenty-first -year, for this and the succeeding year were spent at home in -Southampton in varied studies and in writing hymns. - -These hymns seem to have remained in manuscript for some years, -despite the earnest protest of his younger brother, who declared that -“Mason now reduces this kind of writing to a sort of yawning -indifference, and honest Barton chimes us asleep.” This literary -judgment of young Enoch must not be taken too seriously, except as -expressing his eagerness to have his brilliant brother’s hymns brought -before the public. - -It was nearly or quite ten years after the first hymn that a -collection of hymns and odes and other poems, _Horæ Lyricæ_, was -issued, in 1706. It contained twenty-five hymns, four psalm -paraphrases, and eleven religious songs in varied measures and meters. -It also contained elegies, odes, and blank verse of a purely literary -character. In his preface he suggests the spirit and methods which -should later be more fully developed. “The hymns were never written to -appear before the judges of wit, but only to assist the meditations -and worship of vulgar Christians.”[1] - -In 1709 the second edition of the _Horæ_ furnished an increased number -of hymns. In the preface of this edition he confesses that in the -hymns of the _Horæ_ “there are some expressions which are not suited -to the plainest capacities, and differ too much from the usual methods -of speech in which holy things are proposed to the general part of -mankind.” - -The hymns contained in the more popular _Hymns and Spiritual Songs_ in -1707, and in the augmented edition of 1709, were of a plainer type for -“the level of vulgar capacities.” The edition of 1709 contained two -hundred and fifty-five hymns, seventy-eight paraphrases, and -twenty-two communion hymns. The hymns were in only three meters, Long, -Common, and Short. Watts had an eye single for practicability. - -The four Psalm versions contained in his _Horæ Lyricæ_ had a prefatory -note, “An essay on a few of David’s Psalms translated into plain -verse, in language more agreeable to the clearer revelations of the -Gospel,” which makes certain that he had already clearly in mind the -evangelical psalter which, despite his absorption in other tasks and -his long illness in 1712, finally appeared in 1719, “The Psalms of -David imitated in the language of the New Testament and apply’d to the -Christian state and worship.” Watts excluded twelve Psalms entirely -and omitted passages from some of the one hundred and thirty-eight -that were retained, because they were not adapted to Christian use. - -Although he never married, Watts was very fond of children. In 1715, -in the midst of his program for the public service of song, his _opus -magnum_, he prepared his “Divine Songs, attempted in easy language for -the use of children.” It was to be used in connection with the -“Catechism” he had prepared for their use. It was the first collection -of its kind and was the forerunner of the immense supply of children’s -songs that was to grow out of the activities of the Sunday school. One -is amazed that the writer of “When I survey the wondrous cross,” or -“Our God, our help in ages past,” could write so tender and graceful a -lullaby as - - “Hush, my babe, lie still and slumber, - Holy angels guard thy bed! - Heavenly blessings without number - Gently falling on thy head.” - - - IV. WATTS’ ARGUMENTS FOR THE HYMN - -However kindly we may estimate the value of Watts’ hymns and of his -evangelical metrical versions of the Psalms, we must recognize that -his service as the protagonist of the free hymn is quite as great. His -hymns and evangelical psalter would likely have suffered the fate of -those of Wither and Mason, his immediate predecessors, had he not -written attractive and practicable congregational hymns and versions, -and not accomplished two other results essential to the substitution -of the free hymn for the often grotesque Psalm versions. - -He did not simply write a miscellaneous lot of religious lyrics and -shoot them like arrows into the air; he had a clear and efficient -theory of church song, recognizing not only the varied needs, but the -psychology underlying those needs, and produced “a system of praise” -that supplied those needs and conciliated current prejudices. - -Again, in his prefaces and in his _Essay towards the Improvement of -Psalmody_, he laid hymnological foundations that not only prepared the -way for the introduction of his own hymns and versions, but also for -such a fresh consideration of the whole subject as led to the -revolution in the English song service; from these have come the -freedom and spontaneity, genuineness and sincerity, definiteness of -purpose, and deepening of personal experience which have blessed -succeeding generations. - -His supreme merit, in this definite onslaught on the rigid literalism -of the churches, was that he not only brought destructive criticism, -but supplied an adequate substitute for that which he condemned. - -Watts denied the obligation to sing the Bible. The Scriptures were the -Word of God to the soul and the hymn was the work of the soul in -response to God. He further denied that the Book of Psalms was given -as a hymnbook for the Christian Church. It was not even adapted to its -use, for it was distinctly Jewish and not Christian in ideals and -spirit. “Some of ’em are almost opposite to the spirit of the Gospel; -many of them are foreign to the state of the New Testament and widely -different to the present circumstances of Christians.” Before they can -be sung in a Christian service they must be rewritten as if David were -a Christian and not a Jew. - -Even allowing that there was an obligation to sing the Word of God, -Watts denied that the metrical Psalm was the pure Word of God. The -demands of meter and rhyme so refashioned and even mutilated the -Psalms that they no longer were the words of the Scripture, nor even -its ideas. Its inspiration suffered a total eclipse under the hands of -the versifiers, and the metrical Psalm became a work of “human -composure” with none of the vital spirit of the free hymn. - -Watts could not understand why “we under the Gospel should sing -nothing else but the joys, hopes, and fears of Asaph and David.” He -declared that “David would have thought it very hard to have been -confined to the words of Moses and sung nothing else on all his -rejoicing days but the drowning of Pharaoh in the fifteenth of -Exodus.” He complained that even in those places where the Jewish -psalmist seems to mean the Gospel, excellent poet as he was, he was -not able to speak it plain, by reason of the infancy of that -dispensation, and longs for the aid of a Christian writer. - -He set aside the prevalent “superstitious reverence for the letter of -the Jewish Scriptures,” and in an almost defiant spirit declared, -“Though there are many gone before me who have taught the Hebrew -Psalmist to speak English, yet I think I may assume the pleasure of -being the first who hath brought down the royal author into the common -affairs of the Christian life, and led the Psalmist of Israel into the -Church of Christ, without anything of the Jew about him.” - -Whatever devotional value we may assign to the Psalms, we must accept -Watts’ fundamental idea that they are not the exclusive formulary of -the use of song in the worship of God and in the life of the Church. -His further contention that not all the Psalms, nor all parts of them, -are adapted to Christian use, we cannot now gainsay. The Jews -themselves only used about forty of them. It was not until centuries -after the Apostolic Age had elapsed that, due to monkish superstition, -all the Psalms were recognized as of equal exclusive use. - -So many versions of individual Psalms make such satisfactory hymns and -so many hymns are such faithful transcripts of passages from the -Psalms, or echoes of their sentiments, that the distinction between -psalm versions and hymns in individual cases might well be set aside -entirely, as having no actual basis or value. - - - V. WATTS’ INSISTENCE ON PRACTICABILITY - -While Watts laid the strongest emphasis on the awkwardness and -absurdity of much of the Psalm paraphrasing, he was also impressed -with the unavailability of the literary hymns of his predecessors, or -even of some of his own in his first book. The common people would not -sing them, they were out of their reach; moreover, they were not in -practicable meters and measures, and did not fit the accepted tunes -the people knew. Watts accepted the current Psalm version meters, Long -Meter, Common Meter, and Short Meter, and the Psalm tunes at once -became hymn tunes. It was quite a handicap to a literary hymn writer, -but essential to the practical use of the hymn. - -Watts deliberately avoided distinctly literary quality in his hymns, -seeking only lucidity and plainness of expression, all within the -capacity of the common people. To quote from his prefaces, he -“endeavored to make the sense plain and obvious.... The metaphors are -generally sunk to the level of vulgar capacities.... Some of the -beauties of poesy are neglected and some wilfully defaced.” - -Dr. Benson, whom it is always profitable to quote, says: “Watts’ work -earns a place in the literature of power, the literature that leaves -esthetic critics cold while it moves men.” Palgrave included nothing -of Watts in his _Golden Treasury_, but elsewhere speaks of him as “one -of those whose sacrifice of art to direct usefulness has probably lost -them those honors in literature to which they were entitled.” - - - VI. THE INESTIMABLE VALUE OF WATTS’ HYMNS - -The offensive lines in Watts must be judged with due regard to their -background. The Sternhold and Hopkins version was vastly worse. It was -a time of dry doctrinal preaching and of a literal interpretation of -the Bible which to the preachers was largely a mere collection of -isolated proof texts. In these matters he was speaking in the idiom -and with the accent of his own generation. In the two centuries that -have since passed, the sand and gravel and debris have been washed -away, and our hymnals contain the pure gold of his verse for our -edification and delight. Outside of the hymnbooks of the Wesley -brothers, where can we find such a placer mine of spiritual wealth? - -At his best Watts wrote hymns of majesty and ecstatic adoration that -have never been excelled: - - “Our God, our Help in ages past, - Our Hope for years to come; - Our Shelter from the stormy blast, - And our eternal Home.” - -How he has made the Long Meter measure sound like the great Open -Diapason of the pipe organ in the following lines! - - “Before Jehovah’s awful throne, - Ye nations bow with sacred joy; - Know that the Lord is God alone, - He can create, and he destroy.” - -What if John Wesley does add a majestic note or two in the foregoing -hymn; the singer of the whole hymn is the noble spirit of little Dr. -Watts. - -Had David himself returned with an English tongue, he could not have -reproduced the spirit of the seventy-second Psalm more nobly: - - “Jesus shall reign where’er the sun - Doth his successive journeys run; - His Kingdom spread from shore to shore, - Till moons shall wax and wane no more.” - -Solomon’s coronation song (Ps. 72) was no more majestic than this -crowning hymn Watts wrote for his Lord. - -But Watts could not only be majestic; he could be tender: - - “When I survey the wondrous cross - On which the Prince of Glory died, - My richest gain I count but loss, - And pour contempt on all my pride.” - -Is there a tenderer strain in all English hymnody than the third -verse? - - “See, from his head, his hands, his feet, - Sorrow and love flow mingled down! - Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, - Or thorns compose so rich a crown?” - -Not in the same exquisite vein of noble tenderness, but perhaps all -the more useful for its reduced voltage, is his other hymn of the -Crucifixion, - - “Alas! and did my Saviour bleed? - And did my Sovereign die? - Would he devote that sacred head - For such a worm as I!” - -Its last verse has deepened the consecration of unnumbered millions as -they sang the sacred vow: - - “But drops of grief can ne’er repay - The debt of love I owe; - Here, Lord, I give myself away— - ’Tis all that I can do.” - -The list of the great hymns that have come down to us from Isaac Watts -is too long to be given here, but they enrich the pages of all our -hymnals and exalt the spirit of all our church services. - -The criticism often urged that Watts wrote too much cannot well be -gainsaid, but the striking fact confronts us that most of the great -hymns were written by men who wrote too much! The same is true of the -composers of our greatest music, as, for instance, Mendelssohn and -Handel. Much writing develops technic, ease, spontaneity, -unselfconsciousness, that make the heights of feeling and expression -more accessible. But what Watts needed was not so much to write less, -but to have a competent editor like John Wesley to eliminate his -vulgar and often grotesque lines. - -That Watts should find plenty of antagonists to pick up the gauge of -challenge he threw out was inevitable. His hymns were called “Watts’ -Whims” in sardonic derision. It is noteworthy that the opposition did -not prove so heated against his hymns as against his _The Psalms of -David Imitated_ (1719). In daring to amend the Judaism of David he had -committed sacrilege! This volume practically closed his work of -reforming the service of song in the English language. He was but -forty-four years old at this time and he lived thirty years more—spent -in theological, educational, and devotional writings. - -The hymns of Watts slowly found their way among the Nonconformist -churches. Before his death a large part of the Presbyterian and -Congregational churches were nearly monopolized by them. However, the -Established Church still clung to the Psalm Versions. - - - VII. CONTEMPORARIES OF WATTS - -A contemporary of Watts, Simon Browne (1680-1732) issued a collection -of hymns in 1720, _Hymns and Spiritual Songs_, designed as a -supplement to Dr. Watts, containing one hundred and sixty-six hymns -which had considerable vogue during the next generation. Now only one -hymn, “Come, gracious Spirit, heavenly Dove,” survives in some of our -hymnals. - -Another contemporary was John Byrom (1691-1763), scientist and mystic, -whose “Christians, awake, salute the happy morn” is still a Christmas -favorite and whose “My spirit longeth for Thee” is “terse and tender -in a very high degree.”[2] MacDonald speaks of his few hymns as a -“well of the water of life, for its song tells of the love and truth -which are the grand power of God.” - -Another hymn writer of Watts’ day was Robert Seagrave (1693-?), who -added fifty of his own hymns to a collection prepared for his own -church at Lorimer’s Hall, Cripplegate, London, all of which had a high -degree of excellence, of which “Rise, my soul, and stretch thy wings” -is found in most of our current hymnbooks. - -A greater than any of the above was Philip Doddridge (1702-1751), who -was a close friend of Isaac Watts, although nearly thirty years -younger. He wrote three hundred and seventy-five hymns, most of them -as pendants to sermons, recapitulating and enforcing the points of his -discourse. They were not collected and published until four years -after his death. The fine character and high ability displayed by -Doddridge endeared him to many of the most important people of his -day. The devoutness, literary grace, and adaptation to actual use of -his lyrics were immediately recognized. Their distinctly homiletical -character, combined with deep religious feeling and tenderness, and -their varied topics, greatly appealed to ministers, and they were -recognized as second only to Watts. The Church owes some of its most -useful hymns to him: “Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve,” “Grace; -’tis a charming sound,” “How gentle God’s commands,” “O happy day, -that fixed my choice,” “My gracious Lord, I own thy right,” are among -the many found in all our hymnals. His relative standard may be -inferred from the use made of leading hymn writers by Dr. Benson in -his _Revised Presbyterian Hymnal_: Watts 49, Charles Wesley 24, -Doddridge 13. - - - - - _Chapter XVI_ - THE WESLEYS AND THEIR ERA - - - I. THE INFLUENCE OF WATTS ON THE WESLEYS - -The line of hymnic succession between Watts and the Wesleys was direct -and not through Doddridge, for the latter’s hymns did not appear until -1754. One-half of John Wesley’s _American Collection_, the first -hymnbook published in America, issued in Charleston, South Carolina, -in 1737, after two years’ work in the new Colony of Georgia, consisted -of Watts’ hymns. It goes without saying that Watts’ hymnbooks, with -others like Tate and Brady’s _New Version_, George Herbert’s poems, -the hymns of John Austin, of Henry More, and of Norris of Bemerton, -were so well known, and so appreciated, that copies of them were -included among the books carried to America. In early manhood they met -the already elderly Watts, and as they walked they sang together. -Indeed, with Dr. Benson we may “infer that Watts’ _Psalms and Hymns_, -in connection with Tate and Brady’s _New Version_, furnished the -materials for the singing of the ‘Holy Club.’” - -It is evident from the list of hymnbooks, and from the list of -Wesley’s selections for his _American Collection_, that Watts was not -the only influence that gave the impulse and fashioned the Wesleyan -ideals of the public song service. It is noteworthy that Barton and -Mason were not included. The High-Church Anglican Wesleys were not so -prejudiced against Watts’ Nonconformist hymns as to exclude them. - - - II. THE HOME OF THE WESLEYS - -With the Wesleys perhaps the strongest influence was that of the -family and the home. Their grandfather, John Wesley, was a -Nonconformist clergyman, and, what is more to the point, a poet. Their -father, Samuel Wesley, was quite a voluminous poet (sixteen volumes), -owing his Epworth rectorship to Queen Mary’s approval of his _Life of -Christ, an Heroic Poem_. One of his hymns, “Behold the Saviour of -mankind,” still appears in some of our current hymnals. - -Their maternal grandfather was Rev. Samuel Annesley, LL.D., a -scholarly Nonconformist clergyman. Their mother, Susanna Annesley, is -recognized as a woman of extraordinary force of character, organizing -ability, and intense piety, the “Mother of Methodism,” and even more -gifted than her gifted but less steady and dependable husband. It will -be noted that both grandfathers were dissenting clergymen. - -The Epworth rectory life was intellectual, intensely devout, and full -of the singing of psalms and hymns, for it was “a nest of singing -birds.” When students at Oxford, John and Charles used to walk out -into the meadows and sing songs and hymns together.[1] - - - III. THE MORAVIAN INFLUENCE - -As we shall see, another extremely important influence was that of the -Moravians on their personal religious experience, which under the -Moravian guidance, on the Atlantic voyage and later, became intense -and profound, furnishing tremendous motive power for all their work. -The Moravian missionaries brought the realization of the power the -Christian hymn can wield, and of the deep spirituality it may be used -to express. It was not only the hymns the Moravian brethren sang that -impressed John Wesley, but the spirit and genuineness of feeling with -which they sang. - - - IV. JOHN WESLEY - -John Wesley was born at Epworth in 1703. He inherited his mother’s -organizing and administrative ability, no less than her deep religious -nature. He was to Methodist hymnody what John Calvin was to the -Reformed psalmody, its initiator and director. He added a critical -power and a practical sense of relation of means to ends his younger -brother lacked—Charles Wesley wrote the hymns and John winnowed and -edited them. At Oxford he was called the “Father of the Holy Club.” -His aggressive spirit drove him to Georgia as a missionary, where he -was a misfit, but where he was subjected to needed spiritual -discipline, and to the influence of the Moravian pietism and -absorption in spiritual things, so valuable for his symmetrical -preparation for his future work. It led to his conversion—or, if you -prefer, to his baptism of the Holy Spirit—and that of Charles, in -1738, which opened out to them both a new spiritual dimension. It also -led to his interest in the Moravian “Gesangbuch,” or hymnbook, from -the German of which he translated several hymns for his _Charleston -Collection_. On his return to England he took an early opportunity to -visit Herrnhut, Saxony, the parent society of the connection. He was -delighted with the atmosphere of piety and Christian song which he -found there. His pietistic and mystical tendencies were greatly -strengthened by his intercourse with Count Zinzendorf and Rothe whom -he there met. - -On his return to London John Wesley kept up his association with the -Moravian brethren for some time; but his active temperament could not -long be content with their quiet, contemplative attitude, nor could he -overcome his dislike for the emphasis they placed on the merely -physical aspects of the life and death of Christ which they had -brought over from the Roman Catholic mystics. So they presently parted -company to the advantage of the aggressive spirit the Wesleys were -developing. - -John Wesley was a scholarly man who had acquired all the culture of -seven generations of intellectual family life and of the literary -training of a great English university. He had the critical faculty -well developed, a nice sense of the value of words, and the ability to -marshal them for the expression of his thoughts. His sermons and his -theological treatises reveal his logical and analytical mind. His -feelings were strong, but not of the effusive character. - -With this type of mind, it was not strange that as a hymn writer he -would succeed better as a translator than as an original hymnist. His -important contribution, therefore, consisted of translations from the -German of Tersteegen, Gerhardt, Scheffler, Spangenberg, and -Zinzendorf, and the amendment or even recasting of hymns by Watts, or -of poems by George Herbert. Perhaps his greatest work in hymnody lay -in encouraging as well as editing the work of his younger brother, -Charles.[2] - -In John Wesley’s plans to elevate the degraded population of England -both spiritually and mentally, the hymn bears an important part. His -keen and critical literary faculty was brought to bear upon its -cultural as well as spiritual aspects, and his drastic corrections and -revisions, as well as his translations, did much to lift the hymnody -of his age to a higher literary plane. - - - V. CHARLES WESLEY - -Charles Wesley was born at Epworth in 1707, being four and a half -years younger than John. He inherited a full portion of the family -religious nature, but with his mother’s mental energy he combined a -double portion of the Wesley poetic temperament. With less of the -rigid will of his older brother, he had a more sensitive spirit, a -more emotional nature, a greater literary impulse. Critics scold that -he wrote too much.[3] As well scold the mockingbird for being so -prodigal of its notes or that it occasionally merely twitters. - -When he “got religion,” his religion made him sing. Did he rejoice? -His joy found utterance in a joyous hymn, “O for a thousand tongues to -sing.” Had he trials? What more natural than a hymn of prayer, “My -God, my God, to Thee I cry”? Was there a riot about him? A hymn of -steadfastness, “Thou hidden Source of calm repose,” sang in his heart. -The impulse to write was not always accompanied by creative insight, -so, of course, he wrote inferior hymns. The urge to write was too -spontaneous that it should wait for the critical attitude. Let John -supply that! Charles had the joy of writing and John winnowed the -product. There was chaff, of course, but the golden wheat cannot grow -without chaff. - -It must not be assumed that Charles was only a hymn writer. -Immediately on his conversion, he began to preach the need of the new -birth, and for fifteen years he vied with John in field work in behalf -of the new movement. With his background, his culture and education, -his poetic nature and wealth of vocabulary and depth of experience, -Charles might be expected to preach a vivid, glowing, flaming -message—and such was his style. His meetings carried him into all -parts of England, Wales, and Ireland. - -What a team the Wesley brothers were! John with his masterly logical -sermons and profound theological writings, Charles with his hymns and -his sermons aflame with feeling, the Annesley organizing instinct in -both of them. What a spiritual force they set in motion that -transformed the spiritual and moral life of England and saved its -soul—nay more, it swept around the whole earth, and determined the -character of nations yet waiting to be born. - - - VI. CHARLES WESLEY’S HYMNS QUITE SUBJECTIVE - -By the necessities of the situation, by the character of the work, and -by his own temperament, Charles Wesley was led to write subjective, -emotional hymns, keeping personal experience to the fore. But his -emotionality was not shallow sentiment, but spontaneous and genuine -feeling, based on clear recognition of the actual truths of the -Scriptures. In a very intense way he had actually experienced the -sorrow for sin, the joy of salvation from its guilt and power, -complete assurance of divine acceptance, the longing for divine -communion, the sense of the love of God as it planned and fashioned -his inner as well as his outward life, the certainty of safety from -the power of sin in sanctification. He could write affecting -invitations to sinners, for he knew their condition and danger, and -also the results of peace and joy, of power and efficiency, that the -acceptance of Christ would bring. The truths of the Gospel in passing -through the crucible of his personality acquired an actuality, a -poignancy of appeal, that made his hymns a mighty power, not only in -the immediate campaigns of the Wesley brothers, but in the life and -work of the Church in the generations to come.[4] - - - VII. WATTS AND CHARLES WESLEY - -That was the difference between Wesley and Watts. The latter was -objective, reasonable, formal. The majesty of a sovereign God appealed -to him. He delighted in the infinite perfections of the divine nature. -He surveyed the wondrous cross. He trembled before it, as did the -children of Israel before the Holy Mount. His attitude was that of the -Old Testament. Watts viewed the sovereignty of God objectively; Wesley -felt the facts of salvation as actual experiences. - -Charles Wesley was subjective; he expressed the feelings that the -truths of the Gospel produced in him.[5] - -God to him also was great, but as a Saviour, companion, friend. Why -should he tremble? He was not Moses viewing the burning bush, but John -leaning on the breast of Jesus. He shared the ecstasies of the -apostles and disciples portrayed in the New Testament.[6] - -So Watts gives dignity and majesty to the early topics of our -hymnbooks on the attributes of God, his worship, the awe of the soul -in the presence of its sovereign Lord in hymns like “Before Jehovah’s -awful throne,” “Great God! how infinite thou art,” “I’ll praise my -Maker while I’ve breath,” “Jesus shall reign where’er the sun,” “Our -God, our help in ages past,” while Charles Wesley fills the sweeter, -tenderer, more intimate departments of salvation, forgiveness, -communion with God, with the odor of the spikenard of his heart in -hymns like “Depth of mercy! can there be,” “I know that my Redeemer -lives,” “Jesus, Lover of my soul,” “Love divine, all loves excelling.” -How well these singers of the Lord’s song supplement each other, and -how much more symmetrical and complete are our hymnals because both -have written in their own lines and styles! - -Which is the greater hymn writer? That is a mooted question that need -not be decided here. In Scriptural content the older man is superior, -as, at his best, he is in majesty of style. For formal services of -worship his hymns are more fitting and impressive. On the other hand, -Wesley was superior in quantity and in the number of hymns of high -quality. It must be granted that he is more poetical, more graceful, -more suave and human. His range is more extensive, his emotion deeper -and more noble. In immediate results on the lives of the people -Charles Wesley is incomparably richer than Watts, for his hymns then -and since turned multitudes unto righteousness.