“May Jesus Christ be praised!” This should be our prayer every day as we awaken, the desire of our hearts that in this and every day, we would think and act and live in such a way that Jesus Christ would be praised. That’s at the center of the hymn “When Morning Gilds the Skies.” We sing that request twelve times in the six stanzas found in most hymnals today. And if your hymnal includes more of the 14 stanzas available, you will sing that phrase 28 times!
The hymn is based on an anonymous German hymn from the 18th century. “Beim frühen Morgenlicht” (“With the early morning light”) is the opening line of the original German hymn. While we are uncertain of the exact origins of the text, it first appeared in “Catholic Songbook for Public Worship in the [locale of] Biszthume, Würzburg.” It appears in an altered version in an 1855 Franconian collection of folksongs, “Frankische Völkslieder.” Our English versions are not so much a literal translation of the original as they are a new poetic creation based on themes from the original.
The hymn text we sing today grew out of those 19th-century German roots, with a translation by Edward Caswall (1814-1878). He was born in Hampshire, where his father was an Anglican clergyman. In 1832, he went to Brasenose College, Oxford, and in 1836, took a second-class degree in classics. His humorous work, “The Art of Pluck,” was published in 1835 at Oxford, and continued to be popular for some time, passing through many editions. Over the years, he published several works in prose and in poetry. In 1838, he was ordained Deacon, and in 1839, Priest. He became perpetual Curate of Stratford-sub-Castle in 1840. In 1841, he resigned his incumbency and visited Ireland. In 1847, he embraced Roman Catholicism.
His wife died in 1849, and in 1850 he was received into the Roman Catholic communion to join Cardinal John Newman at the Oratory, Edgbaston. His life there from that time until his death, although void of stirring incidents, was marked by earnest devotion to his clerical duties and a loving interest in the poor, the sick, and also little children. His original poems and hymns were mostly written at the Oratory. He died at Edgbaston, January 2, 1878, and was buried five days later at Redwall, near Bromsgrove, by his leader and friend, Cardinal Newman. Caswall’s translations of Latin hymns from the Roman Breviary and other sources have a wider circulation in modern hymnals than those of any translator other than John Mason Neale.
In moving to the Roman Church, Caswall joined other Anglicans attracted to the antiquity and rituals and music of the Oxford Movement. This 19th century movement centered at the University of Oxford as an attempt to bring a renewal of “catholic” though and practice into the Church of England. This was intended as a rejection of Protestant teachings and practices. The argument was that the Anglican church was by history and identity a truly “catholic” church. An immediate cause of the movement was the change that took place in the relationship between the state and the Church of England from 1828 to 1832. Laws that required members of municipal corporations and government-office holders to receive the Lord’s Supper in the Church of England were repealed, and a law was passed that removed most of the restrictions formerly imposed on Roman Catholics. For a short time, it seemed possible that the Church of England might be disestablished and lose its endowments. Consequently, many loyal Anglicans wished to assert that the Church of England was not dependent on the state and that it gained its authority from the fact that it taught historic Christian truth and its bishops were in the apostolic succession, able to trace their authority and office back in an unbroken line to the Apostles. The movement rapidly became involved in theological, pastoral, and devotional problems. Some moved beyond Anglo-Catholicism in the state church and actually “defected” by joining the Roman Catholic Church.
The ideas of the movement were published in 90 “Tracts for the Times” (1833-1841), 24 of which were written by John Henry Newman (1801-1890), who edited the entire series. He was among those who left the Anglican Church. As a convert to Roman Catholicism in 1845, he eventually became a cardinal. Those who supported the themes of those tracts were known as Tractarians. They asserted the doctrinal authority of the catholic church to be absolute, and by “catholic” they understood that which was faithful to the teaching of the early and undivided church. Those who remained within the Anglican communion believed the Church of England to be such a catholic church. The Anglo-Catholic movement gradually spread its influence throughout the Church of England, and is sometimes today commonly known as “high church Anglicanism.” Some of the results were increased use of ceremony and ritual in church worship, the establishment of Anglican monastic communities for men and for women, and better-educated clergy who were more concerned with the pastoral care of their church members.
In addition to the doctrinal and liturgical dimensions of the movement, its influence has spread well beyond Anglican and Roman circles. It was members of this movement who championed the recovery and translation of ancient Greek, Latin, and even German hymns, which are now found in almost all Protestant hymnals. These were the leaders in the compilation of England’s historic hymnal, “Hymns Ancient and Modern.” These include such texts as “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” “Of the Father’s Love Begotten,” “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence,” “Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain,” “All Glory, Laud, and Honor,” “The Day of Resurrection,” “O Light That Knew No Dawn,” “Shepherd of Tender Youth,” “O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing,” “Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation,” “Let Our Choir New Anthems Raise,” “Jerusalem the Golden,” “Christian, Dost Thou See Them?” and “O Come, All Ye Faithful.”
