A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word hymn derives from Greek ὕμνος (hymnos), which means "a song of praise." Collections of hymns are known as hymnals or hymnbooks.

Origins[link]

Ancient hymns include the Egyptian Great Hymn to the Aten, composed by Pharaoh Akhenaten; the Vedas, a collection of hymns in the tradition of Hinduism; and the Psalms, a collection of songs from Judaism. The Western tradition of hymnody begins with the Homeric Hymns, a collection of ancient Greek hymns, the oldest of which were written in the 7th century BC, praising deities of the ancient Greek religions. Surviving from the 3rd century BC is a collection of six literary hymns (Ὕμνοι) by the Alexandrian poet Callimachus.

Patristic writers began applying the term ὕμνος, or hymnus in Latin, to Christian songs of praise, and frequently used the word as a synonym for "psalm".^[1]

Christian hymnody[link]

Originally modeled on the Psalms and other poetic passages (commonly referred to as "canticles") in the Scriptures, Christian hymns are generally directed as praise and worship to the monotheistic God. Many refer to Jesus Christ either directly or indirectly.

Since the earliest times, Christians have sung "psalms and hymns and spiritual songs", both in private devotions and in corporate worship (Matthew 26:30; 1 Cor 14:26; Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16; James 5:13; cf. Revelation 5:8-10; Revelation 14:1-5).

One definition of a hymn is "...a lyric poem, reverently and devotionally conceived, which is designed to be sung and which expresses the worshipper's attitude toward God or God's purposes in human life. It should be simple and metrical in form, genuinely emotional, poetic and literary in style, spiritual in quality, and in its ideas so direct and so immediately apparent as to unify a congregation while singing it".^[2]

Christian hymns are often written with special or seasonal themes and these are used on holy days such as Christmas, Easter and the Feast of All Saints, or during particular seasons such as Advent and Lent. Others are used to instill reverence to the Holy Bible or to celebrate Christian practices such as the eucharist or baptism. Some hymns praise or address individual saints, particularly the Blessed Virgin Mary; such hymns are particularly prevalent in Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and to some extent "High Church" Anglicanism.

	"God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen" ancient Christmas carol, believed to date from about the 15th century. ... United Kingdom Category:Music in the 15th century
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	"A mighty fortress" Description en:A Mighty Fortress is Our God Traditional Lutheran Hymn, Hedge translation
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A writer of hymns is known as a hymnist or hymnodist, and the practice of singing hymns is called hymnody; the same word is used for the collectivity of hymns belonging to a particular denomination or period (e.g. "nineteenth century Methodist hymnody" would mean the body of hymns written and/or used by Methodists in the 19th century). A collection of hymns is called a hymnal or hymnary. These may or may not include music. A student of hymnody is called a hymnologist, and the scholarly study of hymns, hymnists and hymnody is hymnology. The music to which a hymn may be sung is a hymn tune.

In many Evangelical churches, traditional songs are classified as hymns while more contemporary worship songs are not considered hymns. The reason for this distinction is unclear, but according to some it is due to the radical shift of style and devotional thinking that began with the Jesus movement and Jesus music.

Music and accompaniment[link]

In ancient and medieval times, stringed instruments such as the harp, lyre and lute were used with psalms and hymns.

Since there is a lack of musical notation in early writings,^[3] the actual musical forms in the early church can only be surmised. During the Middle Ages a rich hymnody developed in the form of Gregorian chant or plainsong. This type was sung in unison, in one of eight church modes, and most often by monastic choirs. While they were written originally in Latin, many have been translated; a familiar example is the 4th century Of the Father's Heart Begotten sung to the 11th century plainsong Divinum Mysterium.

Western church[link]

Later hymnody in the Western church introduced four-part vocal harmony as the norm, adopting major and minor keys, and came to be led by organ and choir. It shares many elements with classical music.

Today, except for choirs, more musically inclined congregations and a cappella congregations, hymns are typically sung in unison. In some cases complementary full settings for organ are also published, in others organists and other accompanists are expected to transcribe the four-part vocal score for their instrument of choice.

