In Mercy Save Thine Israel

For the third Sunday in Advent we take a look back to last week's familiar hymn and find a much lesser known text based on the same material.  The O Antiphons of the eighth century have been set to music in varying ways over the years, but the one we know best, of course,  is O come, O come Emmanuel.

Today's text is also based on the O Antiphons, adapted from the prose version that had appeared in John Mason Neale's Hymnal Noted (1854).  Primary translator Horatio Bolton (Earl Nelson), grand-nephew of the renowned British admiral Lord Nelson, included this hymn in the Sarum Hymnal (1868) which was largely compiled by him.

O Wisdom, spreading mightily,

From out the mouth of God most high,

All nature sweetly ordering,

Within thy paths thy people bring:

Refrain

Draw near, O Christ, with us to dwell,

In mercy save thine Israel.

Ruler of Israel, God of might!

Who gav'st the law from Sinai's height;

Once in the burning bush revealed.

With outstretched arm thy people shield:

Refrain

O Root of Jesse! Ensign thou!

To whom the nations' kings shall bow,

From ev'ry foe thy people save,

And give them victory o'er the grave:

Refrain

O Israel's Sceptre! David's Key!

Come thou and set all people free;

Unlock the gate that bars the road

And lead them to the house of God:

Refrain

O Dayspring and Eternal Light!

Pierce through the gloom of sorrow's might;

The promised Sun of Righteousness,

Haste with thy rising beams to bless:

Refrain

O dear Desire of nations! come,

Lead us from earth to heav'n's high home;

Thou chief and precious Cornerstone,

Binding the scattered into one:

Refrain

O Comforter! Emmanuel! King!

Thy praises we would ever sing;

The nations' hope, the Savior blest,

Take us to thine eternal rest:

Refrain

Latin; tr. Horatio Bolton and others, 1868; alt.

Tune: MELITA (8.8.8.8.8.8.)

John Bacchus Dykes, 1861

This hymn was included in the 1871 hymnal of the Episcopal Church (which is where I found it), on the page opposite O come, O come Emmanuel, with similar instructions for singing one stanza each day between December 17 and 23.  It has not appeared in any later Episcopal hymnals, presumably because it was considered redundant.  No, it will never supplant the hymn we all know, but I thought it worth a look.

Four Years Ago: John Ellerton

Three Years Ago: John Ellerton

Days of Lengthening Light

It's probably not that common to sing two hymns with tunes by the same composer in the same worship service unless it's an intentional choice. It happened today in my church, apparently by coincidence, but, as noted here before, Arthur Sullivan did write four different hymn tunes commonly used for Easter texts. We sang the two most common, LUX EOI and ST. KEVIN, but this one is in our hymnal too.

"Welcome, happy morning!"
Age to age shall say:
Hell today is vanquished,
Heav'n is won today!
Lo! the dead is living,
Christ for evermore!
Thou their true Creator,
all thy works adore!

Refrain
"Welcome, happy morning!"
Age to age shall say!

Earth her joy confesses,
Clothing her for spring,
All fresh gifts returning
On the morning's wing:
Bloom in every meadow,
Leaves on every bough,
Speak thy sorrow ended,
Hail thy triumph now.
Refrain

Months in due succession,
Days of lengthening light,
Hours and passing moments
Praise thee in their flight.
Brightness of the morning,
sky and fields and sea,
Vanquisher of sadness,
bring their praise to thee.
Refrain

Thou, of life the Author,
Death didst undergo,
Tread the path of weakness,
Saving strength to show;
Come then, true and faithful,
Now fulfill thy word,
'Tis thine own third morning!
Rise, to life restored!
Refrain

Loose the souls long prisoned,
bound with sorrow's chain;
All that now is fallen
Rise to life again;
Show thy face in glory,
Bid the nations see;
Bring again our daylight:
Day returns with thee!
Refrain

Venantius Honorius Fortunatus, 6th cent,
tr. John Ellerton, 1868; alt.
Tune: FORTUNATUS (6.5.6.5.D. with refrain)
Arthur S. Sullivan, 1872

This text appears in several other hymnals to the tune HERMAS, the most well-known tune written by Frances Ridley Havergal, which is also a good match (it doesn't use the refrain).

