I love hymns. They aren’t easy to write. You have to have some idea you want to get across and then pay attention to meter (the number of syllables and where the accents lie) and rhyme. Just as hard is translating hymns. It’s an art not only to translate the words, but to make meter and rhyme work in English as well as it does in the original language.  

American Lutherans sing a lot of translated hymns, so today we honor two of the great hymn translators, Catherine Winkworth and John Mason Neale. Winkworth (1827-1878) had a great gift for translating German hymns into English. She produced hundreds of translations, 19 of them in Evangelical Lutheran Worship. These include favorites such as “Lord Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word,” “Lord Jesus Christ Be Present Now,” and “O Living Bread from Heaven.” Winkworth might be considered an early feminist as she was a vigorous proponent of women’s education.

John Mason Neale (1818-1866) was a priest of England. Often in ill health and unappreciated by the church hierarchy, Neale served for 20 years as warden of Sackville College Almshouse. His hymn output also numbers in the hundreds with many being translations from Greek and Latin as well as original hymns. Evangelical Lutheran Worship includes 14 of his hymns including  “All Glory, Laud and Honor,” “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and “Of the Father’s Love Begotten.” He’s also the author of the popular Christmas carol, “Good King Wenceslas.”

Pick out a favorite hymn and give God thanks and praise.

Read Luke 1:57-66 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Wayne