[7] - - - VIII. THE ISSUES OF THE WESLEYAN HYMNS - -Space is wanting, and the profit would be slight, to give a catalogue -of the sixty-four original issues of hymns that John published from -1737 to 1790, the mass of them for the use of the evangelistic -campaign. They were largely occasional, issued to meet a pressing but -only temporary need. They varied from a single sheet containing but a -single hymn (Charles Wesley’s hymn praying for his brother’s long -life) to the two volumes with two thousand and thirty short hymns on -Scripture passages. It was not until 1780 that a regular hymnbook “for -the use of the people called ‘Methodists’” was issued, containing five -hundred and twenty-five hymns. - - - IX. THE METHODIST TUNES - -So practical a mind as that of John Wesley, who had from childhood -engaged in sacred song, would not be expected to overlook the great -importance of the tunes to which the new hymns were to be sung. In -1742 he printed a _Collection of Tunes_ in which only three of the -_Old Version_ tunes appeared. Tunes were freely borrowed from the -musical _Supplement to the New Version_, six were secured from German -Moravian sources, and a few were new. Tunes were later supplied by -Handel and Lampe; popular melodies which the Wesleys picked up in -their preaching tours were also adopted. - -Some twenty years later fugal tunes became popular among the churches, -but became known as “Old Methodist Tunes,” although they had never -been officially recognized and had first been written in Scotland. - -When we regard the quantity and quality of the Wesleyan hymns, or -their adaptation to the spiritual and evangelistic purposes for which -they were written, or the body of teaching they conveyed, or the -spiritual fervor they created and are still creating in millions of -souls, or the influence they exerted on all subsequent hymnody, we do -not find the sweeping statement of Dr. James Martineau, the Unitarian -divine and hymnbook editor, as exaggerated: “After the Scriptures, the -_Wesley Hymn Book_ appears to me the grandest instrument of popular -religious culture that Christendom has produced.” - - - X. INFLUENCES OPPOSING THE WESLEYAN HYMNS - -The contemporary prejudice against the Wesleyan hymnody was very -strong and bitter. There were many influences against them: the -conservative devotion to the psalm versions, “New” and “Old,” the -Nonconformist loyalty to the psalms and hymns of Watts, the -Established Church’s resentment against the revolters against -established rule and custom within her bounds, the formalist objection -to what seemed to them the fanatical, extravagant, and effusive type -of piety, the emotional, subjective, experiential style of the hymns, -and (worst of all!) the low social class that constituted the bulk of -the followers of the Wesleys. The result was that both in Great -Britain and in America the Wesleyan hymns crept very slowly into the -hymnbooks of the churches outside the Methodist movement. It was many -years before any appeared in the English church hymnals; even when -they did, Charles Wesley’s name did not appear with them; it even -happened that other writers were credited with them. In America, where -the Methodists were the Salvation Army of their day, the Wesleyan -hymns were slow of recognition. This was partly due to the general, -almost fanatical, devotion to Watts’ hymnody. - -The Arminian attitude of the Wesleys, as against the rigid Calvinism -of both the Established and the Nonconformist churches, led to acrid -theological discussions that intensified the opposition to the -movement they headed. Even among those favorable to the spiritual -reformation was there an element antagonistic to the Wesleys. -Whitefield, Toplady, and the Countess of Huntingdon were leaders in -this revolt. - -The fact that Charles Wesley rather monopolized the writing of hymns -undoubtedly had its adverse influence. John Wesley did not encourage -others to write.[8] This accounts for the fact that comparatively few -of their immediate associates wrote hymns, and some of these drifted -into other relations. What else could a man expect who fearlessly -amended, revised others’ hymns, and then warned the general hymnbook -maker regarding the Wesleyan hymns as follows: “Hymn-cobblers should -not try to mend them. I really do not think they are able.” - - - XI. OTHER METHODIST HYMN WRITERS - -Among these transient supporters was Edward Perronet (1726-1792) of -Huguenot stock. He wrote “All hail the power of Jesus’ name,” which -makes so noble a climax for many of our services. For a time he was a -preacher in the Wesleyan connection. He then adopted Calvinistic -views, and joined the forces of the Countess of Huntingdon, preaching -under her direction. His caustic Gallic wit, exercised against the -Established Church, offended his patroness and he became the pastor of -a small congregation of dissenters. - -Another associate of the Wesleys was Thomas Olivers (1725-1799), who -had small educational advantages, but was an indefatigable worker. One -of his hymns has kept its place in our hymnals, “The God of Abraham -praise.” Montgomery says of it: “This noble ode, though the essay of -an unlettered man, claims special honor. There is not in our language -a lyric of more majestic style, more elevated thought, or more -glorious imagery.” - -John Bakewell, the head of a prominent academy at Greenwich, was a -local preacher of whom his tombstone, near to that of John Wesley in -the cemetery of the City Road Chapel, records that “he adorned the -doctrine of God, our Saviour, 80 years and preached his Gospel 70 -years.” He is remembered by the hymn, “Hail, Thou once despised -Jesus,” which is found in most of the current hymnals. - - - XII. CALVINISTIC-METHODIST HYMN WRITERS - -There were no poetic restraints felt by the adherents of the -Calvinistic wing of the Methodist movement as met the associates of -the Wesleys, and the number of hymn writers in its ranks is larger. - -William Williams (1717-1791), “the Watts of Wales,” spent his life in -working in the Welsh Calvinistic-Methodist connection. Early in his -career the need of appropriate Welsh hymns was so pressing that -recourse was had to a sort of Eisteddfod of hymn-writing in which he -easily won first honors. He was an indefatigable preacher, taking all -Wales for his parish. His chief claim to immortality is his hymn, -“Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,” originally written in Welsh, but -soon used in the Whitefield Methodist Connection in England. His -missionary hymn, “O’er the gloomy hills of darkness,” while not so -popular, has had a wide use. - -John Cennick (1718—1755) was originally associated with the Wesleys as -a preacher, but the burning question of Calvinism separated them and -he became associated with Whitefield and later with the Moravians. Two -hymns of his were extremely popular both in Great Britain and in the -early years of Methodism in America: “Jesus, my all, to heaven is -gone,” and “Children of the heavenly King.” The former was used as the -verse basis of a great many “spiritual” choruses in pioneer times. His -“Lo! He comes with clouds descending” was reshaped and rewritten by -Charles Wesley and Martin Madan. The literary quality of his hymns is -not high, but their sincerity and adaptation to universal Christian -experience give them practical value. - -Augustus Montague Toplady (1740-1778) was associated with the Wesleys -and with the Calvinistic-Methodist leaders, but was a Church of -England clergyman. He wrote four hundred and nineteen hymns; only a -few continue in use. Notable among these is “Rock of Ages, cleft for -me,” which has been almost universally used and most mercilessly -amended and revised. It has been translated into many languages: -Gladstone having translated it into Latin, Greek, and Italian. - -Montgomery says of Toplady’s hymns: “There is a peculiarly etherial -spirit in some of these, in which, whether mourning or rejoicing, -praying or praising, the writer seems absorbed in the full triumph of -faith.” Another hymn of Toplady’s, “Deathless principle, arise,” has -been characterized as “almost peerless,” but it is rather a reading -hymn. - - - XIII. BAPTIST HYMN WRITERS - -While the Methodists were enriching the hymnody of the Christian -Church, the Baptists were not idle. The second reformation of England -did not leave them unaffected, even though they were not officially -associated with it. - -Their chief hymn writer was Anne Steele (1716-1778), an invalid of -great spirituality and piety and of much literary felicity as well as -facility. She wrote one hundred and forty-four hymns and thirty-four -versions of psalms. Her hymns are meditative in style, graceful and -gentle in spirit. She is best remembered by her hymn of resignation, -“Father, whate’er of earthly bliss.” Other hymns still widely used are -“Now I resolve with all my heart,” the hymn regarding the Scriptures, -“Father of mercies, in Thy word What endless glory shines,” and the -(for her) enthusiastic hymn of praise to Christ, “To our Redeemer’s -glorious name.” Her vogue in America at one time was very great. - -John Fawcett was another Baptist hymnist of note. He issued one -hundred and sixty-six hymns, three of which are standards in our day: -“How precious is the book divine,” “Lord, dismiss us with Thy -blessing,” and “Blest be the tie that binds.” Besides the duties of a -heavy pastorate at Wainsgate (with a salary of less than two hundred -dollars) he did a great amount of literary work. The third hymn -mentioned above has done more for Christian unity than all arguments -and commissions. - -Another hymn writer of note, who may be classed as a Baptist, was -Robert Robinson (1735-1790). Converted under Whitefield’s preaching, -he later took a Baptist pastorate at Cambridge. He was very active in -a literary way. He began a _History of Baptists_ in 1781 which -appeared in 1790, but in spite of laborious research it did not reach -the completeness he desired. Besides eleven hymns of but moderate -value written for Whitefield, he wrote a Christmas hymn, “Mighty God, -while angels bless Thee” and the ever-useful and prayerful “Come, Thou -Fount of every blessing.” This was another favorite basis for -“Spiritual” revival choruses in America. There was a lack of -steadiness in his temperament. After writing _A Plea for the Divinity -of Our Lord Jesus Christ_, he later came under suspicion as a -Unitarian and Socinian. - -Samuel Medley was a midshipman in the navy, but being sorely wounded -in a terrible naval battle off Cape Lagos, he refused to continue as a -naval officer. During his recovery he was soundly converted under the -influence of his grandfather Tonge. After being at the head of a -school for a time, he accepted a Baptist pastorate. Medley wrote a -number of hymns, of which “O could I speak the matchless worth,” -“Awake, my soul, to joyful lays,” “I know that my Redeemer lives,” and -“Mortals, awake, with angels join,” are still found in most of our -hymnals. He claimed no literary merit for himself, but his hymns have -found a hearty response in England, and even more in America. - -Joseph Grigg (1720-1768) was not a Methodist or a Baptist, but a -Presbyterian. He is further noteworthy as an “infant phenomenon,” -having written a very familiar hymn, “Jesus, and shall it ever be?” at -the age of ten years. He was in humble circumstances at first, “a -laboring mechanic.” He was assistant minister in a prominent London -Presbyterian church for four years, then “married well” and retired, -still writing and preaching. His “Behold, a Stranger at the door,” -with a stirring tune by T. C. O’Kane, has been widely used in America -as an evangelistic hymn with a refrain. - - - - - _Chapter XVII_ - HYMNS IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND - - - I. RISE OF SPIRITUAL LIFE IN THE ENGLISH CHURCH - -Although the Wesleys were Church of England clergymen, the tide of -religious feeling they set in motion could not sweep over the mass of -the population without its waves dashing across all ecclesiastical and -traditional barriers. But John Wesley’s somewhat arrogant spirit, the -extreme methods which he found necessary to reach the lower classes, -so desperately in need of a new religious impulse, above all, his -sharp reaction against the high Calvinistic theology of the Church, -repelled many who had been deeply affected by the Methodist atmosphere -that enveloped them and had felt a new sense of obligation to bring -back their people to a true religious life. - - - II. EARLY COLLECTIONS OF EVANGELICAL HYMNS - -The effectiveness of the spontaneous Methodist singing was evident -enough and the Evangelical ministers of the Established Church felt -the need of collections of hymns that should achieve the same results -without what seemed to them the doctrinal vagaries and emotional -extravagances of the Wesleyan hymns. Nor were they at first willing to -set entirely aside the psalmody that had served the church for so many -generations. - -As might be expected, the earliest collections of hymns for use in the -Established churches were largely based on Nonconformist and Wesleyan -materials, since most of their editors, and the churches they wished -to serve, were under the influence of the Countess of Huntingdon, who -in turn was in close touch with the Calvinistic-Methodist movement. - -One of the first of the collections of the Evangelical wing was that -of Martin Madan, _Psalms and Hymns_, containing 170 hymns without -order or arrangement, except that sacramental hymns had a department -by themselves. Madan used a free hand in revising and remodeling the -hymns he selected, sometimes for good, frequently for ill. He was -quite a musician, supplying tunes, thirty-three of which were his own -composition, of which “Huddersfield” and “Helmsley” still occasionally -appear in our hymnals. His book was used to a considerable extent and -helped to hasten the introduction of hymns in the Church of England. -Other collections of the same name and type were issued by Berridge -and Conyers. - -More important was Toplady’s _Psalms and Hymns_, issued in 1776. -Despite his virulent attacks on the Wesleys, he used quite a number of -their hymns, without credit and drastically revised. His collection -contained 418 hymns, some by Watts and by other Nonconformists. His -revisions were not wholly on doctrinal grounds, but on literary as -well—“God is the God of _Truth_, of Holiness, and of Elegance. -Whoever, therefore, has the honor to compose, or to compile, anything -that may constitute a part of his worship should keep those three -particulars constantly in view.” In this remark, found in his preface, -Toplady anticipated the later period of the literary hymn by Heber, -Keble, and Milman. This collection continued in use for nearly fifty -years. - - - III. EVANGELICAL HYMN WRITERS - -With the exception of this later collection of Toplady these hymnbooks -were mere compilations. The impulse of this Evangelical wing to write -hymns of their own did not long delay. The most notable of these hymn -writers were John Newton (1725-1807) and William Cowper (1731-1800). -They co-operated in the issue of _Olney Hymns_, so called after the -village of which Newton was the curate. - -John Newton was born in London. His mother, who was a pious Dissenter, -and had dedicated her boy from his birth to the Christian ministry and -had tried to train him in preparation for this work, died when he was -but seven years old. He grew up to be a wild, profligate, wicked young -man; he speaks of himself as “once an infidel and libertine, a servant -of slaves in Africa.” At the age of twenty-three he again came under -religious influences and became an ardent Christian. - -It was not until he was nearly thirty-nine years old that he entered -the ministry of the Established Church, being appointed curate of the -village of Olney. He had always had an impulse, even during his -wildest years, to read and study and to add to his general culture. -Hence, in spite of his vagrant life (having spent eighteen years on -the sea) and his secular pursuits, he came into the ministry with a -rough-hewn education, and a practical and resourceful attitude of -mind, that served him well in his aggressive ministry. His spiritual -experience was deep and intense. He had been in close touch with -Whitefield, the Wesleys, and other leaders in the great evangelistic -movement. - -For his work as a curate in the Established Church, the hymns of Watts -lacked the deep personal spirituality for which his own soul sought -expression. The Wesleys supplied that element abundantly, but their -hymnbooks did not express his Calvinistic attitude, nor fit his local -needs. His own urge to write hymns and his intimacy with Cowper, which -undoubtedly seemed a providence, encouraged him to produce Olney -Hymns, which contained 280 hymns by Newton and 68 by Cowper. - -Newton sympathized with Watts in his objection to pronouncedly poetic -elements in hymns; in his preface he remarks that “the imagery and -coloring of poetry, if admitted at all, should be admitted very -sparingly.” The book was dedicated to “the use of plain people,” to -promote the faith and comfort of sincere Christians. To secure these, -“perspicuity, simplicity, and ease” were sought. Yet some of Newton’s -best hymns closely approach the best of his friend, the poet Cowper. -Genuine feeling gave lyric wings. - -Of his 280 hymns, the most successful in maintaining a place in our -hymnals are: “Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,” “Approach, my soul, -the mercy seat,” “Glorious things of thee are spoken,” “Come, my soul, -thy suit prepare,” “How sweet the name of Jesus sounds,” “Safely -through another week,” “While with ceaseless course the sun,” “One -there is, above all others.” What a noble chaplet of pearls for his -Lord is this amazing contribution by the former “servant of slaves”! - -Newton’s famous coworker on the _Olney Hymns_, William Cowper, was the -son of one of the chaplains of George II and was born in Hertfordshire -in 1731. He was frail and shy, and had a very painful experience among -the boys of the Westminster School which he attended for ten years. -Doubtless his later mental affliction was due in large part to the -bullying of his schoolmates. He studied law, but did not find it to -his taste. At the age of thirty-six he moved to Olney, where he met -John Newton, who became his close friend and protector as well as his -leader in the writing of hymns. He co-operated with Newton’s religious -work as lay reader and wrote his hymns for the cottage prayer meetings -that were a feature in Newton’s work. - -While his literary work shows no trace of his melancholia, being -cheerful and even humorous, his hymns frequently show traces of it, -notably in “God moves in a mysterious way” and “Oh, for a closer walk -with God.” Newton’s habit of introspection may have influenced him, -and the obscurity of the people and of the occasions for which he -wrote may have given him a sense of freedom in expressing his deeper, -subconscious experience. He was an exceedingly spiritual-minded man. -It was said of him by one who often heard him, “Of all the men I ever -heard pray, none equaled Mr. Cowper.” He had a vivid and intense -experience when he was converted: “For many succeeding weeks tears -were ready to flow if I did but speak of the Gospel, or mention the -name of Jesus. To rejoice day and night was all my employment. Too -happy to sleep much, I thought it was lost time that was spent in -slumber.” - -Cowper’s literary work was done after he was fifty years old—indeed, -after his contributions to _Olney Hymns_ had been made. His hymns were -really preliminary studies for his secular work. - -Cowper made a very important contribution to the Christian hymnody of -the ages: “God moves in a mysterious way,” “Oh, for a closer walk with -God,” “Jesus, where’er thy people meet,” “Sometimes a light -surprises,” “There is a fountain filled with blood,” “Hark, my soul, -it is the Lord,” which will all survive as long as devout hearts -meditate and sing. _Olney Hymns_ was very widely accepted and had more -to do with the introduction of hymns into Anglican services than any -other hymnbook up to that time. It was speedily reprinted in America -and was very popular there. - -Beyond all its Church of England predecessors, it established the -ideal of the hymn as evangelical, as an expression of personal -spiritual experience, as a vehicle for the conveying of spiritual -truth. It was closely akin to the Methodist ideal, but more sober and -sedate, with less of the poetical element. The hymnbook was the -crystallizing force of the Evangelical party and its unifying -discipline. It did not win the co-operation of the whole Church, by -any means, but it prepared the way for the final acceptance of the -hymn as an inherent part of the Church service in that communion. - -While the _Olney Hymns_ continued in use by the Evangelical wing of -the Established Church, there continued to be _Psalms and Hymns_ -issued by various compilers, Basil Woodd, Simeon Bidulph, Cecil Venn, -and others, all giving increasing attention to the hymns, and -extending their use, in the church service. - - - IV. HYMN WRITERS OF THE ROMANTIC SCHOOL - -If in the actual singing hymn up to this time there had been any -definitely literary quality or poetic spirit, it had been in spite of -a theory that the hymn must be plain and simple and adapted to plain -people, as in those of Watts and Newton, or somewhat unconsciously so -by reason of an imagination vitalized by deep feeling, as in those of -Charles Wesley. The hymn had been a practical religious vehicle for -expressing feeling and impressing truth, not an artistic and a -literary effort. - -From this time on the Romantic movement in literature began to affect -the ideal of the hymn. Since the hymn was to become a part of the -religious service, instead of a Nonconformist addition to the sermon, -and since the metrical psalm was to pass away because of its literary -shortcomings and absurdities, it was felt that the opportunity had -come to put a higher literary quality, a more vivid imagination, a -more definitely poetic element into the hymn—hence the literary -singing hymn came into being. - -This was all the more opportune, since literature was turning to -religion for its themes. Coleridge issued his _Religious Musings_, -Wordsworth his _Ecclesiastical Sonnets_, Moore his _Sacred Songs_, and -the libertine Byron his _Hebrew Melodies_. In 1807 the literary -remains of the lamented Henry Kirke White, including his ten hymns, -among which was the sublime “The Lord our God is clothed in might” and -his spiritually autobiographical “When marshalled on the mighty -plain,” were edited by Robert Southey. It is also worth while noting -that from 1809 to 1816 Reginald Heber printed his religious poems and -his hymns. In 1827 John Keble’s _The Christian Year_ made its -appearance with its materials for singing hymns. In the same year the -hymns of Bishop Heber and of Henry Hart Milman greeted the Christian -public. - -As early as 1809 Heber was considering the use of a hymnal in his -parish church. In 1811 he published four hymns in the _Christian -Observer_ as specimens of a series he was contemplating. He proposed a -hymnbook that should be “a collection of sacred poetry.” He sought the -help of Sir Walter Scott, Robert Southey, and other literary men of -prominence, but only Henry Hart Milman, the great church historian, -responded. The ecclesiastical authorities sympathized, but thought the -church unready for an authorized hymnbook. - -After Heber’s death in India in 1826, his widow brought the manuscript -back to England and it was published in 1827—not as a hymnbook, -however, but in the form and style of current poetic issues. In this -book appeared fifty-seven hymns by Heber and twelve by Milman. Having -due regard to its size, it was probably the richest contribution ever -made to Christian hymnody. - -After the lapse of a century, his hymns are still in current use, many -of them inevitable in every hymnal whether churchly or popular, such -as “From Greenland’s icy mountains,” “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God -Almighty,” “The Son of God goes forth to war,” “By cool Siloam’s shady -rill,” “Bread of the world, in mercy broken,” “Brightest and best of -the sons of the morning.” - -The beauty of Heber’s style was recognized from the first. His hymns -were distinctly literary in flavor, poetically conceived, with varied -rhythms and forms of stanza. But he did not transgress the limitations -of the singing hymn, as had the literary men of a century and more -before, nor did he ignore the practicability of the small number of -verses. The hymns were poems, but they were congregational hymns none -the less. But they might have been all this and yet perished by the -way. It was their deep spirituality, their lucid expression of -Christian truth, transmuted by intense conviction and personal -experience into a personal appeal that was abiding, that have made -them immortal. - -Dean Henry Hart Milman (1791-1868) was a brilliant scholar and church -historian and a poet of great reputation. His hymns are strong, -churchly, thoughtful to a high degree, but they lack the poetic charm -of those of Heber. Of the eleven that appeared in Heber’s posthumous -collection, and of others that were printed later, only one, his Palm -Sunday hymn, “Ride on, ride on in majesty,” is certain to be included -in every hymnal. The litany, “When our hearts are bowed with woe,” and -“Oh help us, Lord, each hour of need,” are only occasionally used. - -Like Saul among the prophets, we find the author of _Lalla Rookh_, -Thomas Moore (1779-1852), enrolled among our English hymn writers. The -charm of his secular verse and songs is found also in his _Sacred -Songs_, from which his ever-useful and tender “Come, ye disconsolate” -has been taken; it is found in most of our hymnals. Less often do his -“Sound the loud timbrel o’er Egypt’s dark sea” and “O Thou who driest -the mourner’s tear” find a place. Not directly associated with -ecclesiastical circles and lacking in religious fervor, he yet -deserves a place among distinctly literary hymn writers. - -No small factor in the development of the literary hymn was _The -Christian Year_ by John Keble (1792-1866). It was not a collection of -hymns, but a series of poems appropriate to all the several sacred -times and seasons; but out of it were salvaged a number of hymns that -have served the needs of high liturgical churches on special days. -_Hymns Ancient and Modern_, the High-Church hymnal so popular in Great -Britain and its dominions, contains no less than eleven of these -adapted hymns. The Christian Church at large is a grateful debtor to -this devotional poetry for the two hymns, “Sun of my soul, thou -Saviour dear,” the evening hymn, and “The voice that breathed o’er -Eden,” the wedding song. Beyond the value of these excerpts from his -poems was the poetic stimulus that enriches all subsequent hymnody by -raising the literary quality of the ideal hymn. - -It was this literary quality of the work of the foregoing writers, -their definite recognition of the liturgic needs of the Church, and -their high church ideals and sympathies, that won the final victory of -the hymn over the metrical psalm in the Church of England. This party -had been the last stronghold in England of metrical psalmody. - - - V. CONTEMPORARY HYMN WRITERS - -Although contemporary with the foregoing romantic school, Thomas Kelly -(1769-1854), originally an Evangelical Church of England clergyman, -later on an Independent, was not particularly influenced by them. He -was an indefatigable hymn writer; his collection of _Scripture Hymns_ -finally contained 765 hymns, all original. His ideal was still that of -Watts, Wesley, and Newton—the useful hymn. He had no conscious -striving after literary quality, but, like Newton, frequently rose to -a high standard in this particular when lifted by his theme. He was an -earnest, pious, zealous, enthusiastic preacher, and liberal with his -large wealth. His influence in Ireland was widespread and counted -largely for piety and for evangelistic aggressiveness. - -Some of our most widely used hymns are from his pen: “Hark, ten -thousand harps and voices,” “Look, ye saints, the sight is glorious,” -“On the mountain’s top appearing,” “The Head that once was crowned -with thorns,” “Zion stands with hills surrounded.” - -Another distinguished contemporary, James Montgomery (1771-1854), was -probably more directly influenced by the literary impulses of the -times. A Moravian layman, the son of a Moravian minister, he was a -professional writer and editor of a secular newspaper of considerable -influence. For years a worldling, he was forty-two years old before he -publicly professed his acceptance of Christ. - -He had written quite a good deal of secular poetry up to this time; -now he turned to writing hymns, which he had ceased to do since he was -a boy of fourteen. His poetry was highly appreciated at the time, but -it is now forgotten, although his hymns keep his memory green. He had -served a full literary apprenticeship and had formulated his theories -of the hymn—its character, its content, its limitations—before he -began writing, so that his hymns have an average excellence and -effectiveness that can be paralleled only by those of Bishop Heber. -His critical attitude is very evident in his introduction to his -second book, _Christian Psalmist_: “The faults in ordinary hymns are -vulgar phrases, low words, hard words, technical terms, inverted -construction, broken syntax, barbarous abbreviations that make our -beautiful English horrid even to the eye, bad rhymes, or no rhymes -where rhymes are expected, but above all numbers without cadence.” It -is not surprising that, with this keenly critical approach, he made -many alterations in Cotterill’s _Selection of Psalms and Hymns_, which -he was asked to edit, nor that he almost rewrote the Moravian hymnbook -on which he labored for twelve years. - -The list of Montgomery’s widely accepted hymns is very large: _The New -Methodist Hymnal_ has 8, the _New Presbyterian Hymnal_ 9, _Hymns -Ancient and Modern_ (1904 Ed.) 13. - -The most widely used of Montgomery’s hymns are: “Angels from the -realms of glory,” “Forever with the Lord,” “Hail to the Lord’s -Anointed,” “Hark the song of jubilee,” “In the hour of trial,” “Prayer -is the soul’s sincere desire,” “Oh, where shall rest be found,” “The -Lord is my Shepherd, No want shall I know.” - - - VI. MINOR HYMN WRITERS - -There are some minor writers in this and the succeeding generation -that deserve passing mention. The man of a single hymn sometimes -strikes twelve. - -Among these is John Marriott (1780-1825), a Church of England vicar -whose “Thou, whose almighty word” is in the first rank because of its -dignity and sustained feeling. It is one of our best missionary hymns. - -James Edmeston (1791-1867), a London architect, served his day and -generation with hundreds of hymns for adults and children; only one of -them has become a permanent addition to English hymnody, the evening -hymn, “Saviour, breathe an evening blessing.” - -Another layman, Sir Robert Grant (1785-1838), was conspicuous in his -day as a statesman, and finally as Governor of Bombay; he was a man of -deep piety and elevation of mind. He