Sullivan's fourth Eastertide tune, RESURREXIT, has not lasted as well, though I'm sure there have been services somewhere which used all four

Phoebe Palmer Knapp

I've written about composer Phoebe Palmer Knapp (March 9. 1838 - July 10, 1908) before, and her most famous tune, matched to Fanny Crosby's Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. She probably wrote her first tunes to accompany the hymns written by her mother, Phoebe Worrall Palmer, but she went on to write tunes for texts by many other gospel song writers, in addition to her long friendship and collaboration with Crosby.

She and her husband Joseph (one of the founders of the Metropolitan Life insurance company) were very active in the Sunday School of their Methodist church, St. John's in Brooklyn, where Phoebe also played the organ. In 1869, she compiled and published a collection of Sunday School music titled Notes of Joy, and the music to 94 of the 172 selections was composed by her. The introduction was written by Methodist Bishop Matthew Simpson, who wrote of Knapp's efforts:

These "Notes of Joy" were prompted partly by a mother's love as she sang to her own dear children, partly for her class in the Sunday School which she loved to instruct, and partly for the circle of friends who gathered around the mercy-seat for prayer (probably a reference to the elder Phoebe's prayer meetings). They have been listened to and admired, and having been repeatedly urged by many friends, she has at length committed them to the Press.

In addition to songs and service music by Knapp, Notes of Joy also contains the work of Phoebe Palmer, Fanny Crosby and her husband Alexander Van Alstyne (they wrote the opening song, from which the collection took its name) as well as prominent writers and composers such as Robert Lowry, Josephine Pollard, Hubert P. Main, and Theodore Perkins. In her own foreword to the book, Phoebe wrote:

It is hoped that a proper regard for the eighth commandment may restrain all book makers from appropiating, without permission, any of the Copyright property of which the book is so largely composed.

Following this foreword, the notice of copyright for Notes of Joy is included -- in the name of her husband, Joseph F. Knapp.

This tune was written after Notes of Joy, but is sung here with this Lenten text by John Ellerton.

Giver of the perfect gift,
Whom we hallow in this place,
Hear the prayer our hearts uplift
Here before thy throne of grace.

Who can save us, Christ, but thou?
Let thy mercy show thy power;
Lo, we plead thy promise now,
Here in this accepted hour.

So may these, our Lenten days,
Blessed by thee, with thee be passed,
That with purer, nobler praise
We may keep thy feast at last.

God the Holy Trinity,
Grant the mercy we implore;
God the One, all praise to thee
Through the ages evermore.

John Ellerton, 1871; alt.
Tune: SARAJEVO (7.7.7.7.)
Phoebe Knapp, 1872 ?

John Ellerton

Anglican priest John Ellerton(December 16, 1826 - June 15, 1893) is one of my favorite hymnwriters, not only for his several familiar hymns that are still sung today, but for the forgotten ones that still retain some value for us. His total output was around eighty, including both original texts and translations.

He was also a well-loved clergyman who served in several churches and was known for his devotion to social causes and the everyday life of his parishioners. His hymns are straightforward, using simple language rather than obscure doctrine. Historian John Julian wrote of Ellerton's texts in his monumental Dictionary of Hymnology:

Ordinary facts in sacred history and in daily life are lifted above the commonplace rhymes with which they are usually associated, thereby rendering the hymns bearable to the cultered and instructive to the devout.

As we have seen, hymns were written for many more occasions and purposes than those to which our modern hymnals sometimes limit themselves. This particular hymn by Ellerton, which was first published in Church Hymns (1871), one of the hymnals he helped compile, is designated for “Wednesday,” and used for midweek services. The first phrase comes from the familiar passage Matthew 18:20: For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them, and the overall theme of the hymn is our commonplace lives, from the perspective of the middle of the work week (when fewer people were probably in attendance at services). Since Ellerton's birthday falls on a Wednesday this year, this hymn seems especially appropriate.

