Hymn of the Week: January 1, 2024

All Beautiful the March of Days

Page 292 in the 1955 The Hymnal

Text:  Frances Whitmarsh Wile 1911 
Music: Ralph Vaughan Williams 

All beautiful the march of days, 
As seasons come and go; 
The Hand that shaped the rose hath wrought 
The crystal of the snow; 
Hath sent the hoary frost of heaven, 
The flowing waters sealed, 
And laid a silent loveliness 
On hill and wood and field. 
 
O'er white expanses sparkling pure 
The radiant morns unfold; 
The solemn splendors of the night 
Burn brighter through the cold; 
Life mounts in every throbbing vein, 
Love deepens round the hearth, 
And clearer sounds the angel hymn, 
"Good will to men on earth." 
 
O Thou from whose unfathomed law 
The year in beauty flows, 
Thyself the vision passing by 
In crystal and in rose, 
Day unto day doth utter speech, 
And night to night proclaim, 
In ever-changing words of light, 
The wonder of  Thy name. 

Today’s Devotion:

This week’s Hymn of the Week invites you to read the text and sing along with the choir as we begin another year together. This past year has been filled with fantastic hymns and I continue to enjoy sharing the stories of these hymns with you.   

Snow and Roses

The story for this hymn is very minimal.  A Rev. Garnett asked Frances Wile to write a winter hymn for a new hymnal he was compiling. This is the result. I love the nature imagery of snow and roses.   It fits the rhythm of the tune O Little Town of Bethlehem or FOREST GREEN, as we think about it in church music circles.  

This hymn did not make it into the 2014 Glory to God hymnal but is found on hymn 292 in the blue 1990 hymnal.  

Enjoy the video of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and have a Very Happy and Blessed 2024! 

Philip