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William M. Runyan

1870 - 1957 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Composer of "[Forward still! With face full forward]" Showing early musical promise, William Marion Runyan (b. Marion, NY, 1870; d. Pittsburg, KS, 1957) was a substitute church organist by the age of twelve. He became a Methodist minister in 1891 and served several churches in Kansas but turned to evangelism in 1903; he worked for the Central Methodist Conference for the next twenty years. Following that service, Runyan became pastor at the Federated Church at John Brown University, Sulphur Springs, Arkansas. Editor of Christian Workers Magazine, he also served the Moody Bible Institute and was an editor for Hope Publishing Company until his retirement in 1948. Runyan wrote a number of hymn texts, gospel songs, and hymn tunes. Bert Polman

J. E. Seddon

1915 - 1983 Person Name: James E. Seddon, 1915-1983 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Paraphraser of "Church of God, Elect and Glorious" in Worship and Rejoice James E. Seddon (b. Ormskirk, Lancashire, England, 1915; d. London, England, 1983) received his musical training at the London College of Music and Trinity College in London and his theological training at the Bible Churchmen's Theological College (now Trinity College) in Bristol. He served various Anglican parishes in England from 1939 to 1945 as well as from 1967 to 1980. Seddon was a missionary in Morocco from 1945 to 1955 and the home secretary for the Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society from 1955 to 1967. Many of his thirty hymns are based on missionary themes; he wrote some in Arabic while he lived in Morocco. Seddon joined other Jubilate Group participants to produce Psalm Praise (1973) and Hymns for Today's Church (1982). Bert Polman

