| Breathe on Me, Breath of God | |
|---|---|
| Hymn for Pentecost | |
 The poet | |
| Written | 1878 |
| Text | by Edwin Hatch |
| Based on | John20:21-22 |
| Meter | 6.6.8.6 (Short Metre) |
| Melody |
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| Published | 1886 |
"Breathe on Me, Breath of God" is an English Christian hymn. It was written by Edwin Hatch, a Church of England vicar and the Professor of Classics at the University of Trinity College in Canada. It was first published privately in 1878 and publicly published in 1886.
Edwin Hatch spent his childhood in a non-conformist background before being ordained into the Church of England. In 1876 he wrote "Breathe on Me, Breath of God" and published it privately in a pamphlet entitled "Between Doubt and Prayer". [1] giving it the Latin title of "Spiritus Dei" (Spirit of God). [2] The hymn was later published into the public sphere in 1886 in Henry Allon's "The Congregational Psalmist Hymnal". [3] It was republished posthumously by Hatch's widow in 1890 in "Towards Fields of Light: Sacred Poems". [2]
The handbook to the Psalter Hymnal, where "Breath on Me, Breath of God" was later published, referred to the oft quoted statement about Hatch's faith being "as simple and unaffected as a child" being an appropriate description of the hymn. [3] [4] it was also described by the United Methodist Church as: "The simplicity of this profound hymn belies the education and knowledge of its author". [2] Hatch's simple words refer to the accounts of the creation of man by God in Genesis and of the spiritual breath of God which came to humanity via Jesus at Pentecost. [4]
"Breathe on Me, Breath of God" has been set to a number of tunes. The most commonly used ones are John Chetham and S.S. Wesley's 1718 "Aylesbury", the Irish tune " St. Columba ", and blind London organist Charles Lockhart's "Carlisle". [5] Other tunes include "Veni Spiritus" by Sir John Stainer [6] and "Trentham" by Robert Jackson. [5] The use of "Trentham" was criticised by hymnologist Donald Webster in 1980 who stated "One might conclude from [this tune] and the way it is sung that the breath of God was an anaesthetic, not a 'Giver of Life'." [5] [7]
Edwin Warren Hatch was an English theologian. He is best known as the author of the book Influence of Greek Ideas and Usages Upon the Christian Church, which was based on his 1888 Hibbert Lectures and which were edited and published following his death. He is also remembered as the composer of the hymn "Breathe on Me, Breath of God."
"Christ the Lord Is Risen Today" is a Christian hymn associated with Easter. Most of the stanzas were written by Charles Wesley, and the hymn appeared under the title "Hymn for Easter Day" in Hymns and Sacred Poems by Charles and John Wesley in 1739. The hymn eventually became well known for the "Alleluia" sung as a melisma after each line, which was added by an unknown author, probably to fit the commonly used hymn tune, "Easter Hymn". It remains a traditional processional hymn on Easter Sunday.
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Cwm Rhondda is a popular hymn tune written by John Hughes (1873–1932) in 1907. The name is taken from the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley.
"Veni Sancte Spiritus", sometimes called the Golden Sequence, is a sequence prescribed in the Roman Liturgy for the Masses of Pentecost and/or its octave, exclusive of the following Sunday. It is usually attributed to either the thirteenth-century Pope Innocent III or to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardinal Stephen Langton, although it has been attributed to others as well.
"Veni Creator Spiritus" is a traditional Christian hymn believed to have been written by Rabanus Maurus, a ninth-century German monk, teacher, archbishop, and saint. When the original Latin text is used, it is normally sung to a Gregorian Chant tune first known from Kempten Abbey around the year 1000. The hymn has been translated and paraphrased into several languages, and adapted into many musical forms, often as a hymn for Pentecost or for other occasions that focus on the Holy Spirit.
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"Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist" is a German Christian hymn. The first stanza is a leise from the 13th century which alludes to the Latin sequence Veni Sancte Spiritus for Pentecost. It was widely known, and aside from its Pentecostal origin was also used as a procession song and in sacred plays.
"Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott" is a Lutheran hymn for Pentecost, with words written by Martin Luther based on "Veni Sancte Spiritus, reple tuorum corda fidelium". The hymn in three stanzas was first published in 1524. For centuries the chorale has been the prominent hymn (Hauptlied) for Pentecost in German-speaking Lutheranism. Johann Sebastian Bach used it in several chorale preludes, cantatas and his motet Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf, BWV 226.
"All Creatures of Our God and King" is an English Christian hymn by William Henry Draper, based on a poem by St. Francis of Assisi. It was first published in a hymn book in 1919.
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"The Summons", also called "Will You Come and Follow Me", is a Scottish Christian hymn. It was written by John L. Bell in 1987.
"Komm, Gott Schöpfer, Heiliger Geist" is a Lutheran hymn for Pentecost, with words written by Martin Luther based on the Latin "Veni Creator Spiritus". The hymn in seven stanzas was first published in 1524. Its hymn tunes are Zahn No. 294, derived from the chant of the Latin hymn, and Zahn No. 295, a later transformation of that melody. The number in the current Protestant hymnal Evangelisches Gesangbuch (EG) is 126.
"O'er the Gloomy Hills of Darkness", also titled "O'er Those Gloomy Hills of Darkness", is a Welsh Christian hymn by William Williams Pantycelyn written in 1772. The hymn was written as a missionary hymn; there are conflicting accounts of why the hymn was written. The hymn was later published in 374 hymnals worldwide, though it was censored and altered in the United States by slaveholders for evangelising to slaves. The hymn later fell out of favour with hymn book editors in the 1960s.
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"Take Up Thy Cross, The Saviour Said" is an American Christian hymn written by Charles W. Everest. It was originally a poem published in 1833 but was later altered to become a hymn. It was then edited by English hymnwriter Sir Henry Baker for inclusion in the Church of England's Hymns Ancient and Modern hymnal.
"Come Down, O Love Divine" is a Christian hymn usually sung for the festival of Pentecost. It makes reference to the descent of the Holy Spirit as an invocation to God to come to into the soul of the believer. It is a popular piece of Anglican church music and is commonly sung to the tune "Down Ampney" by Ralph Vaughan Williams.
"Let us break bread together" is a traditional Christian hymn. Its melody is searching, simple, major key, and has simple lyrics.
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