At Countryside, we try to “reclaim” hymns when appropriate – reclaiming them from the outdated contexts with which they are associated. Oftentimes these hymns are far more progressive than they seem at first glance and have powerful (even if sometimes aspects are theologically flawed) messages that put in the proper context, resonate today. Of course, there are many thousands of hymns that we don’t reclaim…
Come Ye Sinners Poor and Needy was traditionally an “Altar Call” – an invitational hymn similar to Just As I Am. It is from the Southern Harmony shape note tradition that was pervasive in black and white churches in the South. We will revisit its context and put a modern bluegrass spin on it. The refrain references the Prodigal Son and the verses are partly based on Matthew 11:28-30:
“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Joseph Hart, the author of the hymn, has an interesting story. He fell away from faith and became disenfranchised with the church and God, writing inflammatory tracts critical of theologians at the time. Eventually, he came back to the church and became a prolific hymn writer, but his own story follows another aspect of the Prodigal Son story – the responsible brother who is bitter about his father.
A Dutch theologian Henri J. M. Nouwen wrote that he identified with the insecurity of the elder son, writing, “Returning home from a lustful escapade seems so much easier than returning home from a cold anger that has rooted itself in the deepest corners of my being. Can the elder son in me come home?” Hart’s text speaks to those who identify with the elder brother as well.
Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you, full of pity, love, and power.
I will arise and go to Jesus; he will embrace me in his arms.
In the arms of my dear Savior, O there are ten thousand charms.
Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome; God’s free bounty glorify,
true belief and true repentance, every grace that brings you nigh.
Come, ye weary, heavy laden, lost and ruined by the fall;
if you tarry till you’re better, you will never come at all.
Softly and Tenderly is another “altar call” hymn that was frequently used in the revivalist tradition and remains exceedingly popular today, often used at funerals. It’s debatable whether the author of this hymn meant it as an exhortation to “profess faith in Christ…. OR ELSE!” Though he may have held that point of view, the words don’t convey that. Indeed, if we look beyond the history of its use and instead consider it through the context of today’s sermon and scripture, it takes on an entirely different character.
Rev. Carlton R. Young, notes that this hymn is a lullaby – with music and words “that characterize Jesus as a mother, gently rocking and comforting a child. This attribute contributes to the continuing popularity of this genre of religious song that presents Jesus as waiting, caring, and forgiving in intimate—and for many, compelling—metaphors.”
Based on its scriptural references, mainly the story of the Prodigal Son, the message is clear – the text invites us to celebrate God’s limitless love and abounding forgiveness and mercy and asks us not to “harden our hearts” to God’s vision for love and peace.
Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling, calling for you and for me;
patient and loving, he’s waiting and watching, watching for you and for me.
Come home, come home, you who are weary, come home
earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling, “O sinner, come home!”
O for the wonderful love he has promised, promised for you and for me;
tho’ we have sinned, he has mercy and pardon, pardon for you and for me.
There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy speaks of how “the love of God is broader than the measure of our mind,” and laments that the limits of human conception put false restrictions on God’s love. One commentator has described the text as: “If ‘Love Wins’ were a hymn.”
The original hymn is thirteen verses long. There is a verse left out of most hymnals that is worth noting:
But we make God’s love too narrow by false limits of our own;
And we magnify God’s strictness with a zeal God will not own.
This hymn was controversial for the implications of its imagery and for making statements like that verse above. It certainly was far ahead of its time, and its staying power in progressive Christian hymnody speaks to that foresight and vision.
There’s a wideness in God’s mercy, like the wideness of the sea.
There’s a kindness in God’s justice, which is more than liberty.
There is no place where earthly sorrows are more felt than up in heaven.
There is no place where earthly failings have such kindly judgment given.
For the love of God is broader than the measures of the mind.
And the heart of the Eternal is most wonderfully kind.
If our love were but more faithful, we would gladly trust God’s Word,
and our lives reflect thanksgiving for the goodness of our Lord.