S. J. Stone

1839 - 1900 Person Name: Samuel J. Stone Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "De la Iglesia el fundamento" in Celebremos Su Gloria Stone, Samuel John, a clergyman of the Church of England, the son of Rev. William Stone, was born at Whitmore, Staffordshire, April 25, 1839. He was educated at Pembroke College, Oxford, where he was graduated B.A. in 1862. Later he took orders and served various Churches. He succeeded his father at St. Paul's, Haggerstown, in 1874. He was the author of many original hymns and translations, which were collected and published in 1886. His hymns are hopeful in spirit and skillfully constructed. He published several poetic volumes. He died November 19, 1900 --Hymn Writers of the Church, 1915 (Charles Nutter) ============================ Stone, Samuel John, M.A., son of the Rev. William Stone, M.A., was born at Whitmore, Staffordshire, April 25, 1839, and educated at the Charterhouse; and at Pembroke College, Oxford, B.A. 1862; and M.A. 1872. On taking Holy Orders he became Curate of Windsor in 1862, and of St. Paul's, Haggerston, 1870. In 1874 he succeeded his father, at St. Paul's, Haggerston. Mr. Stone's poetical works are (1) Lyra Fidelium, 1866; (2) The Knight of Intercession and Other Poems, 1872, 6th edition, 1887; (3) Sonnets of the Christian Year, first printed in the Leisure Hour, and then published by the R. T. Society, 1875; (4) Hymns, a collection of his original pieces and translations, 1886. He has also published Order of The Consecutive Church Service for Children, with Original Hymns, 1883. Mr. Stone's hymns, most of which are in common use, and several of which have a wide popularity, include:— 1. A sower went to sow his seed. The Sower. In his Hymns, 1886, the author says this hymn was ”Written specially in allusion to the sixteen years' work of the first Vicar [his Father] of St. Paul's, Haggerston, to whom the Parish was given in 1858, without Church, or School, or "Vicarage, or Endowment." 2. Bear the troubles of thy life. Patience. A translation of Thomas a Kempis's “Ad versa mundi tolera" (p. 23, ii.) made for the Rev. S. Kettlewell's Thomas á Kempis, 1882. 3. By Paul at war in Gentile lands. St. Mark. Written at Windsor in 1870, and published in his Knight of Intercession, 1872. 4. By Shepherds first was heard. Carol. Written in 1885, and published in the Parochial Magazine, 1885. 5. By Thy love which shone for aye. Litany of the Love of God. Written at Haggerston in 1883, and printed in the Monthly Packet, 1884. 6. Christ the Wisdom and the Power. For Church Workers. Written for the Church Society of St. Paul's, Haggerston in 1812, and published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 7. Dark is the sky that overhangs my soul. Sorrow succeeded by Joy. Written at Windsor in 1869 for the Monthly Packet, and printed therein 1869. Published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872, under the title of "Light at Eventide." 8. Deeply dark and deeply still. The Transfiguration. Written in 1871 and published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 9. Eastward, ever eastward. Processional for Sunday Morning. Written at Haggerston in 1876, and published in the Monthly Packet, 1884. 10. Faith, who sees beyond the portal. Faith, Hope, and Charity. Written at Windsor in 1869, and published in the Monthly Packet, 1869, and The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 11. Far off our brethren's voices. Missions. Written for the First Day of Intercession for Foreign Missions, 1871, and published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. "For Colonial Missions." 12. Give the word, Eternal King. Missions. Written for the First Day of Intercession for Foreign Missions, 1871. 13. Glory in heaven to God. Christmas Carol. Written in 1882 for G. H. Leslie's Cantata The First Christmas Morn, 1882. 14. God the Father, All, and One. For Unity. Written in 1883 for Canon G. Venables's Service for Unity, and appeared in the Monthly Packet, 1884. 15. God the Father's Only Son. Offices of Christ. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Article ii.of the Apostles' Creed, "And in Jesus Christ His Only Son our Lord." 16. God the Spirit, we adore Thee. The Holy Ghost. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, or) Article viii. of the Apostles' Creed, "I believe in the Holy Ghost." 17. Great Captain of God's armies. For Purity. Written in 1884 for the Church of England Purity Society, and printed in Church Bells, April 10, 1885. 18. Homeward we pass in peace. Close of Divine Service. Written in 1884 at Haggerston; and included in the author's Hymns, 1886, as a "Hymn after Benediction." 19. How can we praise Thee, Father? For the Fatherless. Written by request for "The Church of England Central Home for Waifs and Strays," 1882, and printed in the Monthly Packet, 1884. 20. Is there no hope for those who lie? Missions. Written in 1870 for the Monthly Packet; and also included in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 21. Jesu, to my heart most precious. Jesus, All in All. A translation of Thomas á Kempis's "De dulcedine Jesu," made for the Rev. S. Kettlewell's Thomas á Kempis, 1882. 22. Lo! They were, and they are, and shall be. St. Michael and All Angels. Written in 1875 for The Scottish Guardian, in which it was given in 1875. 23. Lord Christ, my Master dear. For Church Workers. Written for the Sunday School Teachers of St. Paul's, Haggerston, 1885, and given in his Hymns, 1886. 24. Lord of the harvest, it is right and meet. Missions, Thanksgiving. Written for the Second Day of Intercession for Foreign Missions, 1871, and published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. In the 1889 Appendix to Hymns Ancient & Modern it is somewhat altered. 25. Most true, most High; O Trinity. Holy Trinity. A translation of Thomas á Kempis's "O vera summa Trinitas" made for the Rev. S. Kettlewell's Thomas á Kempis, 1882. 26. My Saviour! I behold Thy life. Passiontide. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Article iv. of the Apostles' Creed, "Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was Crucified, Dead, and Buried." 27. Need hath the golden city none. Evening. Written at Windsor in 1869, and was published in the Monthly Packet in 1870. Also in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 28. None else but Thee for evermore. God the Father. The opening hymn of his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Article i. of the Apostles' Creed, "I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth." 29. 0 joy, the purest, noblest. Evening. A translation in two parts of Thomas á Kempis's "O qualis quantaque laetitia" made for the Rev. S. Kettlewell's Thomas á Kempis, 1882. Pt. ii. begins "State of divinest splendour!" 30. 0 Thou by Whom the saints abide. Litany of the Holy Spirit. Written for a Confirmation at Haggerston, 1875, and included in the 3rd edition of The Knight of Intercession, 1875. 31. 0 Thou Whose love paternal. Holy Matrimony. Written at Windsor in 1863. 32. On Olivet a little band. Ascension. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Article vi. of the Apostles’ Creed, “He ascended into Heaven," &c. 33. Peace: legacy of mystic power. Peace . Written in 1882 for The Society of St. Katharine for Invalids, and published in the Monthly Packet, 1884. 34. Remember Me, show forth My death. Holy Communion. Written at Windsor for the Monthly Packet, in 1870; and included in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 35. The Son forsook the Father's home. Christmas. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Art. iii. of the Apostles' Creed, “Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of the Virgin Mary." 36. The old year's long campaign is o'er. The New Year. Written at Windsor in 1868, and published in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 37. The whole creation groans and cries. Travail of the Creation. Written at Windsor for the Monthly Packet, 1869, and included in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 38. The world is sad with hopes that die. Everlasting Life. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Art. xii. of the Apostles' Creed, "The Life Everlasting." 39. Their names are names of Kings. Saints Days. Written at Windsor for the Monthly Packet in 1869, and included in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 40. There is an ancient river. The Spiritual River. Written at Windsor for the Monthly Packet, in 1870; and given in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. 