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Nearer, my God, to Thee
 | Nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer to Thee! E'en though it be a crossAuthor: Sarah Flower Adams (1841)Tune: BETHANY (Mason) Songs of Response Published in 2041 hymnals Printable scores: PDF, SibeliusAudio files: MIDI |
For Leaders
Text:
Sarah Flower Adams was a Unitarian laywoman who wrote thirteen hymns for a hymnal her pastor, William J. Fox, was compiling. One of these is “Nearer, My God, to Thee.” It was first published in London by Fox in his Hymns and Anthems in 1841.
This hymn has been associated with several famous people and events. It is reported to have been a favorite of Queen Victoria and her son King Edward VII of England, and of U. S. President William McKinley and his successor, Theodore Roosevelt.
The middle three stanzas are based on the story of Jacob's ladder found in Genesis 28. The first and fifth stanzas bracket this story with New Testament imagery of the cross (st. 1) and the end of time (st. 5).
Tune:
Lowell Mason wrote the tune BETHANY expressly for this text and published it in 1859 in Sabbath Hymn and Tune Book. He later commented that he had been requested to write a melody for that hymn, and that this tune came to him during a sleepless night. The original version of this tune was in a 6/8 meter, but by 1874 a common time version of the rhythm was also in use. These two variations were both in use for many years, but lately the original version has fallen into disuse, and the 4/4 meter is now normal.
There is a widespread story that this hymn was the last song played by the ship's band as the RMS Titanic sank in 1912, though survivors' accounts disagree on this point. Nevertheless, all three tunes associated with this text have been featured in films about the Titanic. BETHANY is perhaps the least likely of the three to have actually been played, because the European band members and passengers would have been less familiar with that tune than with PROPIOR DEO or HORBURY, with which this text was known in Britain. PROPIOR DEO, written in 1872, is one of Arthur Sullivan's lesser-known tunes. The composer half of the famous British operetta team, Gilbert and Sullivan, he is best known in the hymn world for ST. GERTRUDE (“Onward, Christian Soldiers”). HORBURY, written in 1861, is one of John B. Dykes's hymn tunes that is relatively obscure to Americans. An English clergyman and composer of hymn tunes, two of his best-known melodies are NICEA (“Holy, Holy, Holy”), and MELITA (“Eternal Father, Strong to Save”).
When/Why/How:
This hymn could be used as a closing hymn for a service based on Genesis 28. “Nearer, My God, to Thee” is also used for memorial services. For a postlude, try the setting of BETHANY found in the organ collection “My Jesus, I Love Thee.” A handbell arrangement of all three tunes associated with this text is “Nearer, My God, to Thee,” which is dedicated to the members of the Titanic's band.
Tiffany Shomsky Hymnary.org
