{A&E} 'Favoritest' Hymn of All Winner! [Two Fave Lds Hymns penned by Baptists!]

LDS Living.com ^ | June 30, 2011 | Ashley Evanson

[Colofornian]

The votes are in and we have a “favoritest” hymn. Congratulations to …

I Know that My Redeemer Lives

I’m not really surprised this classic hymn won, but I am intrigued with the first runner-up, Come, Thou Fount. It only lost by one percent of the total votes, so clearly it’s a popular hymn. But the funny thing is, it’s not actually in the current hymnbook.

Come, Thou Fount was the most requested write-in hymn from round one of voting, so we added it to the list of others. But if it’s not even in the hymn book, why is it so popular?

The answer is, it used to be, so a lot of members are familiar with this hymn and still consider it a favorite. When the newest version of the hymnbook was printed in 1985, Come Thou Fount was missing. The Church wrote an article in the Ensign about the changes, but there wasn’t a reason as to why specific hymns made the cut and others didn’t. Here’s what they had to say:

“Just as some hymns have been added to the book, some have also been deleted. ‘Through the years a number of hymns have only rarely been sung,’ said Elder Pinnock. ‘Wanting to keep the book to a reasonable size, and needing to add new hymns, we felt it would be wise to remove some of the little-used hymns.’ Members may want to keep their old hymnbooks as a treasure, Brother Moody suggested, and continue to sing the hymns they love that may not appear in the new book.

[reaganaut]

I just don’t know. I know it would cause a stir if I showed up wearing a Cross and just being me and the grief of having to deal with that situation. I guess I will just have to decide when it happens.

[greyfoxx39]

What decent Mormons want to be is Evangelical Christians

Couldn't be further from the truth. Mormons, decent or otherwise, would not give up their feelings of superiority to become Evangelical Christians...the sect pounds into members from birth the idea that mormons are "special" BECAUSE of their faith, and will be, if they follow the rules, miles ahead of anyone who is NOT mormon in the afterlife in being with God and seated next to Him on His Heavenly Throne.

In MY opinion, mormons are demanding to be seen as Christian simply because they feel entitled to being in the very top tier of believers. You can see that attitude in a lot of things that Mitt Romney says...that's the main reason he is so unpopular. You can see that attitude in some of the posts made here. We have just recently seen two mormon FReepers deliberately flaunt the rule against LDS caucus in a very "in your face" manner towards the forum.

Mormons take very seriously the command to see that every soul ever born will become baptized and confirmed into the faith of Joseph Smith, and Evangelicals and other Christians are nothing but a challenge to them in fulfilling this goal of enforced conversion....just grist for the mill.

Mormons willingly pay coerced tithing in order to be able enter temples and to baptize those souls who weren't converted in their earthly life...it's their most important duty.

[reaganaut]

Thank you. Perhaps I will. It would give me an opportunity to witness to the rest of the family. I will just have to decide when that time comes I guess.

[greyfoxx39]

The thought of having to go to an LDS service just makes me cringe anymore.

I don't cringe...I have to tamp down my fury at the way funerals are used as proselytizing opportunities...I very nearly walked out of the last mormon funeral I went to and have solved the problem by simply staying away.

My family and friends are all aware of my feelings and realize that if they criticize me for them, they may get more than they expect in my response.

Remember, the object of the funeral is no longer capable of judging anyone and one shouldn't have their last exposure to their friend to be one that leaves lingering bad feelings.

Instead of facing that funeral, take a bunch of flowers to a place that reminds you of shared time and good feelings with that friend. You'll feel better, and Jesus will hear your prayers there better than He will in a mormon chapel.

[reaganaut]

Thanks Grey. There is a whole lot of history there with the family and your idea may prove the best. In some ways I already said my goodbyes the last time I saw him a couple of years ago. I was able to witness to him and his wife both. What shocked me was a phone call I got from him around Thanksgiving that I just got the message to on my cell phone. I wasn’t expecting to hear from him and it brought up a lot of emotion.

The funeral will be in Utah and mostly LDS so there is less of a chance of it being a missionary endeavor but yeah there is still some of that that goes on.

I also just found out last night that my ex-fiance (the one I left my mission for who decided he was gay) was killed in a car accident a couple of months ago. It is just sad when someone you loved dies without Christ.

