One Shepherd and One Fold

Another theme to explore over the next few months is unity and the hymns that have been written about it. The very early Christian church seemed to be one body, though they had their disagreements. Jesus prayed in John 17: 20-21: I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. Many of the letters to the early churches have to do with their living together as one community.

Over time, disagreements would lead to the splintering of one church into many: dozens, hundreds and then thousands of different denominations. This isn't going to go away any time soon; if anything, I believe that the various ecumenical movements that were active thirty or forty years ago never achieved much and most churches are farther apart than ever, divided by differing beliefs and practices both large and small.

In spite of all this, there is a strain of thought that believes that the things that unite us are (or ideally should be) stronger than the things that divide us. It may be, though, that unity remains a far-off goal for which we strive, though it will only be achieved in the life to come.

This hymn by Jane Laurie Borthwick appeared in her collection Thoughts for Thoughtful Hours (1857) where it was titled Anticipations. The first line was originally And is the time approaching, but as we have seen, hymnal editors generally prefer statements to questions. In some hymnals, the line was even changed to Hasten the time appointed.

Now is the time approaching,
By prophets long foretold
When all shall dwell together,
One Shepherd and one fold.
Let all that now divides us
Remove and pass away,
Like shadows of the morning
Before the blaze of day.

Let all that now unites us
More sweet and lasting prove
A closer bond of union,
In a blest land of love.
Let war be learned no longer,
Let strife and tumult cease,
All earth one wide dominion,
The promised reign of Peace.

O long expected dawning,
Come with thy cheering ray!
When shall the morning brighten,
The shadows flee away?
O sweet anticipation!
It cheers the watchers on
To pray, and hope, and labor,
Till every strife be gone.

Jane L. Borthwick, 1857; alt.
Tune: WEBB (7.6.7.6.D.)
George J. Webb, 1837

Borthwick's original text was in four stanzas, but only these three are generally used today, this first stanza being a combination of her first two. The original first stanza ended with these four lines instead of the current four (which were originally the first four of the second stanza):

Let every idol perish,
To moles and bats be thrown
And every prayer be offered
To God in Christ alone.

No more moles and bats.

This popular tune by George Webb was originally written for a secular song but has been used for many different hymn texts over the years. Though Webb supposedly wrote several more hymn tunes, they are unknown today (and not even particularly easy to find in older hymnals, unlike many other "forgotten" tunes).


One Year Ago: John Quincy Adams

George Frederick Root

Composer George Frederick Root was born today in 1820. Musical from an early age, he studied with George Webb, and later worked with Lowell Mason, probably the best-known hymn tune composer in America at that time.

As an instructor at Mason's Boston Academy of Music, he began his composing career with simple pieces for his students, often writing both words and music for his songs and choral pieces. In 1848 he collaborated with Fanny Crosby on a simple cantata called The Flower Queen. They would go on to write several more pieces together, both secular and sacred.

During the Civil War he wrote several songs that were much in demand, including The Battle Cry of Freedom. Publishers had trouble keeping up with the orders for the sheet music, and a southern poet appropriated the tune and wrote a Confederate version for the other side to sing. Root edited a number of collections of songs, anthems, and hymns, all containing many of his compositions (The Sabbath Bell and others are available online). You can hear quite a few of them at this page.

Root's hymns and gospel songs were apparently very popular, appearing in dozens of American hymnals of the late nineteenth century, but they mostly faded out in the twentieth. This is one that I like, based on a story of Jesus' healing from Matthew 9:18-26.

She only touched the hem of his garment
As to his side she stole,
Amid the crowd that gathered around him,
And straightway she was whole.

Refrain
Oh, touch the hem of Christ's garment!
And thou, too, shalt be free!
That saving power this very hour
Shall give new life to thee!

She came in fear and trembling before him,
She knew the Christ had come;
She felt that from him virtue had healed her,
The mighty deed was done.
Refrain

He turned with “Daughter, be of good comfort,
Thy faith hath made thee whole!”
And peace that passeth all understanding
With gladness filled her soul.
Refrain

George F. Root, 19th c.; alt.
Tune: GARMENT'S HEM (10.6.10.6. with refrain)
George F. Root, 19th c.

Not wholly forgotten, George Root was inducted into the American Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970, though perhaps more for The Battle Cry of Freedom than for his hymns.