Sunday, September 26, 2010

Safely Reach My Home


Continuing with hymns on the theme of heaven, we come to an interesting collaboration across a century or so. A simple, four stanza text by Isaac Watts, first published in 1707, which appeared under the epigraph The hope of heaven our support under trials on earth speaks of a sort of celestial real estate. It could be set to many different tunes in Common Meter (8.6.8.6.) such as ST. ANNE or WINCHESTER OLD, tunes which were known in Watts's time. However, it has become more familiar in this country with a folk tune from Scotland which was arranged in an early American tune collection titled Kentucky Harmony (1817).

When I can read my title clear
To mansions in the skies,
I'll bid farewell to every fear,
And wipe my weeping eyes.
And wipe my weeping eyes,
And wipe my weeping eyes
I'll bid farewell to every fear,
And wipe my weeping eyes.

Should earth against my soul engage,
And fiery darts be hurled,
Then I can smile at Satan’s rage,
And face a frowning world.
And face a frowning world,
And face a frowning world,
Then I can smile at Satan’s rage,
And face a frowning world.

Let cares, like a wild deluge come,
And storms of sorrow fall!
May I but safely reach my home,
My God, my heav’n, my all.
My God, my heav'n, my all,
My God, my heav'n, my all,
May I but safely reach my home,
Ay God, my heav'n, my all.

There shall I bathe my weary soul
In seas of heav’nly rest,
And not a wave of trouble roll,
Across my peaceful breast.
Across my peaceful breast,
Across my peaceful breast,
And not a wave of trouble roll,
Across my peaceful breast.

Isaac Watts, 1707; alt.
Tune:
PISGAH (8.6.8.6.6.6.8.6.)
Scottish tune, arr. Joseph C. Lowry, 1817


PISGAH, like many hymn tunes, is named for a place in the Bible, the topmost part of Mount Nebo, from which Moses saw the Promised Land. Though a folk tune, we would probably consider it today somewhat more elaborate than a simple Common Meter tune, partly because the tune requires repeating the last two lines over four lines of the tune. Such repetition was more common in eighteenth and early nineteenth century tunes, though not often used in modern hymn tunes (contemporary Christian songs are a different matter; text repetition is one thing often criticized about them).

There may be a few instances of this text in a modern hymnal with a regular Common Meter tune, but I think this is the way it's mostly still remembered and sung.

2 comments:

Leland Bryant Ross said...

I love Pisgah. Our hymnal only has three stanzas, which irritates me, as I think this tune can stand more than four.

Did Watts write "fiery darts" or "hellish darts" (as Alice Parker gives the line in her Melodious Accord Hymnal)?

C.W.S. said...

Yeah, this linked midi file isn't the best (kind of an accordion sound to it) but it's closer to the way I know it than the Cyber Hymnal's arrangement (which I can't believe is in the public domain).

I don't specifically recall making the text change (this was one of our original project hymns) but other places do use "hellish" so someone must have done.