English Congregational Hymns in the Eighteenth CenturyHistorians of the English congregational hymn, focusing on its literary or theological aspects, have usually found the genre out of step with the rationalist era that produced it. This book takes a more balanced approach to the work of four writers and concludes that only eighteenth-century Britain, with its understanding of public verse, common truth, and the utility of poetry, could have invented the English hymn as we know it. The early hymns sought to inspire, teach, stir, and entertain congregations. The essential purpose shifted slightly in line with each poet's setting and in accord with the poetic thought of his day. For Isaac Watts's Independents, powerful traditional imagery was appropriate. Charles Wesley's enthusiasm proceeded from and served the spirit of the revival. John Newton's prophetic vision particularly suited the impoverished community at Olney. William Cowper's masterful handling of formal conventions and his idiosyncratic personal hymns reflect his poetic, rather than clerical, vocation. Despite such temporal variations, the great poetry by each man displays themes of general Christian relevance, suggesting common experience, showing normative features of the genre, and bearing a complex and intriguing relationship to secular literature. |
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... individual, is wholly inappropriate for congregational use. Even if the experience of the poet is commonplace and his expression is of general usefulness to other Christians, the resulting poem is not suitable for hymn use unless it is ...
... individual emotion shown by lyrics. Second, it is not clear how a connection between hymns and romanticism could be established, since historical relations are causal and influential. The antecedents of hymns are best examined for clues ...
... individual. Watts wanted to teach his people to voice familiar devotional states, while Wesley taught his people to feel religiously. Extreme emotional response was expected of the believer. The grotesque tableaux of the Crucifixion ...
... individual in focus, and it becomes evident that we need not turn to Wordsworth and the romantics for an explanation of the strong feelings found in the young English hymn in the early eighteenth century. In collections of psalms for ...
... individual rather than communal appeal. They were approved and recommended as expressions of personal rather than collective religious sentiment. This private focus deserves examination, and its difference from the function of the later ...
Contents
Self Sense the Revival | |
John Newton Olney Prophet | |
Exemplary Tradition the Loss of Control | |
Conclusion | |
Notes | |
Other editions - View all
English Congregational Hymns in the Eighteenth Century Madeleine Forell Marshall,Janet Todd Limited preview - 1982 |
English Congregational Hymns in the Eighteenth Century Madeleine Forrell Marshall,Janet M. Todd No preview available - 2014 |