Thou in whose Name the two or three
Are met today to meet with thee,
Fulfill to us thine own sure word,
And be thou here thyself, O Lord.

Today our week, but now begun,
Already half its course hath run;
To thee are known its toils and snares,
To thee its trials and its snares.

Thou by whose grace alone we live,
Our oft-repeated sins forgive;
Be thou our counsel, strength, and stay
Through all the perils of the way.

Give thankful hearts thy gifts to share;
Give steadfast wills thy cross to bear;
And when life's working days are past
Give rest with all thy saints at last.

John Ellerton, 1871
Tune: HESPERUS (L.M.)
Henry Baker, 1854

Click on Ellerton's name below to bring up the several other hymns we've already seen here. He's probably one of the most often used writers here at C.W.S.

One Year Ago: John Ellerton

The Feast of the Presentation

More specifically, it's sometimes called the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. Or sometimes, the Purification of Mary, or Candlemas, or even (according to Wikipedia) The Meeting of the Lord. The story is told in Luke 2:22-40 and has been frequently depicted in art (such as Rembrandt's painting here) and music.

Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple forty days after his birth, in accordance with ancient custom. The prophet Anna and old Simeon, who had waited for many years, immediately recognized the child as the fulfillment of ancient prophecy. Simeon's joyful declaration, which we know as the Nunc dimittis, has long been a part of Christian worship.

This hymn by John Ellerton was first published in The Children's Hymn Book (1880).

Hail to the Lord who comes,
Comes to the temple gate;
Not with an angel host,
Not in a kingly state;
No shouts proclaim him nigh,
No crowds his coming wait.

But, borne upon the throne
Of Mary’s gentle breast,
Watched by her duteous love,
In her fond arms at rest,
Thus to Jerusalem
He comes, the heav’nly Guest.

There Joseph at her side
In reverent wonder stands,
And, filled with holy joy,
Old Simeon in his hands
Takes up the promised Child,
The Glory of all lands.

O Light of all the earth,
Thy people wait for thee!
Come to thy temples here,
That we, from sin set free,
Before our Maker’s face
May all presented be!

John Ellerton, 1880; alt.
Tune: OLD 120th (6.6.6.6.6.6.)
Thomas Est, 1592

The Cyber Hymnal suggests a somewhat unique tune, ST. VERONICA, which I like, but not necessarily for this text.

One Year Ago: O Zion, open wide thy gates

The Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul

January 25 is set aside in many churches to commemorate the Conversion of St. Paul. In Acts 26:9-20, Paul (formerly Saul) relates how a blinding light from heaven changed him from a fierce persecutor of Christians t0 a follower of Jesus' teachings.

Author John Ellerton dated the writing of this hymn to February 28, 1871, and it first appeared later that year in Church Hymns.

We sing the glorious conquest,
Before Damascus’ gate,
When Saul, the church’s spoiler,
Came breathing threats and hate;
God's light shone down from heaven
And broke across the path;
God's glory pierced and blinded
The zealot in his wrath.

O Voice, that spoke within him
The calm, reproving word!
O Love, that sought and held him
A captive of his Lord!
Help us to know your presence
That we, in every hour,
In all that may confront us,
Will trust your hidden power.

Your grace by ways mysterious
The wrath of foes can bind;
And in those least expected,
A chosen saint can find.
In us you seek disciples
To share your cross and crown,
And give you final service
In glory at your throne.

John Ellerton, 1871; alt.
Tune MUNICH (7.6.7.6.D.)
Neuvermehrtes Gesangbuch, 1693
harm. Felix Mendelssohn, 1847

This is an extensive revision that appeared in the Episcopal Hymnal 1982. While Ellerton's hymns are frequently sung with minimal changes, the original text of this hymn is more problematic, containing some fairly impenetrable syntax for modern worshippers. (I think it would take so much time to sort out the second half of the third verse that you'd miss singing the whole last verse!)