wrote a number of thoughtful and -impressive hymns, but he made his most permanent contribution to the -Christian Church’s sacrifice of praise in his noble “Oh, worship the -King, all-glorious above,” which is in the first rank for its noble -poetry as well as its profound devotion. - -Another writer of high merit is the butcher’s son, Henry Kirke White -(1785-1806), whose death at the early age of twenty-one years, after -writing at the age of seventeen some poems of such merit as to arrest -the attention of the literary world, was a distinct loss to English -hymnody. How great that loss can be judged from the high quality of -his “The Lord our God is clothed with might,” “Oft in danger, oft in -woe,” and his Christmas hymn, “When marshaled on the nightly plain.” -His struggles with poverty in seeking an education, with skepticism in -finding peace of soul, with dread disease to which he had to succumb, -invest his story with a poignant pathos. - -Another hymnist deserving attention was Bernard Barton (1784-1849), a -Quaker banker, twenty of whose hymns came into general use. Two of -them seem to have won a permanent place in our hymnody, “Lamp of our -feet, whereby we trace” and “Walk in the light! so shalt thou -know”—not great hymns, but extremely useful. - -Henry Francis Lyte (1793-1847) entered the church as a profession, but -presently was led into a deep religious experience by attending the -dying bed of a neighboring clergyman who, too, had looked upon his -work as a means of livelihood. The fruit of this experience was the -hymns that have been so loved and appreciated on both sides of the -ocean. The favorites among them are “Abide with me! Fast falls the -eventide,” “Jesus, I my cross have taken,” “As pants the hart for -cooling streams,” and “Praise, my soul, the King of heaven.” The -pathetic story of his last days has touched the hearts of God’s people -as they have sung his swan song, “Abide with me”—the finest evening -hymn of the Christian church—if it is accepted as an evening hymn. - -That a Unitarian, Sir John Bowring (1792-1872), should have written so -noble a hymn about the cross of Christ as “In the cross of Christ I -glory,” expressing all its spiritual implications, can be explained -only by his orthodoxy of heart. His superficial reasonings were the -outgrowth of his early educational and social environment, and were -not in co-ordination with his deeper convictions. He was a voluminous -writer. His extraordinary genius for languages is revealed in his -series of “Specimens” from the poetry of no less than five European -languages. Politically he was even more conspicuous than Sir Robert -Grant, but, like him, his name will be ever revered for a single great -hymn, “In the cross of Christ I glory.” Other hymns in common use are -“Watchman, tell us of the night” and “God is love; his mercy -brightens.” - -Josiah Conder (1789-1855), the compiler of the _Congregational Hymn -Book_, wrote fifty-six hymns for it, one of which is very impressive -and worshipful, “The Lord is King! lift up thy voice,” which will -undoubtedly live through coming generations. His other hymns are -uniformly good and of a high literary standard, but with less appeal. - - - VII. THE HYMNS OF THE OXFORD MOVEMENT - -Cardinal Newman held that John Keble was the originator of the Oxford -Movement[1] by his great Assize sermon on “The Great Apostasy” -preached at Oxford, and by his emphasis of the church’s calendar in -his _The Christian Year_; but he can hardly be associated with the -school of hymn writers that grew out of it, for some of them -repudiated the literary hymn entirely. - -John Henry Newman (1801-1890) was the leader of the movement back to -the ideals of the pre-Reformation church. He wrote some poetry, -notably “The Dream of Gerontius,” and a few hymns. Of these, “Lead, -kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom” is the most widely known, -because of its attractive music, as he himself testifies. “Praise to -the Holiest in the height” is really a more serviceable hymn for -actual church services. - -His disciples, Edward Caswall (1814-1878) and John Mason Neale -(1818-1866), opened new veins of hymnic wealth in their translations -from the Latin and the Greek, with which they greatly enriched the -treasury of sacred song. In the enthusiasm evoked by their success, -the suggestion was seriously made that all the post-Reformation -hymnody be set aside to give way to the medieval and even earlier -hymns! - -Caswall devoted himself to the Latin medieval hymns and sequences and -made some surpassing translations, or, if you please, -transformations—e.g., “Jesus, the very thought of Thee,” “The sun is -sinking fast,” “My God, I love Thee, not because,” and “When morning -gilds the skies” from the German. He was a Church of England man, but -in 1847 he entered the Roman Catholic Church, following his leader, -Dr. Newman. - -Dr. Neale did not leave the English Church, but was quite prominent in -High-Church circles. He was intensely interested in the liturgics of -his church, which led to his studies of the early Greek church and its -breviaries. He brought to his translations of Greek hymns a literary -skill, a spiritual insight, and a fervor that made him the primate -among those who found their inspiration in these ancient books of -service and breathed into these ancient lyrics the breath of modern -life. Among his most notable successes are: “Art thou weary, art thou -languid?” “Christian, dost thou see them?” “The day is past and over,” -“Fierce was the wild billow,” “’Tis the day of resurrection,” “Brief -life is here our portion,” “Jerusalem the golden.” It must be -remembered that these are not literal translations, but English hymns -made up of ideas suggested by phrases in the originals. Only a poet -imbued with devout feelings, responding to the vague suggestions of -the often obscure originals, could have produced them. - -Another disciple of Cardinal Newman who also followed him into the -Roman Catholic Church was Frederick W. Faber (1814-1863), a poet by -the grace of God, a devout Christian, a man of intense convictions, -but somewhat temperamental and impulsive. Among his many good hymns -are: “My God, how wonderful thou art,” “There’s a wideness in God’s -mercy” (sometimes beginning “Was there ever kindest Shepherd”), “O -Paradise! O Paradise,” “Hark, hark, my soul! angelic songs are -swelling,” “Faith of our fathers! living still.” Few that sing the -last-mentioned hymn realize that it refers to the faith of the Roman -Catholic saints and that the hymn had to be cleansed of its Mariolatry -before being used in our Protestant hymnals. Nevertheless, in its -present form it is a very impressive and valuable hymn that has been -redeemed from the propagandist vagary of its original writer. - -Still under the influence of the Oxford High, or Anglo-Catholic -Church, we find Mrs. Cecil Frances Alexander, (1823-1895), the writer -of many hymns, especially for children, among which are a number that -promise permanent usefulness: “There is a green hill far away,” “Jesus -calls us, o’er the tumult,” “The roseate hues of early dawn.” - -Bishop W. W. How (1823-1897) wrote a number of excellent hymns for his -hymnal, _Psalms and Hymns_, some of which have since found their way -into other hymnals. Perhaps those that have appealed most are “O -Jesus, Thou art standing,” “We give Thee but Thine own,” “O Word of -God incarnate,” “Soldiers of the cross, arise,” “Summer suns are -glowing.” His hymns are thoughtful, devout, and full of tender -feeling; their literary quality is admirable. - -A very copious writer of the same generation was Frances Ridley -Havergal (1836-1879), whose devotional poetry touched the heart of her -generation to a remarkable degree. Her pen was quite facile, and not -all she wrote had more than transient value: but some of her hymns the -Christian Church will permanently treasure: “Take my life, and let it -be,” “I could not do without Thee,” “True-hearted, whole-hearted,” -“Lord, speak to me, that I may speak,” “I gave my life for thee.” Miss -Havergal was a woman of profound Christian experience, which is voiced -by her hymns. - -Among the later writers is Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1927), voluminous -writer on a variety of topics as well as a fairly popular novelist. He -wrote the stirring “Onward, Christian soldiers” for a local -processional of school children and assured himself of an immortality -by a half hour’s writing that all his laborious literary work would -not have won him. He also wrote an appealing evening hymn, “Now the -day is over,” that Joseph Barnby has made popular by his pleasing -tune, “Merrial.” - -In spite of Sir Walter Scott and Robert Burns and a number of minor -poets, and in spite of a wealth of charming folk songs, to prove that -the spirit of song dwells in the Scottish breast, Scotland has made -but a small contribution to English hymnody. The metrical psalm ruled -the Scotch religious heart with a rod of iron. Only during the last -generation has Scotia almost unwittingly made an important -contribution. Horatius Bonar (1808-1889) was an industrious writer on -many topics. He allowed no hymns to be sung in his church, but by a -strange anomaly he issued three series of _Hymns of Faith and Hope_—in -1856, 1861, and 1866. While these hymns were being increasingly sung -around the world, his church sang metrical psalms! More than one -hundred of his hymns are in common use. Among them are the following: -“I heard the voice of Jesus say,” “I lay my sins on Jesus,” “Go, labor -on; spend and be spent,” “Beyond the smiling and the weeping,” “A few -more years shall roll,” “I was a wand’ring sheep,” “When the weary, -seeking rest.” - -Another Scotchman, George Matheson (1842-1906), the blind preacher, -has written, among many others, a hymn whose beauty and mystical -suggestiveness has rapidly given it wide usefulness: “O Love, that -wilt not let me go.” Fortunate in having a very pleasing and effective -tune, St. Margaret by Albert L. Peace, it promises to be a permanent -fountain of blessing. - - - - - _Chapter XVIII_ - AMERICAN HYMNODY - - - I. THE TRANSITION FROM PSALMODY TO HYMNODY - -The metrical versions used in New England were Ainsworth’s in Plymouth -and vicinity under Pilgrim influence, and Sternhold and Hopkins’, -where Puritan influence controlled. The New England ministers were -scholarly and knew their Hebrew Bible. The Sternhold and Hopkins -version was unsatisfactory, not so much for its literary deficiencies, -but because it was not literal enough, did not reproduce the Hebrew -minutely enough. This led, as we have seen in Chapter X, to the Bay -Psalm Book of 1640, which was widely adopted, although Sternhold and -Hopkins still had its partisans. - -These versions could not but find sharp critics among a more or less -scholarly ministry and in time their absurdities weakened their hold -upon the New England churches. - -The utter collapse of the congregational singing due to the lack of -tunes in the psalm books, and the absence of competent precentors,[1] -hastened the revolt among some of the Churches against the versions. -Yet the tyranny of “use and wont” kept most of the churches in line, -only a few of them adopting the later version of Tate and Brady. - -The interest aroused by the “singing school,” and by the organization -of choirs due to the multiplication of tune books, both English and -American, delayed the abolition of the older metrical versions and -postponed the introduction of Watts’ Imitations and Hymns for several -decades, but the complaints from the larger and more cultured churches -and their scholarly ministers became more vociferous.[2] The -combination of the absurdities of the metrical versions, and those -created by the senseless repetition made necessary by the fugue tunes -then in use, became unendurable. - - - II. THE INTRODUCTION OF WATTS’ HYMNS - -Watts’ _The Psalms of David Imitated_ was very well adapted to serve -as an entering wedge. It brought a certain sanction by making David’s -Psalms the foundation. They were still psalms, not hymns, and so -satisfied to some degree the claims of tradition, and placated those -who would have balked at hymns of “human composure.” Benjamin Franklin -in 1729 was the first to reprint the Imitation, but complained that -the copies remained on his shelves unsold. The demand evidently grew, -for in 1741 he issued a second edition. The first reprint of Watts’ -Hymns appeared in 1739 in Boston. Three years later, in 1742, Franklin -reprinted them in Philadelphia, and years later still, they were -republished in New York. - -Whitfield’s visit to America and the outburst of singing of the Great -Awakening (1742), with its profound religious experiences that could -find no adequate expression in the Psalms alone, gave Watts’ Hymns a -larger opportunity. In 1744 the singing of Watts’ Hymns was one of the -diversions of the people when they met together. - -It was not until after the Revolution that the introduction of Watts’ -Psalms and Hymns became general. There were a number of issues with -such abridgments or changes as were made necessary by Watts’ -references to British conditions, by Joel Barlow, a patriotic poet, -author of the _Columbiad_, and later U. S. Minister to France, and by -Nathan Strong, Samuel Worcester, and Timothy Dwight, the distinguished -president of Yale College. All these had considerable vogue, -especially the last which contained metrical versions of the Psalms -Watts had omitted and other psalms versified anew. President Dwight’s -“I love Thy kingdom, Lord” appeared as a versification of Psalm 137. -It is a classic, one of the two leading hymns on the Christian Church, -and is rarely omitted in our hymnals. Besides the Psalms it contained -263 hymns, 168 of which were by Watts. - -The contentions which had occurred over methods of singing—the -“Deaconing” or lining out of the hymns, the use of choirs, the fugal -tunes—now gave way to differences over the use of various editions of -Watts, or over the use of hymns in church service. The tradition, -happily unjustified now, that the music of the church constituted “the -war department” seems to have been originated during that century of -conflict. - - - III. THE BEGINNINGS OF AMERICAN HYMNODY - -Wherever Watts had been able to overthrow the tyranny of the metrical -versions, he seemed to have instituted a tyranny of his own, to the -detriment of the development of an American hymnody. But here and -there lonesome birds were singing songs of their own, early harbingers -of the springtime of American sacred song. - -Samuel Davies, the eloquent President of the College of New Jersey, -now Princeton University, began writing hymns in the middle of the -eighteenth century that were accepted in English hymnbooks before they -became generally known in America. Their quality may be judged from -his hymn of consecration: - - “Lord, I am thine, entirely thine, - Purchased and saved by blood divine; - With full consent thine I would be - And own thy sovereign right in me.” - -The other verses are equally good, if not superior. - -Mather Byles, the brilliant Tory preacher of Boston, was a poet of no -mean pretentions and in close touch with Swift, Pope, and Watts. He -wrote hymns that served their purpose in his day and generation, but -have not been recognized since, partly because of his political -attitude and his advanced views, being one of the first to use Watts’ -Hymns in his congregation. His somewhat oratorical style is evident in -his hymn on the greatness of God: - - “Who can behold the blazing light? - Who can approach consuming flame? - None but thy wisdom knows thy might; - None but thy word can speak thy name.” - -Another early songbird was Samson Occom, the Mohegan Indian, who -raised the money in England which later became the financial nucleus -of the present Dartmouth College. His autobiographical hymn, “Waked by -the Gospel’s joyful sound,” was widely used in England and translated -into Welsh, among whom it was used in their revivals and “led many -hundred sinners to the cross of Christ.” - -Harry Alline (1748-1783) was the most copious hymn writer of that -early day, his _Hymns and Spiritual Songs_ containing four hundred and -eighty-seven Hymns, all from his own pen. His - - “Amazing sight, the Saviour stands, - And knocks at every door! - Ten thousand blessings in his hands - To satisfy the poor,” - -was quite a favorite for many years, but was finally submerged in the -larger tide of sacred song that sprang up through the years. - -The scholarly and eloquent Nathan Strong in his _Hartford Selection_ -used several hymns of his own. His patriotic hymn, “Swell the anthem, -raise the song,” has had a long life of wide usefulness. - -While Watts still reigned supreme during the next quarter of a -century, the impulse and the ability to write acceptable hymns was -rapidly developing. Eccentric Elder John Leland (1754-1851) among a -lot of almost amusing trash wrote an evening hymn that had very wide -acceptance. Dr. Duffield characterizes it as a “classic in its -unpretending beauty,” and Dr. Charles S. Robinson esteemed it so -highly as to exclaim, “May it live forever and ever!” Unfortunately -the supply of fine evening hymns is so great that in the competition -Leland’s hymn has fallen by the way. The last verse will enable the -reader to savor its quality: - - “And when our days are past, - And we from time remove, - Oh, may we in Thy bosom rest, - The bosom of Thy love.” - -How many ministers who sing “Coronation” so heartily are aware that -the composer, Oliver Holden (1765-1844), was a hymn writer as well as -a musician? Yet one of his hymns had a wide use in both America and -England: - - “They who seek the throne of grace - Find that throne in every place; - If we live a life of prayer, - God is present everywhere.” - -After a long and useful life, it, too, has practically disappeared -from our hymnals. - - - IV. COLLECTIONS OF AMERICAN HYMNS - -By 1824 the evangelistic movement, partly a heritage from the Great -Awakening, partly due to the Methodist aggressiveness, and partly to -the religious needs of a widely scattered and pioneer population, made -it evident that the hymns of Watts and his school, with minds set on -worship in more or less formal services for the edification of the -elect, and ignoring the needs of an urgent discipling, were not fitted -for revival work. Rev. Asahel Nettleton, an evangelistic minister -greatly interested in foreign missions, issued his _Village Hymns_, -containing six hundred hymns, only fifty of which were by Watts. Some -of Charles Wesley’s hymns were included, but most of these were -credited to other authors. While other English sources were drawn -upon, the book was noteworthy for the American hymns that appeared in -it. Hymns by Davies, Occom, Alline, Strong, and Dwight were used. An -eager quest for new American hymnists was rewarded by contributions -from William B. Tappan (“’Tis midnight; and on Olive’s brow” and “The -ransomed spirit to her home”); from Phoebe Hinsdale Brown (“I love to -steal awhile away”); and from Abby B. Hyde (“Dear Saviour, if these -lambs should stray”). - -William B. Tappan (1794-1849) was a largely self-educated man, having -attended school but six months. His hymn “There is an hour of peaceful -rest” was widely published in America and England, and on the -Continent, and used to be inevitable in the hymnbooks of sixty years -ago. His “’Tis midnight; and on Olive’s brow” still holds its place, -though largely descriptive, but none the less impressive and useful. - -Mrs. Phoebe Hinsdale Brown (1783-1861) still is represented in most of -our hymnals by her “I love to steal awhile away,” with its pathetic -story of her misunderstood habit of prayer among the scenes of nature. -Greater than the hymn, valuable as it has been, is her contribution to -the progress of Christ’s Kingdom in the work of her missionary son, -Rev. Samuel R. Brown, in China and Japan and that of her grandsons in -the latter country. - -But the revival took on an intenser form under the preaching and -praying of Charles G. Finney and, bright as was the spirit of the -_Village Hymns_, it called for something more vigorous and with a -greater appeal to the unsaved people who were to be won, especially in -the music. Rev. Joshua Leavitt, a Congregational minister, a militant -reformer, enemy of intemperance and slavery (a dangerous attitude in -those days), and an ardent believer in the revival work of Finney, -issued his _The Christian Lyre_ in 1830, which created quite a -sensation. Its hymns did not differ much from those of _Village -Hymns_, but it was more practical in that it supplied the music on the -page opposite to each hymn, no small advance on the ponderous tune -book that had to be held in one hand and the hymnbook in the other. -Lowell Mason and Thomas Hastings had been editing these tune books -filled with dull and stupid music, in whose abundant chaff an -occasional grain of gold occurred, which the Christian Church has been -glad to cherish. The music in _The Christian Lyre_ was bright and -popular, being secular melodies the people were singing. Leavitt had -taken a leaf out of the book of the old mass-writers, who used popular -melodies for their descants, and of Luther and Bourgeois, in taking -popular tunes to reach the people. It was an anticipation of Horace -Waters’ policy in his _Sabbath School Bell_ in 1859. It was also an -anticipation of Moody and Sankey’s _Gospel Hymns_, except that Leavitt -had no Fanny Crosby or Lydia Baxter to supply new texts, and no -reserve of popular music by Lowry, Doane, Bliss, and others to draw -upon. - -As Horace Waters stimulated Bradbury into developing the popular -Sunday school music, one of whose by-products was the Gospel song, so -Leavitt stirred up Mason and Hastings to begin the issue in 1832 of -_Spiritual Songs for Social Worship_, in twelve parts, more nearly the -archetype of the future _Gospel Hymns_. _The Christian Lyre_ left no -residuum for future generations, but Spiritual Songs, edited by men of -wide experience, in touch with the most cultivated clerical circle of -the day, one of them a hymnist of both facility and felicity, made -important permanent contributions not only to American but to -universal Christian hymnody. - -In this collection appeared Thomas Hastings’ “Hail to the brightness -of Zion’s glad morning,” “Gently, Lord, O gently lead us,” “How calm -and beautiful the morn,” “Child of sin and sorrow.” Here also appeared -his enlargement of Thomas Moore’s “Come, ye disconsolate.” Add to -these his tunes “Ortonville,” “Retreat,” “Zion,” “Toplady,” and others -and his other hymns, “Return, O wanderer, to my home,” “Delay not, -delay not, O sinner, draw near,” “The Saviour bids thee watch and -pray,” and it will be seen that Thomas Hastings, even if he is not in -the first rank as hymnist or composer, deserves well of the Christian -Church. - -In this same volume of Spiritual Songs first appeared Rev. Samuel F. -Smith’s two great hymns, “The morning light is breaking” and “My -country, ’tis of thee.” He was still a theological student, -twenty-four years of age, when these were written. The theme of the -latter was suggested in a general way by Lowell Mason, who needed a -patriotic song for his children’s singing schools, and who supplied -him with some music he had recently received from Germany. During a -leisure moment his eye fell on “Heil dir im Sieger-Kranz,” the German -“God Save the King,” written to the English tune, “God Save the King.” -This latter fact he did not know, but liked the tune and was moved to -write unknowingly our National Hymn. Sung by Lowell Mason’s children’s -chorus, it was rapidly introduced and was presently _viva voce_ -accepted as the long-desired National Anthem. Practically an -improvisation, not intended for wide use, it is open to criticism; but -it is greatly superior to its only competitor for national honors, -“The Star-Spangled Banner,” because of its practicability in singing, -its dignity, and its noble expression of the American spirit. That it -refers to hills and not to prairies, and speaks of “pilgrim’s pride” -(without the capital) is open only to captious criticism. - -His “The morning light is breaking” was due to the missionary spirit -that was prevalent in the theological seminaries during that period. -It is the peer of Heber’s “From Greenland’s icy mountains” as a -missionary hymn; many recent critics greatly prefer it. - -Another great hymn that made its premier appearance in _Spiritual -Songs_ was “My faith looks up to Thee,” by Dr. Ray Palmer (1808-1887), -set to one of Lowell Mason’s best tunes, “Olivet.” Meeting Dr. Palmer -on the street, Mason asked him whether he had not an appropriate hymn -for his forthcoming book; young Palmer remembered he had some verses -in his pocketbook and handed them to Mason. Meeting Palmer a few days -afterwards on the street, Mason with great earnestness exclaimed: “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 prophecy, so literally fulfilled, speaks well for -Mason’s critical acumen. Ray Palmer, despite Bishop Wordsworth’s -objection to the pronouns of the first person, wrote “My faith,” “I -pray,” “my guilt,” for his hymn was not intended to be sung, but -simply to express his own spiritual experience. It was a personal -prayer none the less that it took a metrical form. It is one of the -great factors in its world-wide appeal that it becomes the personal -expression of every individual who sings it. - -But Dr. Palmer was not the author of only a single song: he wrote many -others of almost equal value. Writing a sermon on the words of Peter, -“Jesus Christ, whom having not seen ye love,” he was suddenly -overwhelmed by his rapture of love for the Christ, and, the sermon -forgotten, he wrote down the hymn the church will never allow to die: - - “Jesus, these eyes have never seen - That radiant form of thine; - The veil of sense hangs dark between - Thy blessed face and mine. - - I see thee not, I hear thee not, - Yet art thou oft with me; - And earth hath ne’er so dear a spot - As where I meet with thee.” - -In his dying hour he was heard to repeat with broken voice the last -stanza of this hymn: - - “When death these mortal eyes shall seal, - And still this throbbing heart, - The rending veil shall thee reveal, - All glorious as thou art.” - -Other important hymns of Dr. Palmer’s are: “Come, Jesus, Redeemer, -abide Thou with me,” “O Jesus, sweet the tears I shed,” “Take me, O my -Father, take me,” “O Christ, the Lord of heav’n, to Thee,” “Come, Holy -Ghost, in love.” His translation of “Jesu, dulcedo cordium,” the Paris -cento of “Jesu, dulcis memoria,” by an unknown Spanish abbess, is most -highly esteemed: “Jesus, Thou joy of loving hearts.” This cento is -made up of selected verses from “Jesu, dulcis memoria,” from which -Edward Caswell took his admirable “Jesus, the very thought of Thee.” - -Dr. Leonard Bacon (1802-1881), the son of a missionary among the -Indians of Michigan, is noteworthy in two particulars: he issued, at -the age of twenty-one, the first collection of missionary hymns -printed in America, and he wrote the New England patriotic hymn still -used in our churches, - - “O God, beneath thy guiding hand - Our exiled fathers crossed the sea; - And when they trod the wintry strand - With prayer and psalm they worshiped Thee.” - -Born in Detroit, he sang the praise of the divine hand that founded -the New England churches. - - - V. EPISCOPAL HYMN WRITERS - -While the Anglican Church remained faithful to the traditional -metrical versions well into the nineteenth century, the American -Episcopal Church was hospitable to hymns much earlier. Already in 1789 -the House of Bishops ratified the addition of hymns to the psalter. -From decade to decade the demand for additional hymns grew until in -1823 William A. Muhlenberg, a rector of Lancaster, Pa., issued his -_Church_ _Poetry_, consisting of psalms and hymns, which was adopted -by the rectors of other Episcopal churches. In 1827 appeared _Hymns of -the Protestant Episcopal Church_, the majority of whose hymns were by -Watts, Doddridge, Steele, and Charles Wesley. Its most distinctive -feature was the new hymns supplied by five Episcopal writers, Dr. H. -U. Onderdonk, Dr. William Augustus Muhlenberg (1796-1877), Bishop -George W. Doane (1799-1859), J. W. Eastburn, and Francis S. Key -(1779-1843). - -Of Dr. Onderdonk’s nine hymns one came into general use, “The Spirit -in our hearts.” - -Dr. Muhlenberg was more successful, for three of his five are -recognized as a part of American Hymnody: “I would not live alway; I -ask not to stay,” “Shout the glad tidings, exultingly sing,” and the -baptismal hymn, “Saviour, who thy flock art feeding.” - -Bishop Doane was represented by two hymns, both of which still find a -place in our hymnals: “Thou art the way; to thee alone,” “Softly now -the light of day.” The latter is one of our most acceptable evening -hymns. Fully as useful is his vigorous missionary hymn, which, with -its very appropriate tune, “Waltham,” by J. Baptiste Calkin, is adding -inspiration everywhere to the cause, - - “Fling out the banner! let it float - Skyward and seaward, high and wide; - The sun, that lights its shining folds, - The cross, on which the Saviour died.” - -Francis S. Key, the well-known writer of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” -to whom Baltimore has erected an elaborate statue, furnished a fine -hymn of praise, “Lord, with glowing heart I’d praise Thee.” - - - VI. UNITARIAN HYMNODY - -The production of original hymns in New England took a peculiar -course. After Samuel F. Smith, the spirit of praise left the Orthodox -churches and took refuge with the ostensible Unitarians. The reaction -against the rigid and harsh Calvinism was not so much against the -doctrine of the deity of Christ, as against the false corollaries -drawn metaphysically from the noble doctrine of the Sovereignty of -God, as well as the crass, materialistically conceived, conception