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V0I4EJME FORTY-EIGHT
ARLOTTB. NORTH CAROUNA THURSDAY, JULY 24, 1924
Birth and History of
Some Greatest Hymns*
Rev. W. J. MacQuarrie Poet
Credit, Ontario, Canada.
One of our greatest hymn writers,
Isaac Watts, has left behind him a
Terse that neads as tollo^s:
In vain we tube our formal songs,
In vain We strive to rise*
Hosannas languish on our tongues,
And our devotion dies.
If this is true of any of us today
u would be well if we could discover
a remedy. The one unfailing remedy,
of course, is an outpouring of the
Holy Spirit of the churches . A spir
itual dearth, however, is never with
out a cause, and• if the cause be re
moved I am Confident^ that the old
power will again flood the channels.
In so far as we suffer from such
spiritual drought it is due largely to
our lack of knowledge of the great
fountains of inspiration and of hope.
Familiarity breeds formality and for
mality is always sterile and barren.
In no department of , our retfgious
life is there greater evidence of this
than in the swinging of ouf hymns.
Henry Ward Beecher said: “Hymns
are the exponents of the innermost
piety of the church. They are the
.jewels which the church has worn,
the pearls, the diamond®, the. pre
cious stones, formed v into amulets
more potent against sorrow and ead
ness than the most famous charm
of wizard or magician. And he who
knows the way that hymn® flowed
knows where the blood Of true piety
ran and can trace the veins and ar
teries to tb® very heart.”
some of our moat*'hfcistur tfymus;
have been the outpourings of souls
who were passing through the fur
nace of affliction. Such is the hymn:
"Commit thou all thy griefs
<A.nd ways into thy hayds,
To hi® sure trust and tender care,
Who earth and heaven commands.”
This song carries ns back nearly
four hundred years to the little Ger
man village ofsMiittenwalde. Here
at the close of the Thirty Years’ War,
Paul Gerhardt began his ministry.
He was shortly called to Berlin; but
ere long trouble arose over his reli
gious beliefs and teaching and he
was tried, -deposed, and~4riven into
exile. .Homeless, penniless and ap
parently friendless, he- an<J his wife
started on thedr journey out of Ger
many. They at last came to a little
inn near the German frontier where
Mrs. Gerhardt,' weary, homesick and
discouraged, broke down utterly.
Unable to endure the sight of her
sorrow-and distress, Mr. Gerhardt
left hey, weeping and went out into
the garden^ There in the quiet, with
out a gleam of hope in all his eiarth
ly sky he breathed into the wdrld
this great hymn of faith and trusty
It is interesting to record that God
honored his faith, for that very
night two horsemen came to the inn
seeking for him. They had been sent
by Duke Christian of Merseburg, of
fering him a iu>me in that city and
settling a pension upon Mm. Thus
closed in sunshine and assurance the
darkest day in all his life. Out of
that dreary day came this triumphant
song of faith to bring cheer and hope
to all other anxious hearts.
(Let us all sing it.)
“All Hail the Power of Jesus’
Name!” Is another famous old hymn.
We know very Mttle about the author
except that his name- was Edward,
Perronet. He was borii in 17<56 and
became a minister of the Anglican
Church, but later drifed about among
the other denominations. He died
in 1792.
There is an Interesting story con
nected with this hymn that is worth
recalling. One day Rev. E. P. Scott/
met on a village street a strange
looking individual who proved to be
a member of a ‘ tribe of murderous
mountaineers who lived far in the
to carry the Gospel to these people.
Among a few other things he took
with him hU violin.
Afer some days of travel he found
himself suddenly confronted by a
band of these wild tribesmen who
Immediately pointed their spears at
his heart. Expecting to be killed he
hurriedly took his violin and closing
ffit eyds ,fhe b%an play' and taing,
“All hail the power of Jesus’ name!”
