Blest Are the Pure in Heart

Their Soul is Christ's Abode

Blest Are the Pure in Heart was written by the Rev. John Keble (1792-1866). It was initially published in 1819 as a poem (subtitled 'Purification'), with later revisions by various hymnal editors. Keble was an Ordained Priest in the Church of England. Though the parishes he served were humble in size and state, his many published poems on subjects of religious nature were well known. Blest Are the Pure in Heart is set to the tune Franconia, an adaption by the Anglican Minister, William Henry Havergal (1793-1870) of an earlier melody published by Johann Balthasar Konig (1691-1758) in the Harmonischer Lieder-Schatz of 1738. In the Liturgy of the Hours it is used in the Common of Holy Men.



BLEST ARE THE PURE IN HEART by John Keble, 1819 (Public Domain)

1. Blest are the pure in heart,
For they shall see our God;
The secret of the Lord is theirs,
Their soul is Christ's abode.

2. The Lord, who left the heavens
Our life and peace to bring,
To dwell in lowliness with men,
Their Pattern and their King;

3. Still to the lowly soul
He doth himself impart
And for his dwelling and his throne
Chooseth the pure in heart.

4. Lord, we thy presence seek;
May ours this blessing be;
Give us a pure and lowly heart,
A temple meet for thee.

'Tis Good, Lord, To Be Here

Thy Glory Fills the Night

'Tis Good, Lord, To Be Here was written by the Anglican Priest, J. Armitage Robinson (1858-1933). He was a renowned scholar in patristics (the study of the Early Church Fathers), and participated in the Malines Conversations which explored the possibilities of reunion between the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. 'Tis Good, Lord, To Be Here is set to the tune, Narenza adapted by Anglican Priest and hymn writer, William Henry Havergal (1793-1870) from a melody of the Catholicum Hymnologium Germanicum of 1584. In the Liturgy of the Hours it is used on August 6th, the Feast of the Transfiguration.

Tune: Narenza

'TIS GOOD, LORD, TO BE HERE by J. Armitage Robinson, 1888 (Public Domain)

1. 'Tis good, Lord, to be here,
thy glory fills the night;
thy face and garments, like the sun,
shine with unborrowed light.

2. 'Tis good, Lord, to be here,
thy beauty to behold
where Moses and Elijah stand,
thy messengers of old.

3. Fulfiller of the past!
Promise of things to be,
we hail thy body glorified
and our redemption see.

4. Before we taste of death,
we see thy kingdom come;
we fain would hold the vision bright
and make this hill our home.

5. 'Tis good, Lord, to be here.
yet we may not remain;
but since thou bidst us leave the mount,
come with us to the plain.

To Christ, the Prince of Peace / Summi Parentis Filio

The Wound of Love He Bore

To Christ, the Prince of Peace is an Anthony G. Petti adaption of the Edward Caswall (1814-1878) 1874 translation of the Latin hymn for Lauds in the Office of the Sacred Heart from the Roman Breviary, Summi Parentis Filio (see 2nd video). Although Caswall's original text is often sung to the tune, St. George; Petti's modern setting is to the William H. Havergal (1793-1870) adaption of Narenza, a melody first published in the Catholicum Hymnologium Germanicum of 1584. In the Liturgy of the Hours, To Christ, the Prince of Peace is used on the Feast of the Sacred Heart.


Tune: Narenza

TO CHRIST, THE PRINCE OF PEACE by Edward Caswall, 1874 (Public Domain)

1. To Christ, the Prince of peace,
And Son of God most high,
The Father of the world to come,
We lift our joyful cry.

2. Deep in His heart for us
The wound of love He bore,
That love which He enkindles still
In hearts that Him adore.

3. O Jesu, Victim blest,
What else but love divine
Could Thee constrain to open thus
That sacred heart of Thine?

4. O wondrous Fount of love,
O Well of waters free,
O heavenly Flame, refining Fire,
O burning Charity!

5. Hide us in Thy dear heart,
Jesu, our Savior blest,
So shall we find Thy plenteous grace
And Heav’n’s eternal rest.


Traditional Chant

SUMMI PARENTIS FILIO - Anonymous (Public Domain)

1. Summi Parentis Filio,
Patri futuri sæculi,
Pacis beatæ Principi,
Promamus ore canticum.

2. Qui vulneratus pectore
Amoris ictum pertulit,
Amoris urens ignibus
Ipsum qui amantem diligunt.

3. Jesu, doloris victima,
Quis te innocentem compulit,
Dura ut apertum lancea
Latus pateret vulneri?

4. O fons amoris inclyte!
O vena aquarum limpida,
O flamma adurens crimina!
O cordis ardens caritas!

5. In Corde, Jesu, jugiter
Reconde nos, ut uberi
Dono fruamur gratiæ,
Cœlique tandem præmiis.

6. Semper Parenti, et Filio,
Sit laus, honor, sit gloria,
Sancto simul Paraclito
In sæculorum sæcula. Amen