To illustrate Protestant usage, in the traditional services and liturgies of the Methodist churches, which are based upon Anglican practice, hymns are sung (often accompanied by an organ) during the processional to the altar, during the receiving of the Eucharist, during the recessional, and sometimes at other points during the service. These hymns can be found in the United Methodist Hymnal. The Doxology is also sung after the tithes and offerings are brought up to the altar.

Contemporary Christian worship, as often found in Evangelicalism and Pentecostalism, may include the use of contemporary worship music played with electric guitars and the drum kit, sharing many elements with rock music.

Other groups of Christians have historically excluded instrumental accompaniment, citing the absence of instruments in worship by the church in the first several centuries of its existence, and adhere to an unaccompanied a cappella congregational singing of hymns. These groups include the 'Brethren' (often both 'Open' and 'Exclusive'), the Churches of Christ, Mennonites, Primitive Baptists, and certain Reformed churches, although during the last century or so, several of these, such as the Free Church of Scotland have abandoned this stance.

Eastern church[link]

Eastern Christianity (the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches) have a very rich and ancient hymnographical tradition.

Eastern chant is almost always a cappella, and instrumental accompaniment is rare. The central form of chant in the Eastern Orthodoxy is Byzantine Chant, which is used to chant all forms of liturgical worship. Exceptions include the Coptic Orthodox tradition which makes use of the sistrum, and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which also uses drums, cymbals and other instruments on certain occasions.

The development of Christian hymnody[link]

Thomas Aquinas, in the introduction to his commentary on the Psalms, defined the Christian hymn thus: "Hymnus est laus Dei cum cantico; canticum autem exultatio mentis de aeternis habita, prorumpens in vocem." ("A hymn is the praise of God with song; a song is the exultation of the mind dwelling on eternal things, bursting forth in the voice.")^[4]

The Protestant Reformation resulted in two conflicting attitudes to hymns. One approach, the regulative principle of worship, favoured by many Zwinglians, Calvinists and some radical reformers, considered anything that was not directly authorised by the Bible to be a novel and Catholic introduction to worship, which was to be rejected. All hymns that were not direct quotations from the Bible fell into this category. Such hymns were banned, along with any form of instrumental musical accompaniment, and organs were ripped out of churches. Instead of hymns, biblical psalms were chanted, most often without accompaniment, to very basic melodies. This was known as exclusive psalmody. Examples of this may still be found in various places, including the "free churches" of western Scotland.

The other Reformation approach, the normative principle of worship, produced a burst of hymn writing and congregational singing. Martin Luther is notable not only as a reformer, but as the author of many hymns including Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott (A Mighty Fortress Is Our God), which is sung today even by Catholics, and Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ (Praise be to You, Jesus Christ) for Christmas. Luther and his followers often used their hymns, or chorales, to teach tenets of the faith to worshipers. The first Protestant hymnal was published in Bohemia in 1532 by the Unitas Fratrum. Count Zinzendorf, the Lutheran leader of the Moravian Church in the 18th century wrote some 2,000 hymns. The earlier English writers tended to paraphrase biblical texts, particularly Psalms; Isaac Watts followed this tradition, but is also credited as having written the first English hymn which was not a direct paraphrase of Scripture.^[5] Watts (1674–1748), whose father was an Elder of a dissenter congregation, complained at age 16, that when allowed only psalms to sing, the faithful could not even sing about their Lord, Christ Jesus. His father invited him to see what he could do about it; the result was Watts' first hymn, "Behold the glories of the Lamb."^[6] Found in few hymnals today, the hymn has eight stanzas in common meter and is based on Revelation 5:6, 8, 9, 10, 12.^[7]

Relying heavily on Scripture, Watts wrote metered texts based on New Testament passages that brought the Christian faith into the songs of the church. Isaac Watts has been called "the father of English hymnody," but Erik Routley sees him more as "the liberator of English hymnody," because his hymns, and hymns like them, moved worshipers beyond singing only Old Testament psalms, inspiring congregations and revitalizing worship.^[8]

Later writers took even more freedom, some even including allegory and metaphor in their texts.