At the stanza beginning, “Let ev
ery kindred, every tribe,’* he ven
tured to open his eyes and found the
situation completely changed. He
had won them. It was the beginning
of a stay of two and a half years
with them, preaching the tJospel and
bringing to them a saving knowledge
of Jesus Christ. As we sing this
hymn let jis remember that it has
lost none of its beauty and power.
The next hymn we will sing-is one
Ihaty goee hack some* two hundred and
flftjy years. “Gome Thou Fount Of
Every Blessing,*’ was composed hy
Robert Robinson and there is a rath
er pathetic story told concerning the
hymn and its author.
In his later lifei Mr. Robinson
drifted into a somewhat- Careless
manner of life and -made light of
poetry and devotion. One day while
he was traveling in a stage-coach, a
lady passenger showed him this
hymn which ®he had been reading,
and, never dreaming that he yas the
author, she asked him what he
thought of it. He avoided an answer
and changed the subject.
In a few minutes, however, * she
again referred to the hymn, and ex
pressed, hCw. much benefit she had
received from it and her great ad
™iraHoiV ;f?r Jhe tho^hts^ to j^iqb
it gave utterance.
While she talked the lady noticed
that her' fellow passenge^ was be
coming somewhat agitated by her
remarks and at length entirely ‘over
come by hi® feelings, he said. “Ma
dam, I am the poor unhappy , man
who composed that hymn many years
ago; I would give a thousand worlds,
if I had them to enjoy the feelings I
then had.” •
Romance is also wrapped up
in the history of some of our
old hymns ' and sometimes even
our old tunes. There does not seem
to be anything very rbmanttc about
“OldHundred.” There is a little sto
ry about ^t that is most interesting
/nd instructive, however.
»Many years ago a. (little Scotch
boy learned to sing with his pious
mother the old psalms that were
then as household words both in the
kirk and at the fireside. After he had
grown up he wandered far away
from home and loved ones, and was
at last captured by .the* Turks and
made a slave in, one of the Barbary
states. But he never forgot the old
psalms and he often sang them in
that strange land to heathen ears
One night whil6 he was thus com
forting his lonely heart the atten
tion Of some sailors on a British man
o-war jvais attracted by the famliar
tune Of “Old Hundred” floating over
the moonlit watefi.,- Quickly surmis
ing the truth that one of their coun
trymen was languishing in slavery,
they armed themselves and, launch*
ing'a boat lost no time in bringing
about his rescue. What a joy to^him
after eighteen years of slavery to' be
restored to his loved ones in this way!
Is it any wonder that he afterwartl
cherished “Old Hundred” as his fa
vorite tune? _
Another beautiful hymn foil of ro
mantic interest is Rev. George Math*
eson’g “O Love That Wilt Not Let
hfe^Go.”
Matheson dfed just a few years
ago, haying lived a life of singular
sweetness and great usefulness, al
though for many years he was stone
blind.
When he was a young man Mr.
Matheson devoted himself with gre*?t
diligence to the work of the minis
try; Such was his devdtion that Ms
eyes, whch were never strong, began
to give fc
Let Us Be Fair With
Bishop J. W. Wood.
“PEBBLES' FROM THE SEA
SHRO&”
- By Rev. N. X>. Crawford.
An. article appeared in both the
Birmingham Reporter and the Star
of Zion described aa “An Open Let
ter” to Bishop J. W. WotSd, B. 'D.
I think w« should be f^ir, and more
than commonly so in dealing with
our chief pastors who are doing all.
in their power with Gcii to help/ tb
steer this Old Ship saf#y into port .
As for Bishop Wood slid his activ
ities In the State of Alabama, I can
say he tried in every eogeaivable way
to make an enviable record while
serving us. It may t»e true he
was, a little rough to- st|rt with, but
further down the line ah he became
better acquainted with the* work, I
have never eerVed undef a more lov
ing bishop. To serve/ the Church
under the conditions t|at prevailed
then and are still prevailing, any
Bishop will find it an Uphill journey
in this southand if he make® any re
port worthwhile here, where we dre
acquainted with empty churches
Congregation* that used to be are
no more. The majority of the real
constituency q{ the Church four and
five years ago are now in the north.