[Colofornian]

I know That my Redeemer Livith, author: G. F. Handel

This Web site lists three similar versions: Resurrection and Easter Hymns and Songs:

* "I Know That My Redeemer Lives," words: Charles Wesley, music: George F. Handel.
* "I Know that My Redeemer Lives," words: Samuel Medley (1775), music: Duke Street, attributed to John Hatton (1793).
* "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth," words: Jessie Brown Pounds (1893), music: James H. Fillmore (1893)

#1, even the version you cite, Handel was behind the music -- he didn't author the text.

#2 - even the Mormons say the version they embraced, Samuel Medley was the author: History of Hymns—The Evolution of LDS Hymns:
Episode 13: The history behind "I Know That My Redeemer Lives": Samuel Medley, who wrote the text of “I Know That My Redeemer Lives” in 1775, was born in Cheshunt, England, just north of London, in 1738. He practiced sinful and profane ways until his leg was wounded in a naval battle in 1759. The possibility of amputation led Samuel to pray, asking that he might keep his leg. The prayer was answered, and Samuel Medley repented and lived for the Lord. Latter-day Saint Lewis D. Edwards wrote the melody we now associate with this hymn. This program includes contemporary renditions of the hymn by the following artists: the Gibbons Family, Michael Dowdle, Jenny Frogley and David Betros, Beverly Hansen, Greg Hansen, and the Brigham Young University Singers.

[T. P. Pole]

I happen to have a spreadsheet with the last two or so years of hymn selection for the ward I attend. I crunched it and found the following results.

The list is hymn number - count - title. This is out of 373 hymn selections. Read this as "hymn number 193 was sung 8 times in the sample period."

193 - 8 - I Stand All Amazed
96 - 8 - Dearest Children, God Is Near You
146 - 7 - Gently Raise the Sacred Strain
194 - 7 - There Is a Green Hill Far Away
116 - 6 - Come, Follow Me
171 - 6 - With Humble Heart
175 - 6 - O God, the Eternal Father
185 - 6 - Reverently and Meekly Now
298 - 6 - Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth
169 - 5 - As Now We Take the Sacrament
170 - 5 - God, Our Father, Hear Us Pray
172 - 5 - In Humility, Our Savior
179 - 5 - Again, Our Dear Redeeming Lord
181 - 5 - Jesus of Nazareth, Savior and King
182 - 5 - We'll Sing All Hail to Jesus' Name
187 - 5 - God Loved Us, So He Sent His Son
191 - 5 - Behold the Great Redeemer Die
196 - 5 - Jesus, Once of Humble Birth
243 - 5 - Let Us All Press On
264 - 5 - Hark, All Ye Nations!
278 - 5 - Thanks for the Sabbath School
294 - 5 - Love at Home
10 - 4 - Come, Sing to the Lord
135 - 4 - My Redeemer Lives
176 - 4 - Tis Sweet to Sing the Matchless Love
180 - 4 - Father in Heaven, We Do Believe
184 - 4 - Upon the Cross of Calvary
192 - 4 - He Died! The Great Redeemer Died
195 - 4 - How Great the Wisdom and the Love
210 - 4 - With Wondering Awe
216 - 4 - We Are Sowing
219 - 4 - Because I Have Been Given Much
246 - 4 - Onward, Christian Soldiers
27 - 4 - Praise to the Man
277 - 4 - As I Search the Holy Scriptures
300 - 4 - Families Can Be Together Forever

There were a few gaps in the record. Notably, December '09 is missing, thus lowering the Christmas hymns to 2 and 3 hits instead of 3 and 4. Also the heavy rotation of sacrament hymns is explained by the fact that we sing one each week and there are only 25 or so of them (they are the #170ish-#200ish).

We must be an unusual ward (or at least have an unusual hymn selector). I Know That My Redeemer Lives - #136 has only one hit. Personally I would would pick it more often, since it is one of my favorites, too. #193 would be near the top, as it is here. So would The Spirit of God - #2 (it only has one hit).

Praise to the Man - #27 shows up four times. We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet - #19 had no hits. Oh My Father - #292 had one hit. I have no idea why our hymn selector likes Dearest Children, God Is Near You so much.