Charles Wesley's hymns spread Methodist theology, not only within Methodism, but in most Protestant churches. He developed a new focus: expressing one's personal feelings in the relationship with God as well as the simple worship seen in older hymns. Wesley wrote:

Where shall my wondering soul begin?

How shall I all to heaven aspire?

A slave redeemed from death and sin,

A brand plucked from eternal fire,

How shall I equal triumphs raise,

Or sing my great deliverer's praise.

	Battle Hymn of the Republic The Battle Hymn of the Republic, performed by Frank C. Stanley, Elise Stevenson, and a mixed quartet in 1908.
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Wesley's contribution, along with the Second Great Awakening in America led to a new style called gospel, and a new explosion of sacred music writing with Fanny Crosby, Lina Sandell, Philip Bliss, Ira D. Sankey, and others who produced testimonial music for revivals, camp meetings, and evangelistic crusades. The tune style or form is technically designated "gospel songs" as distinct from hymns. Gospel songs generally include a refrain (or chorus) and usually (though not always) a faster tempo than the hymns. As examples of the distinction, "Amazing Grace" is a hymn (no refrain), but "How Great Thou Art" is a gospel song. During the 19th century the gospel-song genre spread rapidly in Protestantism and, to a lesser but still definite extent, in Roman Catholicism; the gospel-song genre is unknown in the worship per se by Eastern Orthodox churches, which rely exclusively on traditional chants (a type of hymn).

The Methodist Revival of the 18th century created an explosion of hymn writing in Welsh, which continued into the first half of the 19th century. The most prominent names among Welsh hymn-writers are William Williams Pantycelyn and Ann Griffiths. The second half of the 19th century witnessed an explosion of hymn tune composition and choir singing in Wales.^[9]

Along with the more classical sacred music of composers ranging from Mozart to Monteverdi, the Catholic Church continued to produce many popular hymns such as Lead, Kindly Light, Silent Night, O Sacrament Divine and Faith of our Fathers.

Many churches today use contemporary worship music which includes a range of styles often influenced by popular music. This often leads to some conflict between older and younger congregants (see contemporary worship). This is not new; the Christian pop music style began in the late 1960s and became very popular during the 1970s, as young hymnists sought ways in which to make the music of their religion relevant for their generation.

This long tradition has resulted in a wide variety of hymns. Some modern churches include within hymnody the traditional hymn (usually describing God), contemporary worship music (often directed to God) and gospel music (expressions of one's personal experience of God). This distinction is not perfectly clear; and purists remove the second two types from the classification as hymns. It is a matter of debate, even sometimes within a single congregation, often between revivalist and traditionalist movements.

American developments[link]

African-Americans developed a rich hymnody from spirituals during times of slavery to the modern, lively black gospel style. The first influences of African American Culture into hymns came from Slave Songs of the United States a collection of slave hymns complied by William Francis Allen who had difficulty pinning them down from the oral tradition, and though he succeeded, he points out the awe inspiring effect of the hymns when sung in by their originators.^[10]

Thanks to Thomas Symmes^[who?] a new idea of how to sing hymns spread throughout the churches in which anyone would sing a hymn any way they felt led to; this was opposed by the views of Symmes colleagues^[who?] who felt it was "like Five Hundred different Tunes roared out at the same time."^{[citation needed]} William Billings, a singing school teacher, created the first tune book with only American born compositions. Within his books, Billings did not put as much emphasis on "common measure"^{[clarification needed]} which was the typical way hymns were sung, but he attempted "to have a Sufficiency in each measure"^{[clarification needed]}. The Boston Handel and Haydn Society aimed at raising the level of church music in America, publishing their "Collection of Church Music".^[when?] In the late 19th century Ira D. Sankey and Dwight L. Moody developed the relatively new subcategory of gospel hymns.^[11]

Hymn metres[link]

The metre indicates the number of syllables for the lines in each stanza of a hymn. This provides a means of marrying the hymn's text with an appropriate hymn tune for singing. In practice many hymns conform to one of a relatively small number of metres (syllable count and stress patterns). Care must be taken, however, to ensure that not only the metre of words and tune match, but also the stresses on the words in each line. Technically speaking an iambic tune, for instance, cannot be used with words of, say, trochaic metre.