41. Thou Who hast charged Thine elder sons. For School Teachers. Written in 1881 for St. Katharine's Training College for Mistresses; and subsequently adapted for use by teachers of both sexes. 42. Thou Who didst love us when our woes began. Temperance. Written for the Church of England Temperance Society Magazine, 1866. 43. Through midnight gloom from Macedon. Missions. Written for the First Day of Intercession for Foreign Missions, 1871. 44. Unchanging God, hear from eternal heaven. On behalf of the Jews. Written for the East London Mission to the Jews, 1885. It is included in an abridged form in the 1889 Appendix to Hymns Ancient & Modern. 45. While the Shepherds kept their vigil. Christmas Carol. Written at Windsor in 1868. 46. Winter in his heart of gloom. The Resurrection of the Body. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Article xi. of the Apostles' Creed, "The Resurrection of the Body." 47. Wistful are our waiting eyes. The Judgment. Published in his Lyra Fidelium, 1866, on Art. vii. of the Apostles' Creed, "From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead." 48. Ye faithful few of Israel's captive days. Holy Scriptures. Written at Windsor for the Monthly Packet, in 1869. Some of Mr. Stone's finer hymns, including "Round the Sacred City gather;" "The Church's One Foundation;" "Weary of earth and laden with my sin," and others, are annotated under their respective first lines. These, together with the 48 above, are given in his Hymns, 1886, some of the translations being recast. Additional translations from Thomas á Kempis are also noted under his name. Another hymn, inseparably associated with Mr. Stone's name is:— 49. Lord of our Soul's salvation. National Thanksgiving. This was ordered by command of Her Majesty the Queen to be sung at the Thanksgiving for the recovery of H. R. H. The Prince of Wales, on Feb. 27, 1872. In its original form it was in 7 stanzas of 8 lines, and was thus sung throughout the country. Owing however to the necessary restrictions as to time in the Cathedral service, a selection of four verses only--the First, a combination of the 2nd and 4th, the 6th, and the 7th--was adapted by the author for use in St. Paul's." The full text was included in The Knight of Intercession, 1872. Mr. Stone's hymns vary considerably in metre and subject, and thus present a pleasing variety not always found in the compositions of popular hymnwriters. His best hymns are well designed and clearly expressed. The tone is essentially dogmatic and hopeful. The absence of rich poetic thought and graceful fancy is more than atoned for by a masterly condensation of Scripture facts and of Church teaching given tersely and with great vigour. His changes and antitheses are frequently abrupt, in many instances too much so for congregational purposes, and his vocabulary is somewhat limited. His rhythm, except where broken either by long or by compound words, is rarely at fault, and his rhyme is usually perfect. A few of his hymns are plaintive and pathetic, as the tender "Weary of earth and laden with my sin;" others are richly musical, as "Lord of the harvest! it is right and meet:" but the greater part are strongly outspoken utterances of a manly faith, where dogma, prayer, and praise are interwoven with much skill. Usually the keynote of his song is Hope. He died Nov. 19, 1900. -- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ===================== Stone, S. J. , p. 1095, i. Of his hymns noted there the following appeared in Mission Life, 1872, vol. iii., pt. ii., pp. 685-88. No. 11, "Far off our brethren's voices," for Church Missionary Hymn Book, Colonial Missions, and No. 12, "Give the word, Eternal King," and No. 43, "Through midnight gloom from Macedon," for "Foreign Missions." In addition the following are also in common use:— 1. Awake, 0 Lord, the zeal of those who stand. Intercession for the Clergy. In the Church Missionary Hymn Book, 1899. 2. England, by thine own Saint Alban. St. Alban. In C. W. A. Brooke's Additional Hymns, 1903. 3. Our God of love Who reigns above. For Children. Appeared in the Church Monthly, July 1899, and Hymns Ancient & Modern, 1904. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)

