The promise we have, from this epistle from St. Paul:
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. - 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17 Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)"Wele'n Sefyll Rhwng y Mwrtwydd" ("Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah"), a hymn which is an affirmation of the Christian resurrection faith:
Lyrics in Welsh:
Wele'n sefyll rhwng y myrtwyddParsing and translation of the Welsh words:
Wrthrych teilwng o fy mryd;
Er mai o ran, yr wy'n adnabod
Ei_fod uwchlaw gwrthrychau'r byd:
Henffych fore, henffych fore,
Y caf ei weled fel y mae.
Rhosyn Saron yw ei enw,
Gwyn a gwridog, teg o bryd;
Ar ddeng mil y mae'n rhagori
O wrthrychau penna'r byd:
Ffrind pechadur, ffrind pechadur,
Dyma_ei beilat ar y môr.
Beth sy imi mwy a wnelwyf
Ag eilunod gwael y llawr?
Tystio'r wyf nad yw eu cwmni
I'w cystadlu â Iesu mawr:
O! am aros, o am aros
Yn ei gariad ddyddiau f'oes.
Lo, between the myrtles standing,Have a blessed Easter Sunday, the most important day of the Christian calendar.
One who merits well my love,
Though His worth I guess but dimly,
High all earthly things above;
Happy morning! Happy morning!
When at last I see Him clear!
When at last I see Him clear!
Rose of Sharon, so men name Him;
White and red his cheeks adorn;
Store untold of earthly treasure
Will His merit put to scorn
Friend of sinners! Friend of sinners!
He their pilot o'er the deep.
He their pilot o'er the deep.
What can weigh with me henceforward
All the idols of the earth?
One and all I here proclaim them,
Matched with Jesus, nothing worth;
O to rest me! O to rest me!
All my lifetime in His love!
All my lifetime in His love!
— Poetic translation
(hat tip to Mark Alexander of A New Dark Age Is Dawning for the above video)
A Happy and blessed Easter to everyone.
ReplyDeleteCUM RHONDA (the official name of this famous WELSH HYMN as published in the Episcopal hymnal of 1982), was featured in The Corn is Green, a wonderful movie adaptation of a semi-autobiographicsl play by Emlyn Williams about the education of a gifted young Welshman destined to be trapped in a dead end life as a coal miner were it not for the splendid efforts of Miss Moffatt, a dedicated spinster teacher and visionary who realized the boy's great potential, and saw to it that he received the instruction he needed in order to be accepted at Oxford to fulfill his splendid potential.
ReplyDeleteThe Corn is Green is a beautiful story about the virtue and fulfilling nature of great personal sacrifice for the sake of another –– certainly as fitting a theme for Easter as any I could imagine.
In her long career Bette Davis gave us her greatest screen role in my opinion with her touching prtrayal of Miss Moffatt –– a role created on the New York stage by Ethel Barrymore..
HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE!
Franco,
DeleteThis hymn was also sung in this scene from the film How Green Was My Valley.
YES! That was ANOTHER beautiful, very touching film involving Welsh coal miners from roughly the same period.
DeleteYoung Roddy MacDowell, Donald Crisp, Maureen O'Hara, and Walter Pidgeon gave s some of the best performances ever captured on film.
My favorite charapter, though, has to be "Ty Bando" the lively, tough-but-friendly expert st boxing who made short work of the vicious Schoolmaster who'd been bullying andabusing young Hugh (Roddy MaDcowell) unmercifully.
The series of events leading to the schoolmaster gets his comeuppance is a brief-but-highly memorable interval. I'm ashamed to say I can never remember the name of the actor who played Ty Bando.
Franco,
DeleteHow Green Was My Valley won five Academy Awards!
__________ CRUCIFIXION __________
ReplyDeleteHe was a man who came to show the way.
It never was for him an easy task.
Sadly, politicians of His day
Cruelly sought His death. They’d never ask
Revealing questions in pursuit of Truth.
Undermining good they sought to hold
Crookedly to Power. Their uncouth
Initiatives to godliness were cold.
Freedom from corruption causes fear
In those who by coercion seek to rule.
Xiphoid, ego kills what should endear,
Instead of letting Self die to renewal.
On tiptoe oft we creep and hold our breath,
Not challenging the ones who cause His death.
________ RESURRECTION ________
Cold He lay behind the heavy stone,
Hidden there with broken hands and feet.
Ruthless powers crushed His flesh and bone.
It looked to be the ultimate defeat.
Sadly, in the dawn Saint Mary’s three
Trudged toward the tomb wherein He lay.
Instead of death, an angel helped them see,
Startled, that the stone was rolled away!
A risen Jesus stood! He still drew breath!
Radiance around Him warmed the air.
In banks of lilies sweet we now see death
Stripped of terror. Life, eternal, fair,
Enjoins us all to claim His victory.
Naught could stop us save our vanity.
~ FreeThinke
HAPPY EASTER, Everybody!!!
THis melody has other lyrics, too, and it's one of only two hymns I had played at Mr. Z's funeral...I LOVE THIS MELODY SO MUCH. I love Welsh music, period. When I saw the Welsh lyrics, I had to giggle at wondering how you knew it was such an affirmation of the Christian faith! Until I saw the English :-) God bless you and Mr. AOW now and always.
ReplyDeleteZ,
DeleteThis hymn, one of my personal favorites (My Welsh blood asserting itself?), must have very special meaning for you, then.
God's love to you, Z.
Maranatha AOW!
ReplyDeleteAMEN, to you, Ed, my brother in Christ! And my prayer warrior.
DeleteA BONUS EASTER POEM FROM A MORE SECULAR PERSPECTIVE
ReplyDelete_______ Wonderings _______
Baskets filled
___ with flimsy paper grass
Underlying
___ gaudy pastel treats ––
Necromancer’s
___ jellied, jewel-like sweets ––
Nestled next
___ to marvels chickens pass
Youngsters view
___ with wonder all agog.
’Tis the figure of a
___ small brown rodent though ––
Sweetened chocolate hare ––
___ that steals the show.
His melting presence,
___ like the rich eggnog
Older folks think
___ makes their spirits rise,
Loosens all constraints
___ upon the the tots
Insuring Bunny’s
__ sudden swift demise.
Does delighting as we do
___ n such behavior ––
A self-indulgence
___ seen un wholesale lots ––
Yield a greater closeness
___ to the Savior ––
Strengthen future prospects
___ for the tots?
~ FreeThinke
Hioe AW is cintunui[ng n The Upward at, and hasn't pushed herslf oo hard.
ReplyDeleteAnd I hope everyine had a very HAPPY EASTER!
Franco,
DeleteThank you. I've had a few nasty reminders that my operated knee is a bit weak. But no falls! I see the surgeon tomorrow for the post-op check and the removal of the stitches.
For Easter dinner, I sent Mr. AOW to the American Legion's Easter Dinner. Of course, he brought home a lot of boxes of delicious food, which we finished off yesterday.
Love that, happy (belated) Easter!
ReplyDelete