The metre is often denoted by a row of figures besides the name of the tune, such as "87.87.87", which would inform the reader that each verse has six lines, and that the first line has eight syllables, the second has seven, the third line eight, etc. The metre can also be described by initials; L.M. indicates long metre, which is 88.88 (four lines, each eight syllables long); S.M. is short metre (66.86); C.M. is common metre (86.86), while D.L.M., D.S.M. and D.C.M. (the "D" stands for double) are similar to their respective single metres except that they have eight lines in a verse instead of four.^[12]

See also[link]

• Carol
• Chorale
• Contemporary worship music
• Doxology
• Hymn Society in the United States and Canada
• Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland
• List of Chinese Hymn Books
• List of Hymnals
• List of Roman Catholic hymns
• Metrical psalter
• Psalm
• Sacred Harp
• Shape note
• Vedic Chant

References[link]

External links[link]

The links below are restricted to either material that is historical or resources that are non-denominational or inter-denominational. Denomination-specific resources are mentioned from the relevant denomination-specific articles.

• "The Hymn Society in the United States and Canada". http://www.thehymnsociety.org/index.html. 
• "The Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland". http://www.hymnsocietygbi.org.uk/. 
• "Examples of Byzantine Music for Hymns". http://www.stanthonysmonastery.org/music/Index.html.  — 2000 pages of hymns in both staff and neumatic notation
• "HistoricHymns.com". http://www.historichymns.com.  — Site with extensive hymn searching tools

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Brooke Fraser
Background information
Birth name	Brooke Gabrielle Fraser
Born	(1983-12-15) 15 December 1983 (age 28) Wellington, New Zealand
Origin	Wellington, New Zealand
Genres	Pop, folk rock
Years active	2002–present
Labels	Sony Music, Wood + Bone
Associated acts	Hillsong
Website	www.brookefraser.com

Brooke Gabrielle Fraser Ligertwood, better known as Brooke Fraser (born 15 December 1983) is a New Zealand born award-winning folk-pop and Christian music^[1][2] artist. Her third studio album Flags has become the most successful album of her career, with the single "Something in the Water" reaching number one on the RIANZ singles chart in 2010.

Early life[link]

Fraser is the eldest of the three children born to former All Black Bernie Fraser,^[3] who was born in Lautoka, Fiji, and his wife Lynda Fraser.^[4] She grew up in Naenae, Lower Hutt and attended Dyer Street School, Naenae Intermediate School and Naenae College.^[5]

Fraser took piano lessons between the ages of seven and seventeen. She started writing songs at age twelve and taught herself the acoustic guitar at fifteen. Despite her skills as a singer she has never taken singing lessons.^[5]

She performed at Parachute, an annual New Zealand music festival in 2000 – including a special guest performance in 2007.^[5]

She began writing for the Soul Purpose magazine at age fifteen, and was later made editor in 2002. She gave up her job as editor shortly after moving to Auckland in late 2002 in order to pursue her music career.^[6]

Musical career[link]

In 2002, while Fraser was in Auckland, Scotty Pearson, the drummer for Elemeno P, organised a meeting with producer Matty J for her. Matty J became her manager, liaising with the major labels who had shown interest and compared their offers. Fraser had about five different labels offer her deals and chose to sign a multi-album deal with Sony Music at the age of 17.^[7]

[edit] What to Do With Daylight

Fraser's first album, What to Do with Daylight, was released in New Zealand in late 2003, debuting at number one and achieved gold status in the same week. The album eventually went seven times platinum,^[8] selling over 105,000 copies in New Zealand alone.^[9] It remained on the album charts for sixty-six weeks.^[10] All five singles from the album reached the top twenty in the New Zealand Singles Chart.^[11] Her album also topped the New Zealand Top 50 Albums of 2004.^[12]