John Greenleaf Whittier

Apparently continuing John Week at C.W.S. (John the Baptist, John Chandler, John Ellerton...) we come to John Greenleaf Whittier (December 17, 1807 - September 7, 1892), born into a Quaker family in Haverhill, Massachusetts.

When he was fifteen, a teacher loaned him a volume of poetry by Robert Burns, which he later credited with inspiring his own poetic efforts. A few years later, one of his sisters submitted a poem of his to the Free Press, a weekly paper published by William Lloyd Garrison. The poem was printed, launching Whittier's literary career as well as a long-lasting friendship with Garrison, strengthened by both men's commitment to the cause of abolition.

Whittier was a founding member of the American Anti-Slavery Society, and became editor of the National Era in 1847, one of the most influential abolitionist newspapers. His poetry and articles were also frequently published in the Atlantic Monthly.

Samuel Longfellow and Samuel Johnson were the first editors to turn Whittier's poetry into hymns in their two hymnals, but other hymnals were soon using his texts as well. The hymns that are attributed to Whittier are often excerpted from longer poems, such as this one, six verses taken from the original thirty-seven verses of his poem Our Master.

Immortal love, forever full,
Forever flowing free,
Forever shared, forever whole,
A never-ebbing sea!

Our outward lips confess the name
All other names above;
Love only knows from whence it came,
And comprehends but love.

We may not climb the heavenly steeps
To bring you, Jesus, down;
In vain we search the lowest deeps,
For you no depths can drown.

But warm, sweet, tender, even yet,
A present help you'll be;
And faith still has its Olivet,
And love its Galilee.

The healing of your seamless dress
Is by our beds of pain;
We touch you in life’s throng and press,
And we are whole again.

The letter fails, the systems fall,
And every symbol wanes;
The Spirit overshadowing all,
Eternal Love remains.

John Greenleaf Whittier, 1856; alt.
Tune: BISHOPTHORPE (C.M.)
Jeremiah Clarke, 17th c.

Whittier remains in many hymnals today. Just this last Sunday, a Whittier hymn sing was held at the Friends Meeting House in Amesbury, Massachusetts, where he worshipped.

John Ellerton

Hymnwriter and hymnologist John Ellerton was born in Middlesex on December 16, 1826. He attended Trinity College at Cambridge University and was ordained in 1850.

He began to write and translate hymns, editing his first hymnal, Hymns for Schools and Bible Classes in 1859. He refused to register copyrights on his hymns, saying that if they were "counted worthy to contribute to Christ's praise in the congregation, one ought to feel very thankful and humble."
He was on the committee (with Saturday's Bishop W.W. How) that produced Church Hymns in 1871 for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, and wrote the companion notes for that hymnal which were published in 1881. Later, he joined the Hymns Ancient and Modern editors for their revised volumes of 1875 and 1889. He was widely consulted for his hymnic knowledge by other editors and compilers.

His enthusiasm for the subject was evident in his letters. Writing to Godfrey Thring, who was wrapping up work on A Church of England Hymn-Book in 1879, he first disparages a hymn of his own that they were discussing, saying that it was "very bad." He continues:

"Don't be angry with me for not doing an Easter Eucharistic Hymn; I always use (and rejoice in) At the Lamb's high feast we sing, but even without that I could not add a mediocre one to the stock of really fine Easter hymns we possess. Don't you like the rough force too of Luther's Christ Jesus lay in death's strong bands? I do think that is so full of Easter life and joy and strength."

I think that if Ellerton was alive today he might be writing a hymn blog.

He wrote and translated at least eighty-six hymns. Following his death in 1893, Henry Housman, a former curate of his published John Ellerton: Being a Collection of His Writings on Hymnology (1896).

I like his hymns very much; we have already seen a number of them over the last year. This is probably his most popular one in England, and has consistently ranked at or near the top in various polls there.

The day thou gavest, Lord, is ended,
The shadows fall at thy behest;
To thee our morning hymns ascended,
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest.

We thank thee that thy church, unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world its watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.

As o’er each continent and island
The dawn leads on another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent,
Nor dies the strain of praise away.

