Improvisation on Lasst Uns Erfreuen (All Creatures of Our God and King) by Brenda Portman
All Creatures of Our God and King
This hymn is a metrical translation of “Canticle of the Sun,” a laude written by Saint Francis of Assisi.
Laude were popular Italian spiritual songs for religious gatherings outside of the liturgy. It is generally considered to be the earliest truly religious poem in Italian. This hymn expresses, long before the modern ecological movement, the oneness and interdependence of humanity with all of God’s creation.
British hymnologist J.R. Watson notes: “In the original the saint gives each element, such as fire and water, a human gender, so that they become ‘brother’ and ‘sister.’ This remains in the appellation of ‘Dear mother earth’ in verse 4, and is suggested by the personification of death as ‘kind and gentle’ in verse 6. These elements in the hymn make it seem tender as well as grand. It is based in part upon Psalm 148.”
If you’re not familiar with the life of Saint Francis, it is worth a quick google search, as that context really informs ones reading of this hymn.
All creatures of our God and King,
lift up your voice and with us sing
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O burning sun with golden beam,
O silver moon with softer gleam:
O praise God, O praise God,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
O rushing wind with voice so strong,
you clouds that sail in heav’n along,
O praise God, Alleluia!
O rising morn, in praise rejoice,
you lights of evening find a voice:
O praise God, O praise God,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
O flowing water, pure and clear,
make music for your God to hear,
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O blazing fire who lights the night,
providing warmth, enhancing sight,
O praise God, O praise God,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
This hymn is an example of hymnody influenced by the Pietist movement – see the note for Be Still My Soul for more information on this, as that hymn is a Pietist hymn through and through.
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, who rules all creation.
O my soul, worship the wellspring of health and salvation.
All ye who hear, now to God’s temple draw near.
Join me in in glad adoration.
Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work, and defend thee.
Surely God’s goodness and mercy here daily attend thee.
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,
who with great love doth befriend thee.
Praise to the Lord, who doth nourish thy life and restore thee,
fitting thee well for the tasks that are ever before thee.
Then to thy need God as a mother doth speed,
spreading the wings of grace o’er thee.
Be Still My Soul
We have done a number of hymns representative of the Pietist movement. They tend to be more timeless than many other schools of hymn writing, with theology and imagery that is still applicable today, with a few caveats here and there – far less need for re-writing or editing for modern times, let alone more progressive theology! It was a movement that emphasized personal faith over ecclesiastical doctrine, and living out ones faith over the appearance of godliness. Pietism pushed back on the Lutheran Church specifically, which it saw as a theological and doctrinal rebuke on Catholicism, but too doctrinaire and not spiritually nourishing. Puritanism and to some extent Wesleyan though (ultimately Methodism) are outgrowths of the pietist movement.
Ernest Edwin Ryden writes: “Spiritual revivals in the Christian Church have always been accompanied by an outburst of song. This was true of the Reformation, which witnessed the birth of the Lutheran Church, and it was also characteristic of the Pietistic movement, which infused new life and fervor into that communion. The Pietistic revival, which in many respects was similar to the Puritan and Wesleyan movements in England, had its inception in Germany in the latter part of the 17th century and continued during the first half of the 18th century. It quickly spread to other Lutheran countries, particularly Scandinavia, and its influence has been felt even to the present time.”
Katharina von Schlegel, a notable woman of the Pietist movement, wrote the hymn in the 17th century. It was set to a tune derived from a piece of music written by Jean Sibellius (the conclusion of the Symphonic/Choral tone poem “Finlandia”).
Be still, my soul: for God is on your side;
bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Trust in your God, your savior and your guide,
who through all changes faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: your best, your heavenly friend
through thorny ways leads to a peaceful end.
Be still, my soul: for God will undertake
to guide the future surely as the past.
Your hope, your confidence let nothing show;
all now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: The waves and winds still know
the voice that calmed them in this world below.
Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
when we shall dwell with forever more,
when disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past,
all safe and blessed we shall meet at last.
.