This week for my ongoing series Then Sings my Soul: The Hymns of My Youth, I’ve selected something by Charles Wesley from 1739. This one should have been cited back in the 80’s and early 90’s every time someone accused all those new choruses of being nothing more than mindless repetition of the same old tired phrases. It’s the repetitive chorus that sticks in my brain from my youth, but some of those few lyrics that are interspersed in each stanza are deep: “He breaks the power of canceled sin,” for example. In point of fact, many of the lyrics from this one have been plucked from Wesley’s more well-known “O For a Thousand Tongues,” which contains a greater concentration of deep theology. Come to think of it, this one is in some ways a stripped-down version of that greater hymn. Still, for better or worse, this is one of the hymns of my youth, and I recall the congregation singing the chorus with gusto.
Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
The glories of my God and king!
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!Jesus! the Name that charms our fears,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
’Tis music in the sinner’s ears,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!He breaks the pow’r of canceled sin,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
His blood can make the foulest clean,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
Blessed be the Name, blessed be the Name,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!I never shall forget that day,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
When Jesus washed my sins away,
Blessed be the Name of the Lord!
I really laughed at this. I am at heart a hymn guy, but that’s mostly because of my age. Like you I grew up in churches filled with people singing these hymns with gusto. I also enjoy watching members of my community get something out of music and a number clearly do get a lot out of modern choruses, as they are called.
My father-in-law calls these new songs “ditty singin” and often complains about the repetition. I’ve found a few things are true. 1. Most of the modern songs do NOT use that kind of repetition. 2. Many of the modern songs are directly taken from the psalms, unlike most hymns. 3. Who said repetition was mindless? It’s an ancient contemplative technique.
As I said, I prefer hymns, so this isn’t someone who wants to do away with them. But I appreciate noting the repetition in his hymn. I might have to break out and sing it to my father-in-law next time he comments. ;-)