So be it, God; thy Word shall never,
Like earth’s proud empires, pass away:
Thy mercy stands, and grows forever,
Till all thy creatures own thy sway.

John Ellerton, 1870; alt.
Tune: ST. CLEMENT (9.8.9.8.)
Clement C. Scholefield, 1874

"The voice of prayer is never silent,/Nor dies the strain of praise away" is one of my favorite phrases in any hymn -- the world keeps turning and every hour there are people praying and praising.even while we are asleep.

Clement Cotterill Scholefield was a friend of Arthur Sullivan, the musical editor of Church Hymns, where this tune first appeared. In recent years, some Sullivan scholars have suggested that this tune was actually by Sullivan, and that as a gift he allowed Scholefield to claim credit for the tune. It's true that Sullivan re-harmonized several of the tunes in Church Hymns, and may have done so for ST. CLEMENT, but the theory that the whole tune is his doesn't really account for the three other tunes credited to Scholefield in Church Hymns. It was probably Sullivan who named the tune, though; Scholefield would have had to be quite the egotist otherwise.

Saint Simon and Saint Jude

October 28 is marked in some traditions as the Feast of Saints Simon and Jude. These two apostles were tenth and eleventh in lists of the Twelve, but not much more is known about them than about St. Bartholomew. Some authorities believe that Jude was related to Jesus, but though there was another brother in the family named Simon, he was never identified as today's St. Simon. These two may have traveled togather to Mesopotamia and Persia, where they were martyred, which is why they are celebrated together.

Simon is also known as the Zealot, perhaps to differentiate him from Simon Peter. Jude (also called Thaddeus) has also been confused with Judas Iscariot, and apparently for some years in earlier times prayer to him was discouraged for that reason.

The Epistle of Jude (shortest book in the New Testament) talks about perseverence in the face of opposition, which may be why Jude is also considered the patron of lost causes.

Today's hymn is once again by John Ellerton, author of several other saint's day hymns.

Thou who sentest thine apostles
Two and two before thy face,
Partners in the night of toiling,
Heirs together of thy grace,
Throned at length, their labors ended,
Now in heaven's exalted place.

Praise to thee for those thy champions
Whom our hymns today proclaim;
One, whose zeal by thee enlightened
Burned anew with nobler flame;
One, the brother of thy childhood,
Brought at last to know thy Name.

Praise to thee! Thy fire within them
Spake in love, and wrought in power;
Seen in mighty signs and wonders
In thy church’s morning hour;
Heard in tones of sternest warning
When the storms began to lower.

Thus with holy Jude and Simon
And the thousand faithful more,
We, the good confession witnessed,
And our lifelong conflict o’er,
On the sea of fire and crystal
Stand, and wonder, and adore.

God our Maker, great and wondrous
In thy works, to thee be praise;
Jesus Christ, to thee be glory,
Just and true in all thy ways;
Praise to thee, from both proceeding,
Spirit blest, through endless days.

John Ellerton, 1874; alt.
Tune: NUKAPU (8.7.8.7.8.7.)
Edward J. Hopkins, 1875

The unusual name of Edward Hopkins's tune probably refers to the Nukapu which is one of the Solomon Islands. While I haven't found a direct link, Nukapu might have been considered a place of martyrdom, thus linked to the death of saints. The island was in the news in England in the early 1870s because a bishop of the Church of England, John Coleridge Patteson, was killed there.

Saint Bartholomew

Today is the feast day of Saint Bartholomew the Apostle. If you ever had to memorize the names of the twelve disciples, he's among them. But do you remember anything else in particular about him?

Probably not.

As it happens, the only specific mentions of him in the New Testament occur when the twelve disciples are listed. Presumably he was at some of the important events recounted, but was never mentioned by name. Some scholarship claims that Bartholomew (meaning “son of Tolomai”) might be the person named Nathaniel who appears in John's Gospel. But maybe not. I guess it's appropriate that the picture here is a little blurry.

If you Google “St. Bartholomew” he doesn't even come up first -- you get St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church on Park Avenue in New York City. They are marking this day today, you'll see.

