359 Thou Gracious God, Whose Mercy Lends
Oliver Wendell Holmes, 1809-94
Written by Oliver Wendell Holmes in 1869 to be read or sung at the annual meeting of the 1829 college class of Harvard University, of which he was a member. The famous class included in its membership J. Freeman Clarke, founder of the Disciples, and Samuel F. Smith, author of “America.” The forty years of retrospect, mingled with sunshine and shadow, are touched here with tenderness and grace.
For comments on Oliver W. Holmes see Hymn 172.
MUSIC. ES KAM DIE GNADENVOLLE appears in the Gesangbuch mit Noten to the words, “Früh Morgens da die Sonn’ Aufgeht.”
The composer, Johann Heinrich Egli, 1741-1810, was born in Seegräben, Switzerland. He was a pupil of Pastor Schmiedli at Wetzikon, and became a music teacher in Zurich, where he died. His compositions for voice, both sacred and secular, won great popularity in Switzerland.