HYMN FOR PENTECOST 9 Come, ye Disconsolate
Text: Thomas Moore (1779-1852) Third Stanza: Thomas Hastings Tune: Samuel Webb, Sr. (1740-1816) 1. Come, you disconsolate, where'er you languish; Come to the mercy seat, fervently kneel. Here bring your wounded hearts, here tell your anguish; Earth has no sorrows that heaven cannot heal. 2. Joy of the desolate, light of the straying, Hope of the penitent, fadeless and pure! Here speaks the Comforter, in mercy saying, "Earth has no sorrows that heaven cannot cure." 3. Here see the bread of life; see waters flowing Forth from the throne of God, pure from above. Come to the feast prepared; come, ever knowing Earth has no sorrows but heaven can remove. REFLECTION These past weeks, especially the near miss of the assassin’s bullet by the former president, have been troubling, if not dispiriting in the extreme. Where can we go for comfort? We are disconsolate, a not much used word these days, but it feels like the right one. It seems like the sorrows of earth are flooding over us and there is no place to find rest. Our hymn tells us where to flee: To Jesus, the mercy seat, the Comforter. Jesus' compassions do not fail, no matter his weariness. He goes about healing and ministering to them, bringing the disconsolate, the wounded, the penitent, the desolate, comfort. They run to be with him, knowing that even to touch the hem of his garment will bring healing and consolation. Hear this story and run! Despite his weariness, his emptiness, Jesus is filled with mercies that cannot be depleted, he will bring us healing and wholeness. He has the bread and water of life for us to feast on. Maybe, some will say, I go there often, but have never sensed the feeding, or the presence. These are just words. There is no food or drink in words, we might protest. Except somehow even in these words that do not give us an ecstatic experience, some nourishment is getting through that we would not be without. And without these words, nothing would happen. Sometimes words which may seem so absent of God or worn out may suddenly flash open with light and we will be comforted, maybe even healed. It happens. So always bring your sorrows to him. There is healing in his wings. HYMN INFO Thomas Moore, who wrote the first two stanzas to the current tune, was Irish. He attended Trinity College in Dublin and became a lawyer, working as a civil servant for most of his life. He wrote many hymns. Thomas Hastings (1784-1872) a musician and choir director for many years in New York, wrote the last stanza which connects the singer to the congregation and the life that is there in word and sacrament. Scholars suggest that the tune may have folk song origins in Germany. Webb, despite being a Catholic made a way for himself as a prolific composer and musician in England. LINKS Acapeldrige https://youtu.be/06q9am18p9k Roberta Flack and Donnie Hathaway https://youtu.be/VmnnMHGvVJc Baylor Men’s Choir the Johnson arrangement https://youtu.be/mNqzhfB4y1I Georgia Boy Choir the Johnson arrangement https://youtu.be/ZhckAyO-OM8 Wartburg Choir https://youtu.be/QNNqp2EkDxU Dixie Hummingbirds https://youtu.be/B_U3TKPvQxU