of -the state of the impenitent dead, that was painted so luridly and -offensively in song as well as in sermon. - -Henry Ware, Jr. (1794-1843), was the son of Professor Henry Ware, who -held the chair of Divinity in Harvard College for thirty-five years. -He himself became professor of Pulpit Eloquence and Pastoral Care in -the same institution in 1830. The pastor for thirteen years of a -prominent Unitarian church in Boston, he never wavered in his faith in -the deity of Jesus Christ. How otherwise could he have written that -triumphant Easter hymn: - - “Lift your glad voices in triumph on high, - For Jesus hath risen, and man cannot die; - Vain were the terrors that gathered around him, - And short the dominion of death and the grave.” - -William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878), America’s first great poet, wrote -five hymns for Henry D. Sewall’s Unitarian Church hymnal in 1820. He -was a member of the First Congregational Unitarian Church in New York -City. Yet in 1865 he could write a hymn containing the following -stanza: - - “Lo! in the clouds of heaven appears - God’s well-beloved Son; - He brings the train of brighter years; - His Kingdom is begun; - He comes, a guilty world to bless - With mercy, truth, and righteousness.” - -In 1875 he could still write in a hymn on “The Star of Bethlehem,” - - “Yet doth the Star of Bethlehem shed - A luster pure and sweet; - And still it leads, as once it led, - To the Messiah’s feet.” - -An even more remarkable Unitarian was Oliver Wendell Holmes -(1809-1894), the great physician, but even greater poet. He had the -reputation of being rather radical in his religious views; he was a -humorist whom human life rather amused than impressed seriously -(though he was tender enough to human suffering), but, when a hymn -seemed an appropriate close for one of his genial essays, he could -write, - - “Lord of all being, throned afar, - Thy glory flames from sun and star; - Center and soul of every sphere, - Yet to each loving heart how near.” - -But unless in the deeper depths of his soul there still lingered faith -in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, how could he write, - - “O Love divine, that stooped to share - Our sharpest pang, our bitterest tear, - On thee we cast each earthborn care; - We smile at pain while thou art near.” - -Especially that last verse of unshaken faith: - - “On thee we fling our burdening woe, - O Love divine, forever dear; - Content to suffer while we know, - Living and dying, thou art near.” - -What might not Oliver Wendell Holmes have done for Christian hymnody, -had he had Charles Wesley’s evangelical experience and piety? - -Another Unitarian deserving recognition was Edmund Hamilton Sears -(1810-1876), who is not remembered because of his successful pastoral -career of forty years, nor by his theological treatises and religious -writings, but by his two Christmas hymns, perhaps the best written in -America (not forgetting Bishop Brooks’ “O Little town of -Bethlehem”)—“Calm on the listening ear of night” and “It came upon the -midnight clear.” The first was written soon after his graduation from -Harvard College in 1834, and the other in 1849 after he had been in -the pastorate over a decade. Of course, he was a firm believer in the -deity of Christ, else he could not have written these hymns. - -After Dr. Ray Palmer, our best American hymnist is John G. Whittier -(1807-1892), who never aspired to such honors! His hymns have been -most deftly extracted from longer poems and, despite their being mere -fragments, are distinctive hymns in progress of thought and structure. -Moreover, they are the very choicest passage in these longer poems. -The additional marvel is that this Unitarian Hicksite Quaker, who was -not taught to sing hymns in his youth, should have given finer -expression than any other writer to the sense of present intimate -communion with Christ: - - “But warm, sweet, tender, even yet - A present help is He; - And faith has still its Olivet, - And love its Galilee.” - - - VII. LATER ORTHODOX HYMN WRITERS - -To this generation George Duffield, Jr. (1818-1888), may be said to -have belonged. His hymn, “Stand up, stand up for Jesus,” is never -omitted from any reputable collection of hymns, liturgic or popular. -He was a foremost figure in the Philadelphia revival of 1857 and 1858, -being associated with Alfred Cookman, the Methodist, and Dudley A. -Tyng, the Episcopalian, whose dying words suggested the hymn. - -Old Dr. Lyman Beecher was a giant in his day, but his chief glory was -in his remarkable family of children. While Henry Ward was most -conspicuous in his day, he was hardly more so than Harriet Beecher -Stowe (1812-1896), the author of _Uncle Tom’s Cabin_, which, with -Hanby’s _Darling Nellie Gray_, prepared the heart of the North to buy -at a tremendous cost of treasure and blood the Emancipation -Proclamation. But Mrs. Stowe is not simply a historic character whose -work is done; she is living still in her hymns, notably the exquisite -morning hymn, “Still, still with thee, when purple morning breaketh,” -a fitting mate for Lyte’s evening hymn, “Abide with me; fast falls the -eventide.” - -Mention should be made of Anna Warner (1820-1915), whose children’s -hymn, “Jesus loves me, this I know,” set to Bradbury’s simple -pentatonic melody has girdled the globe. Other hymns by Miss Warner -are “One more day’s work for Jesus” and “We would see Jesus; for the -shadows lengthen.” - -Among later American hymn writers is Mary Artemisia Lathbury -(1841-1913), who wrote “Break Thou the bread of life” (not a communion -hymn, by the way) and “Day is dying in the West,” with William F. -Sherwin’s tunes, which are to be found in all our hymnals and which -are very tender, very useful. - -The American Episcopal Church has supplied some admirable hymns -through Bishop Arthur Cleveland Coxe (1818-1896), who wrote “Oh, where -are kings and empires now,” the almost apocalyptic “We are living, we -are dwelling,” and the missionary “Saviour, sprinkle many nations,” -all hymns of high worth; and Bishop Phillips Brooks (1835-1893), whose -“O little town of Bethlehem” is a favorite Christmas carol. - -Mrs. Frances Crosby Van Alstyne (1820-1915), familiarly known as -“Fanny Crosby,” would be the premier hymn writer of America if the -criteria were quantity and wideness of use. There can be no question -as to the evangelistic and devotional value of her hymns, whatever -their literary quality or permanent appeal may be. “Safe in the arms -of Jesus,” “Rescue the perishing,” “Blessed Assurance,” “Pass me not, -O gentle Saviour,” “Saviour, more than life to me,” “I am thine, O -Lord, I have heard thy voice,” “Jesus, keep me near the cross,” and -many others will probably be permanent in hymnals and song collections -of a popular and evangelistic type. - -Valuable hymns of the same practical gospel song type have been -written by Mrs. Lydia Baxter, Philip Paul Bliss, Annie Sherwood Hawks, -Mrs. Ellen Huntington Gates, Rev. E. A. Hoffman, Miss E. E. Hewitt, -Mrs. C. H. Morris, President J. E. Rankin, D.D., and many others. - -Mrs. Elizabeth Prentiss (1818-1878), daughter of the saintly and -greatly beloved Rev. Edward Payson, wrote _Stepping Heavenward_, a -book that stimulated and cheered multiplied thousands and lifted their -spiritual ideals. Of her 123 _Religious Poems_, one has won a -permanent place in our hymnals, “More love to Thee, O Christ.” It is -not a substitute for Mrs. Adams’ “Nearer, my God, to Thee,” but a -complement. - -Other writers of single hymns that the Church has used with great -effect are Dr. Washington Gladden’s (1836-1918) “O Master, let me walk -with Thee,” a hymn of Christian service; Dr. Sylvanus Dryden Phelps’ -“Saviour, Thy dying love;” Dr. Edward Hopper’s “Jesus, Saviour, pilot -me;” Dr. Joseph Henry Gilmore’s (1834-1918) “He leadeth me, O blessed -thought;” Ernest W. Shurtleff’s (1862-1917) “Lead on, O King eternal;” -Frank Mason North’s (1850-1935) “Where cross the crowded ways of -life”; the second, third, and fourth of the songs just mentioned have -a Gospel song origin. - -More recent writers are Rev. Frederick L. Hosmer and Rev. William C. -Gannett in whose _The Thought of God_ are found hymns of deep piety -and strong religious feeling. Room is made for two stanzas of Dr. -Hosmer’s “Found,” - - “O Name, all other names above, - What art thou not to me, - Now I have learned to trust thy love - And cast my care on thee? - - What is our being but a cry, - A restless longing still, - Which thou alone canst satisfy, - Alone thy fullness fill?” - -A more important recent hymn writer is Rev. Louis F. Benson, D.D. -(1855-1930), the editor of the current Presbyterian hymnals. This -history of Christian hymnody cannot close more fittingly than to quote -part of a stirring hymn by this greatest of American hymnologists: - - “Forward! singing ‘Glory - To our Lord the King’; - Forward! Trusting only - In the name we sing. - See the day is breaking - And the road points far; - March, with eyes uplifted - To the Morning Star. - - Blessed is the Kingdom; - Blessed be the King! - Crowned is every duty - His commandments bring. - Now to serve like soldiers, - Now to work like men; - Oh, to love as God loves - And to conquer then.” - - - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - - - - - PART III - PRACTICAL HYMNOLOGY - - - - - _Chapter XIX_ - THE STUDY OF HYMNS - - - I. IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY OF HYMNS - -It has been said that the two great books which every minister should -study are the Bible and human nature. A third great book may be added, -in which the foregoing two unite in a new combination—the Hymnbook. - -In that collection of hymns the truths of the Bible find their -expression in a new form. They are no longer Oriental in spirit, based -upon human experiences under different conditions and in a different -intellectual atmosphere, but modern, and strong with a fresh vitality. -They have passed through the crucible of intense personal feeling and -experience, and have been recast in forms more comprehensible to a -different race and to a different age. - -Next to his library of comment upon the Bible, and of exposition of -its doctrines, should be that of the minister’s hymnological books -giving the history, the illustrations, and the methods of making -effective the hymns he uses in his congregation. - - - II. PERSONAL ADVANTAGES OF SUCH STUDY OF HYMNS - -The first line of the study of hymns should be contributory to his own -personal development. - - - _Literary Pleasure._ - -A great delight awaits the minister of cultivated taste and -sensibility, for there are not only ten really good hymns, as a famous -literary doctor[1] once insisted, but hundreds of them, whose -distinction and beauty of phraseology, whose fresh and orderly -development of ideas, and whose elevation and glory of thought give -unfailing literary pleasure. How can one read Harriet Beecher Stowe’s -“Still, still with Thee,” that best of American morning hymns, without -exquisite delight? - - “Still, still with Thee, when purple morning breaketh, - When the bird waketh, and the shadows flee: - Fairer than morning, lovelier than daylight, - Dawns the sweet consciousness, I am with Thee.” - -Prominent among these literary hymns will be that hymn of majestic -praise by Sir Robert Grant: - - “Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above, - Oh, gratefully sing his power and his love; - Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of days, - Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise. - - Oh, tell of his might, oh, sing of his grace, - Whose robe is the light, whose canopy space: - His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form, - And dark is his path on the wings of the storm.” - -Here are majesty and beauty of thought, flawless phraseology, and -musical numbers. No editor has found excuse to alter or amend it. - -Even Isaac Watts, who boasted his freedom from literary trammels and -who illustrated that freedom all too often and too perversely, proved -his latent poetic powers in the noble poetry of - - “Our God, our Help in ages past, - Our Hope for years to come, - Our shelter from the stormy blast, - And our eternal home.” - -That the literary quality of Adelaide A. Procter’s hymn, “My God, I -thank Thee who hast made,” is high no one would deny: - - “My God, I thank Thee, who hast made - The earth so bright, - So full of splendor and of joy, - Beauty and light; - So many glorious things are here, - Noble and right.” - -The minor chord in the third verse but renders more poignant the high -glory of her praise: - - “I thank Thee more that all our joy - Is touched with pain; - That shadows fall on brightest hours, - That thorns remain; - So that earth’s bliss may be our guide, - And not our chain.” - -There is a mine of inestimable literary wealth awaiting the search of -discriminating taste.[2] - - - _Literary Culture._ - -But many ministers of limited native susceptibility to literary and -poetic beauty, and perhaps of none too efficient literary -opportunities, will not be able at once to enter into the delight of -the literary qualities of hymns. All the more will it be important for -them to study their hymnal for the sake of its opportunity for -deepening their capacity for enjoying literary values. Their -imaginations need to be stimulated. Their response to the charm of -musical phrases, to the clearness and lucidity of the thought -expressed, to the fitness of the unexpected and pleasing metaphors -used, to the nice selection of the words employed to weave a garb of -beauty for the message the hymn is intended to convey, can be and must -be developed, if not only the proper appreciation of the hymns but -also their highest efficiency as preachers are to be secured. - -Few preachers realize the importance of this literary culture; yet, -apart from his deity, Jesus Christ was the greatest literary man the -race has developed. His parables, his similes, his aptness of phrase, -his wit, his clearness of style, despite the great topics on which he -discoursed, cannot be paralleled in any literature. The literary value -of the Gospels is one of the reasons of their agelong and race-wide -appeal. - -The effort of the preacher to sensitize his mind and spirit, in order -to appreciate what his hymnal offers, will give him more of the -extraordinary winsomeness of his Master’s style. - -While not all hymns are distinctly literary in style and vocabulary, -most of them have some poetical and imaginative qualities, and a great -many of them have marked literary value. A careful canvass of these -values will develop literary discrimination and taste. Hymns like -Keble’s “Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear” and Heber’s “Brightest and -best of the sons of the morning” must stimulate genuine literary -appreciation. To segregate carefully in his mind the genuinely -literary hymns—those that are full of imagination, symmetrical in -structure, gracious in phraseology—will be a literary exercise of -inestimable value. - - - _Development of Emotional Nature._ - -But the finest literary discrimination and the highest literary -delight cannot be secured without an emotional responsiveness that -ministers do not always bring to their reading of hymns. But this -emotion must not simply be poetic, it must be spiritual, based on an -actualization of the profound spiritual truths expressed in the hymns. - -The most common fault among ministers is an aridity of mind, a dryness -of feeling, a habit of abstract, academic thinking which have no -response to the emotional values in the doctrines they preach. It is -the secret of many an empty church, of many a barren pastorate. - -To some men who lack emotional and poetic insight, the hymnbook may -appear dry and uninteresting. It certainly is unappealing to the -unspiritual man, no matter how poetical he may be, and this will -account for the occasional attack upon the hymns of the Christian -Church as being without poetical power or merit. But the Christian -minister, who deals with spiritual things, for whom the emotions of -the human heart are a great opportunity, ought to find in the study of -his hymnbook a great deepening of emotional intuition. - -Here he comes in touch with the saints of the Church who have risen to -the greatest heights of spiritual insight, and who have sung because -the feelings within them were so impelling that they could not do -otherwise than sing. His own deficient emotion and his own dull -insight into spiritual truth are here inspired and stimulated until he -too stands upon the mountaintop. For his own spiritual edification, -therefore, there is nothing, outside the Bible, so likely to be of -spiritual help as the hymnbook. When he is discouraged, its hymns of -inspiration and encouragement cannot but lift the cloud. When his -heart is dull, and his vision of his Lord obscured, such hymns as -“Jesus, I love Thy charming name,” by Philip Doddridge, - - “Jesus, these eyes have never seen - That radiant form of Thine,” - -by our own Ray Palmer, or - - “Jesus, the very thought of Thee - With sweetness fills my breast,” - -by that unknown saintly abbess of the Middle Ages, surely will once -more set his spiritual pulses in motion and thrill him with the -vitalizing vision of his Lord. - -It is with this emotional attitude alone that a minister should study -his hymns; otherwise, he will fail in realizing any of their values. -To come to them coldly dissecting them with knife and scalpel is to -miss their beauty, their spiritual appeal. The minister who prays over -his sermon would do well to pray with equal fervency over the hymns he -studies and selects. If he vitalizes them for himself, that fresh -vision of their meaning will reach the congregation directly and -indirectly. - - - III. THE PRACTICAL VALUES OF INDIVIDUAL HYMNS - -Not the least important consideration in the study of hymns is clearly -to envisage their several effective values. To know the literary worth -and the spiritual stimulus of a given hymn is most desirable; but to -realize what spiritual results it is fitted to secure, and how, is -even more important. Each hymn has its individual force, its -individual adaptation to definite mental and spiritual results; for -the minister not to recognize these varying effects is like the -failure of a physician to know the differing reactions of baking soda -and strychnine. To announce “All hail the power of Jesus’ name,” when -the situation calls for the tenderness of “How sweet the name of Jesus -sounds,” is malpractice none the less that it is so frequently done. - - - _Classifying Hymns by Their Nature._ - -It will be helpful to classify hymns, deciding to which group each one -belongs. Some are purely didactic, bearing instruction rather than -emotion. Others are meditative, combining elements of instruction and -personal experience. Another class expresses personal experience and -the resultant emotion; such hymns may be tender or joyous or even -exultant. Taking another step upward, we find hymns of inspiration and -exhortation, fundamental expressions of faith and enthusiasm. Rising -high above all the foregoing are the hymns of worship and adoration, -thanksgiving and praise. - -This is the primary process in evaluating the practical possibilities -of hymns. It is in these pigeonholes of his memory that the minister -finds the hymn called for by a given situation. - - - _Classifying Hymns by Their Fitness for Definite Purposes._ - -Then there is the classification of fitness for different purposes, -organizing them according to the particular work each is fitted to do. -Some hymns are distinctly liturgical, fitting only into a solemn and -stately service by the great congregation—e.g., Faber’s “My God, how -wonderful Thou art,” Watts’ “Before Jehovah’s awful throne,” or -Tersteegen’s “Lo, God is here: let us adore.” - -In a less formal class are Van Dyke’s “Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee,” -Grant’s “Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above,” “Praise the Lord! -ye heavens, adore Him,” and many others in which rejoicing in the Lord -takes a less majestic but none the less genuine form, fitting smaller -assemblies and what without derogation may be called ordinary church -services. - -Hymns of still another class, represented by Robinson’s “Come, Thou -Fount of every blessing,” Wesley’s “O Love divine, how sweet Thou -art,” Keble’s “Sun of my soul, Thou Saviour dear,” are still -distinctly worshipful, but have an intimacy of communion in which -tenderness and joy veil the sense of infinite majesty. - -The foregoing classes of worshipful hymns are available for the -regular services of the church, although some of them call for a -preparation of the worshipers for their intelligent and sincere -singing. They are helpful to devout people in their approach to the -Triune God. - -Jesus Christ is not only God in the fullest, truest sense; he is our -Redeemer, our Mediator, our Sharer of the deeper experiences of the -soul, our Comrade in the march of life, our intimate Friend in time -and eternity. Hence, there are many hymns of praise and adoration of -Jesus Christ that are elevated in mood, even majestic, like Wesley’s -“Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing,” Robinson’s “Mighty God, while -angels bless thee,” Hammond’s “Awake and sing the song,” which will -fit into the most exalted service of worship. There are many others -like “Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,” Medley’s “Oh, could I -speak the matchless worth,” Havergal’s “O Saviour, precious Saviour,” -which are keyed a little lower, but are still most appropriate for an -average church service. - -In addition to these there are hymns of communion with Christ, of love -for and delight in him, yea, even of intimate affection, like -Caswall’s “My God, I love Thee, not because,” Newton’s “How sweet the -name of Jesus sounds,” Palmer’s “My faith looks up to Thee,” which are -so fine in feeling, so heartfelt, so intimate, that they require -preparation of the congregation before they can be sung sincerely. -Some of them are so intense, like “I need Thee every hour,” “My Jesus, -I love Thee, I know Thou art mine,” and Palmer’s “Jesus, these eyes -have never seen,” that their use seems limited to assemblies, small or -large, entirely made up of earnest believers. Indeed, there are many -of our intensest hymns of devotion to our Lord Jesus Christ that can -be worthily sung only in prayer meetings where there is profound -emotion to be expressed. Some of them cannot be sung by the general -congregation except when the tide of religious fervor runs high. - -Without further analysis, enough has been said to show that in the -practical classification of hymns two major factors must be -considered: the character, depth, and quality of the emotional burden -of the hymn, and the character and the emotional responsiveness of the -people who are expected to sing it. Ignorance of the former and lack -of proper diagnosis of the latter will bring defeat to the minister -who is depending on his hymns for help in securing spiritual results. - - - IV. THE MINUTE STUDY OF HYMNS - -There can be no adequate knowledge of a hymn without a survey of the -whole field of hymnology. It is necessary to understand the character -and limitations of the hymn, to visualize its history and development, -in order to secure its proper interpretation and use. It is -unfortunate that too many ministers are satisfied with this general -knowledge which is, after all, only a preparation for the study of the -individual hymn. It is only in the individual hymn that the point of -contact with practical results is reached. One may know all about -Isaac Watts and yet know so little of his great hymn “When I survey -the wondrous cross” as to announce it at a church banquet before all -the people are done eating! Imagine John, Peter, and the rest munching -dried figs or dates as they stand before the cross on which their -Master is dying! - -Only as the individual hymns are fully understood as to their meaning, -and as to the methods required to get that meaning transformed into -experience and character, can hymnology become a practical force. - - - _Analysis of the Hymn._ - -1. The first step is the investigation of its structure. The form of -the stanza, the kind of measure used, the proper occurrence of -accents, the schedule of rhymes all are important, controlling the -music and the reading of the hymn. - -The logical structure is even more important as governing the -development of thought. Recognition of the relation of the several -verses to the general plan of the hymn will reveal their individual -value and prevent mutilation when circumstances demand omission of -verses. This structure is more evident in didactic and homiletical -hymns, of course, but the progress of thought usually lies near the -surface. The doctrinal teachings should be clearly and explicitly -thought out. - -2. There is a logic of emotion more or less paralleling that of -thought. There are ebb and flow of feeling, radical change of feeling, -one feeling merging into another, that must be recognized. The -climaxes of interest in the succeeding verses, rising higher and -higher and culminating in the supreme climax of the last verse, should -be noted that they may be expressed in the reading and the singing. -This recognition of the emotional character of the hymn is absolutely -essential to its real effectiveness. The hymn is fundamentally an -expression of emotion, and only as such has it practical value. - -3. After this general analysis of the structure and thought and of the -general emotion of the hymn, there will need to be a study of its -detailed phrases. The minister ought to study it line by line and -phrase by phrase. The Scriptural allusions need to be located and -their connections noted. What did Charles Wesley mean in his great -hymn, “Love divine, all loves excelling,” by the phrase in the second -verse, “the second rest”? Why did he pray “Finish, then, thy new -creation”?[3] What is the Scriptural justification for the phrases of -Newton’s “How sweet the name of Jesus sounds”?[4] In Doddridge’s -“Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve,” what Biblical authority has he -for “cloud of witnesses,” or the ideas of “prize” and “race”?