My family and I recently visited Palmyra, New York and Kirtland, Ohio—sites of the early church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I found a replica of the first book of hymns, compiled by Emma Smith. It is a small brown book with gold leafing, about 3 in x 4 in x 1/2 in thick. There are only words, no musical notes; people knew many melodies and sometimes switched which tune went with each song.
The first is “Know then that every soul is free, to choose his life and what he’ll be…”
The last is “The Spirit of God”
Here’s hymn #3;
1 “What fair one is this, from the wilderness traveling,
Looking for Christ, the beloved of her heart?
O, this is the church, the fair bride of the Savior,
Which with every idol is willing to part.
While men in contention, are constantly howling.
And Babylon’s bells are continually tolling,
As though all the craft of her merchants was failing,
And Jesus was coming to reign on the earth.
2 There is a sweet sound in the gospel of heaven,
And people are joyful when they understand
The saints on their way home to glory are even Determined by goodness, to reach the blest land.
Old formal professors are crying “delusion,”
And high-minded hypocrites say “’tis confusion,
While grace is poured out in a blessed effusion
And saints are rejoicing to see priestcraft fall.
3 A blessing, a blessing, the Savior is coming,
As prophets and pilgrims of old have declared;
And Israel, the favored of God, is beginning
To come to the feast for the righteous prepared.
In the desert are fountains continually springing,
The heavenly music of Zion is ringing;
The saints all their tithes and their offerings are bringing;
They thus prove the Lord and his blessing receive.
4 The name of Jehovah is worthy of praising,
And so is the Savior an excellent theme;
The elders of Israel a standard are raising,
And call on all nations to come to the same:
These elders go forth and the gospel are preaching,
And all that will hear them, they freely are teaching,
And thus is the vision of Daniel fulfilling:
The stone of the mountain will soon fill the earth.”
I’m grateful for this heritage.
These themes resonate: of gathering to build a people who are thoroughly trying to follow Jesus, of finding a feast prepared for the righteous, like a fountain the the desert. The themes of worldly selfishness and falsehood being uprooted and overcome, to prepare the world for an era of peace when our Savior will lead personally on the earth…
…these can help us just as they fired the souls of the early saints.
On the Path of Life... 