William J. Irons

1812 - 1883 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "Sing with All the Saints in Glory" in The United Methodist Hymnal Irons, William Josiah, D.D., son of Joseph Irons, was born at Hoddesdon, Herts, Sep. 12, 1812, and educated at Queen's College, Oxford (B.A. 1833, D.D. 1854), and took Holy Orders 1835. In 1837 he became Incumbent of St. Peter's, Walworth, and was subsequently Vicar of Barkway, Incumbent of Brompton, Rector of Wadingham; and in 1872, Rector of St. Mary-Woolnoth, formerly held by his father's friend, John Newton. He was also Bampton Lecturer in 1870, and Prebendary of St. Paul's Cathedral. He died June 18, 1883. Dr. Irons took a somewhat prominent part in the ecclesiastical controversies of his day, and published extensively thereon in the form of Sermons, Letters, Pamphlets, &c. His important work, the Bampton Lectures, 1870, was on Christianity as taught by St. Paul. His hymnwriting and translating began during his Curacy at St. Mary, Newington, 1835-1837, and was continued to his death. Many were first printed as broadsheets, and subsequently included in the Rev. R. T. Lowe's (Rector of Lea, Lincolnshire) Hymns for the Christian Seasons, Gainsburgh, 1st ed., 1854, and in his own collections. Of these separate publications the most important were his translation of the Dies Irae, and Quicumque vult, and a few special Hymns (Hayes) in 1867. His hymnological works, in addition to these, were:— (1) Metrical Psalter, 1857; (2) Appendix to the Brompton Metrical Psalter, 1861 (22 hymns); (3) Hymns for Use in Church, 1866 (100 hymns). These contained hymns by Dr. Irons, and others. The next contains his Translations and Original Hymns only. (4) Psalms and Hymns for the Church, 1st ed., 1873 (126 h.); 2nd ed., 1875 (190 h.); 3rd ed., 1883 (308 h.). The principal object of this last work was to supply special hymns on the Collects, Epistles, and Gospels, and for Advent and Lent, together with special hymns for the Festivals; and this to a great extent Dr. Irons was enabled to accomplish. His versions of individual Psalms are directly from the Hebrew, line for line. In addition to those of Dr. Irons's hymns and translations, which are annotated under their respective first lines, the following are in common use outside of his own collections, the details appended being from his MS. notes:— 1. Blest voice of love, 0 Word divine. Confirmation. Written for a Confirmation at Brompton, and published in Lowe's Hymns for the Christian Seasons, 1854, No. 184; in the Appendix to the Brompton Metrical Psalter, 1861; and the author's later collections. 2. Can earthly voices fitly sing. Public Opening of a School. Written at Brompton on the occasion of the opening of a School, and published in the 1861Appendix as above, and in the author's later collections. 3. Children of earth, for heaven we seek. Epiphany. A meditation on the Collect for the first Sunday after the Epiphany, and published in his Psalms & Hymns, 1875. 4. Eternal Spirit, God of Grace. Whitsuntide. Written in 1865, and published in his Hymns for Use in Church, 1866, and in a revised form in his Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 5. Faithful Creator, Lord Divine. Consecration to God. Published in his Psalms & Hymns, &c, 1873. 6. Father of love, our Guide and Friend. Confirmation. Written for a large Confirmation at Brompton, in 1844, and published in Lowe's Hymns for the Christian Seasons, 1854, No. 185, and in the 1861 Appendix as above, and the author's later collections. 7. Hail, holy rest, calm herald of that day. Sunday. Published in his Psalms & Hymns, &c, 1873. 8. Is not this our King and Prophet? Palm Sunday. Published in his Psalms & Hymns, &c, 1873. 9. It is not finished, Lord of grace. Preparation for Heaven. Written in 1850. It is No. 45 of his Hymns, 1866, in 6 stanzas of 5 lines. 10. Jesu, Who for us didst bear. Words from the Cross. In his Hymns, 1866, No. 42. 11. Joy of joys, He lives, He lives. Easter. Written in 1873. In the New Mitre, 1875; and the author's Hymns, 1875. 12. Lord, hear my prayer, bow down Thine ear. Lent. Published in Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 13. Lord, in Thy wrath Thou thinkest yet. Lent. In his Hymns, 1866, No. 91. 14. Lord, Thy voice hath spoken. The Beatitudes. In Hymns for use in the Church of Saint Ethelburga, Bishopsgate, 1873, and Dr. Irons's Psalms & Hymns, 1875. 15. No sorrow and no sighing. Heaven. Published in his Psalms & Hymns, 1873, in 5 stanzas of 4 lines. In Thring's Collection 1882, stanzas i.-iii. were given from the 1875 text, and a new stanza was added by Dr. Irons at Prebendary Thring's request. 16. 0 God with us, the Saviour. For use during a Retreat. Given in Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 17. 0 how long, how long. Ps. xiii. Appeared in his Psalms & Hymns, &c, 1873. 18. 0 Saviour, now at God's right hand. Jesus the High Priest. Published in the 1861 Appendix as above, and revised in the author's latter collections. In the Psalms & Hymns, 1873., stanzas i., ii., v. are from 1861, iv. from 1866; and iii. is new. 19. 0 who are they so pure and bright? Holy Innocents . Written on the death of Infants in the Epidemic of 1837, and published in Lowe's Hymns for the Christian Seasons, 1854, No. 20, and in the 1861 Appendix as above, in 3 stanzas of 8 lines. In the 1866 Hymns it was divided into 6 stanzas of 4 lines, and this arrangement was repeated in the 1873 Psalms & Hymns. 20. Sing with all the sons of men. Easter. Given in his Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 21. Thanks be to God for meet and right. Processional. Published in his Hymns, &c, 1866, and again in his Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 22. To whom but Thee, 0 God of Grace. Passiontide. Appeared in his Hymns, &c, 1866; and in his Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 23. Triumphant Lord, Thy work is done. Ascension. Published in the 1861 Appendix as above, in 3 st. of 4 1. In the 1866 Hymns the st. (iii.) “0 by Thy spotless, wondrous birth " was added; and in this enlarged form the hymn was repeated in the Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 24. We praise Thee, 0 our God--to Thee. Children's Hymn of Praise to the Holy Trinity. Written for the Schools at St. Mary's Newington, and published in the 1861 Appendix as above, and repeated in the Hymns, &c, 1866, and the Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 25. Who is this from Bethlehem coming? Purification of Blessed Virgin Mary. Appeared in the Psalms & Hymns, 1873. 26. Why art thou weary, 0 my soul? Ps. lxi. Given in his Hymns, &c, 1866, and his Psalms & Hymns, 1873, in 6 stanzas of 7 lines. In Thring's Collection, 1882, stanza iii. is omitted. Amongst modern hymnwriters, Dr. Irons ranks with the first. His hymns have not been largely used outside of his own congregation; but their high excellence, variety of subjects and metres, intense earnestness, powerful grasp of the subject, and almost faultless rhythm must commend them to the notice of hymnbook compilers. Prebendary Thring has enriched his Collection (1882) with most of those named above. They are of more than usual excellence, and others remain of equal merit. -- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ====================== Irons, W. J., p. 571, ii. Of the hymns noted under his name, Nos. 13, 21, and 26, appeared in Chope's Hymnal, 1862. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)

