Hymn Stories of the Twentieth Century — John Shaqi
Hymn Stories of the Twentieth CenturyHart, William J. (William John)
Religion
Hymn Stories of the Twentieth Century
Hart, William J. (William John)
Hymns, English -- History and criticism
Most appropriately did a Presbyterian minister in an American city,
where he had served for 24 years, select this hymn for Memorial Day
Sunday in 1947. At the entrance to the building a member of the church
had placed a basket of lovely flowers before the bronze tablet which
recorded the names of men who had served in the World Wars. Comforting
must have been the words of Mrs. Crewdson’s hymn to those who had
suffered the loss of those dear to them in the war period:
“Thou, who hast trod the thorny road,
Wilt share each small distress;
The love which bore the greater load,
Will not refuse the less.”
Not simply in the land where the author lived and wrote are her hymns
found, but this one also appears in _The Hymnal_ (Presbyterian) in the
United States and _The Hymnary_ of The United Church of Canada. Dr.
James Moffatt quotes from an unnamed author this testimony relating to
the writer: “As a constant sufferer, the spiritual life deepening, and
the intellectual life retaining all its power, she became well prepared
to testify to the all-sufficiency of her Saviour’s love.” Hence we can
appreciate what has been said concerning the third verse, namely, “There
is infinite pathos packed into these lines:
“‘There is no secret sigh we breathe,
But meets Thine ear divine;
And every cross grows light beneath
The shadow, Lord, of Thine.’”
Songs of a Sorrowing Nation
“You can tell the kind of a man he was from the hymns he loved. Our
organist and our choir know. He felt those hymns inwardly.” These words
were spoken by the 78-year-old rector, the Rev. George W. Anthony, at
the morning service of worship conducted by him on Sunday, April 15,
1945, in St. James Episcopal Church at Hyde Park, N. Y., within a few
minutes after President Franklin D. Roosevelt was laid to rest in the
“rose garden” on his own estate.
Probably never before did the people of the United States hear so many
of the hymns of the Christian Church played so frequently as during
those days of sorrowing for the President of the nation who died
suddenly on April 12. They began to be heard soon after the first
announcement was made to a stunned people, and continued until Sunday,
the 15th, when the beloved leader was buried amid the scenes he loved.
Commercial programs were cancelled, and the radio devoted itself to news
concerning the passing of the president and events thereto related. “The
Star-Spangled Banner” and familiar hymns, mostly the favorites of
President Roosevelt, were frequently heard.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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