So you'd think it would be hard to write a hymn about him. Noted hymnwriter John Ellerton (who wrote quite a number of saint's-day hymns) skillfully turns the very fact of his obscurity into a broader theme that brings us all into this hymn of praise.

Jesus Christ, to whom the number
Of thy starry host is known,
Many a name, by earth forgotten,
Lives forever round thy throne;
Lights, which earth-born mists have clouded,
There are shining full and clear,
Nobles in the court of heaven,
Nameless, unremembered here.

In the roll of thine apostles
One there stands, Bartholomew,
He for whom today we offer,
Year by year, our praises due;
How he toiled for thee and suffered
No one here can now recall;
All his saintly life is hidden,
All to him that did befall.

Was it he, beneath the fig tree
Seen of thee, and guileless found;
He who saw the good he longed for
Rise from Nazareth’s barren ground;
He who met his risen Savior
On the shore of Galilee;
He to whom the word was spoken,
“Greater things thou yet shall see”?

None can tell us; all is written
In the Lamb’s great book of life,
All the faith, and prayer, and patience,
All the toiling, and the strife;
There are told thy hidden treasures;
Number us, O Christ, with them,
When thou makest up the jewels
Of thy living diadem.

John Ellerton, 1871; alt.
Tune: RUSTINGTON (8.7.8.7.D.)
Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1897

This tune by C.H.H. Parry seems well-suited to the text, though if you've just sung it on August 15 for Sing we of the blessed Mother (and what other tune could you possibly use for that text?) it might be too soon to use it again. Other possibilities would be LUX EOI, or REX GLORIAE if you are allergic to overly-chromatic lines.

August 14 is also the anniversary of the beginning of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre in 1572, when over 5000 people died in and around Paris in mob violence against French Calvinist Protestants (the Huguenots). This historical event has been depicted in a wide variety of artistic forms, from plays, novels and paintings, to an episode of British sci-fi TV show Doctor Who, to the French grand opera Les Huguenots by Giacomo Meyerbeer (who didn't write any hymn tunes as far as I know - though that opera uses Martin Luther's famous tune EIN FESTE BURG more than once).

Edward J. Hopkins

Edward John Hopkins (June 30, 1818 - February 4, 1901) was an acclaimed organist and composer of his time. As a boy, he was a chorister at the Chapel Royal, then, beginning at age 16, held a number of organist positions until he took the post at the Temple Church in London, a church dating back to medieval times with an acclaimed music program then and now. He remained in that post for more than fifty years, while composing anthems, chants and hymn tunes. Two of his anthems won the annual Gresham Prize, awarded by the Professors of Music of Oxford University and Gresham College for best original composition in sacred vocal music.

Like most of his Victorian church musician contemporaries, his music is little known today. This is his one remaining hymn tune that would still be recognized by many people.

Savior, again to thy dear Name we raise
With one accord our parting hymn of praise;
We thank and bless thee ere our worship cease;
And still our hearts to wait thy word of peace.

Grant us thy peace, throughout the coming night;
Stay with us till the morning brings its light;
From harm and danger keep thy people free,
For dark and light are both alike to thee.

Grant us thy peace — the peace thou didst bestow
On thine apostles in thine hour of woe;
The peace thou broughtest, when at eventide
They saw thy piercèd hands, thy wounded side.

Grant us thy peace throughout our earthly life;
Our balm in sorrow and our stay in strife;
Peace to our land, the fruit of truth and love;
Peace in each heart, thy Spirit from above.

Thy peace in life, the balm of every pain;
Thy peace in death, the hope to rise again;
Then, when thy voice shall bid our conflict cease,
Call us, O Christ, to thine eternal peace.

John Ellerton, 1866; alt.
Tune: ELLERS (10.10.10.10.)
Edward J. Hopkins, 1869

I found no reference to any collection of Hopkins's complete hymn tunes, as were published for some of his colleagues. Hopkins did edit at least four hymnals for different denominations, where many of his tunes undoubtedly appeared. Cyberhymnal.org lists only 15 tunes, though I have found more than forty in various older hymnals, so there probably are several more than that. Previously on the blog I used his tune CULFORD, and there must be a few others that could still be sung today without amusement or feigned horror.