Russell Kelso Carter

1849 - 1928 Person Name: R. K. C. Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "Breathe upon Us" in Timeless Truths Russel Kelso Carter was a professor in the Pennsylvania Military College of Chester. While there he was licensed to preach by the Methodist Episcopal Church. He became very active in leading camp meetings and revivals. After failing health forced him to abandon this work, he studied and became a medical doctor as well as a writer. He wrote novels as well as hymns. Dianne Shapiro, from "The Singers and Their Songs: sketches of living gospel hymn writers" by Charles Hutchinson Gabriel (Chicago: The Rodeheaver Company, 1916)

John Ambrose Lloyd

1815 - 1874 Person Name: John Ambrose Lloyd, 1815 - 1874 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Composer of "EIFIONYDD" in The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada

Eugene Thomas

b. 1941 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Arranger (Choral ending) of "HYMN TO JOY" in The Celebration Hymnal

Eliza S. Alderson

1818 - 1889 Person Name: E. S. Alderson, 1818-89 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "Lord of Glory, Who Hast Bought Us" in Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary Alderson, Eliza Sibbald, née Dykes, granddaughter of the Rev. Thomas Dykes, of Hull, and sister of the Rev. Dr. Dykes, born in 1818, and married, in 1850, to the Rev. W. T. Alderson, some time chaplain to the West Riding House of Correction, Wakefield. Mrs. Alderson is the author of the following hymns, the first of which is likely to attain a commanding position:— 1. And now, beloved Lord, Thy soul resigning. [Passiontide.] A hymn of more than usual merit, in 6 stanzas of 4 lines, written in 1868 at the request of Dr. Dykes. In 1875, stanzas i., ii., v. and vi., were given in the revised edition of Hymns Ancient & Modern, No. 121, with a special tune Commendation by Dr. Dykes. The full original text is restored in Thring's Collection, 1882, No. 170. 2. Lord of glory, Who hast bought us. [Almsgiving.] Written in 1864, in 5 stanzas of 8 lines, and published in the Appendix to Hymns Ancient & Modern, 1868, No. 372, and repeated in the revised edition 1875, No. 367, Mrs. Alderson says, "It was the very strong feeling that a tithe of our income was a solemn debt to God and His poor, which inspired it." Dr. Dykes’s tune "Charitas" was composed for this hymn. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ===================== Alderson, Eliza S., p. 38, i. She was born Aug. 16, 1818, and died at Kirkthorpe, Yorkshire, Mar. 18, 1889. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)