Church starvation BOW.exists where
It used to be hapine&s and pleasure
to nieef a congregation. No on#
! knows more about the hard suffering
condition of the present day Ghruch
j in this southland than the hgrd work,
i ed -pastors and prt
f Niimbers^of theffiam*now^tBieateh
ing to-give up . They cannot make a
living. We can hardly make i# much
less a Bishop and especially oite of
ambition, energy and push as '“hjjas
Bishop Wood. Yes, he did his best
and deserves J praise, instead of .ston
ing. ' . - g;
; Being one of the secretaries of one
'of his conferences, and a presiding
elder too, I 'am in* the position to
kr ow of these conditions, his reports
and the disbursement^ of the monies
raised. • .
The pastors coming so short on
their benevolences, the little that
was raised on General Conference
travel expense was placed (in to fill
in such a way that at would give a;
creditable showing. , \ . -
As to the Tercentenary money, it
was near financial, death to all other
claims to mention that.to our peo
ple. The amount raised was so email
the Bishop would send it to the Gen
eral Treasurer and at the same time
aak'the conference to just credit dt
self with an adequate sum so that we
would show up to a creditable de
gree. No, the money was not raised.
Airing such conditions are^no help
to ns any way, mid especially at an
age when bui«dror sports, movies,
—:-~
ularly so because he was engaged
to be married. Under the circum
stances Mr. Mathesop felt tha^there
,was onSy one tiling to do, so going
to hie .fiancee he told her what his
fate must be and offered to ‘release
her from her promise to marry him.
She accepted her release and he was
left, to face the world blind and
alone; George Matheson went home
broken in heart, no doubt, as well
in sight, hut not in faith, and crat
ing himself on him whose, love never
fails he sent | forth into the world
this4 grteat hymn:.
“O Love that "Will not let me go
I resj my weary soul in thee;
I give thee liack the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.” ' 7
(This hymn was sung as a solo-)'
Another-hymn, of graet beauty is,
“Jesus toVpr of My Soul.” It>-was
composed by Charles Wesley who
out those vacancies. He tried to ar
range what little monies was raised
societies, style i plus fasMong an J
every other worldly thing seems tc
be preeminent among , our church
folks. I am too fearful of God's an
ointed to do other than all , in my
power to encourage them* and df we
are in doubt ‘ about these or other
conditions, there ire other-ways the
doubt can be removed than such pub
Vip Bteps.. Let us be .brotherly an^do
all in a Christianly way to save the
Church.
7 So dear Bisbop. be encouraged.
AH of us in Alabama are not forget
ful of. your hard struggles in this
near desolate section of our Church.
Trust God, and continue your good
work. The reward waitetb.
Yonrs for God and Zion.
Selma, Ala.
Father and Son Week.
Some one has said . that' these
Father and Son Banquets and other
affairs /in which fathers and their
sons set together tor fellowship and
good times are a great deal better
than the conferences that the two
used to have in the wood shed.
Since 1920 Father and Son Week
has been observed jointly by the In
ternational Council' of Religiptfs' Ed
ucation and the ’International Com
mittee of the Y. M. C. A. during; the
week that includes Armistice Day.
This year the dates are November ^
to 15. This ! includes two Sundays.
Each day in the wek is set apart ior
lhfc observance of- a spepiljF^taW?
The first Sunday is Armistice Sunday
with emphasis upon the idea of true
patriotism. The Second Sunday is
given to emphasizing in church and
Sunday School /the Father and Son
relationship itself./ Wednesday is
church day. Friday is banquet day,
when tens of thousands of boys, and
their fathers will come together for
good times and inspiring addresses.
Saturday will be given over to recre
ation on the part of men and their
sons together. And so throughout, the
week dads and lads will come to
know each other batter through’ shar
ing life in happy experiences.