[5] What -did Watts mean in the third verse of his “Not all the blood of -beasts,” - - “My faith would lay her hand - On that dear head of Thine, - While like a penitent I stand - And there confess my sin”? - -Without the picture of the high priest laying his hands on the head of -the scapegoat and confessing the sins of the people before sending it -out into the wilderness (Lev. 16:21), what meaning can these lines -convey? - - - _The Background of the Hymn._ - -1. The interpretation of the hymn cannot be complete without a -recognition of the person who wrote it. His type of mind, his -responsiveness to divine truth, his conception of the work of the -Church, stamp themselves on the product of his pen. The personality of -Watts, of Wesley, of Whittier, and of Faber interpret their several -hymns. - -Knowledge of the circumstances under which a given hymn was written -will add to the value and correctness of the interpretation, by giving -a sense of actuality to the thought and feeling expressed. - -2. The age in which a hymn was written will be a large factor in its -interpretation. The sheer objectiveness of the ancient hymns, the -meditativeness of the medieval hymns stressing the sufferings of -Christ on the cross, the worship character of the pre-Wesley hymns, -including those of Watts, the warm, tender, experiential hymns of the -Wesleyan Revival, all stamp their several hymns ineffaceably with -their characteristics. “A mighty fortress is our God” bears the -_stigmata_ of the opening battles of the German Reformation. “Jesus, -the very thought of Thee” is permeated by the peace and ardent piety -of the Spanish nunnery whose devout abbess wrote the Latin original. -“Stand up, stand up for Jesus” sounds the militant note of the great -Philadelphia revival of 1857 and the Antislavery campaign that was so -soon to drench the South with the noblest blood of both sections. - -Watts’ hymns must be analyzed in the light of the prevailing psalmody, -of the religious aridity of his time, and of the formalism, not of the -Established Church only, but of that of the Nonconformist societies as -well. Wesley’s hymns cannot be understood except as expressing the -struggle between extreme worldly-mindedness, sensuality, and social -decay outside of the Church, allied with the mere formalism and the -cold and sheerly pharisaic morality within, on the one side, and the -emphasis of conversion, profound religious experience, and aggressive -evangelistic propaganda on the other. The objectivity and essentially -liturgic spirit of Watts’ hymns and the subjective warmth and the -poetic glow of those of Charles Wesley immediately become full of -meaning and historic vitality. - -3. The greater hymns gather about themselves the noble associations of -the many generations which have lived and died with their lines upon -their lips. Would “Rock of Ages, cleft for me” or “Jesus, Lover of my -soul,” if written now, speedily win the place they now hold in our -Christian hymnody? Would “Come, Thou Fount of every blessing” be -widely sung, if it were not that in England and America it had been an -impressive voice of worship in chapel and home, in stately church, and -in mountain schoolhouse on the American frontier? Lips now trembling -with age lisped them in childhood; memories of father and mother, of -thrilling religious experiences, when the very heavens seemed to open -to the soul, cluster about them. - -4. Only in this way can he secure a clear idea of what parts of a hymn -will serve his immediate purpose, which lines and phrases will enrich -his discourses or bring his points to an incandescent glow, or which -verses when sung will assure the definite effect he has in mind. There -may well be occasions when he will want his people to sing, not the -first verse of Whittier’s tender hymn, “We may not climb the heavenly -steeps,” but the second, - - “But warm, sweet, tender, even yet - A present help is He; - And faith has still its Olivet, - And love its Galilee,” - -or the even more comforting third verse, - - “The healing of the seamless dress - Is by our beds of pain; - We touch him in life’s throng and press, - And we are whole again.” - -Such a study in interpretation will greatly enhance the spiritual -values of the hymns to the minister himself, enriching mind and heart. -It will make it possible for him to interpret them to his people. To -any person the hymn is what he understands it to mean, no more; its -effect on him is in due proportion to the completeness of his -interpretation of it. The minister, therefore, is in duty bound to -supply each singer in his congregation with an accurate and complete -understanding of the hymns that are sung. - - - _Making a Hymnal of His Own._ - -The minister who has given his hymnal the study that has been -suggested will wish to garner and organize the materials he has thus -won. He will proceed to make a little hymnal of his own by selecting a -given number of the hymns that appeal to him—say one hundred—in his -regular hymnal. This will constitute his inner hymnal to which from -time to time he will make additions. - -These hymns will be marked in his own copy of the church hymnal, a -wide margined one, or an interleaved one, if it can be secured. As he -analyzes each one, finding the joints in its structure, he will -indicate the results by lines of division with the proper captions. -His dissection of the phrases will disclose more or less obscure -allusions needing explanation, like “Siloam’s pool,” “Mt. Nebo’s -lonely height,” “Gog and Magog,” “Ebenezer” and many others that -convey no meaning to the average mind. These should be underlined for -explanation. Some phrases are so suggestive, so packed with meaning, -that their value eludes the ordinary singer—for instance, the second -verse of Monsell’s “My sins, my sins, my Saviour.” These should be put -in quotation marks to remind the preacher to unpack by spirited -comment their wealth for the edification of his people. - -Numbers referring to his card index or commonplace book will bring to -mind helpful facts about the hymn, or its writer, or illustrations -that will quicken both mind and heart. Enclosing a verse or verses in -brackets will mark those that can be omitted without wrecking the -symmetrical progress of the thought. That will eliminate the usual -thoughtless phrase, “We will omit the third verse.” If there is a -choice of tunes, the most practicable one can be indicated; or a tune -better known to the congregation elsewhere in the hymnal may be -suggested with its number. - -Verses to be read by the congregation, or to be sung by the choir or -by a soloist, before being sung by the people may be starred. Changes -of force, or speed, may be marked _p._ for soft singing, or _f._ for -loud singing. A passage marked _rit._ will be retarded, or hurried if -marked _accel._ A repeat sign, _bis_, after a verse will suggest that -a verse may be profitably repeated. Scripture references will suggest -passages that can be used to emphasize the sentiment of the hymn, such -as Genesis 28:10-13, for the hymn, “Nearer, my God, to Thee.” _M_ -before a verse may mark it as a memory verse to be sung with closed -hymnal. _P_ may indicate that it is a prayer, to be sung before the -long prayer. Dates connected with a hymn will show when it has been -sung, and so prevent its unduly frequent repetition from mere force of -habit. Every alert-minded minister will have methods and devices of -his own that should be recorded in connection with the hymns so -treated. - -Such a hymnal, individual, practical, wealthy in resources, will be of -incalculable value to the wide-awake, aggressive minister, rendering -him independent of moods, of dull spirits, of disturbing environments. -He needs but open his hymnal, a treasure house of practical -suggestions, and his resources, immediately accessible and fully -prepared, await his use. - -A personal hymnal like this will not be made in a day or a month. Week -by week, as hymns are selected, they are fully investigated and -studied and their points recorded in the preacher’s copy. His skimming -of newspapers and magazines, his daily experiences, his hearing of -addresses and sermons; his reading of history and literature, no less -than his study of hymnological literature, will pay heavy tribute to -such a royal treasury. - -The books of hymnic material, pretty largely historical, are fairly -numerous, and their help should not be despised, for they offer very -useful illustrative matter. Robinson’s _Annotations upon Popular -Hymns_ is not as up-to-date nor as scholarly exact as the later -Duffield’s _English Hymns_, or as Nutter and Tillett’s _Hymns and Hymn -Writers of the Church_, but is richer anecdotally and more suggestive -of expository comment. Dr. Benson’s still later _Studies of Familiar -Hymns_, Series I and II, will be found very rich in practical -material. The present writer’s _Practical Hymn Studies_[6] offers help -most ministers need. The matter found in these and other like -collections should be carefully sifted and recorded. A condensation of -the selected items, particularly of the longer anecdotes, may be ample -for all practical purposes. - -Is it necessary to suggest again that all this varied material should -be well organized in a loose-leaf blank book small enough to be -carried about or, better yet, in a rebound, interleaved hymnal? - -In making such a thorough study of as many hymns as he has leisure to -analyze, the minister is really editing a hymnal of his own, none the -less his own that it is embedded in the larger collection. There are -very few preachers who do not have such an inner hymnal made up of the -hymns they are in the habit of using; the pity is that it is -frequently so small, so poorly selected, so unsymmetrical, so -dependent on an unresponsive memory, and so lacking in the materials -that would help to make the hymns effective. - - - _Memorizing Hymns._ - -A large number of hymns should be committed to memory for his own -mental enrichment and comfort. It will enlarge his devotional -vocabulary, his power of expression of spiritual things—nay more, -increase the spontaneity and spirituality of his thinking and feeling, -for memory lies nearer the springs of subconscious intuition and -impulses than the printed word. A wealth of spiritual thought, of -sanctified imagination, of vibrant religious feeling, of apt and -expressive phrase and vocabulary, is provided by such a well-stocked -memory. - -The subconscious mind will furnish the fitting quotation, whether he -writes his sermon or speaks _ex tempore_. In unexpected emergencies, -when there is no time to leaf over the hymnal for a verse to be sung, -the mind automatically supplies it. In personal work, in cheering the -sick, in comforting those who mourn, in inspiring the lagging and -discouraged ones, the apt quotation will be exceedingly effective. -There are moments in a service, unexpected episodes of an emotional -character, climaxes of feeling in a discourse, when a verse of a hymn -sung by the congregation will exceed in impressiveness any oratorical -outburst; if the minister can trust his memory, he can carry the -faltering memories of his people and realize an effect otherwise -impossible, not only not losing any momentum, as he would if it were -necessary to refer to the hymnal, but indefinitely increasing it. The -great hymns of the Church should be made a part of his mental -furniture, become a large share of his clerical working capital. He -should not be satisfied to have less than a hundred hymns at his -mental fingers’ ends for efficient use at a moment’s notice. - - - V. A STUDY OF METHODS OF USE - -But it is not enough to gather the materials and study the individual -hymns. A magazine of blasting powder has immense possibilities of -power; but unless methods are invented for applying that power to -desired ends, it is a liability and not an asset. Having learned all -about hymns, the next study is how efficiently to use them, to -organize the best methods of exploiting the social, mental, and -spiritual values their singing offers. - - - _Using Hymns in Sermons._ - -Few ministers utilize the possibilities of apt Scripture quotations in -their sermons; fewer still know how to draw on the treasures found in -their hymnals to increase interest and intensify emotion. In many -cases the very finest climax to a section of a sermon, or to the -sermon itself, will be found in one or more verses of a hymn which -brings the emotion of the theme to its high culmination. There is no -lack of material; for the expression of every Christian doctrine that -lends itself to lyric feeling there are intense and poignant phrases -and lines steeped in transcendent emotion. Abstract truth has -intellectual value of course, but has spiritual value only when -transmuted into the gold of intense conviction in the heart of true -believers. It is the genuine hymn that raises the temperature to the -transmuting point, if properly introduced and emotionally used. - - - _Studying Responsiveness of the Congregation._ - -The intelligent preacher will study his congregation and its -capacities of song to determine what he can do. He will canvass their -responsiveness to certain classes of hymns, solemn, cheerful, -aggressive, meditative, emotional, didactic—literary, popular. Their -taste in the tunes to be used will need to be carefully considered. It -would be folly to announce “When the Roll is Called up Yonder” in a -congregation used to singing and enjoying Luther’s “Ein’ feste Burg -ist unser Gott”; equally so to ask a congregation that enjoys singing -“There’s sunshine in my soul” to sing Iron’s version of the “Dies -Irae.” - -A survey must needs be made of the musical resources and of the -adaptability of musical helpers. In some cases such adaptability needs -to be trained and developed. Their pliancy in rapidly taking up new -methods, and executing unexpected plans of the preacher quickly, will -require training. - - - _Studying Methods of Announcement and Securing Participation._ - -An important study will be how to announce and introduce the hymns in -such a way as to awaken the interest and to win the sympathetic -attention of the members of the congregation, and also how to help the -people to sing with their minds and hearts, as well as with their -vocal cords. - -The methods to be used in securing full participation in the singing, -without losing sight of the deeper meaning of the hymn, will need to -be formulated or borrowed from successful leaders of song. The problem -is not met by merely urgent demands that everybody sing; they must all -be moved upon to want to sing. Can it be done by illustrations, by -moving anecdotes, by tender appeals bearing on the thought and feeling -of the hymn in hand? The kind of anecdotes and how they are to be -used, before or during any given hymn, will call for careful -discrimination. How shall the preacher acquire the power of -introducing a hymn in a very few well-chosen words, vibrant with the -feeling the hymn expresses, striking the spiritual key connecting up -the hymn with the religious purpose of the whole service? Year after -year, by observation of other ministers and song leaders, by his -reading, by experiments of his own, he will acquire a body of -efficient methods with which to vitalize his song service. - - - _Studying Use of Hymnal for Specific Purposes._ - -This will include methods of using hymns for specific purposes. Is his -congregation indifferent with regard to some particular line of work -that he wishes to present—missions, for instance: what hymns, and -methods of using them, will stimulate their minds and prepossess them -for this as yet unappealing topic? Are they careless or irreverent in -mood as they gather: can he sober their minds and awe their souls with -a consciousness of God’s actual presence with a solemn hymn and its -impressive tune? How shall he use the singing of the hymns to affect -and win the unsaved whom he plans to invite to accept Jesus Christ as -Saviour and Master? In a thousand ways the intelligent and adroit -minister can make his hymns count largely in accomplishing his -beneficent purposes. - - - VI. A STUDY OF THE TUNES - -One of the most important lines of study will be that of the tunes to -which the hymns are to be sung.[7] To use a botanical figure, a hymn -will not bear fruit unless it is pollenized by a vital tune. Who would -be even aware of Cardinal Newman’s “Lead, Kindly Light,” if it were -not for Dykes’ tune? Without Lowry and Doane’s music what recognition -would the modest lyrics of Fanny Crosby have won? Wesley’s “Hark, the -herald angels sing” owes the wideness of its Christmas use to -Mendelssohn’s tune. Tennyson’s “Sunset and Evening Star” and “Sweet -and Low” were brought to wide public attention by Barnby’s two -settings. Without the wings of melody few hymns would get very far in -place or time. A mediocre hymn with a good singable tune will do -vastly more good than a great hymn with an impracticable one. - -Hence it is the minister’s business to study the tunes. Not the notes, -not the harmony: he can leave them to his musical experts, if he has -them. He must study the singability of the tune, its appeal to his -particular people, its adaptation to the sentiment of the hymn with -which it is associated. Its age, its traditional or conventional use, -its style, its composer, its elaboration of harmony—all these are -merely incidental. That it is singable, fitted to express and -intensify the sentiment of the hymn, to give it access to the hearts -of the congregation, to create the contagion of feeling in the -assembly—these are the essentials of a good tune. - -Just as the sales departments of our great manufacturing -establishments make an intensive study of the psychology of -salesmanship in all its phases, so the ministry of the church, in its -schools of preparation and in its several organizations, should -increase its efficiency as salesman of vital religion by a like study -of the psychology of the hymn and of its use. - - - - - _Chapter XX_ - THE PRACTICAL USE OF HYMNS - - - I. THE HYMN AS A MEANS TO AN END - -While our discussion attempts to consider every phase of the Christian -hymn, its chief interest to us lies in it as a means to an end. It may -be a work of literary art, the expression of a noble genius admirable -in itself; it may be an interesting epitome of some noble doctrine -that calls for appreciation of its lucidity and comprehensiveness; but -for us its primary quality must be its adaptation to meet spiritual -needs, in other words, its usefulness in religious work. In some way -it must help in the work of the church, if it is to come within the -sweep of our present horizon. - - - II. ANALYSIS OF PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF HYMNS - -There are two values in the singing of hymns that must needs be taken -into consideration: one is the sheerly musical or nervous value; the -other is the message or burden of the hymn. The two must co-operate -for the best results. - -There are two lines of application in using hymns: the one is the -expression and further intensification of an existent religious -feeling; the other, the creation of religious interest or emotion -where none exists. The two types of hymns must be clearly -distinguished, if proper and efficient use is to be made of them. - -The first type is worshipful, religiously emotional, based on personal -experience, tenderly meditative. The second is didactic, -inspirational, or hortatory. - - - III. THE USE OF HYMNS FOR CREATING RELIGIOUS INTEREST - -In selecting hymns for the opening of a religious meeting, the -existing nervous and emotional condition of the congregation is an -important factor. That condition may be due to an unlimited number of -influences. Are they gathering under the open sky, in a tent, in a -rough tabernacle, or amid churchly surroundings? What is the character -and background of the assembled people? In a distinctly unreligious -environment, the crowd will be disorganized, in a nervous flutter, in -a secular state of mind, more consciously interested in securing a -desirable seat than in the purpose of the meeting. The people need to -be psychically organized as a unit, need to have their attention -concentrated on the occasion of the meeting, need to be brought into a -religious state of mind. There is nothing better than the singing of a -hymn to secure these very essential results. The unifying effect of -common action, the nervous calming of the music, the religious -suggestiveness of the hymn itself, all will co-operate in creating the -proper attitude of mind. - -What hymn shall we use to secure such a diversified result? Shall it -be “My faith looks up to Thee,” or “O Love that wilt not let me go”? -They are both superexcellent hymns, but they would be utterly out of -place. They belong to the first type, the expression of existent -religious feeling; but there is little or no such feeling under the -proposed circumstances. The people are not in a state of mind to sing -them sincerely and earnestly. It would lead to the all too common -hypocrisy of indifference. - -Moreover, the tunes to these hymns are not of the organizing or -stimulating type, fine as they are. They are tunes of expression of -existing feeling, not of exhilaration or inspiration. - -For such a miscellaneous crowd as has been described, a much less -emotional hymn with a somewhat livelier tune is called for, such as -“Blow ye the trumpet, blow,” “Come, we that love the Lord,” or -“Onward, Christian soldiers.” In most cases a lively Gospel song, such -as “Sunshine in my soul,” “Rescue the perishing,” or even, in extreme -cases, “Brighten the corner where you are” is more effective. The -problem is not so much that of making a religious impression, as of -preparing the people to receive a religious impression. To use tender, -deeply emotional, profoundly spiritual hymns for such preliminary -treatment is to flout psychology. - -If the congregation meets in a church or other distinctly sacred -edifice, the religious associations will simplify the problem. In -part, at least, the secular attitude will have given place to a -hospitality of mind for religious ideas and impressions. Under -favorable circumstances the nervous strain will relax and religious -susceptibilities will begin to function. These nervous and mental -transformations of mood will be deepened by the organ prelude, if that -has been wisely selected and effectively played. - -In some conservative, devout congregations where solemn earnestness is -the prevailing mood, and the bowed head on entering the pew is not a -mere convention, the usual Doxology may be used after the call to -worship; but usually an introit, such as “The Lord is in His holy -temple” or “Oh, come, let us worship,” sung by the choir, will be the -wiser preparation for the preacher’s invocation. The “Gloria Patri” -should prepare the congregation for some solemn hymn of profound -worship, such as “My God, how wonderful Thou art,” or “Lord of all -being, throned afar.” By the time this is sung, the members of the -congregation should be united in sympathy and responsiveness to the -worshipful exercises that follow. - -If the service is to be a joyous one, with an aggressive purpose, the -hymns should still be strictly worshipful, but more animated. “Come, -sound His praise abroad,” “Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above,” -or “Kingdoms and thrones to God belong” should be the unifying -spiritualizing agency. - -But if the social instincts are allowed to find expression as the -people gather, and more or less furtive conversation and even gossip -are heard, or worse yet, if the Sunday school has overflowed into the -auditorium or, for lack of separate room, has occupied it, and the -going out of the school and the coming in of the congregation make a -confusion that submerges the hallowed associations of the place, a -much more difficult problem is faced, and a more conscious effort must -be made to prepare the people in mind and heart for the experience of -the hour. - -The prelude must be calculated to cover disturbing sounds and to call -the people to order—an entirely different type of prelude from that -used in the previous hypothetical situation. Once quiet and order are -secured, the music may begin a quieter, more religious movement. But -the high ecstasy of the Long Meter Doxology is out of the question. An -earnest Call to Worship by the preacher, and a quiet sentence or -introit by the choir, will hush the people’s minds into sympathy with -the invocation, that may possibly be somewhat longer and more earnest, -which in turn will prepare them for a sincere and thoughtful -participation in the “Gloria Patri.” The wise and observant preacher -will have been able to anticipate their state of mind and decide -whether they are ready to Sing with sincerity “O day of rest and -gladness,” “Safely through another week,” or the more elevated “Holy, -holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,” or “Before Jehovah’s awful throne.” - -By the time this hymn is sung, the fate of the service has practically -been settled. The people will have been won and are ready to go on to -a deeper interest and to a fuller yielding of themselves to the -influence of the service; or they are dull and unresponsive, even -somnolent, with an unconscious resentment that they have not been -stirred and quickened. The failure of the service is assured, unless a -miracle happens. - -If the minister is a slave to the conventional order of service, that -miracle will not happen. He may be so complacent over the smooth -unfolding of the wonted numbers as not to recognize that the interest -in the minds of his people has dropped. - -In such a situation the best means to redeem it is a hymn with a -profound appeal. But it cannot function, if it is used in the -ordinary, conventional way. If the minister is alert and senses the -stupor that is shadowing the minds of his people, and if the success -of his service is more important to him than the mechanical regularity -of the usual order of events, he can bring the miracle to pass by the -use of the next hymn in an unexpected, thrilling way. - -If the scheduled hymn does not lend itself to his purpose, he can -exercise the audacity without which no public man can hope to succeed, -by changing it to one that will, and by that act will storm the first -defense of Morpheus, the god of sleep. Of course, he will always keep -in mind practical considerations of teamwork with his musical helpers, -taking enough time in introducing the substituted hymn in an -interesting way to enable them to find it and decide to what tune it -is to be sung. Usually that takes but a moment. Announcing the hymn, -he will explain the message of the hymn in doctrine or in feeling, as -a preliminary to its intelligent and sympathetic singing; or he may -make emotional comment, or relate a fitting anecdote that will grip -the feelings, leaving historical data for some other occasion; or he -may ask the congregation to join him in silent prayer for divine -guidance into the heart of the hymn to be sung; or he may ask his -people to read the first verse in concert, in order that they may sing -it with more intelligence; or if he has a sympathetic soloist, he can -ask him or her to sing a verse, letting the people sing the rest of -the hymn. - -If the people are submerged in indifference and stupor, he may treat -the whole hymn in like fashion, verse by verse, always careful to make -his few words count, for prolixity will defeat his purpose. He will be -even more careful that there shall be a _crescendo_ movement of -increasing impressiveness and deepening feeling. - -Such a jolt to the passive attitude of an unresponsive people, -genially administered in a confident manner, and with sincere feeling, -will waken the most indifferent congregation and avert the impending -defeat. It will make the frequent use of such unusual methods -unnecessary by creating a latent expectation of the unexpected. - -Fortunate is the minister who has a native sensitiveness to the tides -of feeling that ebb and flow in his congregation, to whom the faces -and attitudes of his people are an open book. Most ministers must -develop such a power by keen and persistent observation and by -intelligent experimentation. This psychical _en rapport_ is very -important to the minister. As well might an organist play without -hearing his instrument as for a minister to be ignorant of the states -of feeling of his congregation. He is a blind man trying to paint a -picture. - -Some ministers think themselves lacking in magnetism, in sensitiveness -to outside influences, and make no effort to develop their latent -powers. This inferiority complex is wrong; the very sense of -limitation is a proof that the capacity for it exists. It is too -essential to the largest success that a man should not use every -possible effort and method to develop it. - - - IV. THE HYMN AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR TEACHING TRUTH - -Another practical use of the hymn that will prove very valuable is to -make those hymns that are didactic or meditative the occasion of -discussing for a few minutes the doctrines they express, and so to -teach, to bring back to memory, or to vitalize the articles of their -faith which average Christians are apt to forget. There are Christian -beliefs that do not call for elaborate discussion in a sermon, that -are best impressed by emotional treatment in connection with a hymn. -“Depth of mercy! can there be,” with a background of pure-minded -Charles Wesley’s consciousness of sin, will give an opportunity of -impressing the people with sin’s subtle and soul-destroying power. -“There is a fountain filled with blood” will be the basis of a very -short but a clear and tender exposition of the atonement made for sin -by Christ on the cross. That a person may be conscious of salvation, -of acceptance by God through Jesus Christ, will find fitting -explanation in an exposition of “Rock of Ages, cleft for me.” What -better opportunity for emphasizing the Christian’s dependence on -Christ could be afforded than a study of “Jesus, Lover of my soul”? -Our inability to understand the ways of God’s providences, and our -need of a faith that does not demand explanations, may well be -stressed in an analysis of “God moves in a mysterious way.” A score of -such hymn discussions at irregular intervals during the year would -prove illuminating, and help to remove the haze that prevents clear -definition in the minds of the people of the doctrines on which their -spiritual life must rest. Singing the hymn after such comments will -make it more effective and fasten the Christian teachings in the minds -of the hearers with links of steel. - - - V. HYMN SERMONS AND HYMN SERVICES - -The versatile and adaptable preacher, full of resources, quick to take -advantage of unusual methods, will find the Song Sermon, or rather the -Hymn Sermon, a most attractive and impressive way of using hymns. -Instead of finding an appropriate proof text from the Scriptures for -each leading point of the discourse, search out a hymn, or a single -verse, expressing it in a lucid and emotional way and have it sung by -the congregation, by the choir, or by a soloist. Comment on the hymn -and its illustration, consonant with the development of the general -theme, will supply a new line of most interesting materials. Care must -be taken not to let the hymn hem the momentum of the sermon, but to -make it add to the tide of interest. There will be no time for playing -the tune or to find the hymn, while the preacher is silently waiting. -Close connection and sharp attack are absolutely essential. Such a -sermon will be sure to win a great hearing.[1] - -A less formal use of hymns may be made in the Song (or Hymn) Service -in which eight or ten hymns with historical, illustrative, and -devotional comment are sung by soloists, choir, and congregation. Less -valuable in formal teaching than the Hymn Sermon, it will probably win -larger popular acceptance. Such a religious service should not be -allowed to degenerate into merely a Sacred Concert. - - - VI. THE USE OF HYMNS IN EMERGENCIES - -There are occasional disturbing and disorganizing occurrences during -services—a violent storm, a noisy epileptic, a fanatical intruder, a -fire where a panic would be disastrous—when it is important to keep -the disturbance down to a minimum, or even to control the -congregation. The singing of an efficient hymn is often the solution -of the problem when there is a leader of presence of mind (preferably -the minister) who will promptly start it. It must be a hymn that -everybody knows; it must not be a tender, experiential hymn, but one -with a stirring spirit to a stimulating tune that everybody can sing, -such as “Onward, Christian soldiers.”