Many of these have come to us from the hand of John Mason Neale (1818-1866). The son of an Anglican clergyman, Neale was born in London and educated at Sherborne School and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was appropriately named after the Puritan cleric and hymn writer John Mason (1645-1694), of whom his mother Susanna was a descendant. At Cambridge he came under the influence of the Oxford Movement, where he became particularly interested in church architecture. He was ordained in 1842, and after serving briefly in Sussex, was forced to resign due to a chronic lung disease. The following winter he lived in the Madeira Islands, where he was able to do research for his “History of the Eastern Church.” In 1846 he became warden of Sackville College at East Grinstead, serving the infirm poor and aged there, an appointment which he held until his death.
In 1854 Neale co-founded the Society of St. Margaret, an order of women in the Church of England dedicated to nursing the sick. Many Protestants of the time were suspicious of the restoration of Anglican religious orders. In 1857, Neale was attacked and mauled at a funeral of one of the Sisters. Crowds threatened to stone him or burn his house. He received no special honor in England, and his doctorate was bestowed by Trinity College in Connecticut. He was also the principal founder of the Anglican and Eastern Church Association in 1864. A result of this organization was the “Hymns of the Eastern Church,” edited by Neale and published in 1865.
Neale was strongly high church in his sympathies, and had to endure a good deal of opposition, including a fourteen years controversy from his bishop. He translated the Eastern liturgies into English, and wrote a mystical and devotional commentary on the Psalms. However, he is best known as a hymnwriter and especially a translator, having enriched English hymnody with many ancient and mediaeval hymns translated from Latin and Greek. For example, the melody of “Good King Wenceslas” originates from a medieval Latin springtime poem, “Tempus adest floridum.” Neale wrote the lyrics. More than anyone else, he made English-speaking congregations aware of the centuries-old tradition of Latin, Greek, Russian, and Syrian hymns. The 1875 edition of the “Hymns Ancient and Modern” contains 58 of his translated hymns. “The English Hymnal” (1906) contains 63 of his translated hymns and 6 original hymns by Neale.
Returning to our consideration of Caswall’s hymn, “When Morning Gilds the Skies,” it was out of the spirit of this Anglo-Catholic Oxford Movement that Caswall wrote this hymn. While some might feel uneasy about singing a hymn that came from the mind and hand of someone associated with this movement, we ought to make our decision based on the quality of the hymn text itself, and especially the theology expressed in the lyrics. On that basis, Caswall’s rewriting of this older poem should be judged as perfectly suited to evangelical worship, conveying very well so many themes that we find in the Psalms. There is no hint of unacceptable theology, and so we should be able to sing it with great joy. We have other hymns that we sing without concern, even though these have come from Roman Catholic writers, such as “Faith of Our Fathers,” “Crown Him with Many Crowns,” and “Holy God, We Praise Thy Name” (the “Te Deum”).
While the original author is unknown, whoever penned this hymn must have been a lover of nature. It is conjectured that he lived in Franconia, a region of Germany that runs along the valleys and hills which follow the river Main towards its junction with the Rhine at Mainz. It is a territory filled with small mountain ranges, forests, little to medium towns, castles, and Romanesque cathedrals. Such a land well might arouse all the poetry in one’s nature and, if he is religiously inclined, move him to sing praises to Jesus Christ “When Morning Gilds the Skies.” Wherever we might be when we begin our day, it will be most satisfying if we begin it by praising Jesus Christ.
Stanza 1 praises Christ for the privilege of joyful adoration throughout the entire day, including both work and private prayer. Whether we anticipate a day of busy-ness or of quiet reflection, we start by offering our praises to Him at the dawn’s first light.
When morning gilds the skies My heart awaking cries: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Alike at work and prayer, to Jesus I repair; May Jesus Christ be praised!
Stanza 2 praises Christ on those mornings when we have not been able to sleep well, worrying about what lies ahead of us. We have all known such restless nights, even those “when evil thoughts molest.” But if our hearts are set on Jesus, praising Him will “shield my breast,” reminding us that He is in control and loves us infinitely.
When sleep her balm denies, my silent spirit sighs: May Jesus Christ be praised!
When evil thoughts molest, with this I shield my breast: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Stanza 3 praises Christ for His solace and comfort. There are countless issues which can fill our minds with sadness, from fear and guilt to loneliness and illness. Jesus never promised us “earthly bliss,” and we know too often how whatever measure of that we may have enjoyed might fade. But in all circumstances, we find our comfort in His promises and His presence.
Does sadness fill my mind? A solace here I find: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Or fades my earthly bliss? My comfort still is this: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Stanza 4 praises Christ when our earthly bliss fades, for the hope of heaven’s eternal bliss. We have been assured, by the one who purchased us with His blood on the cross and triumphed over death in His resurrection, that whatever temporary struggles may be the theme of our present song, “the loveliest strain” is that which “earth and sea and sky” sing of heaven’s approaching joy.
In heaven’s eternal bliss The loveliest strain is this: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let earth and sea and sky From depth to height reply, May Jesus Christ be praised!