[reaganaut]

You didn’t take into account general conference or stake conferences did you?

[Elsie]

II, you're on!

Today's Three Minutes' Hate ?

[T. P. Pole]

Nope, just the ones sung in our ward’s sacrament meetings.

[Elsie]

Today's Three Minutes' Hate ?

It is a bit embarassing when the HATE is so darn VISIBLE; isn't it!!

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Questions put to Joseph Smith: "'Do you believe the Bible?' [Smith:]'If we do, we are the only people under heaven that does, for there are none of the religious sects of the day that do'. When asked 'Will everybody be damned, but Mormons'? [Smith replied] 'Yes, and a great portion of them, unless they repent, and work righteousness." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 119).

Joseph Smith: "for the teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible" (from Pearl of Great Price 1:12). "What is it that inspires professors of Christianity generally with a hope of salvation? It is that smooth, sophisticated influence of the devil, by which he deceives the whole world" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.270).

 

 

 

Brigham Young stated this repeatedly: "When the light came to me I saw that all the so-called Christian world was grovelling in darkness" (Journal of Discourses 5:73); "The Christian world, so-called, are heathens as to the knowledge of the salvation of God" (Journal of Discourses 8:171); "With a regard to true theology, a more ignorant people never lived than the present so-called Christian world" (Journal of Discourses 8:199); "And who is there that acknowledges [God's] hand? ...You may wander east, west, north, and south, and you cannot find it in any church or government on the earth, except the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" (Journal of Discourses , vol. 6, p.24); "Should you ask why we differ from other Christians, as they are called, it is simply because they are not Christians as the New Testament defines Christianity" (Journal of Discourses 10:230).

 

 

 

Orson Pratt proclaimed: "Both Catholics and Protestants are nothing less than the 'whore of Babylon' whom the Lord denounces by the mouth of John the Revelator as having corrupted all the earth by their fornications and wickedness. Any person who shall be so corrupt as to receive a holy ordinance of the Gospel from the ministers of any of these apostate churches will be sent down to hell with them, unless they repent" (The Seer, p. 255).

 

 

 

Orson Pratt also said: "This great apostasy commenced about the close of the first century of the Christian era, and it has been waxing worse and worse from then until now" (Journal of Discourses

, vol.18, p.44) and: "But as there has been no Christian Church on the earth for a great many centuries past, until the present century, the people have lost sight of the pattern that God has given according to which the Christian Church should be established, and they have denominated a great variety of people Christian Churches, because they profess to be ...But there has been a long apostasy, during which the nations have been cursed with apostate churches in great abundance" (Journal of Discourses , 18:172).

 

 

President John Taylor stated: "Christianity...is a perfect pack of nonsense...the devil could not invent a better engine to spread his work than the Christianity of the nineteenth century." (Journal of Discourses , vol. 6, p.167); "Where shall we look for the true order or authority of God? It cannot be found in any nation of Christendom." (Journal of Discourses , 10:127).

 

 

 

James Talmage said: "A self-suggesting interpretation of history indicates that there has been a great departure from the way of salvation as laid down by the Savior, a universal apostasy from the Church of Christ". (A Study of the Articles of Faith, p.182).

 

 

 

President Joseph Fielding Smith said: "Doctrines were corrupted, authority lost, and a false order of religion took the place of the gospel of Jesus Christ, just as it had been the case in former dispensations, and the people were left in spiritual darkness." (Doctrines of Salvation, p.266). "For hundreds of years the world was wrapped in a veil of spiritual darkness, until there was not one fundamental truth belonging to the place of salvation ...Joseph Smith declared that in the year 1820 the Lord revealed to him that all the 'Christian' churches were in error, teaching for commandments the doctrines of men" (Doctrines of Salvation, vol. 3, p.282).