[2] - -Such occasions sometimes suggest fitting hymns that turn what might -have been disaster into a spiritual victory. In such a case there must -be a peculiar fitness to the difficulty, an adaptation to the form it -takes. In case of a death, or paralytic stroke, the hymn will not be -loud, but tender like “Rock of Ages,” “He Leadeth Me,” or “The Sweet -By and By.” Softly sung, the episode will be turned from a shock into -a deep spiritual impression. - - - - - _Chapter XXI_ - THE SELECTION OF HYMNS - - - I. SELECTION SHOULD SECURE UNITY OF SERVICE - -Next in importance to the minister’s selection of his text comes the -selection of his hymns. If he has a clear conception of the real unity -of his service, it will appear in this more than in anything else. - - - _Narrow Conception of Unity._ - -If the minister is a narrow, mechanically-minded man, with a sense of -the need of mere logical unity, he will make the subject of his sermon -the governing consideration in all parts of his service. The hymns -will needs be all or nearly all didactic, the type with the least -emotional or inspiring value. - -The early hymns of the service will in an ineffective way anticipate -the points of his discourse and, in so far as they have effectiveness, -weaken by their more lucid and concise statement the discussion in the -sermon. As the congregation usually does not know what the topic of -the discourse is to be, the pertinency of the selection is not -evident. The same is true of the Scripture lesson, if it is read -before the long prayer. Logically the whole basis of selection is -absurd. - - - _Broader Conception of Unity._ - -The sermon is simply a co-ordinate part of divine service, not its -governing feature to which all things else must be subordinated. The -early hymns should not be selected with reference to the theme of the -sermon; the last hymn should sum up not so much the ideas of the -sermon as its emotional values. - - - _Unity Based on Purpose._ - -Among heathen people instruction must be the leading purpose of any -meeting held for their benefit; but among well-taught Christian -people, the chief purpose should be worship, to which the sermon -should be simply one of several aids. The hymns should be emotional, -worshipful, and not exclusively didactic, and should harmonize with -the sermon by being subordinated, with the sermon, to the -clearly-conceived worshipful purpose of the entire service. Dr. Austin -Phelps, more than three-fourths of a century ago, enunciated the right -policy: “It aims at unity of worship, not by sameness of theme, but by -resemblance of spirit. It would have a sermon preceded and followed, -not necessarily by a hymn on the identical subject, but by a hymn on a -kindred subject, pertaining to the same group of thought, lying in the -same perspective, and enkindling the same class of emotions.” To -announce the theme of the coming sermon in the first hymn, to read a -Scriptural passage as a basis for it, to grope around that theme in -the prayer, to emphasize another phase in the second hymn, is a case -of professional egotism so flagrant that its only shocking mitigation -is that it is the accepted clerical estimate of the situation. - -Now every service, of whatever form or character, is properly intended -to bring the soul into conscious relation with God. Every phase of the -soul’s activities is to be brought under the influence of this -dominating purpose. As it cannot comprehend God in His completeness at -any one moment, different attributes of His nature and the varied -relation of these several attributes to manifold human needs furnish -an endless abundance of worshipful themes. They will appeal to the -understanding through the truth, to the heart through an emotional -realization of that truth, and to the will by the choices offered to -the soul’s supreme tribunal. Here, then, in this clearly-conceived -phase of worshipful attitude, you find the basis for the logical unity -of the service—a living unity that moves heart and will as well as -reason. - -There is in this no fetter to the intellectual activity of the -preacher, but rather a fresh stimulus and source of suggestion. It -brings to bear vital forces within the speaker’s own soul that too -often find little exercise, and changes the emotional elements of the -service, the prayer, and the music—now too often mere haphazard, -characterless excrescences—into definite sources of power for the -realization of the desired spiritual results. - -A preacher whose heart is a barometer of the spiritual condition of -his people has no difficulty in finding subjects and texts for his -sermons. If the needs of his people press upon him, those needs -furnish an arc light that illuminates the Bible, and a suggestiveness -that brings him an embarrassment of homiletical riches. Given a clear -recognition of a definite immediate need and the consequent definite -purpose, it will not only make sermonizing easy but will control the -rest of the service. Not the theme of the sermon, but the purpose of -the service as a whole, will be the organizing vitality. - - - II. SUGGESTIVE SELECTIONS OF HYMNS - -Here is an earnest pastor who is impressed with the growing -materialism, or worldliness, of his people. How shall be best dredge -the stagnant shallows of their souls? He decides, not upon a single -sermon, but upon a series of services with cumulative power, whose -whole outlook shall be upon the Person and Character of God as the -basis of his claims upon his creatures. There will be sermons upon -these high themes of course, but they will call for noble and elevated -co-ordinate co-operation in the rest of the service. Now these sermons -should all be peculiarly worshipful, but that worship will be set to -different keys. - - - _Hymns for Service on God’s Omnipotence._ - -The sermon on the Divine Omnipotence calls for a noble enthusiasm. The -hymns should be majestic and joyful. After profoundly worshipful -preliminary exercises it will not be wise to sing Watts’ hymn, - - “Let all the earth their voices raise, - To sing the great Jehovah’s praise, - And bless His holy name,” - -to the tune “Ariel” for the first hymn in spite of its appropriateness -of thought: first, because it is not sufficiently elevated, and -secondly, because the tune is too light. Watts’ more majestic hymn, - - “Before Jehovah’s awful throne, - Ye nations bow with sacred joy,” - -sung to “Old Hundredth,” would be more harmonious with the general -purpose of the service. By the time the second hymn is reached there -must be some exhilaration of spirit. It will not be desirable -therefore to select - - “All people that on earth do dwell, - Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice”; - -first, because it is in exactly the same key of feeling as the -previous hymn; second, because for that reason no tune is quite so -fitting to it as “Old Hundredth,” which is already provided for; and -third, because the presumable intensifying of feeling by this time -calls for a brighter text and more spirited music. But it must be a -hymn of worship, none the less; we choose, therefore, - - “Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above; - Oh, gratefully sing His power and His love,” - -the interrupted dactylic measure and triple time tune giving both -dignity and movement. - -If the prelude was a joyfully majestic composition, the anthem one of -elevated praise—e.g., a “Venite” or a “Jubilate”—the responsive -reading and the choir responses reverent and worshipful, the long -prayer of the preacher exalted with genuine adoration (forgetful of -the routine catalogue of petty petitions), and the Scripture passage -noble with inspiring truth, the service might close at this point as -having already realized its prime object of worship. There must have -been something radically wrong in the spirit and management of it, if -the preacher does not find his people responsive and himself -inspiringly attuned to his noble theme. At the close of his discourse -on the Divine Omnipotence, his people will presumably be ready to sing - - “Let all on earth their voices raise, - To sing the great Jehovah’s praise, - And bless His holy name.” - -to the exhilarating movement of the tune “Ariel.” The organist’s -postlude will be characterized by a joyful solemnity, some strong -_maestoso_ movement. - - - _Hymns for Service on God’s Love._ - -A service devoted to the worship of God, as manifested in His love, -offers a wider range of possibilities. Is it the love manifested in -the atonement? there may be the somber element of the crucifixion -combined with its nobly elevated aspects; is it the love manifested to -His children? there will be a chastened ecstasy in the hymns and -prayers; is it the love that consoles and comforts? there will be the -tender and sympathetic development of the theme—each will call for its -own selection of hymns. As the last is perhaps the most difficult, let -us see what program we should prepare for it. - -_a._ Tender Service. - -The organ prelude will be soft, sweet music, full of chromatic chords -that melt one into the other, or a tender, emotional melody with soft -accompaniment. The usual opening doxology will give way to an introit, -sung very gently by the choir, set to a text expressing divine -sympathy or a prayer for help. The invocation will be a plea for God’s -manifest presence among His needy people. The first hymn sung by the -congregation will sustain the feeling already established, - - “Lord, we come before Thee now, - At Thy feet we humbly bow,” - -sung to the tune “Aletta” or “Pleyel’s Hymn.” The responsive reading -may be the forty-second and forty-third Psalms. The choir, having been -advised in good time what was desired, sings some sympathetic setting -of the twenty-third Psalm, or of the forty-second Psalm, or of the -hymn “Just as I am.” If the preacher has kept step in his heart with -the emotional progress of his service, the long prayer will be an -expression of the need of the people and of a tender appreciation of -God’s loving sympathy, closing with an ascription of praise to His -limitless love. The people ought now to be ready to sing - - “Love divine, all loves excelling, - Joy of heaven, to earth come down.” - -After the discourse, a hymn in direct didactic relation to it may be -sung in a bright and joyous spirit: - - “God is love; His mercy brightens - All the path in which we rove.” - -The postlude will be tenderly joyous and sympathetic in style. - -There are many preachers whose nervous organizations would not enable -them to adjust themselves to so tender an emotional key in developing -the service. On the other hand, many congregations would not follow -it, but would be lulled to sleep by it. - -_b._ Joyful Service. - -They would be entirely right in selecting as the opening hymn one of -general praise and worship: - - “Come, Thou Almighty King, - Help us Thy name to sing, - Help us to praise”; - -or even the quietly majestic hymn, - - “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty! - Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee.” - -The second hymn may be more prayerful and tender: - - “Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah, - Pilgrim through this barren land,” - -or - - “When all Thy mercies, O my God, - My rising soul surveys.” - -The final hymn may be more didactic: - - “God is the refuge of His saints, - When storms of sharp distress invade”; - -or the more stirring and forceful - - “Give to the winds thy fears; - Hope, and be undismayed”; - -or that wonderful paean of faith in the divine love and providence, - - “How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, - Is laid for your faith in His excellent word.” - -In this case the postlude will be bright and joyous, preferably with -some soft and tender episodical passages. - - - _Hymns for a Missionary Service._ - -The preacher plans a missionary discourse: what is his order of -service to be? - -That means an aggressive, spiritual program whose purpose is -stimulation of enthusiasm, of courage, of conquering faith, of bold -decision. - -The organist will be asked to play a bright prelude with pronounced -but dignified rhythm, and striking harmonic progressions. The anthem -by the choir may be based on some text of praise from the Psalms with -stirring, somewhat rhythmical music that will stimulate the nerves of -the people rather than soothe them. The responsive reading should be a -Psalm of triumph, say the ninety-sixth. The long prayer for once may -drop out of the omnibus conventionality and lead the people in -magnifying the irresistible power and the conquering love of God, with -enough reference to current sorrows in the congregation to serve as a -contrast, to make the realization of the strong right arm of God more -vivid. - -The hymns should be in keeping with this joyous recognition of God’s -invincibility and assured triumph. - -The first hymn may be Charles Wesley’s “Oh, for a thousand tongues to -sing.” This is worship—mingled with faith and with aggressive purpose, -it is true, but nevertheless distinctly worship. - -An equally appropriate selection from Charles Wesley would be “Ye -servants of God, your Master proclaim.” Care should be taken that the -tune used for either is vigorous and well known. A dull tune for -either would be a stumble on the threshold of the service. - -The point in the service has not yet been reached where a distinctly -missionary hymn is called for; aggressiveness in the Lord’s service is -still the mood to be created. There would be a choice between -Shurtleff’s vigorous “Lead on, O King Eternal,” with its specific -dedication of self to any forward movement of the Christian Church, or -Baring-Gould’s marching hymn with its American tune written by an -English composer, “Onward, Christian soldiers,” which can hardly fail -to stimulate the pulses of a presumably already stirred congregation, -unless it is sung in a drawling, unaccented way. - -If by this time the congregation is not prepared to be thrilled by an -unexpected missionary sermon, eloquent with an appeal hardly to be -equaled by any other topic connected with the Church’s activities, -there has been something wrong with the preacher or his people. - -At the close of the sermon the hearts of the people will be glad to -express themselves either in Smith’s “The morning light is breaking,” -or in Watts’ noble Christianized version of the seventy-second Psalm, -“Jesus shall reign where’er the sun.” For once the organist can pull -out all his stops and play a brilliant but not flippant postlude -without disturbing the mind and nerves of thoughtful and devout -people. - -In these suggested programs it has been evident that the unity is one -of feeling and not of logic. This gave room for the interest which the -unexpected supplies. There must be progress of feeling as well as of -thought. The long prayer or the music after it, be it organ or choir -or hymn, should be the climax of emotion. It should be allowed to -subside a little during the announcements and offering, in order to -rise to a still higher climax in the sermon and closing hymn. - -In a tender, sympathetic service there is more danger of not taking -the audience with you. If the music and the feelings suggested by the -hymns are too quiet and depressing, there is danger of its acting as a -lullaby, putting the people to sleep. Many a preacher wonders why some -of his hearers are asleep before his text is fairly announced. In nine -cases out of ten, it is due to the depressing character of the music -used in the devotional part of the service. - - - III. IMPORTANCE OF THE TUNES - -As has been incidentally suggested in the course of the illustrative -progress, no small importance is to be attached to the selection of -the tunes to be used with the hymns. The preacher cannot always afford -to trust the compiler of the hymnal which he uses. That learned -gentleman does not know what tune the preacher’s people can sing with -a given hymn to the best advantage. He has to meet the difficulty of -providing every hymn with an appropriate tune without having -well-known and effective tunes enough to go round; he cannot repeat -them over and over, but must use less popular tunes. Who shall judge -him harshly, therefore, if in this dilemma he occasionally follows his -own personal taste rather than the vaguely conceived needs of -miscellaneous congregations. - -But the minister must study the tunes in his hymnal lest he limit his -song service to the small number he happens to know well. To use a -dozen or so tunes again and again will cut the nerve of musical -interest in his musical helpers and in his congregation as well. - -Hence, it is the minister’s task to re-edit the hymnal in part, -remating hymns and tunes in order to secure the greatest results with -his own people. Nor need he suffer with a sense of presumption. The -important consideration is the results of the singing of hymns in an -effective way, not loyalty to his church hymnal at the expense of -those results. - - - - - _Chapter XXI_ - THE ANNOUNCEMENT AND TREATMENT OF HYMNS - - - I. THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF HYMNS - -It may seem quite superfluous to give any attention to the mere -announcement of hymns; but in many cases the spiritual success or -failure of the congregational song is determined there. It is -generally assumed that any one can announce a hymn and initiate its -singing, but probably the least successful work of ninety-nine out of -a hundred ministers is their management of the service of song in -their churches. The writer remembers one minister who would baldly -announce the number and then turn round and stare at the choir and -organist until they began to sing. The awkwardness and helplessness of -the man invariably produced a most unfortunate effect upon the -congregation. Many ministers announce the number and read the first -line. It makes no difference whether the first line is complete in -meaning or not; they have identified the hymn. - -Like a great many others of their professional brethren, they used the -hymn perfunctorily as a traditionally necessary part of the service, -with which they really had little or nothing to do; that it has any -relation to the needs or the objects they have in view for the service -does not occur to them. The unpardonableness of an aimless sermon need -not be emphasized, but why should it be easier to forgive a preacher -for aimlessly selecting and announcing hymns? - -Many churches have hymn boards and even bulletins, making the -mechanical interruption caused by the preacher’s announcement of the -numbers unnecessary. The people presumably have found the hymn by the -time the tune is played through.[1] - -Of course, if these devices for announcing the hymn are absent, the -preacher must announce the number. If he does so in a listless, -mechanical way, he will unconsciously give the congregation an -unfortunate emotional keynote, and, in turn, it will sing in a -listless, mechanical way. The psychical and emotional value of the -singing of the hymn is already discounted. If it has been announced in -a joyous, or, at least, in an interested spirit, with only a happy -phrase or two, giving a cue to the spirit in which it is to be sung, -the congregation will respond in kind. Twenty seconds of effective -introduction will make the difference between success and failure. - -It should be emphasized that a live preacher will not allow the -regular order of service to prevent needed comment on the hymn as it -is needed. The order of service has advantages, but if it robs the -preacher of freedom and spontaneity, it becomes a curse. Too rigidly -followed it makes for dullness and boredom. The congregation should -not be allowed to feel that any departure from it is a doubtful -liberty on the part of the preacher. Opportunity should be made to -dispel any such idea. - -If a hymn is curtly announced, or courteously suggested with a -“please” or a “kindly” (as if to sing it were a special favor to the -preacher), and if no hint is given as to the message to be conveyed, -or as to the feeling which is to be expressed, how can the minister -hope that the merely improvised singing of an unexpected hymn, perhaps -with an unknown tune, will have any stimulating, not to say spiritual, -value? If the hymn is well known, it is probably a great hymn, and -what gathering of saints can rise at a moment’s notice to its -spiritual altitude? - -What intelligent minister would presume suddenly to ask a trained -elocutionist to read to his audience a poem he had never before seen? -Or what honest lawyer would ask a client to sign a legal paper -involving obligations without explanations or previous reading? Yet, -every Sunday, congregations are asked to sing hymns they have never -noticed, expressing they know not what sentiments, promises, or -consecrations, in the most solemn and exalted manner. Is it ethical? -Is it efficient? - - - II. THE TREATMENT OF HYMNS - -If a congregation is to sing a hymn, not thoughtlessly and -mechanically, but intelligently and with feeling, it must be prepared -for the devout exercise. It is the minister’s task to tune his people -up for the individual hymn, and create the habit of finding meaning -and genuine feeling in all the hymns they sing. Stupid singing is a -habit: why not create a habit of singing thoughtfully and feelingly? - -That may be done; but it cannot be done overnight. It will call for -persistent training, for a wealth of resources, and for an unbroken -attitude of genuineness of emotion on the part of the preacher. It is -no small undertaking to transform sleepy church members into sons of -praise. - -We may add to the obligations involved still another. If the hymn to -be sung is not merely didactic or meditative, but distinctly emotional -in character, is it not the preacher’s duty to create in those who are -to sing at least the beginnings of the emotions he asks them to voice? - -A rapid sketch of blind Matheson’s experience before writing “O Love -that wilt not let me go” will set the heartstrings of the congregation -quivering in the emotional key of the hymn. A vivid picture of the -death of Christ on the cross in a dozen sentences will inspire a -preacher’s people to sing “Beneath the cross of Jesus” with genuine -emotion. Drawing a picture with rapid touches of the charge of the -Light Brigade as it went to its death at Balaklava, and quoting a few -lines of Tennyson’s poem, will stir the pulses for the singing of -“Lead on, O King Eternal.” “Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire” may -be introduced by a few tender sentences on the vital necessity of -prayer to a sincere Christian. A minute’s resume of the influence of -the cross of Christ on an individual life, or on the upward sweep of -the human race under its influence, will give the people a clue to “In -the cross of Christ I glory.” The tender aspect of the atonement made -by Christ for sin may be solemnly suggested before singing “Alas, and -did my Saviour bleed?” - -Where a hymn has allusions not likely to be recognized by the average -singer, they ought to be made plain. How many of the millions who have -sung the well-known hymn, “Come, thou Fount of every blessing,” knew -what the word “Ebenezer” signified? Striking phrases, packed with deep -thought and feeling, like Matheson’s - - “I lay in dust life’s glory dead, - And from the ground there blossoms red - Life that shall endless be,” - -should have their treasures brought to light, lest the average -churchgoer should overlook them. In other words, there should be a -rapid exposition of unusual and also of over-familiar hymns, so that -the congregation may sing with its mind and heart. - -The range of possible comment is so wide, and the opportunity of using -it is so limited, that only the most striking and impressive -illustrations should be considered for actual use. Rhetorical and -anecdotal illustrations should be used sparingly—only when they -promote an exalted and distinctly spiritual state of mind. They are -apt to be prolix, to distract the mind from spiritual contemplation. -They are permissible with joyous, aggressive, victorious hymns rather -than with those that are tender, emotional, subjective. - -The inexorable limitations of time must always be borne in mind. When -a hymn is announced the people expect to sing, not to listen to a -hymnological dissertation or to a long-winded anecdote. The simile or -metaphor, or other oratorical comment, must explode with a very short -fuse of preliminary remark. The anecdote must be compact, shorn of -unessential preface or background, and reach its peak of interest, or -of appeal to feeling, with the succinctness of an epigram. Better -limit the illustrations and comments to those that can gracefully and -lucidly be uttered in one or rarely two minutes. - -Discussions and illustrations of hymns are often confined to the hymns -as hymns, which is rarely necessary. It is not the hymn that needs -emphasis, much less its writer: it is the message, the burden, the -feeling of the hymn that is to be enforced. An instance of the saving -of a “down and outer” from the Jerry McAuley mission in New York, or -the Pacific Garden mission in Chicago, will create more responsiveness -to “Rescue the Perishing” than biographical facts about Fanny Crosby -or about the composer, W. Howard Doane. The anecdote of missionary -success from the last missionary bulletin or magazine will lead a -Congregation to sing “Jesus shall reign where’er the sun” more -enthusiastically than an explanation of Watts’ having metricized the -seventy-second Psalm with a free hand, making the Jew, David, sing -like a Christian. Illustrating the sense rather than the form of the -hymn will be found very much more thrilling to the people. - -In evening services of song, or in midweek lectures, historical -backgrounds will be very helpful and interesting. A series of lectures -on the great hymns of the Church, or even a general survey of the -development of our Christian hymnody, will lay the foundations of a -more intelligent song. - -In such services, anecdotal illustrations may have a large place. They -need not be emotional under such circumstances, just so they add -interest and understanding. - -As an occasional variation in the introduction of the hymn, why not -have the congregation read it? “It is not done?” All the more reason -for doing it! They will get more actual values out of the reading of -the hymn and its subsequent singing than in any other way; the very -unusualness of the method will give additional effectiveness. Single -stanzas can be most impressively treated in this manner. In singing -Isaac Watts’ great hymn, “When I survey the wondrous cross,” ask the -people to read the third verse softly, - - “See, from his head, his hands, his feet, - Sorrow and love flow mingled down! - Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, - Or thorns compose so rich a crown?” - -and then sing it very softly and note the effect. - -The same method may be used with Mrs. Alexander’s children’s hymn, -“There is a green hill far away,” which adults have adopted for their -own; have them read the last verse, - - “Oh, dearly, dearly has He loved, - And we must love Him too, - And trust in His redeeming blood, - And try His works to do,” - -and then sing it quite emotionally. - -A great many people deprecate the minister’s reading of the hymns. But -that is because so few ministers are able to read hymns with any -degree of impressiveness or reality. Perhaps half the ministers who -read them leave no desirable impression whatever as the result, for -the reading has been without even a thoughtful sense of the meaning of -the hymn, much less of its emotional force. To allow one’s voice to -fall at the end of every line, or to make a habit of having a rising -inflection at the end of each first line and a falling at the end of -each second, without variation, is so vile, from an elocutionary -standpoint, that one cannot wonder that the general congregation -prefers its omission. - -On the other hand, if the minister’s mind and heart are profoundly -awake to the thought and feeling of the hymn that is to be used, if -the minister has a definite purpose which he wishes to realize through -the singing of that hymn, if the whole song service is thoroughly -vital and earnest, he cannot help reading the hymn in such a way as to -impress and interest his people. One need not be a well-trained -elocutionist to do this. The genuine feeling will develop a natural -elocution and will even neutralize faulty habits and mannerisms of -reading that would otherwise make it unendurable. - -The fact that the hymn is a familiar one may be only an additional -reason for reading it, instead of being an imperative reason for -omitting its reading. As coins long in circulation often lose their -superscription, these familiar words often lose their meaning and -reality by constant use, and these may be restored by intelligent and -emotional reading. - -A mere habit of reading a hymn through is sheer mechanism, the fatal -enemy of interest. The situation, the purpose in view, the character -of the service and the time allotted to it, even the preacher’s own -passing mood—all are factors that need to be considered. - -At this point it is well to drop a word of warning against the -unintelligent omission of verses. Some ministers invariably restrict -the number to be sung to three or four. If there are five verses, they -invariably omit the fourth, or announce, “We will sing the first three -verses,” no matter what the development of thought may be. One of the -most painful manifestations of ministerial thoughtlessness and -indifference to the congregation’s share of the service, is this -brutal mutilation of the hymns. The preacher wishes a little more time -for his sermon, so he robs God and his people of some of their worship -by singing the pitiful remains of a hymn he has deprived of its unity, -its progress of thought, and perhaps of its best stanzas. Or he has -preached too long and closes with a single verse of some great hymn, -unwittingly losing the best climax his sermon could have had. Because -of the same egotism and his obsequious regard for the tyranny of the -dinner hour, he cuts out the reading and proper introductions of his -hymns throughout the service. - -The irony of the situation is that by this neglect of his hymns the -preacher fails to create the enthusiasm and responsiveness of his -hearers essential to the larger success of his sermon. “There is that -withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.” (Prov. -11:24.) - -It may well be that some of the ministers who read this practical -section will throw up their hands at the idea of working out the -rather daunting array of suggestions for exploiting the hymn in their -church work. The pastor’s task is such a varied