The number of. churches, Sunday
schools, and Associations that give
an adequate observance to this week
is increasing every year. Statistics
cannot he gathered as the idea is tak
en up and used in-all sorts of ways
all over the country. Every indica
tion for this year points to a wider
observance of the week than ever.
5 Full inforamtion and literature as
to observing day can be secured from
the State Sqnda> School Association
for Council), a local Y. M ;C. A.,
or the International Council of Reli
gious Education, 5 South Wabash
Ave., Chicago. * r *
France Delicate* Monu-j
ment to Negro Troops, j
Rheims, July,——». (A. N. rt)
In a speech dedicating a monument
which Prance haf erected in honor
of the Colored colonial droops who
fought for her during the worth war,
Gen. Archinard took occasion to re
ply to German criticisms of the
troops and to voice the admiration
j^hich whit© Frenchmen feel, for ,th$
brothers of color, declaring that the
African soldiers were “terrible to the
Germaoi because they regarded the
everything from love of evil" and
world's Ninth Sunday
S c.ho o 1 (Convention
Strong For Golden
Rule Sunday.
When the World'* Ninth Sunday
School Contention adjourried in St.
Andrew’s Halls, ' Glasgow, Scotland,
•'.Mfe it had pu^into^ts thinking
and plane the grant Work being done
by the Near Hast Nell^f • For the
Convention not only laid Strang em
phasis on the observance on an In
ternational scald of Golden Rule
Sunday, December 7, 1924, it also
registered a growing conviction that
the relief program, conducted so
helpfully on 'such a large scale tor
the past few years, must climax in a
cooperative scheme of religious edu
cation. . V • • ’ v
On© hundred delegates' from Ko
rea, Japan, China, the Philippines,
South America, Syria, Scotland,
England, Canada, Norway, Germany,
Holland, . Czechoslovakia, France,
Switzerland, Denmafk, Hungary,
Austria, Sweden, Latvia and the
United States, sat, down to the Near
East luncheon at the Grosvenor* res
taurant the Thursday of the r 'T
convention week, presided p r-~*Z
Mr. Arthur Black of Lor ' >
( The larger signiflca*- I..- ...
of the Near Bast %^rkj
out by Mr. Jo'
General " R‘ VOffs> ASsocfa^
who r .^fetary, of New, York,
’..-•^resenting the United States,
V* that the constructive traihing of
tedr^i saved by Christian philan
thropy. through thp Near ^Yasf Re
of/ihe Armenian, Creek -a -, i Syrian "
|_ lief, from an untimely- death, becomes
challenging oportunity. Sixty thpus
and orphans from 2 to sixteen yearn
of age, still depend ' upon outside
help for physical support. ' Forty
thousand other, orphans have been
placed in industries or homes. Tens
of thousands of others have been
partially supported. .. .-*r \
These children can- be trained'at
little cost, through leadership'‘of
their own people, provided a pro
gram, equipment, training ani su- ,
pervisioii is given '$o their young na- *
tive teacher®. With the support and
leadership of the World’s Sunday
School Association forces, and the
International Council- of Religious
Education the promise' of success is
great 1 Add io this the help of many
Teaders now in the Near East, who
feel that" religious education must be
given along with the industrial and
agricultural training and the elemen
tary education now being given, and
the day seems near when there must
come the sympathy arid cooperation
of the foreign and native mission
aries, the native Orthodox Church
Loaders, the Near East personnel
and the church leaders , of the na
tions carrying bn this philanthropy
and a generation of refugee orphans
will be growing into Christian men
and women, equipped physically,
menially and spiritually for t genuine
service ^n the world to which they ♦
were saved by Christian love.
The following resolutions were
enthusiastically adopted by the con
vention: . # ''
“The World’s Ninth Sunday^ School
Convention would eppresg its deep ,
and abiding interest in the needy
children dnd the ^refugees of the
Near East made sacred by the earth
ly life otour Lord and gives its hearty
approval to the proposal to observe‘
December 7, 1924, as International
Golden Rule Sunday. It would also
express the hope that outr of the
united'efforts of all concerned there