On Sunday morning, August 10, (1941) Mr Roosevelt came aboard H.M.S. Prince of Wales and, with his Staff officers and several hundred representatives of all ranks of the United States Navy and Marines, attended Divine Service on the quarterdeck. This service was felt by all of us to be a deeply moving expression of the unity of faith of our two peoples, and none who took part in it will forget the spectacle presented that sunlit morning on the crowded quarterdeck...... the American and British chaplains sharing in the reading of the prayers.. I chose the hymns myself.- From The Second World War by Winston Churchill Volume III page 345.
We ended with "O God, Our Help in Ages Past" which Macaulay reminds us the Ironsides had chanted as they bore John Hampden's body to the grave. Every word seemed to stir the heart. It was a great hour to live. Nearly half those who sang were soon to die.
Defending he British Crown Commonwealth and the English-Speaking Realms
The act of defending any of the cardinal virtues has today all the exhilaration of a vice - G.K. Chesterton
Sunday, August 23, 2009
O God, Our Help in Ages Past
A little Sunday morning inspiration for you, courtesy of Padre Benton
Of course, that particular hymn couldn't have been sung at Hampden's burial, given that he was buried in 1643 and the hymn was written by Watts in 1719.
ReplyDeleteMacaulay refers to "that lofty and melancholy psalm in which the fragility of human life is contrasted with the immutability of Him to whom a thousand years are as yesterday when it is passed, and as a watch in the night" meaning Psalm 90. on which Watt's hymn was based.
Wonderful, Glorious, Majestic - like The Queen.
ReplyDeleteIn view that there seems to be two of us posting under the name 'Matthew', I have decided that, to avoid potential confusion, any time I post from now on I will affix the first letter of my Surname to my post as can be seen here.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realise the name had been taken, so my posts in the last few days (In, for example, the posts about the Commonwealth Conversation, and the release of the infamous terrorist) should be viewed under my modified title.
With that out of the way, that is a beautiful hymn, I quite enjoyed listening to it, it is always wonderful to refresh oneself and listen to these masterpieces again.