229. O brother man, fold to thy heart thy brother
John Greenleaf Whittier, 1807-92
A hymn of brotherly love and service, taken from a poem of 15 stanzas, entitled, “Worship,” to which was affixed the scriptural reference, James 1:27: “Pure religion and undefiled before God the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” A concern for the well being of his fellow man was to Whittier a vital part of the Christian faith, as witness his championship of the cause of the slaves.
For comments on John Greenleaf Whittier see [Hymn 173].
MUSIC. COMFORT. The tune appears anonymously in the “Supplement” to Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.