Following the release of What to Do with Daylight, Fraser toured Australia and New Zealand with American artist John Mayer and then toured New Zealand with veteran U.K. rock artist David Bowie.^[13][14] Whilst on tour with John Mayer, she met with his guitarist and keyboardist Michael Chaves who, after recording Mayer's album Heavier Things, Fraser enlisted to play on her album and future concerts.^[15]

[edit] Albertine

In 2005, prior to writing and preparing her follow-up album, Fraser took a trip to Africa to immerse herself in Rwanda before visiting her sponsor children in Tanzania, as she is an advocate for child sponsorship. In this trip, she was so moved that she wrote the song Albertine about a young child (named Albertine), whom she met while in Rwanda. It was later decided to make this song the album's title track.^[16]

Fraser performing in Seattle, 8 December 2010

For the second album, Fraser decided to enlist a new band, primarily constructed from American musicians who'd worked with an array of notable artists, both live and recorded.^[17] In 2006, Fraser and the band went into the studio in Los Angeles to record the album. Later Fraser allowed her fans to listen to the album's first single Deciphering Me via her MySpace page. The single was later released initially to radio and ultimately to CD single, and achieved number four in the New Zealand single charts.

On 4 December 2006 Albertine was released in New Zealand, achieving double platinum status less than a month after its release and has remained, to date, in the top 20 every week since. The album was released in Australia and internationally on 31 March 2007. In Australia, it charted at number twenty-nine in its first week on 9 April and has thus far achieved Gold sales status.

On 6 April 2007, Fraser performed "Deciphering Me" for the Good Friday Appeal, an annual televised fundraising event to raise money for the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne.

In 2008, Fraser appeared on the Dave Barnes song "Believe" from his album Me + You + the World, performing backing vocals.

Albertine was also Fraser's U.S. debut, released 27 May 2008 and entered the Billboard 200 at number ninety on 19 July 2008. Her album propelled in success with online sales after being chosen as Editor's Choice on iTunes. On 4 July 2008 Fraser supported Canadian artist/U2 collaborator Daniel Lanois at the Montreal Jazz Festival. In August she toured the southern U.S.^[18] In September, she re-toured several major U.S. cities and completed the tour at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London, UK.

[edit] Flags

Flags was recorded at East West Studios in Hollywood in the summer of 2010 ^[19] and released by Wood & Bone Records on 12 October 2010. Fraser celebrated with sold-out tours in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. Flags reached the #1 spot on the New Zealand album chart,^[20] #3 in Australia,^[21] and entered at #59 on the Billboard 200 in the US,^[22] and climbed as high as #3 on the U.S iTunes album chart. "Flags" has been certified Gold in Australia and 3x Platinum in New Zealand where it was the 6th highest selling album of 2010.^[23] The first single, “Something in the Water,” has achieved extensive radio success across the globe, notably receiving BBC Radio 2 A-list rotation upon release.^[24] The single has gone on to achieve double platinum sales in NZ where it spent 21 weeks in the 2010 singles chart.^[25] The single has reached #2 in the Dutch airplay chart whilst residing in the top 5 singles chart for 6 consecutive weeks.^[26] The single has charted in Poland and Belgium at #15 and #23 respectively,^[27] as well as being certified Gold in both Germany and Italy.^[28] Flags was released in July 2011 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and debuted in the following positions: #6 in Germany, #33 in Austria & #24 in Switzerland. One month on from release, "Flags" remained in the German top 20 at #13 and "Something in the Water" on the singles charts at #8. "Flags" was released in October 2011 in Hungary, reaching #15 on the national album chart by 2nd week of release.^[29] Flags is due to be released in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland on 7 November 2011.^[27] Flags has received accolades from peers and press alike. Sara Bareilles announced to her 2 million followers on Twitter "If you don’t know her, you should. @brookefraser is a freakin gem. New album out now. Yay." and Women’s Wear Daily has called Brooke "The Kiwi Norah Jones."^[30][31]

