396. O Son of man, our hero
Frank Fletcher, 1870-1936
A hymn deeply sympathetic with the aspirations and needs of young Christians, and appealing to the heroism of youth.
Frank Fletcher was Head Master of Charterhouse School, Godalming, England, the first layman elected to such a position. He wrote these words in 1921, while on a motor drive between London and Charterhouse. After having been sung for some time in Charterhouse School, the poem was sent to a church newspaper, The Challenge, and from thence it found its way into the hymnals of England and America. The word “mate” in the last line comes from an explanation of the trinity given by a Bishop in answer to a working man’s question on that subject: “God our Father, God our Brother, God our Mate.” Fletcher heard the Bishop give this answer and the phrase stuck in his mind.
MUSIC. LONDONDERRY, the famous Irish traditional melody, is a tune which every congregation loves to sing. It rises gradually and skilfully to an effective climax near the end. The tune, unfortunately, has suffered at the hands of arrangers who have employed it, with various degrees of merit, for many different combinations of voices and instruments. Its appropriateness for church use is questioned only by those who have long associated it with secular words and occasions.
397. Lord in the fulness of my might
Thomas Hornblower Gill, 1819-1906
A consecration hymn for young people, much used in schools and colleges. It was written by Gill in 1855 and published in his Golden Chain of Praise, 1869, under the title, “Early Love. ‘How good it is to close with Christ betimes!’ Oliver Cromwell.” The original poem has eight stanzas.
For comments on Thomas Hornblower Gill see [Hymn 385].
MUSIC. AZMON. For comments on this tune see [Hymn 12].