Cathedrals join bicentenary tribute to great composer
At a time of national crisis in Britain as a whole, it is most appropriate that cathedrals across Ireland should soon be ringing out to the strains of the hymn What a friend we have in Jesus!
After watching a TV programme about London-born pop star Adele, whose recordings have sold hundreds of millions of copies, I would like to draw attention to one Joseph Scriven – born in Banbridge, Northern Ireland, 200 years ago on 10 September – who achieved worldwide fame for a single song.
Like Adele, many of whose self-penned hits were born out of personal heartbreak, Scriven also had his fair share of troubles. On the eve of his wedding, tragically his bride-to-be was drowned. Later, in 1844, he emigrated to Canada where, once again, he became engaged, only to lose his second fiancée after a brief but fatal illness.1
In spite of loneliness, poverty and his own precarious health, he spent the rest of his life helping the physically handicapped, as well as teaching and ministering among his fellow Christians in Ontario.
But it was not his own troubles that inspired the hymn for which he was to achieve such notoriety. He sent the words to his mother when she was going through a very distressing time, assuring her:
What a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear;
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer.
His legacy continues in the hearts of millions who love this hymn, but also through his wider family. His great-great-nephew John has personally blessed and supported me (and others) in Christian ministry, and his (John’s) brother Henry, a retired bishop, will be presiding over a special service in Banbridge on Sunday week when 15 Irish cathedrals – including both in Dublin – will be joining the tribute.
Though seemingly robbed of much joy in his life, Joseph’s lyrics speak of someone who has discovered the secret of true peace and happiness, the remedy for trials and tribulations, and the escape route from discouragement and despair.
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear;
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.
And so, the private message to his mother of a man who has walked the vale of tears would become a source of comfort to people all over the world for many years to come – well beyond his death in 1886.
Speaking of his teaching and warnings, Jesus said: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
References
1 The Lion Book of Famous Hymns, Lion Publishing, 1991, compiled by Christopher Idle.