In its review of Flags, Glide Magazine said: "Brooke Fraser’s third release, Flags, is a wonder. From the stunning lyrical imagery throughout to the impressive guest vocalists who join her (Cary Brothers, Jon Foreman and Aqualung among them), from Fraser’s ethereal and breathy performances to the wide-ranging soundscapes, this record is drenched in beauty and stands as one of the more remarkable achievements of 2010."^[32]

In support of "Flags" release in Switzerland, Brooke will be appearing in November 2011 at the “ENERGY STARS FOR FREE” event in Zurich alongside Lenny Kravitz and Snow Patrol.^[33]

Personal life[link]

After the success of her first album, Fraser moved to Sydney, where she has lived since 2004. On 17 March 2008 she married Scott Ligertwood, in Sydney, changing her name to Brooke Ligertwood.^[34] "Brooke Fraser" has remained her stage name for her activity as a Sony BMG recording/touring artist. She continues to write songs for Hillsong Church, now as "Brooke Ligertwood". Among her notable congregational songs are "Desert Song" and "Hosanna". After touring her second album Albertine for almost 4 years, Fraser returned home to Sydney. She took almost a year off from music-making. After attending the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the US and seeing Fleet Foxes ^[35] set she was inspired to work on her latest album Flags.^[36]

Fraser also runs a blog from her website where she comments on everything from touring, to fashion and food.^[37]

Philanthropy[link]

Fraser has enjoyed success in her career for many years, and she has always used her position to highlight many worthy causes and charity projects, and raising large amounts of money for them in the process. In late 2010 whilst on tour in the U.S. promoting her third album Flags, Fraser, in conjunction with charity: water ran a birthday campaign asking her fans to donate $27 in honor of her 27th birthday. The goal was to raise $50,000 to build clean water wells in Ethiopia.^[38] Joining the likes of Justin Bieber,^[39] Will Smith^[40] and Adam Lambert^[41] Fraser's birthday campaign was a success raising over $54,000. She has vowed to continue her work with charity: water on future projects.

Fraser has worked with World Vision as an Artist Associate since 2001. She has visited Cambodia and Tanzania with World Vision, the Philippines with Opportunity International and independently traveled to Rwanda in June 2005, in June 2006 as part of charity event "Hope Rwanda", and in May 2007 when she filmed the music video for the song "Albertine" off her second studio album of the same name. In 2006 she, along with Petra Bagust and Tau from Spacifix, appeared in an advertisement for the World Vision 40 Hour Famine; an event which raises funds for children in third world countries. She also sponsors eleven children through World Vision^[42] and makes child ways of contributing to the work of World Vision (i.e. fundraising t-shirts etc.).

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• What to Do with Daylight (2003)
• Albertine (2006)
• Flags (2010)

Awards and nominations[link]

APRA Awards

New Zealand Music Awards

GMA Dove Awards

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Brooke Fraser

• Official Brooke Fraser website
• Brooke Fraser at Allmusic
• Brooke Fraser on Myspace
• New Zealand Herald article

Charles Wesley
Born	(1707-12-18)18 December 1707 Epworth, Lincolnshire, England
Died	29 March 1788(1788-03-29) (aged 80) London, England
Nationality	British
Education	Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford
Religion	Christian (Anglican; and also Methodist)
Spouse	Sarah Wesley (née Gwynne)
Parents	Samuel & Susanna Wesley

Charles Wesley (18 December 1707 – 29 March 1788) was an English leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley (the Younger), and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley. Despite their closeness, Charles and his brother John did not always agree on questions relating to their beliefs. In particular, Charles was strongly opposed to the idea of a breach with the Church of England into which they had been ordained. Charles Wesley is chiefly remembered for the many hymns he wrote. He ministered for part of his life in The New Room Chapel in Bristol. His house, located nearby, can still be visited today.^[1]

Biographical details[link]