 

 

 

More recent statements by apostle Bruce McConkie are also very clear: "Apostasy was universal...And this darkness still prevails except among those who have come to a knowledge of the restored gospel" (Doctrines of Salvation, vol 3, p.265); "Thus the signs of the times include the prevailing apostate darkness in the sects of Christendom and in the religious world in general" (The Millennial Messiah, p.403); "a perverted Christianity holds sway among the so-called Christians of apostate Christendom" (Mormon Doctrine, p.132); "virtually all the millions of apostate Christendom have abased themselves before the mythical throne of a mythical Christ whom they vainly suppose to be a spirit essence who is incorporeal uncreated, immaterial and three-in-one with the Father and Holy Spirit" (Mormon Doctrine, p.269); "Gnosticism is one of the great pagan philosophies which antedated Christ and the Christian Era and which was later commingled with pure Christianity to form the apostate religion that has prevailed in the world since the early days of that era." (Mormon Doctrine, p.316).

 

 

 

President George Q. Cannon said: "After the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized, there were only two churches upon the earth. They were known respectively as the Church of the Lamb of God and Babylon. The various organizations which are called churches throughout Christendom, though differing in their creeds and organizations, have one common origin. They all belong to Babylon" (Gospel Truth, p.324).

 

 

President Wilford Woodruff stated: "the Gospel of modern Christendom shuts up the Lord, and stops all communication with Him. I want nothing to do with such a Gospel, I would rather prefer the Gospel of the dark ages, so called" (Journal of Discourses , vol. 2, p.196).

[reaganaut]

It is interesting how it differs from my 4 wards patterns (1 in CA 3 in Utah).

[Elsie]

BTW, I’m a Catholic Christian, so I don’t have any dog in this race.

You should; considering what the MORMON religious empire thinks about YOUR religion!

[Elsie]

It is just not possible to be a Christian and stay and sit through all that carp every week.

Your fish is dyslexic.

[Elsie]

Did you mean: O² ?

[Elsie]

 

Praise to the Man - #27 shows up four times; as do...

  10 - 4 - Come, Sing to the Lord
135 - 4 - My Redeemer Lives
176 - 4 - Tis Sweet to Sing the Matchless Love
180 - 4 - Father in Heaven, We Do Believe
184 - 4 - Upon the Cross of Calvary
192 - 4 - He Died! The Great Redeemer Died
195 - 4 - How Great the Wisdom and the Love
210 - 4 - With Wondering Awe
216 - 4 - We Are Sowing
219 - 4 - Because I Have Been Given Much
246 - 4 - Onward, Christian Soldiers
277 - 4 - As I Search the Holy Scriptures
300 - 4 - Families Can Be Together Forever

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(click)

Praise to the Man!

 

 

 

Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!
Jesus annointed that Prophet and Seer.
Blessed to open the last dispensation,
Kings shall extol him, and nations revere.

Chorus
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

Praise to his mem'ry, he died as a martyr;
Honored and blest be his ever great name!
Long shall his blood, which was shed by assasins,
Plead unto heav'n while the earth lauds his fame.

Chorus
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

Great is his glory and endless his priesthood.
Ever and ever the keys he will hold.
Faithful and true he will enter his kingdom,
Crowned in the midst of the prophets of old.

Chorus
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven;
Earth must atone for the blood of that man.
Wake up the world for the conflict of justice.
Millions shall know 'Brother Joseph' again.

Chorus
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

[reaganaut]

So is my dog

[T. P. Pole]

Never lived in Utah. But the hymn distribution is a bit different from other wards I have been in. Nearly every ward I have been in has been strong musically, so there usually is a lot of variety. I have been in wards that seem to sing the same 10 hymns over and over, though. I’ve never been in a ward that sung the “restoration” hymns much (or at least much more than the others). But I understand Utah can be a bit strange (understatement, I know).

[T. P. Pole]

For grins I was looking for the list from when I was picking the hymns, but couldn’t find it. Must be on some other computer. If I find it, I’ll post that distribution.

[reaganaut]

But I understand Utah can be a bit strange (understatement, I know).

- - - - -
Honey, if you haven’t lived there, you have no idea. LOL. Even when I was faithful LDS, living in Provo/Orem was WEIRD.

We did do a few fun things though...when a couple in our ward got married, several of the girls took the groom out to a movie, dinner at Brick Oven Pizza (BEST PIZZA and homemade Root Beer - still) and ice cream at Carousel for the ‘bachelor party’ and the guys took the Bride up to SLC to help pick out a peignoir for the honeymoon at ZCMI (ZCMI was still open then) and out to dinner. Also, if you didn’t have a date on Saturday night, you had quilting bee (which encouraged finding a date).