Bernard, of Cluny

1100 - 1199 Person Name: Bernard of Cluny Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "Jerusalem the Golden" in Hymns and Devotions for Daily Worship Bernard of Morlaix, or of Cluny, for he is equally well known by both titles, was an Englishman by extraction, both his parents being natives of this country. He was b., however, in France very early in the 12th cent, at Morlaix, Bretagne. Little or nothing is known of his life, beyond the fact that he entered the Abbey of Cluny, of which at that time Peter the Venerable, who filled the post from 1122 to 1156, was the head. There, so far as we know, he spent his whole after-life, and there he probably died, though the exact date of his death, as well as of his birth is unrecorded. The Abbey of Cluny was at that period at the zenith of its wealth and fame. Its buildings, especially its church (which was unequalled by any in France); the services therein, renowned for the elaborate order of their ritual; and its community, the most numerous of any like institution, gave it a position and an influence, such as no other monastery, perhaps, ever reached. Everything about it was splendid, almost luxurious. It was amid such surroundings that Bernard of Cluny spent his leisure hours in composing that wondrous satire against the vices and follies of his age, which has supplied—and it is the only satire that ever did so—some of the most widely known and admired hymns to the Church of today. His poem De Contemptu Mundi remains as an imperishable monument of an author of whom we know little besides except his name, and that a name overshadowed in his own day and in ours by his more illustrious contemporary and namesake, the saintly Abbot of Clairvaux. The poem itself consists of about 3000 lines in a meter which is technically known as Leonini Cristati Trilices Dactylici, or more familiarly—to use Dr. Neale's description in his Mediaeval Hymns, p. 69—" it is a dactylic hexameter, divided into three parts, between which a caesura is inadmissible. The hexameter has a tailed rhyme, and feminine leonine rhyme between the two first clauses, thus :— " Tune nova gloria, pectora sobria, clarificabit: Solvit enigmata, veraque sabbata, continuabit, Patria luminis, inscia turbinis, inscia litis, Cive replebitur, amplificabitur Israelitis." The difficulty of writing at all, much more of writing a poem of such length in a metre of this description, will be as apparent to all readers of it, as it was to the writer himself, who attributes his successful accomplishment of his task entirely to the direct inspiration of the Spirit of God. "Non ego arroganter," he says in his preface, "sed omnino humiliter, et ob id audenter affirmaverim, quia nisi spiritus sapicntiae et intellectus mihi affuisset et afftuxisset, tarn difficili metro tarn longum opus con-texere non sustinuissem." As to the character of the metre, on the other hand, opinions have widely differed, for while Dr. Neale, in his Mediaeval Hymns, speaks of its "majestic sweetness," and in his preface to the Rhythm of Bernard de Morlaix on the Celestial Country, says that it seems to him "one of the loveliest of mediaeval measures;" Archbishop Trench in his Sac. Lat. Poetry, 1873. p. 311, says "it must be confessed that" these dactylic hexameters "present as unattractive a garb for poetry to wear as can well be imagined;" and, a few lines further on, notes "the awkwardness and repulsiveness of the metre." The truth perhaps lies between these two very opposite criticisms. Without seeking to claim for the metre all that Dr. Neale is willing to attribute to it, it may be fairly said to be admirably adapted for the purpose to which it has been applied by Bernard, whose awe-stricken self-abasement as he contemplates in the spirit of the publican, “who would not so much as lift up his eyes unto heaven," the joys and the glory of the celestial country, or sorrowfully reviews the vices of his age, or solemnly denounces God's judgments on the reprobate, it eloquently pourtrays. So much is this the case, that the prevailing sentiment of the poem, that, viz., of an awful apprehension of the joys of heaven, the enormity of sin, and the terrors of hell, seems almost wholly lost in such translations as that of Dr. Neale. Beautiful as they are as hymns, "Brief life is here our portion," "Jerusalem the Golden," and their companion extracts from this great work, are far too jubilant to give any idea of the prevailing tone of the original. (See Hora Novissima.) In the original poem of Bernard it should be noted that the same fault has been remarked by Archbishop Trench, Dean Stanley, and Dr. Neale, which may be given in the Archbishop's words as excusing at the same time both the want, which still exists, of a very close translation of any part, and of a complete and continuous rendering of the whole poem. "The poet," observes Archbishop Trench, "instead of advancing, eddies round and round his object, recurring again and again to that which he seemed thoroughly to have discussed and dismissed." Sac. Lat. Poetry, 1873, p. 311. On other grounds also, more especially the character of the vices which the author lashes, it is alike impossible to expect, and undesirable to obtain, a literal translation of the whole. We may well be content with what we already owe to it as additions to our stores of church-hymns. -John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ================== Bernard of Cluny, p. 137, i., is best described thus: his place of origin is quite uncertain. See the Catalogue of the Additional MSS. of the B. M. under No. 35091, where it is said that he was perhaps of Morlas in the Basses-Pyrenees, or of Morval in the Jura, but that there is nothing to connect him with Morlaix in Brittany. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.] --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)

Nahum Tate

1652 - 1715 Person Name: Nahum Tate, 1652 - 1715 Meter: 8.7.8.7 D Author of "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks" in The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada Nahum Tate was born in Dublin and graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, B.A. 1672. He lacked great talent but wrote much for the stage, adapting other men's work, really successful only in a version of King Lear. Although he collaborated with Dryden on several occasions, he was never fully in step with the intellectual life of his times, and spent most of his life in a futile pursuit of popular favor. Nonetheless, he was appointed poet laureate in 1692 and royal historiographer in 1702. He is now known only for the New Version of the Psalms of David, 1696, which he produced in collaboration with Nicholas Brady. Poverty stricken throughout much of his life, he died in the Mint at Southwark, where he had taken refuge from his creditors, on August 12, 1715. --The Hymnal 1940 Companion See also in: Hymn Writers of the Church