Stanza 5 praises Christ along with the entire creation, all around “earth’s wide circle,” including “air and sea and sky” as well as “from depth to height.” One day this will be both visible and audible, as people from every tongue and nation acknowledge Jesus to be King of kings and Lord of lords, singing “Worthy is the Lamb.” Our songs today are an appetizer for that day.
Let earth’s wide circle round In joyful notes resound: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let air and sea and sky From depth to height reply: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Stanza 6 praises Christ as an “eternal song,” one that will never end. It will be our “canticle divine,” not only as long as our lives endure in this present age, but into the unending ages of the world yet to come. The word “canticle” comes from the Latin word for song, “canticum.” It is the root of the word “Cantata.”
Be this, while life is mine, My canticle divine: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Be this th’eternal song, Through all the ages long: May Jesus Christ be praised!
While these are the most common stanzas found in our hymnals today, there are a few more that have come to be included in some collections.
One additional stanza praises Christ for His watchfulness over us in those times of emotional darkness. In the Bible, darkness is often used to represent the powers of evil, the oppressive attacks from the world, the flesh, and yes, also the devil. But as James tell us to resist the devil so that he will flee from us, singing the praises of Jesus reminds us as well as those troubling agents that we belong to our previous Savior, who has conquered death and darkness.
The night becomes as day When from the heart we say: May Jesus Christ be praised!
The powers of darkness fear When this sweet chant they hear: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Another additional stanza praises Christ for the concord offered to the entire world. It is our prayer that all the earth would know the peace that comes from living under the reign of the Prince of Peace. How wonderful will be that day when all tears and sadness and wars and conflicts are gone, never to be experienced, or even remembered again! It will be when all “nations of mankind” are singing the praises of Jesus Christ.
Ye nations of mankind, In this your concord find: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let all the earth around Ring joyous with the sound: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Yet another stanza praises Christ as the one worshipped by “suns and stars of space.” He created them for His own pleasure, and as we read in so many of the Psalms that even inanimate creation praises Him (mountains and hills and trees and rivers and seas and rocks) as well as the morning stars that sang together at their creation (Job 38:7). And they will do so “for aye and evermore.”
Sing, suns and stars of space; Sing, ye that see His face: May Jesus Christ be praised!
God’s whole creation o’er, For aye and evermore: Shall Jesus Christ be praised!
And one more stanza that departed from the original German, while revealing something of the style of the time, has been universally omitted as of inferior quality with the rest.
My tongue shall never tire Of chanting in the choir: May Jesus Christ be praised:
This song of sacred joy It never seems to cloy: May Jesus Christ be praised.
We sing “When Morning Gilds the Skies” to the tune LAUDES DOMINI. It was written specifically for this text by noted 19th century English organist, choirmaster, educator, editor, and composer, Sir Joseph Barnby (1838-1896). It was first published in an 1868 appendix to “Hymns Ancient and Modern.” The tune name, which means “Praise the Lord,” is a perfect match to the opening line of the text. Usually thought of as a morning hymn of praise, the rising melodic motif complements the rising sun that “gilds the skies” of the early morning. Within two phrases we soar an octave above our starting pitch. Indeed our voices ascend with the rising sun about which we are singing. The melody ends on an unusually high note for hymns, proclaiming the text, “May Jesus Christ be praised!” These five words form a brief refrain that encapsulates the intent of the entire hymn. Furthermore, the singer must summon extra effort to sing these words, unabashedly broadcasting Christ as the center of our praise.
Born in York, England, in 1838, son of noted organist Thomas Barnby, young Joseph Barnby displayed a marked talent for music. He was a boy chorister in his father’s choir at York and became a church organist at age twelve. Two years later, after his voice changed, he made his debut as a choirmaster. After completing formal education at the Royal Academy of Music, he continued his career as one of the most prominent musicians in England. He achieved distinction as organist/choirmaster at St. Andrew’s, Wells Street and at St. Anne’s, Soho, in London. These accomplishments led to a long association with prominent music publisher, Novello.
Novello established an outstanding choir for Barnby, which became known as “Barnby’s Choir.” He promoted the compositions of other composers by conducting notable performances of their works (published by Novello) in London. Barnby conducted Bach’s “St. John Passion” and “St. Matthew Passion.” He also conducted the first English performances of Antonin Dvorak’s “Stabat Mater” and Richard Wagner’s music drama “Parsifal.”
A prolific composer himself, Barnby composed an oratorio, “Rebecca,” and many other sacred music compositions, including over 246 hymn tunes. Modern hymnals contain only a handful of these tunes. Of these, LAUDES DOMINI is undoubted his most popular. Other popular Barnby tunes include MERRIAL, paired with “Now the Day is Over,” and PERFECT LOVE, paired with “O Perfect Love,” one of the relatively few wedding hymns. Joseph Barnby also edited five hymn books. Queen Victoria knighted him in 1892 for his contributions to the musical life of England.
Here is this hymn as worship began one Lord’s Day morning at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.