Be Thou My Vision
The text of Be Thou My Vision dates from the 8th century, and the music originated in medieval Ireland. Irish nationalism is to thank for the prevalence of this hymn today. During the early 1900s, there was a movement to rediscover Irish contributions to world history and culture, and two scholars, Mary Byrne and Eleanor Hull translated the Old Irish poem into English and set the text to the tune SLANE. Ever since it has been one of the most popular hymns.
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; naught be all else to me, save that thou art
thou my best thought, by day or by night, waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true word; I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord;
thou my redeemer, my love thou hast won, thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.
Riches I heed not, nor vain empty praise, thou mine inheritance, now and always:
thou and thou only, first in my heart, Great God of heaven, my treasure thou art.
Womb of Life and Source of Being – text by Ruth C. Duck
Ruth C. Duck is a notable hymn writer with a controversial but effective style regarding gendered language. According to hymn scholar Simon Hill, “When it comes to handling sexist or exclusive language, Duck does not believe that the issue should be solved by eliminating all gender and placing a ban on gendered images. Instead, Duck advocates for the presence of both masculine and feminine imagery and language, creating a space for both traditional wording as well as new wording. She proves that the two perspectives can exist side by side. After all, the Scriptures are filled with metaphors that cover an array of images. Duck sees this as a call for Christians to thoughtfully develop and sing of new metaphors that fully and appropriately convey an encounter with the Divine, a call that Duck takes to heart in much of her hymn writing.
“Womb of Life, and Source of Being” takes on the matter of metaphor, exclusive language, and the Trinitarian formula. The traditional formula is often a subject of debate and theological question in terms of sexist language. Duck believes that because of the exclusive, male-centered language, the traditional formula – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – does not fully celebrate the liberation of new life offered through Jesus, the Christ. The traditional formula also runs the risk of implying a gender-exclusive community, rather than allowing the Trinity to be a model of a loving and all-embracing community. In “Womb of Life, and Source of Being,” Duck makes an effort to broaden the images of the persons in the Trinity and to establish it as a model for a vibrant community.”
Womb of life, and source of being, home of ev’ry restless heart,
in your arms the worlds awakened; you have loves us from the start.
We, your children, gather ’round you, at the table you prepare.
Sharing stories tears and laughter, we are nurtured by your care.
Word in flesh, our brother Jesus, born to bring us second birth,
you have come to stand beside us, knowing weakness, knowing earth.
Priest who shares our human struggles, Life of Life, and Death of Death,
risen Christ, come stand among us, send the Spirit by your breath.
Brooding Spirit, move among us; be our partner, be our friend.
When our mem’ry fails, remind us whose we are, what we intend.
Labor with us, aid the birthing of the new world made new,
ever singing, ever praising, one with all, and one with you.