Eternal Ruler of the ceaseless round

Representative Text

1 Eternal Ruler of the ceaseless round
of circling planets singing on their way;
guide of the nations from the night profound
into the glory of the perfect day;
rule in our hearts, that we may ever be
guided and strengthened and upheld by thee.

2 We are of thee, the children of thy love,
the brothers of thy well-belovèd Son;
descend, O Holy Spirit, like a dove,
into our hearts, that we may be as one:
as one with thee, to whom we ever tend;
as one with him, our Brother and our Friend.

3 We would be one in hatred of all wrong,
one in our love of all things sweet and fair,
one with the joy that breaketh into song,
one with the grief that trembles into prayer,
one in the power that makes thy children free
to follow truth, and thus to follow thee.

4 O clothe us with thy heavenly armour, Lord,
thy trusty shield, thy sword of love divine;
our inspiration be thy constant word;
we ask no victories that are not thine:
give or withhold, let pain or pleasure be;
enough to know that we are serving thee.

Source: Ancient and Modern: hymns and songs for refreshing worship #244

Author: John W. Chadwick

Chadwick, John White, was born at Marblehead, Mass., U.S., Oct. 19, 1840; graduated at the Cambridge Divinity School, July 19, 1864, and ordained minister of the Second Unitarian Church, Brooklyn, N.Y., Dec. 21, 1864. A frequent contributor to the Christian Examiner; The Radical; Old and New; Harper's Magazine; and has published many poems in American periodicals. His hymn on Unity, "Eternal Ruler of the ceaseless round," was written for the graduating class of the Divinity School, Cambridge, June 19, 1864. It is in Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884. It is a hymn of superior merit. [Rev. W. Garrett Horder] --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)… Go to person page >

Notes

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Tune

SONG 1


YORKSHIRE

John Wainwright (b. Stockport, England, 1723; d. Stockport, 1768) wrote YORKSHIRE for [the] text [Christian's awake, salute the happy morn, by John Byrom] in 1750. The tune was first sung on Christmas Day, 1750, in the parish church of Stockport; it was first published in Caleb Ashworth's Collection…

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Timeline

Media

The Book of Common Praise: being the hymn book of The Church of England in Canada (revised 1938) #562b
The Cyber Hymnal #1366
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Instances

Instances (101 - 127 of 127)

The Milton Hymnal #d35

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The Modern Hymnal #3

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The New Church Hymnal #336

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The New English Hymnal #355

The New Hymnal of Praise #d72

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The New Hymnal #491

The Oxford American Hymnal for Schools and Colleges #d77

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The People's Hymn Book #79

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The Pilgrim Hymnal #343

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The Pilgrim Hymnal #441

The Plymouth Hymnal #d109

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The Presbyterian Hymnal #344

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The Riverdale Hymn Book #284

The St. Alban Hymnal #d86

The Student Hymnary #d72

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The Treasury of American Sacred Song with Notes Explanatory and Biographical #298

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The University Hymn Book #56

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The Worshipbook #358

Union Hymnal #23

Unitarian Service Book, and Hymns for Church and Home. Abridged ed. #d80

Unity Hymns and Chorals. Rev and enl. with Service Elements #d47

University Hymn Book for use in the Chapel of Harvard University #d45

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Voices United #571

We Celebrate with Song #d31

Worship II, a Hymnal for Roman Catholic Parishes #d63

Worship in Song #d60

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Worship Song #388

Pages

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