Two books on which Hopkins collaborated are still in print today: The Organ: Its History and Construction and The Temple Church Choral Service Book.

P.S. We will see John Ellerton (the author of today's hymn text) again, no doubt. He wrote many hymns, several of which we know today, such as this one. I restored the third verse here, which I had never seen before.

Saint Barnabas

Barnabas was one of the earliest converts to Christianity, first appearing in the Book of Acts. Called "the Levite" and born Joseph, his name was changed at his conversion when he sold his belongings and gave the proceeds to the church; the new name means "son of encouragement" or, as frequently named in a number of hymns about him, the "Son of Consolation."

By some accounts, Barnabas was the cousin of Mark, the Gospel writer. After Paul's conversion, it was Barnabas who introduced him to the twelve disciples. Later, Paul and Barnabas traveled togather, converting many others to the church in Antioch and in Cyprus (where Barnabas is the patron saint). Eventually he was stoned to death for his beliefs (accounts differ as to where this happened).

O Jesus Christ, our Captain of salvation,
Thyself by suffering schooled to human grief,
We bless thee for thy heirs of consolation,
Who follow in the steps of thee their chief.

Those whose bright faith makes weary hearts grow stronger,
And those once silent sing in joyful strain,
Bids the lone convert feel estranged no longer,
And wins the sundered to be one again.

Such was thy Levite, strong in self oblation,
To cast his all at thine apostles’ feet;
He whose new name, new faith, and new vocation,
From age to age our thankful strains repeat.

Jesus, thy blessèd saints in memory keeping,
Still be thy church’s watchword, “Comfort ye,”
Till in our promised home shall end all weeping,
And every want be satisfied in thee.

John Ellerton, 1871, alt.
Tune: ST. BARNABAS (11.10.11.10.)
Henry J. Gauntlett, 1875

Gauntlett's tune is one of those high Victorian arrangements that's a little hard to follow without seeing the music, but as soon as I heard it I knew I wanted to use it today. He wrote the tune for this particular text after it had appeared in another hymnal with another tune.

P.S. The Barnabas window above is again by Edward Burne-Jones, traditionally depicting the saint with an olive branch and a book (by some accounts the Gospel of Matthew).

The Feast of Pentecost

Joy! because the circling year

Brings its day of blessings here,

Day when first the light divine

On the church began to shine.

Alleluia!

Like to quiv'ring tongues of flame,
Onto each the Spirit came:

Tongues, that earth might hear their call,

Fire, that love might burn in all.

Alleluia!

So the wondrous works of God

Wondrously were spread abroad;

Ev'ry tribe's familiar tone

Made the glorious marvel known.

Alleluia!

Hardened scoffers heard and jeered;

List'ning strangers heard and feared,

Knew the prophets' word fulfilled,

Owned the work which God had willed.

Alleluia!

May your Spirit's pow'r restored

On your waiting Church be poured;

Grant our burdened hearts release,

Grant us your abiding peace.

Alleluia!

Latin, 8th c.; tr. John Ellerton and F.J.A. Hart, 1871; alt.

Tune: SONNE DER GERECHTIGKEIT (7.7.7.7. with Alleluia)

Bohemian Brothers' Kirchengesang, 1566

I like hymns that start with an exclamation. Usually it's Lo! or Hark! but here's a different one: Joy! Perfect for a day of celebration like this one. There is another translation of the original Latin text in the Episcopal Hymnal 1982 by Robert Campbell (#224 - Hail this joyful day's return) but I like this one much better.

The sound file you'll hear when you click on the tune link is a little sloooow for this text, but the one with the slightly better tempo at the Oremus Hymnal is unfortunately missing a note in the first line.

Then there's this version, which has to be heard to be believed (wait for the actual melody, which doesn't start until you hear the piano). Maybe a bit too peppy for your church (but maybe not?).

P.S. The illustration above is a woodcut by Gustave Dore.