one, with such a mass -of details, all of seeming importance, that he is in danger of wasting -time on comparative trifles, of “puttering” around, feeling very busy -while accomplishing little. A common remark at the close of the day -is, “I’ve been busy as a nailer all day and can’t see that I have -accomplished anything!” - -It is this time that is lost by lack of concentration which could -quite comfortably be devoted to hymnological studies. The difficulty -in most cases is not lack of time, but lack of interest, lack of -realization as to how great a contribution the hymn service can make -to the success of his work. - -God has put into the throat of every member of this preacher’s -congregation a marvelous musical instrument with a wide range of tones -and of extremely appealing cadences, of great power to express the -emotions of the heart of the singer, and to suggest and stimulate the -feelings of the minds and hearts of the hearers: is the minister -justified in neglecting the opportunity it offers to arouse and -quicken the mental and spiritual natures of the people for whose -religious life he is responsible? - -Is it not a crying piece of egotism, in view of the proven efficiency -of hymn singing, to depend exclusively on his own preaching for the -realization of the spiritual ends to which his life is devoted? When -ministers realize the positive power the hymn service can exert, they -will not begrudge the occasional hours for studying and planning it -which are necessary to its full success. That success will create - - A SINGING CHURCH - - - - - EPILOGUE - - -_Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter._ Eccl. 12:7. - -In traversing the long history of the human use of song in religious -services, rites, and ceremonies, we have found that - -1. The hymn has been recognized in every age, in every generation, by -every race, whether savage or cultured, under every sky, as an -expression of religious emotion, and as the generator of such emotion. - -2. Religious emotions are of various types. It may be the earnestness -of strong conviction; it may be the hot indignation against sin and -evil, against neglect of the soul’s highest obligations. It may be the -depressing sense of conscious unworthiness, rising into repentance for -sin, into the tenderness of grateful recognition of the divine love -and forgiving grace, expressed in tears, joy over the assurance of -salvation expressed in beaming countenance or in ejaculations of -delight, or even in shouts of victory. The human heart becomes an -Æolian harp from which the winds of the Spirit of God evoke an -infinitude of melodies, grave and solemn, tender and sweet, joyous and -triumphant, or vigorous and inspiring,—a very symphonic orchestra. - -3. As an expression of religious emotion the hymn has been effective -in moving the human will, stubborn in its revolt against God, by -intensifying the mental and spiritual power of religious ideas. - -4. The religious idea is primary, of course, but its emotional -response in the heart gives it vitality. It is the team of idea and -its normal emotion that exerts the power of the hymn. An abstract -idea, abstract because its emotional reflex has been abstracted, has -no motive power. - -5. In the effective use of the hymn the clear apprehension of its -ideas must be enforced by the vital reproduction of the original -emotion of its writer which urged its composure. A dry hymn written -without vitalizing feeling has no power to inspire; it gives no sense -of reality. Dry sermons, not pollinated by emotional vigor, can bear -no fruit. The effectiveness of sermon or hymn will be determined by -the intensity of the feeling behind it. - -6. The emotional appeal must be genuine, both writer and singer must -be sincere. Artificial emotion, the mere pretense of a feeling that -does not exist, has no power. It is not merely unappealing, it is -offensive. - -7. But emotion necessarily implies an intelligence and a -susceptibility to be moved—in other words, a personality. It also -implies that one person’s feelings can call forth like emotions in -other persons. The merely outward expression may even create a like -emotion among others who do not fully apprehend the primary idea that -set the original emotion to vibrating, creating a very contagion of -feeling. - -8. It follows that in actual aggressive work, largely depending on -emotional transmission, the minister or the leader must supply the -initiating impulse. If the minister has a dry mind—there are ministers -who desiccate every topic they discuss—religious ideas suffer a blight -of aridity, killing all sense of reality, this sense of reality being -the _sine qua non_ of all spiritual effectiveness. If he is fortunate -in having a vivid imagination and a heart responsive to religious -truth, he can multiply his mental gifts twentyfold by intensifying the -truths he expresses. - -9. Treated in this way, the hymn becomes the peer of the sermon in -influencing power, and assures the minister eager for spiritual -results a large harvest of souls, saved and spiritualized. - - - - - REFERENCES AND NOTES - - - INTRODUCTION - -[1]Genesis 4:21, 23. - -[2]Genesis 31:27. - -[3]Exodus 15:1-21. - -[4]Numbers 21:16, 17. - -[5]Psalm 90. - -[6]Joshua 6:16. - -[7]Judges 5:1-31. - -[8]I Samuel 2:1-16. - -[9]I Samuel 10:5. - -[10]I Chronicles 9:22; 11:4, 11:5. - -[11]Mark 14:26. - -[12]Acts 16:25. - -[13]Colossians 3:16. - -[14]James 5:13. - -[15]Revelation 5:9; 7:9-12; 11:15-18; 14:2,3; 15:3,4; 19:1-7. - - - CHAPTER I - -[1]Dr. Phelps goes on to say, “Yet the greatest of these, that grace - which above all else vitalizes a true hymn, is that which makes it - true—its fidelity to the realities of religious experience.” - -[2]“A hymn must have a beginning, middle, and end. There should be a - manifest graduation in the thoughts, and their mutual dependence - should be so perceptible that they could not be transposed without - injuring the unity of the piece; every line carrying forward the - connection, and every verse adding a well-proportioned limb to a - symmetrical body. The reader should know when the strain is - complete, and be satisfied, as at the close of an air in music.” - (James Montgomery.) - -[3]Dr. Parks, back in 1857, remarks: “That is not always the best - church song which sparkles most with rhetorical gems. There are - spangled hymns which will never excite devotional feeling.” - -[4]Sung at President McKinley’s funeral. - -[5]Greece never had a sacred book, she never had any symbols, any - sacerdotal caste organized for the preservation of dogmas. Her - poets and her artists were her true theologians. (Renan, in - _Studies in Religious History_.) - -[6]“Even when deeds and events of an innocent and pure character are - thus sung, there is nothing more of spiritual worship in it than - in the recitation of an epic poem. The singer confesses no need, - asks no blessing, reveals no yearning, expects no response. There - is no communion of thought and feeling, no aspiration for purity, - no laying hold of moral strength.” (Rev. G. O. Newport, a - missionary in India, quoted in _The Hymn Lover_.) - - - CHAPTER II - -[1]The instinct to use song in worship was recognized so long ago as - 1695 by Dr. Hickman: “There never was any land so barbarous, or - any people so polite, but have always approached their gods with - the solemnity of music and have expressed their devotions with a - song.” (Quoted by Dr. A. S. Hoyt in his _Public Worship for - Non-Liturgical Churches_.) - -[2]“Our hymns spring out of religious experience at its best, and they - tend to lift experience to its highest levels. The very cream of - truth and of soul life is gathered into them. They contain the - refined riches, the precious essences, the cut and polished jewels - of Christianity in all ages. They are truly prophetic, the records - of the insight and intuition and rapture of the seer and the - saint.” (Dr. Waldo S. Pratt, in _Musical Ministries_. [New York: - Revell Co., 1915.] Used by permission.) - -[3]Henry Ward Beecher placed a high value on the song service of the - church: “I have never loved men under any circumstances as I have - loved them while singing with them; never at any other time have I - been so near heaven with you, as in those hours when our songs - were wafted thitherward.” - -[4]“In all great religious movements the people have been inspired - with a passion for singing. They have sung their creed: it seems - the freest and most natural way of declaring their triumphant - belief in great Christian truths, forgotten or denied in previous - times of spiritual depression and now restored to their rightful - place in the thought and life of the Church. Song has expressed - and intensified their enthusiasm, their new faith, their new joy, - their new determination to do the will of God.” (Dr. W. R. Dale.) - -[5]Pratt, _Musical Ministries_. - -[6]Ephesians 5: 18-20. - -[7]Colossians 3: 16. - -[8]I Corinthians 14: 15. - -[9]Over three-quarters of a century ago, this lament was made by a - prominent New England minister: “Many a man, who carefully - interrogates his own experience, will confess that, while the - voice of public prayer readily engages his attention and carries - with it his devout desires, it is not so with the act of praise; - that he very seldom finds his affections rising upon its notes to - heaven—very seldom can he say at its close that he has worshiped - God. The song has been wafted near him as a vehicle for conveying - upward the sweet odor of a spiritual service, but the offering has - been withheld, and the song ascends as empty of divine honors as a - sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal.” (Rev. Daniel L. Furber, in - _Hymns and Choirs_.) - - - CHAPTER III - -[1]“To get behind the hymnbook to the men and women who wrote its - contents, and to the events, whether personal or public, out of - which it sprang and which it so graciously mirrors, is to enter a - world palpitating with human interest. For a hymnbook is a - transcript of real life, a poetical accompaniment to real events - and real experiences. Like all literature that counts, it rises - directly out of life.” (Frederick J. Gillman, in _The Evolution of - the English Hymn_. [New York: The Macmillan Co., 1927.] Used by - permission.) - -[2]J. Balcom Reeves, _The Hymn in History and Literature_. (New York: - D. Appleton-Century Co., 1924). Used by permission. - -[3]“There is an inclination to fence in what are called ‘literary - lyrics,’ as if to fence out singing lyrics! Now there is, of - course, a distinction between poems meant to be sung and poems - written in the pattern of lyrical poetry, but never meant to be - sung; but the terminology which classes one kind as literary, - thereby implying that the other kind is not of the realm of - literature, is inaccurate and unhappy.” _Ibid._ - -[4]“In his volume, _The English Lyric_, Professor Felix E. Schelling - virtually disposes of the hymn with the remark that ‘we may or may - not “accept” certain hymns, but we do not have to read them.’ That - is readily granted—unless, of course, one wishes to know them or - to write just criticism about them.” _Ibid._ - -[5]“Frequently a hymn is a prayer; and it is a rule for the structure - of prayers that they exclude all those recondite figures, dazzling - comparisons, flashing metaphors, which, while grateful to certain - minds of poetic excitability, are offensive to more sober and - staid natures, and are not congenial with the lowly spirit of a - suppliant at the throne of grace. A simile may be shining, but it - may not be exactly chaste; and a hymn prefers pure beauty to - bedizening ornament.” (Dr. Edwards A. Park, in _Hymns and - Choirs_.) - -[6]These numbers, of course, refer to the number of syllables in a - line. - - - CHAPTER IV - -[1]The vagaries of credit for writing given hymns is illustrated in - the appearance of the intensely Calvinistic Toplady’s name as the - writer of Charles Wesley’s intensely Arminian “Blow ye the - trumpet, blow.” - -[2]Those who care to make a fuller study of the revision of hymns than - the following discussion affords are referred to the full - treatment of the subject, and to the abundant cases cited, by - Professor Edwards A. Park, D.D., of Andover Theological Seminary, - in _Hymns and Choirs_, issued in 1860 by Drs. Austin Phelps, - Edwards A. Park, and Daniel L. Furber. The lapse of years has in - no way diminished the value of this volume. It is unfortunately - out of print and inaccessible to the average pastor, outside of - public libraries. - - - CHAPTER V - -[1]“But the emotional life, strongest, no doubt, in youth, remains a - lifelong element of personality and especially of the religious - personality. Feeling is not merely an integral part of religious - experience, it is central, vital, its inmost core. William James - speaks of it as the deeper source of religion, and says that - ‘philosophical and theological formulas come below it in - importance. It is the dynamic factor in the religious life. When - it is absent, religion degenerates into mere formalism or barren - intellectualism.’” (Gillman, in _The Evolution of the English - Hymn_.) - -[2]Rev. Louis F. Benson, D.D., in _The Hymnody of the Christian - Church_. (New York: Harper and Bros., 1927.) Used by permission. - - - CHAPTER VII - -[1]Dr. Harris says of his discovery, “The manuscript had been lying - with a heap of other stray leaves of manuscript on the shelves of - my library without awakening any suspicion that it contained a - lost hymnbook of the early Church of the apostolic times, or at - the very latest of the sub-apostolic times.” - - - CHAPTER VIII - -[1]There is frequent lament that in the translations of Greek, Latin, - and German hymns into English much of the original beauty is lost. - But the converse is also true: that such translators as Neale, - Brownlie, and Palmer have taken the uncut diamonds of the Greek - and Latin Fathers and so transformed them by their lapidarian - skill that the world-wide Christian Church is rejoicing in their - beauty. - -[2]The _Te Deum_ has only slight claims to Greek origin and is - postponed to a later chapter. - -[3]In like manner the rationalists of the age of Frederick the Great - of Prussia sought to prevent the use of the Lutheran hymns; the - Arians in the pre-Wesleyan times contended for the psalm versions - without doxologies recognizing the Trinity; in our own day, - extreme Modernists belittle Christian hymns as dogmatic and - unpoetical and urge the use of sociological hymns. - -[4]This transfer of the song to clerical singers soon had its - inevitable result. Jerome begins to be apprehensive that the form - of singing would come to have too exclusive consideration. He - complained that those who led the song, like comedians, “smoothed - their throats with soft drinks in order to render their melodies - more impressive, and that the heart alone can properly make melody - to God.“ - - - CHAPTER IX - -[1]“The Greek language lived long and died slowly, and the Christian - hymn writers wrote in its decadence.” (Rev. John Brownlie, in his - preface to _Hymns of the Greek Church_.) - -[2]The canon is an elaborate service consisting of nine odes or hymns - of different forms. - - - CHAPTER X - -[1]“Jesus, the very thought of Thee” (Caswall) or “Jesus, Thou joy of - loving hearts” (Palmer). - -[2]“O sacred Head, now wounded,” translated by James W. Alexander from - Paul Gerhardt’s “O Haupt voll Blut and Wunden,” a German version - of the Latin hymn above. - -[3]Imagine a poem of such length in the difficult “Leonine hexameter” - of which the following translated lines will give an inkling: - - “These are the latter times, these are not better times, let us - stand waiting! - Lo, how with awfulness, He, first in lawfulness, comes - arbitrating.” - - Dr. Neale wisely reduced his centos to a plain meter, giving them - practical usefulness. - -[4]Matthew Arnold described it as “the utterance of all that is - exquisite in the spirit of its century.” (Quoted by Gillman, in - his _Evolution of the English Hymn_.) - - - CHAPTER XI - -[1]As an indication of how prevalent this singing of religious hymns - was, we note the fact that in 1512, twelve years before Luther’s - first hymnbook appeared, a collection of Roman Catholic hymns, set - to profane tunes, was issued in Venice, Italy. - -[2]“To Luther belongs the extraordinary merit of having given to the - German people in their own tongue the Bible, the Catechism, and - the Hymnbook, so that God might speak directly to them in his - Word, and that they might directly answer him in their songs.” Dr. - Philip Schaff adds elsewhere that Luther “is the father of the - modern High German language and literature,” and that these are - the common possession of the Germanic tribes with their - diversified dialects from the Adriatic to the Baltic Sea. Erasmus - Alber, a contemporary who wrote twenty excellent hymns, calls - Luther “the German Cicero, who not only reformed religion, but - also the German language.” Hans Sachs, the poet cobbler of - Nuremberg, who, besides a great deal of general poetry, also wrote - a number of hymns, styled Luther “the nightingale of Wittenberg.” - - - CHAPTER XII - -[1]Dr. Schaff. - - - CHAPTER XIII - -[1]Dr. Louis F. Benson has well characterized this Psalter in its - influence on French character: “The metrical Psalter made the - Huguenot character. No doubt a character nourished on Old - Testament ideals will lack the full symmetry of the Gospel. But - the Huguenot was a warrior, first called to fight and suffer for - his faith. And in singing psalms he found his confidence and - strength.... In the wars of religion, the Psalms in meter were the - songs of camp and march, the war cry on the field, the swan song - at the martyr’s stake.” - -[2]“Of course, psalms in the ballad form were easily learned and kept - in memory. And in the days when the ability to read was less - general than now, these rhymes, scattered so freely broadcast, - took root in many a mind and contributed powerfully to the - righteousness and stability of the nation.” (J. Balcom Reeves, in - _The Hymn in History and Literature_.) - - - CHAPTER XIV - -[1]Comparing the English church with the German, Horder exclaims: “The - Puritans, indeed, had in their midst a finer poet than Luther, but - they never introduced even Milton’s superb renderings of certain - of the Psalms into their worship. What a use Luther would have put - Milton to, if he had been a member of his church! What songs he - would have written! Aye, what music, too!” - -[2]“Thus the psalms have been at once an inspiration and a bondage: - _an inspiration_ in that they have kindled the fire which has - produced the hymnody of the entire church; _a bondage_, because, - by stereotyping religious expression, they robbed the heart of the - right to express in its own words the fears, the joys, the hopes - that the Divine Spirit had kindled in their souls.” (W. Garrett - Horder, in _The Hymn Lover_.) - -[3]Thomas Wright in his recent _Life of Isaac Watts_ remarks: “Earlier - in this work I referred to Watts’ enthusiasm for, and his - indebtedness to, John Mason, who deserves rather than any other - writer the name of the Father of the Modern Hymn. If there had not - been a Mason there would never have been a Watts.” - - - CHAPTER XV - -[1]It is perhaps needless to say that the word “vulgar” did not have - the opprobrious connotation that it inevitably brings today. It - simply meant “ordinary.” - -[2]George W. Garrett Horder, in _The Hymn Lover_. - - - CHAPTER XVI - -[1]“It was their love of social psalmody that made Methodist hymnody - what it was, and it was the desire to better parochial psalmody - that furnished John Wesley with the original motive of his work in - hymnody.” (Dr. Louis F. Benson, in _The English Hymn_. [New York: - Harper and Bros.] Used by permission.) - -[2]“John Wesley was a good writer and preacher, and possessed - extensive learning. He was a man of unfailing perseverance, great - self-denial, large liberality, singular devotedness to his - Master’s service, and eminent piety. But perhaps his most - remarkable gift was the power he possessed of making men willing - to fall in with his purposes and of organizing systematic action - for the benefit of his followers.” (Josiah Miller, in _Singers and - Songs of the Church_.) - -[3]“Wesley, like Watts, wrote very freely and spontaneously, as the - thousands of lyrics he wrote bear witness. Not all of them were - good; much of the verse reminds one of a painter’s tentative - sketches. But had he not freely written so many, he might not have - written the smaller number so consummately well.” (J. Balcom - Reeves, in _The Hymn in History and Literature_.) - -[4]“The Wesley hymnbooks constitute an extraordinary interesting human - document, palpitating with real life. Every event of those - wonderful years, every experience, public or private, through - which the singers passed, is mirrored in some sweet song. But - there is more in them than that. They are _Pilgrim’s Progress_ in - verse. They trace the religious life of every man as he travels - from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. They unfold - the spiritual drama of man, his hopes and fears, his aspirations - and affections, his failures and victories; each chequered - experience trembles into songs, and scarcely a note is missing. - Springing from the heart of the eighteenth century, their music - seems to drown its licentiousness and frivolity in paeans of - praise.” (Frederick J. Gillman, in _The Evolution of the English - Hymn_.) - -[5]Charles Wesley’s best hymns—and who would dare estimate his genius - on any other basis?—meet John Drinkwater’s two tests of vital - poetry: - - (1) It must spring from vital and intense personal experience. - - (2) It must transfer to the reader by “pregnant and living words” - the ecstasy that swelled the heart of the poet. - -[6]“The style of Watts is austere, objective, formal; the style of - Wesley is warm, subjective, intimate.” (J. Balcom Reeves, in _The - Hymn in History and Literature_.) - -[7]Dr. Benson in his exhaustive treatise on _The English Hymn_ - remarks: “The Wesleys inaugurated a great spiritual revival; and - their hymns did as much as any human agency to kindle and - replenish its fervor.... John Wesley led an ecclesiastical revolt - and, failing to conquer his own church, established a new one of - phenomenal proportions: the hymns prefigured the constitution of - the new church and formed the manual of its spiritual discipline.” - -[8]He frankly expressed his inhospitable attitude: “Were we to - encourage little poets, we should soon be overrun.” - - - CHAPTER XVII - -[1]The Oxford or Tractarian Movement on the one hand sought a deeper - spiritual life than was then prevalent, and on the other - emphasized the solidarity of the Church of Christ before and after - the Reformation. It recognized the authority of the - pre-Reformation theology and of the associated ceremonial liturgy. - Many of its leaders entered the Roman Catholic Church, accepting - even its worship of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and of the saints. - - - CHAPTER XVIII - -[1]The condition of congregational singing at this time is reported by - Rev. Thomas Walter as follows: “Our tunes are left to the mercy of - every unskilful throat to chop and alter, to twist and change, - according to their infinitely diverse and no less odd humors and - fancies. I have myself paused twice in one note to take breath. No - two men in the congregation quaver alike or together; it sounds in - the ears of a good judge like five hundred tunes roared out at the - same time with perpetual interferings with one another.” - -[2]It is related of a New England minister, Rev. T. Bellamy, that - after the choir had outdone all its past discord and blundering in - rendering the Psalm, he announced another and admonished his - choir, “You must try again, for it is impossible to preach after - such singing.” - - - CHAPTER XIX - -[1]Dr. S. Weir Mitchell. - -[2]Dr. Louis F. Benson says of Charles Wesley’s “Jesus, lover of my - soul”: “The suspicion remains that the secret of its appeal lies - in a poetic beauty that the average man feels without analyzing - it, and in a perfection of craftsmanship that makes him want to - sing it simply because it awakens the spirit of song in him, - rather than a mood of reflection.” - -[3]The Wesleyan doctrine of the Second Work, or Holiness, now known as - “The Victorious Life.” - -[4]It will be a good introduction to this minute study to work out the - Biblical authority for the dozen or more allusions. - -[5]Hebrews 12:1. - -[6]Fleming H. Revell Co. New York. - -[7]A full discussion of hymn tunes will be found in Chapters X to XII - of _Music in Work and Worship_ or in Chapters V to X in _Practical - Church Music_, of which books the present writer is the author. - Both published by Fleming H. Revell Co. New York. - - - CHAPTER XX - -[1]A fuller discussion of this topic will be found in Chapter XXIX of - _Music in Work and Worship_, by the present writer. - -[2]When Moody was superintendent of a Sunday school in Chicago, he had - a vicious boy in one of the classes whom he had reprimanded again - and again for disturbing the meeting. Finally one Sunday the boy - was unusually fractious and Moody turned to his chorister and - said, “When I get up and walk up the aisle, you start ‘Hold the - Fort’ as vigorously as you can.” While the song was being sung - with much enthusiasm, Moody dragged the boy out of the class by - the collar, took him to an adjacent room, and punished him - drastically while the school sang and submerged the boy’s cries. - The boy grew up, became a minister, and often told with glee the - story of how Moody started the work of grace in his heart. - - - CHAPTER XXII - -[1]In regular services, single verse tunes may be played through, but - only the last half of double verse tunes should be allowed, lest - the momentum gained by the introductory comment be lost. - - - - - GENERAL INDEX - - - A - Adam of St. Victor 123 - Addison, Joseph 167 - Adolphus, Gustavus 138 - Ainsworth’s Version 155 - Alber, Erasmus 136 - Albigenses 128 - Aldhelm, Bishop 150 - Alexander, Mrs. Cecil Frances 206 - Alexander, William 153 - Alline, Harry 212 - Ambrose of Milan 120, 124 - American Hymnody, Beginnings of 208 - American Hymns, Early Collections of 213 - American Psalmody 155-157 - American Recent Hymn Writers 222-225 - Anatolius 115 - Andrew of Crete 116 - Annesley, Rev. Samuel 181 - Annesley, Susanna 181 - Announcement of Hymns 266-8 - Appelles, von Loewenstein 139 - Aquinas, Thomas 125 - Arndt, Ernst Moritz 144 - Arnold, Matthew 57, 58 - Austin, John 164 - - B - Bacon, Dr. Leonard 218 - Bakewell, John 189 - Baring-Gould, Sabine 207 - Barnby, Joseph 207 - Barton, Bernard 203 - Barton, William 165 - Basil, Saint 50 - Baxter, Richard 163, 167 - Bay Psalm Book 156, 209 - Benedicite, The 111 - Benson, Louis F. 7, 62, 65, 85, 133, 174, 225 - Bernard of Clairvaux 124 - Bernard of Cluny 125 - Beza, Theodore 150 - Bliss, P. P. 51, 91, 224 - Bonar, Horatius 207 - Bourgeois 150 - Bowring, Sir John 204 - Bradbury, William B. 51 - Brady, Nicholas 154 - Bromehead, Joseph 164 - Brooks, Bishop Phillips 51, 222, 223 - Brown, Phoebe Hinsdale 214 - Brownlie, Rev. Dr. John 114 - Bryant, William Cullen 220 - Buchanan, George 143, 147 - Byles, Mather 211 - Byrom, John 178 - - C - Caedmon 158 - Calkin, J. Baptiste 219 - Calvin, John 148 - Campbell, Thomas 155 - Campion, Thomas 161 - Candlelight Hymn 110 - Canon, Golden 116 - Canon, Pentecostarion 116 - Canons, Queen of 116 - Canon, The Great 116 - Canon, Triodion 116 - Carlyle, Thomas 135 - Caswall, Edward 126, 204 - Celano, Thomas of 126 - Cennick, John 190 - Character of German Hymnody 146 - Charlemagne 124 - Christian Lyre 215 - Christian Year 200 - Church Poetry 218 - Clement of Alexandria 109 - Coleman, Dr. Lyman 106 - Compendious Booke of Gude and Godlie Ballates 150 - Concordant Discord of a Broken-Hearted Heart 164 - Conder, Josiah 204 - Cosin, Bishop 124 - Cosmas 116 - Cotterill, Thomas 202 - Coverdale, Miles 150 - Cowley, Robert 151 - Cowper, William, Life of 196, 197 - Coxe, Bishop Arthur Cleveland 223 - Crosby, Fanny 51, 261 - - D - Damiana, Cardinal 123 - Da Todi, Jacopone 127 - Davies, Samuel 211 - Decius, Nicolaus 136 - De la Motte Fouque 144 - Dexter, Henry M. 110 - Doane, Bishop George W. 219 - Doane, William H. 51, 270 - Doddridge, Philip 233, 238 - Doddridge, Relative Standing 178 - Duffield, George, Jr. 222 - Dundee Psalms 150 - Dunster and Lyon 156 - Dwight, Timothy (Pres.) 210 - - E - Earliest English Hymns 158 - Eber, Paul 136 - Edmeston, James 203 - Eliot, John 156 - Emergency Hymns 260 - English Literary Ideals Discourage Hymn Writing 159 - English Psalmody Submerges English Hymnody 159 - English Psalm Versions Before Sternhold 150 - - F - Faber, Frederick W. 206, 235 - Fawcett, John 60, 191 - Finney, Charles G. 51, 214 - Fitting Hymn Tunes to Congregations 249 - Flagellant Monks 131 - Fleming, Paul 139 - Francis of Assisi 126 - Francke, August Hermann 141 - Franck, John 140 - Franklin, Benjamin 210 - Freylinghausen, Johann A. 141 - Fuller, Thomas 155 - Furber, Rev. Daniel L. 7 - - G - Gates, Ellen H. 91 - Gellert, Christian Fuerchtegott 139, 142 - Genevan Psalter 150 - Gerhardt, Paul 139 - German Te Deum 138 - Gerok, Karl von 146 - Ghoostly Psalms and Spiritual Songs 150 - Gill, Thomas Hornblower 58 - Gilman, Frederick J. 155 - Gilmore, Joseph H. 91, 224 - Gladden, Washington 51, 224 - Gloria in Excelsis 111 - Gloria Patri 112 - Goethe 126 - Gospel Hymn, The 89 - Adaptation to Practical Work 96-99 - Advantages of 98 - Almost Universal Use 89 - Discrimination in Use of Gospel Songs Needed 98 - Judged by Results 90 - Lack of Discrimination of Critics 91 - Precursors of 90 - Standard Hymns 92 - Unfair Comparisons 93 - Wrong Assumptions 92 - Goudimel 150 - Grant, Sir Robert 203, 230, 235 - Great Hymnic Themes 88 - Gregory of Nazianzus 114 - Gregory the Great 124 - Grigg, Joseph 192 - - H - Hammond, William 235 - Hankey, Kate 91 - Hardenberg, Friedrich von 144 - Harris, Dr. Rendell 107 - Hastings, Thomas 91, 215, 216 - Havergal, Frances Ridley 207 - Hawks, Mrs. Annie S. 91, 234 - Heath, George 75 - Heber, Bishop Reginald 84, 199, 232 - Hedge, Frederick H. 135 - Herbert, Geo. 36, 162 - Hermannus Contractus 124 - Herrick, Robert 163 - Hewitt, Eliza Edmunds 91 - Hilary, Bishop of Poitiers 120, 130 - Hiller 141 - Holden, Oliver 213 - Holmes, Oliver Wendell 220 - Hopper, Rev. Edw. 91, 224 - Horder, W. Garrett 25, 160, 166 - Hosmer, Rev. Frederick L. 224 - How, Bishop W. W. 206 - Hoyt, Dr. A. S. 96 - Hunter, Rev. William 91 - Huntington, Countess of 194 - Huss, John, of Prague 131 - Hyde, Abby B. 214 - Hymnal as a Text Book of Theology 84-86 - Hymnal, Making a Personal 240-242 - Hymn Lover, The 25 - Hymnology, Works on 7-8 - Hymns 35 - Adjusted to Mass Singing 74 - As a Pedagogic Device 74 - As Literature 53 - As Poetry 27 - Changes in 63-75 - Character of changes 67-72 - John Wesley as Reviser 70-72 - Limits of author’s rights 65 - Minor changes in hymns 73-75 - Often needless 64 - Return to originals 65 - Rights of authors 65 - Christocentric 31 - Congregational or Singing Hymn 27 - Create Religious Atmosphere 72 - Definition of Hymn 25 - Definition of Hymn by Dr. Benson 28 - Distinctly Religious 30 - Earliest Hymns 110 - Early Greek Hymns 114 - Efficiency of Hymns 21 - Excessive “Ego” in Hymns 81 - Flaws in Hymns by Standard Writers 94 - Ignorance of Hymns 21 - Importance of Hymns 17 - Impulse to Write Hymns 40 - In Apostolic Times 104 - Indifference to Hymns 50-52 - Influence of Purpose on Writing 40-43 - In the Epistles 105 - Limitations of 58 - Literary Criticism of 41, 55-57 - Means of Emotional Expression 43 - Meters of 33, 59-61 - Of the Apocalypse 106 - Of the Social Gospel 87 - Origin and Development of Apostolic Hymns 104 - Place of Hymns 17 - Practicability of 34 - Purpose of Singing Hymns 42 - Purpose of User 42 - Relation of Hymns to God 76-8 - Relation of Hymns to Singer 79-82 - Scriptural, Must be 31 - Source of 103 - Special Subjects 87 - Succeeded Psalms 103 - Supreme Theme of 88 - Taken from Congregation 112 - Too Intense 245 - Use in Propaganda 112 - Valuable Aids in Services 242 - Value of 40-46 - “Hymns Ancient and Modern” 54 - Hymn Sermons and Services 254 - Hymns of the Protestant Episcopal Church 218 - - I - Irons, Rev. W. J. 126 - - J - James I of England 153 - John of Damascus 116 - Johnson, Dr. Samuel 56 - Joseph of the Studium 117 - Jonas, Justus 136 - - K - Keble, John 199, 200, 232, 235 - Kelly, Thomas 201 - Ken, Bishop Thomas 72, 164 - Key, Francis S. 219 - “King” and “Queen” Chorales 137 - King Conrad 131 - Klopstock, Friedrich G. 143 - Knapp, Albert 145 - Knox, John 153 - Knox’s Version 153 - Krummacher, Friedrich Adolph 145 - - L - Language of Post-Apostolic Hymns 111 - Later American Orthodox Hymnists 222 - Lathbury, Mary Artemisia 223 - Latin Psalm Version by Geo. Buchanan 151 - Lavater, Johann Kasper 144 - Leavitt, Rev. Joshua 214 - Leland, John 213 - Literary Trend in English Hymns 198 - Lollards, The 50 - Lowry, Robert 51 - Luther and Calvin 148 - Luther and the Vernacular Hymn 130 - Luther, Martin 130 - Luther’s Great Chorale 134 - Luther’s Hymn Collections 134 - Luther’s Relation to German Hymnody 132 - Luther’s Tunes 136 - Lyte, Henry Francis 204 - - M - MacDonald, George 167, 178 - Madan, Rev. Martin 72, 194 - Marot, Clement 149 - Marriott, John 203 - Marseillaise Hymn 83 - Martineau, Dr. James 41, 187 - Mason, John 166 - Mason, Lowell 91, 215-217 - Mather, Cotton 157 - Mather, Richard 156 - Matheson, Dr. George 208 - Medieval Popular Hymnody 146 - Medley, Rev. Samuel 192, 235 - Memorizing Hymns 243 - Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Felix 138 - Methodist Hymnal 93 - Methods of Hymn Study 234-240 - Meyfart, Johannes 139 - Milman, Henry Hart 75, 199, 200 - Milton, John 160 - Montgomery, James 56, 64, 155, 190, 201-2 - Montgomery, James, as Critic 202 - Moore, Thomas 200 - Moravians 181 - Morris, Mrs. C. H. 224 - Mote, Edward 73 - Mozart, Wolfgang A. 126 - Muhlenberg, Rev. William Augustus 218 - - N - Neale, Dr. Mason 115, 125, 205 - Neumark, Georg 138 - Newman, Cardinal John Henry 51, 204 - New Presbyterian Hymnal 93 - Newton and Cowper 195 - Newton, John, Life of 195 - Nicolai, Philipp 137 - North, Frank Mason 224 - Notker, called Balbulus 123, 124 - - O - Occom, Samson 212 - Odes of Solomon 106 - Odo of Cluny 123 - Olivers, Thomas 189 - Olney Hymns (Newton) 195 - Omitting Verses 272 - Onderdonk, Dr. H. U. 219 - Opitz, Martin 138 - - P - Palgrave 56, 175 - Palmer, Ray 91, 217-18, 233 - Parker, Archbishop 154 - Parker, Theodore 126 - Parks, Prof. Edwards A. 7 - Patrick, Saint 159 - Paul of Samosata 112 - Paulus Diaconus 123 - Perronet, Edward 189 - Personal Hymnal 240-2 - Peter the Hermit 125 - Phelps, Prof. Austin 7, 88, 95, 257 - Phelps, Dr. Sylvanus Dryden 224 - Phillips, Philip 51 - Pietism in German Hymnody 144 - Planning Music of Service 250-53 - Popularity of Sternhold and Hopkins Version 152 - Poteat, Prof. H. M. 21 - Practical Hymnology 21 - Practical Hymn Studies 242 - Prentiss, Mrs. Elizabeth 224 - Preparing a Congregation to Sing Hymns 268-72 - Priest, Francis Baker 164 - Primitive Church, The 106 - Procter, Adelaide A. 231 - Proses 123 - Protestant Te Deum 74 - Prudentius, Bishop of Poitiers 112 - Psalmody in America 209 - Psychology of Psalmody 148-9 - - R - Rabanus, Maurus 123 - Rankin, Rev. Jeremiah E. 91, 224 - Rationalism in German Hymnody 143 - Reeves, Prof. J. Balcom 159 - Revised Presbyterian Hymnal 179 - Ringwaldt, Bartolomaeus 137 - Rinkart, Martin 138 - Robinson, Robert 191, 235 - Rodigast 141 - Roh, Johann 136 - Root, George F. 51 - Rous, Francis 153 - Rous’ Version 153 - Ruckert, Friedrich 145 - - S - Saint Basil 50 - Saint Colombo 159 - Saint Patrick 159 - Sanctus 28 - Schade 141 - Schaff, Dr. Philip 134, 143 - Scheffler, John 140 - Schultz 141 - Scott, Sir Walter 127 - Seagrave, Robert 178 - Sears, Edmund Hamilton 221 - Selborne, Lord 134 - Selnecker, Nicolaus 137 - Senfl, Ludwig 136 - Shurtleff, Ernest W. 224 - Smith, Samuel F. 91, 216 - Solomon’s Coronation Song 176 - Southwell, Robert 160 - Spafford, Horatio G. 91 - Spener, Philipp Jacob 140 - Spengler, Lazarus 136 - Speratus, Paul 134, 136 - Spirituals 55 - Spiritual Songs for Social Worship 216-17 - Spitta, Karl Johann Philipp 145 - Steele, Anne 125, 191 - Stephen, the Sabaite 116 - Sternhold and Hopkins Versions 152 - Sternhold, Thomas 152 - Stite, Edgar F. 91 - Stone, Samuel J. 84 - Stowe, Harriet Beecher 222, 230 - Strong, Nathan 212 - Studying Hymn Tunes 246, 264 - Studying Methods of Using Hymns 244-47, 249 - Study of Hymns, Advantages of 229-33 - Suggestive Selection of Hymns 258-64 - Synesius 115 - - T - Tappan, William B. 214 - Tate and Brady’s Version 154 - Tate, Nahum 154, 209 - Tauler, John 131 - Teaching Truth by Use of Hymns 253 - Technic of Hymnwriting Established 165 - Te Deum Laudamus 28, 119 - Ter Sanctus, The 111 - Tersteegen, Gerhardt 141, 235 - Tertullian 109 - Theodore of the Studium 117 - Theodulph 123 - Thomas of Celano 126 - Thompson, Alexander R. 126 - Toplady, Augustus Montague 190 - Toplady’s Hymn Tests 194 - Treasury of Sacred Songs 56 - Trench, Archbishop 55, 124 - Trent, Archbishop 125 - Troubadours 128 - Two Values in Singing Hymns 248 - Types of Hymns 76-88 - “I” and “My” hymns 81 - In Relation to God 76-9 - In Relation to Singer 79 - - U - Unitarian Hymnody in America 219 - Unity in Selecting Hymns 256 - - V - Valois, Marguerite de 149 - Value of Psalm Versions 157 - Van Alstyne, Frances Crosby 223 - Van Dyke, Dr. Henry 235 - Venerable Bede, The 123, 159 - Verse, Secular and Sacred Compared 56 - - W - Waldenses 128 - Walford, H. W. 91 - Walther, Johann 136 - Ware, Henry, Jr. 220 - Warner, Anna 223 - Waters, Horace 215 - Watts and Charles Wesley 185 - Watts, Isaac 41, 62, 169, 235, 238 - Watts’ Argument for Hymns 172-4 - Watts’ First Hymn 169 - Watts’ Horæ Lyricæ 169, 170 - Watts’ Hymns in America 210 - Watts’ Hymns, Value of 175 - Watts, Life of 168 - Watts, Stress on Practicability 174 - Wedderburn Brothers 150 - Weiss, Michael 136 - Welde, Thomas 156 - Wesley Brothers, Relation of 182 - Wesley, Charles 62, 88, 183, 235, 238, 254 - Wesley, Charles, as a preacher 184 - Wesley, Charles, Life of 183 - Wesley Family, The 181 - Wesley Hymns, Issues of 186 - Wesley, John 64, 181, 182 - Wesley, John, American Collection 182 - Wesley, John, Changes in Watts’ Hymns 70-2 - Wesley, John, Character of 183 - Wesley, John, Life of 181 - Wesley, Samuel 181 - Wesleys and the Moravians, The 181 - Wesleys, Opposition to 187 - Wesleys, Theology of 188 - White, Henry Kirke 198, 203 - Whitfield, George 210 - Whittier, John G. 222 - Williams, William 189 - Winkworth, Catherine 138 - Withers, George 161 - Wordsworth, Bishop Christopher 38, 84 - - Z - Zinzendorf, Count Nicholaus Ludwig von 182 - Zwingli, Ulrich 148 - - - - - INDEX OF HYMNS - - -(First lines, except those in parenthesis which are first lines of -other than first verse, or of first lines of translations.) - - A - A charge to keep I have 62, 83 - A few more years shall roll 208 - (A mighty fortress is our God) 134, 239 - Abide with me; fast falls the eventide 204, 223 - Ah, dearest Jesus, I have grown 36 - Alas, and did my Savior bleed 69, 81, 116, 269 - All hail the pow’r of Jesus’ name 60, 74, 189, 234 - All people that on earth do dwell 153, 259 - (All praise to Thee, eternal Lord) 135 - Almost persuaded, now to believe 91 - Amazing grace, how sweet the sound 48, 196 - Amazing sight, the Savior stands 212 - (And when our days are past) 213 - Angels from the realms of glory 202 - Approach, my soul, the mercy seat 196 - Art thou weary, art thou languid 117, 206 - As pants the hart for cooling streams 155, 204 - Awake and sing the song 235 - Awake, my soul, in joyful lays 192 - Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve 60, 179, 238 - - B - Be faithful unto death 90 - Befiehl du deine Wege 140 - Before Jehovah’s awful throne 59, 70, 175, 186, 235, 251, 259 - Behold, a Stranger at the door 192 - Behold the glories of the Lamb 170 - Behold the Savior of mankind 181 - Beneath the cross of Jesus 268 - Beyond the smiling and the weeping 208 - Blest be the tie that binds 191 - Blest be Thy love, dear Lord 164 - Blow ye the trumpet, blow 63, 251 - Bread of the world, in mercy broken 199 - Break Thou the bread of life 223 - Brief life is here our portion 125, 206 - Brighten the corner where you are 30, 97, 251 - Brightest and best of the sons of the morning 199, 232 - (But warm, sweet, tender, even yet) 222 - By cool Siloam’s shady rill 199 - - C - Calm on the listening ear of night 222 - Child of sin and sorrow 215 - Children of the heavenly King 190 - Christ is born, exalt His name 116 - Christian, dost thou see them 206 - Christians, awake, salute the happy morn 178 - Come, gracious Spirit, heavenly Dove 178 - Come, Holy Ghost, in love 218 - Come, Holy Spirit, come 60 - Come, Jesus, Redeemer, abide Thou with me 218 - Come, my soul, thy suit prepare 196 - Come, oh, come, in pious lays 161 - Come, sound His praise abroad 251 - Come, Thou Almighty King 61, 68, 261 - Come, Thou Fount of every blessing 192, 235, 239, 269 - Come, we that love the Lord 251 - Come, ye disconsolate, where’er ye languish 200, 211 - Crown Him with many crowns 60 - - D - Day is dying in the West 223 - Day of wrath! O day of mourning 127 - (Dear Christian people, now rejoice) 135 - Dear Savior, if these lambs should stray 217 - Deathless principle, arise 190 - Delay not, delay not, O sinner, draw near 216 - Depth of mercy, can there be 186, 254 - - E - Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott 134, 136, 138, 150, 245 - Eine Herde und ein Hirt 145 - Es ist gewisslich an der Zeit 137 - Es kennt der Herr die Seinen 145 - - F - Fade, fade, each earthly joy 61 - Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature 235 - Faith of our fathers, living still 206 - Father of mercies, in Thy word 191 - Father, whate’er of early bliss 60, 191 - (Fear not, O little flock, the foe) 138 - Fierce was the wild billow 115, 206 - Fling out the banner; let it float 219 - For thee, O dear, dear country 125 - Forever with the Lord 202 - Forward! singing glory 225 - From all that dwell below the skies 59 - From Greenland’s icy mountains 199, 216 - (From heaven above to earth I come) 135 - - G - Gently, Lord, oh, gently lead us 215 - Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ 135-6 - Give to the winds thy fears 140, 262 - Glorious things of thee are spoken 48, 196 - Go, labor on, spend and be spent 208 - God be with you till we meet again 91 - (God calling yet; shall I not hear?) 141 - God is love; his mercy brightens 204, 261 - God is the refuge of His saints 59, 262 - God moves in a mysterious way 48, 196, 254 - Gott ist gegenwaertig! lasset uns anbeten 141 - Gott rufet noch, sollt’ ich nicht endlich hoeren? 141 - Grace, ’tis a charming sound 179 - Great God, how infinite Thou art 186 - (Great God, what do I see and hear) 137 - Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah 190, 262 - - H - Hail, glad’ning light, of His pure glory poured 110 - Hail, Thou once despised Jesus 189 - Hail to the brightness of Zion’s glad morning 215 - Hail to the Lord’s Anointed 202 - Hark, hark, my soul, angelic strains are swelling 206 - Hark, my soul, it is the Lord 197 - Hark, ten thousand harps and voices 201 - Hark, the herald angels sing 72, 246 - Hark, the song of jubilee 202 - Harre des Herrn 90 - He dies, the Friend of sinners dies 67 - (He knoweth all His people) 145 - He leadeth me, O blessed thought 91, 224, 255 - He sings and plays the songs which best thou lovest 162 - Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty 84, 199, 251, 261 - How are Thy servants blest, O Lord 167 - How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord 262 - How gentle God’s commands 179 - How precious is the book divine 191 - How sweet the name of Jesus sounds 48, 196, 236, 238 - Hush, my babe, lie still and slumber 172 - - I - I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice 223 - I could not do without Thee 207 - I gave my life for Thee 207 - I heard the voice of Jesus say 208 - I hunger and I thirst 61 - (I know in whom I put my trust) 145 - (I know no life divided) 145 - I know that my Redeemer lives (Medley) 192 - I know that my Redeemer lives (Wesley) 186 - I lay my sins on Jesus 208 - I love Thee so; I know not how 35, 82 - I love Thy kingdom, Lord 211 - I love to steal awhile away 214 - I love to tell the story 91 - I need Thee every hour 91, 236 - I praise Him most, I love Him best 160 - I sing th’ almighty pow’r of God 60 - I was a wand’ring sheep 35, 208 - I will sing you a song of that beautiful land 91 - I would not live alway; I ask not to stay 219 - I’ll praise my Maker while I’ve breath 186 - Ich weiss, an wen ich glaube 145 - If thou but suffer God to guide thee 139 - In the Christian’s home in glory 91 - In the cross of Christ I glory 204, 269 - In the hour of my distress 163 - In the hour of trial 202 - It came upon the midnight clear 222 - It is well with my soul 91 - - J - Jedes Herz will etwas lieben 141 - Jerusalem, my happy home 164 - Jerusalem the golden, with milk and honey blest 125, 206 - Jesu, dulcedo cordium 218 - Jesu, dulcis memoria 125, 218 - Jesus, name all names above 117 - Jesus, and shall it ever be 192 - Jesus calls us, o’er the tumult 206 - Jesus, I love Thy charming name 233 - Jesus, I my cross have taken 204 - Jesus, keep me near the cross 223 - Jesus, lebt, mit ihm auch ich 142 - Jesus, let thy pitying eye 73 - (Jesus lives, no longer now) 142 - Jesus, Lover of my soul 38, 63, 64, 186, 239, 254 - Jesus loves me, this I know 223 - Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone 190 - Jesus, Savior, pilot me 91, 224 - Jesus shall reign where’er the sun 59, 176, 186, 263 - Jesus, the very thought of Thee 43, 60, 205, 218, 233, 239 - Jesus, these eyes have never seen 217, 233, 236 - Jesus, Thou joy of loving hearts 218 - Jesus, where’er Thy people meet 73, 197 - (Jesus, Thy boundless love to me) 140 - Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee 235 - Joy to the world, the Lord is come 73 - - K - Kingdoms and thrones to God belong 251 - - L - Lamp of our feet, whereby we trace 203 - Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom 34, 51, 205, 246 - Lead on, O King eternal 224, 263, 269 - Let all the earth their voices raise 259, 260 - Let our choir new anthems raise 117 - Lift your glad voices in triumph on high 220 - Lo! God is here, let us adore 78, 141, 235 - Lo! He comes with clouds descending 190 - Lo! in the clouds of heaven appears 220 - Lobe den Herren, den Maechtigen Koenig der Ehren 142 - Look, ye saints, the sight is glorious 201 - Lord, dismiss us with Thy blessing 191 - Lord, I am Thine, entirely Thine 211 - Lord, it belongs not to my care 164 - Lord Jesus, think on me 115 - Lord of all being, throned afar 59, 221, 250 - Lord, speak to me, that I may speak 207 - Lord, we come before Thee now 261 - Lord, with glowing heart I’d praise Thee 218 - Love divine, all loves excelling 186, 238, 261 - - M - Mag auch die Liebe weinen 145 - Mighty God, while angels bless Thee 191, 235 - More about Jesus would I know 91 - More love to Thee, O Christ 61, 224 - Mortals awake, with angels join 192 - My country, ’tis of thee 61, 216 - My faith looks up to Thee 43, 61, 91, 213, 236, 249 - (My feet are worn and weary) 35 - My God, how wonderful Thou art 206, 235, 250 - My God, I love Thee, not because 205, 236 - My God, I thank Thee, who hast made 231 - My God, my God, to Thee I cry 184 - My God, the spring of all my joys 38 - My gracious Lord, I own Thy right 179 - My hope is built on nothing less 74 - My Jesus, as Thou wilt 60 - My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine 246 - My soul, be on thy guard 60, 75 - My spirit longeth for Thee 61, 178 - - N - Nearer, my God, to Thee 61, 224, 242 - Never weather-beaten sail 161 - (Not all the blood of beasts) 238 - Now from the altar of my heart 166 - Now I resolve with all my heart 191 - Now must we hymn the Master of heaven 158 - Now, my tongue, the mystery telling 126 - (Now thank we all our God) 138 - Now the day is over 207 - Nun danket alle Gott 138 - Nun freuet euch, lieb Christen G’mein 135 - - O - O Christ, the Lord of heaven, to Thee 218 - O day of rest and gladness 38, 84, 251 - O God, beneath Thy guiding hand 218 - O happy band of pilgrims 117 - O happy day that fixed my choice 179 - (O happy home, where Thou art loved the dearest) 145 - O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden 140 - O Jesu Christ, mein schoenstes Licht 140 - O Jesu, meine Sonne 145 - O Jesus, our chief cornerstone 59 - O Jesus, sweet the tears I shed 218 - O Jesus, Thou art standing 207 - O little town of Bethlehem 51, 68, 223 - O love divine, how sweet Thou art 235 - O Love divine, that stooped to share 221 - O Love! how deep, how broad, how high 59 - O Love that wilt not let me go 34, 80, 97, 208, 249, 268 - O lux, beata Trinitas 134 - O Master, let me walk with Thee 51, 224 - (O Morning Star, how fair and bright) 137 - O most blessed Light divine 124 - O mother dear, Jerusalem 164 - O name, all other names above 224 - (O name than every name more dear) 144 - O Paradise, O Paradise 206 - (O sacred head now wounded) 140 - O Savior, precious Savior 235 - O selig Haus, wo man dich aufgenommen 145 - O splendor of the Father’s face 121 - O sussester der Namen all 144 - O Thou who driest the mourner’s tear 200 - O treuer Heiland, Jesu Christ 145 - O Word of God, incarnate 207 - O Word of truth! in devious paths 114 - O’er the gloomy hills of darkness 190 - Oft in danger, oft in woe 203 - Oh, could I speak the matchless worth 79, 192, 235 - Oh, for a closer walk with God 196 - Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing 68, 235, 263 - Oh, help us, Lord, each hour of need 200 - Oh, where are kings and empires now 223 - Oh, where shall rest be found 202 - Oh, worship the King, all-glorious above 97, 203, 235, 251, 259 - On the mountain’s top appearing 201 - On the wings of His love I was carried above 36 - One more day’s work for Jesus 223 - (One Shepherd and one fold to be) 145 - One there is above all others 196 - Onward, Christian Soldiers 207, 251, 255, 263 - Our God, our help in ages past 171, 175, 186, 230 - - P - Pange, lingua, gloriosi 125 - Pass me not, O gentle Savior 223 - Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin 83 - Praise, my soul, the King of heaven 204 - Praise the Lord, ye heavens adore Him 78, 235 - Praise to the Holiest in the height 205 - (Praise to the Lord! He is King over all the creation) 142 - Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire 84, 202, 269 - - R - Return, O wanderer, to thy home 216 - Ride on, ride on in majesty 75, 200 - Rise, glorious Conqueror, rise 61 - Rise, my soul, and stretch thy wings 178 - Rock of Ages, cleft for me 64, 190, 239, 254, 255 - - S - Safe home, safe home in port 117 - Safe in the arms of Jesus 223 - Safely through another week 196, 251 - Salve, Caput cruentatum 125, 140 - Savior, breathe an evening blessing 203 - Savior, more than life to me 223 - Savior, sprinkle many nations 223 - Savior, Thy dying love 224 - Savior, who Thy flock art feeding 219 - (See from his head, his hands, his feet) 271 - See, the Conqueror rides in triumph 38 - Shepherd of tender youth 109, 110 - Shout the glad tidings, exultingly sing 219 - Sei getreu bis in den Tod 90 - Sieh, hier bin ich, Ehrenkoenig 142 - Simply trusting every day 91 - (Sleepers, awake, a voice is calling) 137 - Softly now the light of day 219 - Soldiers of the cross, arise 207 - (Something every heart is loving) 141 - Sometimes a light surprises 48, 197 - Sound the loud timbrel o’er Egypt’s dark sea 200 - (Sovereign Ruler, King Victorious) 142 - Stand up and bless the Lord 60 - Stand up, stand up for Jesus 83, 222, 239 - Still, still with Thee, when purple morning breaketh 223, 230 - Summer suns are glowing 207 - Sun of my soul, Thou Savior dear 200, 232, 235 - Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer 91 - Swell the anthem, raise the song 212 - - T - Take me, O my Father, take me 218 - Take my life, and let it be 207 - The bird, the messenger of day 122 - The church’s one foundation 84 - The day is past and over 115, 206 - The God of Abraham praise 189 - The Head that once was crowned with thorns 201 - The heavens are not too high 162 - The indorsement of supreme delight 36 - The Lord is King, lift up thy voice 204 - The Lord is my Shepherd, no want shall I know 202 - The Lord our God is clothed with might 37, 198, 203 - The Lord’s my Shepherd, I’ll not want 154 - The morning light is breaking 91, 216, 263 - The ransomed spirit to her home 214 - The rivers on of Babilon 156 - The roseate hues of early dawn 206 - The royal banners forward go 122 - The Savior bids thee watch and pray 216 - The Son of God goes forth to war 199 - The spacious firmament on high 167 - The spirit in our hearts 219 - The sun is sinking fast 205 - The voice that breathed o’er Eden 201 - Thee will I love, my strength, my tower 140 - There is a fountain filled with blood 48, 60, 65, 197, 254 - There is a green hill far away 206, 271 - There is an hour of peaceful rest 214 - There’s a wideness in God’s mercy 83, 206 - There’s sunshine in my soul 245 - They who seek the throne of grace 213 - Thou art the way, to Thee alone 219 - Thou hidden source of calm repose 184 - Thou wast, O God, and Thou was blest 166 - Thou, whose almighty word 203 - (Though love may weep with breaking heart) 145 - Through all the changing scenes of life 155 - Thy way, not mine, O Lord 60 - ’Tis midnight, and on Olive’s brow 59, 214 - ’Tis the day of resurrection 206 - To our Redeemer’s glorious name 191 - True-hearted, whole-hearted 207 - - U - Unser Herrscher, unser Koenig 142 - - V - Veni, Creator spiritus 124, 134, 152 - Veni, Redemptor gentium 134 - Veni, Sancte Spiritus 124 - Verzage nicht, du Haeuflein klein 138 - Vexilla regis prodeunt 122, 124 - Von Himmel hoch da komm ich her 135 - - W - Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme 137 - (Wait on the Lord) 90 - (Wake, awake, for night is flying) 138 - Waked by the Gospel’s joyful sound 211 - Walk in the light; so shalt thou know 203 - (Was there ever kindest Shepherd) 206 - Watchman, tell us of the night 204 - We are but strangers here 61 - We are living, we are dwelling 223 - We give Thee but Thine own 207 - We may not climb the heavenly steeps 240 - (We praise and bless Thee, gracious Lord) 145 - We would see Jesus, for the shadows lengthen 223 - Welcome, sweet day of rest 60, 73 - Wer nur den lieben Gott laesst walten 138 - When all Thy mercies, O my God 167, 262 - When I can read my title clear 38 - When I survey the wondrous cross 38, 59, 79, 171, 176, 237 - When marshaled on the mighty plain 203 - When morning gilds the skies 205 - When our hearts are bowed with woe 200 - When the roll is called up yonder 245 - When the weary, seeking rest 208 - Where cross the crowded ways of life 87, 224 - While shepherds watched their flocks by night 155 - While with ceaseless course the sun 196 - Who can behold the blazing light 212 - Wie schoen leuchtet der Morgenstern 137 - Work, for the night is coming 83 - - Y - Ye holy angels bright 164 - Ye servants of God, your Master proclaims 73, 263 - Yet God’s must I remain 161 - - Z - Zion stands with hills surrounded 201 - Zion, to thy Savior singing 126 - - - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - _The Hymns It Wrote and Sang_ - By EDMUND S. LORENZ - - -To this author the hymn is not a dry abstraction but an experience of -intense reality—of those realities (as of God, Christ, sin, salvation, -divine care, eternal life) to which human hearts have responded -throughout the ages. His study makes full recognition of the personal -elements in hymn development. The singers whose vision of spiritual -things is fresh and keen stand out in every age, expanding the -permanent content of church hymnody. - -Here is indeed a book which will set the Church to singing once more, -in an effort to proclaim a new awareness of the presence of God—that -same awareness which stirred the composers of our greatest hymns. Dr. -Lorenz makes visible to us the golden stairway of great hymn writers, -shining at every level of its ascent with the glory of the Christian -faith. - - - THE CONTENTS - -Introduction. PART I: The Character of the Hymn. _Chapters_: What Is a -Hymn? The Purpose and Value Of Hymns. The Literary Aspect of Hymns. -The Emendation of Hymns. The Content of the Hymn. The Gospel Hymn. - -PART II: History of the Development of the Christian Hymn. _Chapters_: -Apostolic Origin and Development. The Post-Apostolic Hymn. The Greek -Hymnody. The Latin Hymnody. Luther and the German Hymn. The Later -German Hymnody. Metrical Psalmody. The English Hymn before Watts. -Isaac Watts and His Period. The Wesleys and Their Era. Hymns in the -Church of England. American Hymnody. - -PART III: Practical Hymnology. _Chapters_: The Study of Hymns. The -Practical Use of Hymns. The Selection of: Hymns. The Announcement and -Treatment of Hymns. Epilogue. - -The study is pre-eminently thorough both in literary analysis and in -historical research. The altogether practical treatment illuminates -the whole field of hymnology and its values. - - - - - THE SINGING CHURCH - _The Hymns It Wrote and Sang_ - By EDMUND S. LORENZ - - -This book merits the careful study of the minister, the choir master, -the organist, and others who wish to vitalize public and private -worship by an intelligent use of our Christian hymnody. - -The book is at once scholarly and practical. No other treats so -informatively and yet so interestingly:— - -(1) The religious and musical heritage of the hymn writers in the -Greek, the Latin, the German, the English, and the American epochs; - -(2) The outstanding personalities who made valuable and permanent -hymnological contributions in those epochs; - -(3) The occasions and emotional crises out of which many great hymns -were born; - -(4) The critical standards by which hymns may be adjudged great. - -No less important is the closing section of this impressive study, -_Practical Hymnology_. Here Dr. Lorenz discusses the ways and means of -utilizing the hymn in achieving a new awareness of the presence of -God. - - -Edmund S. Lorenz, LL.D., Mus.Doc., became interested in church music -very early in life, and helped himself through the years of his -academic and seminary training (at Otterbein University, the United -Brethren Seminary, and Yale Divinity School) by writing gospel songs -and editing various songbooks. After two years in the ministry and a -year as president of Lebanon Valley College, where at the beginning of -the second year overwork brought on a complete collapse, he turned -again to music. In 1890, he began the business known as Lorenz -Publishing Company. - -Dr. Lorenz has had many years of experience as editor of Sunday-school -Songbooks, church hymnals, and choir magazines. This experience and -his years of close contact with the work of the Church have given him -a peculiar qualification for the writing of services, choir cantatas, -sheet music solos, organ compositions, and songbooks. He has written -many books, such as _Practical Church Music_, _Church Music—What a -Minister Should Know about It_, _Music in Work and Worship_, -_Practical Hymn Studies_. At home and abroad, he has been in wide -demand as a lecturer on church music. - - - COKESBURY PRESS NASHVILLE TENNESSEE - _Publishers of Cokesbury Good Books_ - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - ---Retained publication information from the printed edition: this - eBook is public-domain in the country of publication. - ---Silently corrected a few palpable typos. - ---In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by - _underscores_. - ---Collated Table of Contents against headings in the text; removed the - reference to the (nonexistant) Chapter XV section VI and renumbered - subsequent sections. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Singing Church, by Edmund S. 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