Charles Wesley was the son of Susanna Wesley and Samuel Wesley. He was born in Epworth, Lincolnshire, England, where his father was rector. He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, and formed the "Oxford Methodist" group among his fellow students in 1727 which his elder brother, John joined in 1729 soon becoming its leader and moulding it to his own notions. George Whitefield also joined this group. After graduating with a Masters' in classical languages and literature, Charles followed his father and brother into the church in 1735. On 14 October 1735, Charles and his brother John sailed on The Simmonds from Gravesend, Kent for Savannah in the Georgia Colony in British America at the request of the governor, James Oglethorpe. Charles was appointed Secretary of Indian Affairs and while John remained in Savannah, Charles went as chaplain to the garrison and colony at near-by Fort Frederica, St. Simon's Island, arriving there Tuesday, 9 March 1736 according to his journal entry.^[2] However, matters did not turn out well, and he was largely rejected by the settlers. In July 1736, Charles was commissioned to England as the bearer of dispatches to the trustees of the colony. On 16 August 1736, he sailed from Charleston, South Carolina, never to return to the Georgia colony again.^[3]

Charles lived and worked in the area around St Marylebone Parish Church and so, just before his death, he sent for its rector John Harley and told him "Sir, whatever the world may say of me, I have lived, and I die, a member of the Church of England. I pray you to bury me in your churchyard." On his death, his body was carried to the church by six clergymen of the Church of England, and a memorial stone to him stands in the gardens in Marylebone High Street, close to his burial spot. One of his sons, Samuel, became organist of the church.^[4]

Marriage and children[link]

In April 1749, he married the much younger Sarah Gwynne (1726–1822), also known as Sally.^[5] She was the daughter of Marmaduke Gwynne, a wealthy Welsh magistrate who had been converted to Methodism by Howell Harris.^[6] They moved into a house in Bristol in September 1749.^[5] Sarah accompanied the brothers on their evangelistic journeys throughout Britain, until at least 1753. After 1756 Charles made no more journeys to distant parts of the country, mainly just moving between Bristol and London.^[7]

In 1771 Charles obtained another house, in London, and moved into it that year with his elder son. By 1778 the whole family had transferred from Bristol to the London house, at 1 Chesterfield Street, Marylebone,^[6] where they remained until Charles' death and on into the 19th century.^[8] The house in Bristol still stands and has been restored,^[5] however the London house was demolished in the mid 19th century.^[8]

Only three of the couple's children survived infancy: Charles Wesley junior (1757–1834), Sarah Wesley (1759–1828), who like her mother was also known as Sally and Samuel Wesley (1766–1837) ^[9] Their other children, John, Martha Maria, Susannah, Selina and John James are all buried in Bristol having died between 1753 and 1768.{See monument in garden on north side of junction of Lewis Mead and The Haymarket, Bristol} Both Samuel and Charles junior were musical child prodigies and, like their father, became organists and composers. Charles junior spent most of his career as the personal organist of the English Royal family, and Samuel became one of the most accomplished musicians in the world and often called "the English Mozart." Furthermore, Samuel Wesley's son, Samuel Sebastian Wesley, was one of the foremost British composers of the 19th century.^[9]

Best-known hymns[link]

Charles Wesley preaching.

Wikisource has original works written by or about: Charles Wesley

In the course of his career, Charles Wesley published the words of over six thousand hymns, writing the words for a further two thousand, many of which are still popular. These include:

• "And Can It Be That I Should Gain?" (Lyrics)
• "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today" (Lyrics)
• "Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies" (Lyrics)
• "Come, O Thou Traveler unknown" (Lyrics)
• "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus" (Lyrics)
• "Father, I Stretch My Hands to Thee" (Lyrics)
• "Hail the Day that Sees Him Rise" (Lyrics)
• "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing" (Lyrics)
• "Jesus, Lover of My Soul" (Lyrics)
• "Jesus, The Name High Over All" (Lyrics)
• "Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending" (Lyrics)
• "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" (Lyrics)
• "O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing" (Lyrics)
• "Rejoice, the Lord is King" (Lyrics)
• "Soldiers of Christ, Arise" (Lyrics)
• "Ye Servants of God" (Lyrics)

The lyrics to many more of Charles Wesley's hymns can be found on Wikisource and "Hymns and Sacred Poems".^[10]

Some 150 of his hymns are in the Methodist hymn book Hymns and Psalms, including "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing, and "The Church Hymn Book" (In New York and Chicago, USA, 1872) where "Jesus, Lover of My Soul" is published.

Many of his hymns are translated into other languages, and form the foundation for Methodist hymnals, as the Swedish Metodist-Episkopal-Kyrkans Psalmbok printed in Stockholm in 1892.

Legacy[link]

Wesley is still remembered for his ministry while in St. Simon's Island, Georgia, by the South Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church; in 1950, the conference opened a Christian retreat center on the island by the banks of the Frederica River, designating it Epworth by the Sea in honor of his and John's birthplace. He is commemorated in the Calendar of Saints of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on 2 March with his brother John. The Wesley brothers are also commemorated on 3 March in the Calendar of Saints of the Episcopal Church^[11] and on 24 May in the Anglican calendar. Charles is commemorated on 29 March in the Calendar of Commemorations by The Order of Saint Luke; John is commemorated on 2 March; their parents are also commemorated.^[12]

As a result of his enduring hymnody, the Gospel Music Association recognized his musical contributions to the art of gospel music in 1995 by listing his name in the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

Wesley wrote two of the so-called Great Four Anglican Hymns.

Tercentenary[link]

24 May 2007 was celebrated as the tercentenary of Wesley's birth, with many celebratory events held throughout England, even though Wesley was in fact born in December 1707. The date of 24 May is known to Methodists as "Wesley Day" and commemorates the spiritual awakening of first Charles and then John Wesley in 1738. In particular, in the Village of Epworth, North Lincolnshire, at the Wesley Memorial Methodist Church, there was a flower festival, on 26 and 28 May, with flower arrangements representing some of Wesley’s hymns, such as O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing, And Can It Be, and O For a Trumpet Voice.

In November 2007, An Post, the Irish Post Office, issued a 78c stamp to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Wesley's birth.

In film[link]

• Charles Wesley: Hymns of Praise – Comenius Foundation, 2005, in which Charles Wesley (portrayed by John Jackman) tells the stories behind the writing of many of his hymns
• A Heart Set Free – T. N. Mohan, 2007, a feature-length documentary on Charles Wesley's life and hymns
• Wesley – Foundery Pictures, 2009, starring Burgess Jenkins as John Wesley, R. Keith Harris as Charles Wesley, and featuring June Lockhart as Susanna Wesley and Kevin McCarthy as Bishop Ryder^[13]

See also[link]

	Saints portal
	Methodism portal

• Methodism

References[link]

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (July 2009)

• Abbey, Charles J. (1892) Religious thought in old English verse, London: Sampson Low, Marston, 456p., ISBN (?) 0-7905-4361-3
• Tyson, John R. (Ed.) (2000) Charles Wesley: a reader, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 519 p., ISBN 0-19-513485-0
• Tyson, John R. Assist Me to Proclaim: The Life and Hymns of Charles Wesley. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans and Göttingen: Edition Ruprecht 2007, ISBN 978-3-7675-3052-2 DOI 10.2364/3320751449

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Charles Wesley

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Charles Wesley

• Free scores by Charles Wesley in the Werner Icking Music Archive (WIMA)
• Biography & works at the Cyber Hymnal
• Biography and articles about Charles Wesley
• The Journal of Charles Wesley
• Papers of Charles Wesley
• Charles Wesley Conference 2007 held at Liverpool Hope University
• 'Charles Wesley in Historical Perspective: Poet, Priest and Theologian', lecture delivered by Revd Professor Kenneth Newport, at Gresham College, 13 December 2007. (Available for download as MP3 and MP4).
• Charles Wesley's Journal 1736-56 on A Vision of Britain through Time, with links to the places visited.
• A Heart Set Free, 2007 Documentary
• Charles Wesley: Hymns of Praise, 2005 Drama
• "Charles Wesley, Sr". Find a Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=12330. Retrieved 28 August 2010. 
• Epworth By The Sea, St. Simon's Island, Georgia

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