Above:  The Signature of William Ketcham Anderson

Cropped from The Minister and Human Relations (1943)

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WILLIAM KETCHAM ANDERSON (APRIL 27, 1888-FEBRUARY 7, 1947)

U.S. Methodist Minister and Hymn Tune Composer

The Reverend William Ketcham Anderson comes to this, A GREAT CLOUD OF WITNESSES:  AN ECUMENICAL CALENDAR OF SAINTS’ DAYS AND HOLY DAYS, via The Hymnal (1941), of the old Evangelical and Reformed Church.

Anderson, born in New York, New York, on April 27, 1888, was a son of the Reverend William Franklin Anderson (1860-1944) and Jennie Lulah Ketcham Anderson.  The father, ordained in 1887, was a minister in the old Methodist Episcopal Church (1784-1939).  He, elected to the episcopate in 1908, retired in 1932.

Our saint joined the ranks of the clergy, too.  He graduated from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut (A.B., 1910).  Then Anderson taught at Central High School, Chattanooga, Tennessee (1910-1911).  (His father was the MEC bishop based in Chattanooga at the time.)  Our saint, ordained in 1912, ministered first in the Carpenter Circuit in Wyoming.  Then he returned to New York City, for academic studies.  Anderson graduated from Columbia University (M.A., 1913) and Union Theological Seminary (B.D., 1914).  He, ordained a deacon in 1915 and an elder two years later, served as the Director of the Wesley Foundation at The Ohio State University (1915-1918).

Anderson married Fannie East Spencer on December 19, 1916.  The couple had four children:

1. Almeda Jane;
2. Elizabeth Cushman;
3. Josephine Spencer; and
4. William Franklin, II.

Our saint’s wife and children outlived him.

Anderson filled two more non-parish positions after leaving the Wesley Foundation at The Ohio State University.  He served as the Executive Secretary of the Ohio Council of Churches (1919) then as Field Secretary of the Inter-Church World Movement for Ohio (1920).

Anderson served in three congregations from 1920 to 1940:

Anderson was the pastor of Calvary Methodist Episcopal (now United Methodist) Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1920-1926).  He began to compose music while serving there.  In 1924, our saint submitted his entry for a contest the Hymn Society of America sponsored.  He composed a tune for “I Know Now How That Bethlehem’s Babe,” by Harry Webb Farrington (1879-1930).

Anderson was the pastor of First Methodist Episcopal (now United Methodist) Church, Butler, Pennsylvania (1926-1928).

Anderson was the pastor of Franklin Street Methodist Episcopal (now United Methodist) Church, Johnstown, Pennsylvania (1928-1940).  He received his Doctor of Divinity degree from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, in 1930.  That year, our saint also composed JOURNEY’S END, a hymn tune, for “When On My Day of Life Night is Falling,” by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892).  Anderson composed this hymn tune during his wife’s serious illness.

A three-way reunion created The Methodist Church (1939-1968).  In 1940, Anderson moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to become the Director of the Methodist Commission on Ministerial Training.  He held this position for the rest of his life.  In this capacity, our saint wrote one book and edited seven others.  He wrote A Church Membership Manual for Methodist Pastors (1943).  Anderson edited the following volumes:

1. The Minister and Human Relations (1943),
2. Pastor and Church (1943),
3. Protestantism:  A Symposium (1944),
4. Making the Gospel Effective (1945),
5. Students’ Handbook (1945),
6. Christian World Mission (1946), and
7. Methodism (1947).

Anderson, a member of the Commission on Worship and Music of the Federal Council of Churches (I do not know when.), died on February 7, 1947.  He was 58 years old.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 9, 2021 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF MARTIN CHEMNITZ, GERMAN LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN, AND THE “SECOND MARTIN”

THE FEAST OF ANDREAS PETER BERGGREEN, DANISH LUTHERAN MUSICOLOGIST, ORGANIST, MUSIC EDUCATOR, AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF ELIJAH P. LOVEJOY, U.S. JOURNALIST, ABOLITIONIST, PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, AND MARTYR, 1837; HIS BROTHER, OWEN LOVEJOY, U.S. ABOLITIONIST, LAWMAKER, AND CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER; AND WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AFRICAN-AMERICAN ABOLITIONIST, NOVELIST, HISTORIAN, AND PHYSICIAN

THE FEAST OF JOHANN(ES) MATTHAUS MEYFART, GERMAN LUTHERAN EDUCATOR AND DEVOTIONAL WRITER

THE FAST OF MARGERY KEMPE, ENGLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC MYSTIC AND PILGRIM

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM CROSWELL, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER

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Heavenly Father, shepherd of your people,

we thank you for your servant William Ketcham Anderson,

who was faithful in the care and nurture of your flock;

and we pray that, following his holy life,

we may by your grace grow into the full stature

of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Ezekiel 34:11-16 or Acts 20:17-35

Psalm 84

1 Peter 5:1-4 or Ephesians 3:14-21

John 21:15-17 or Matthew 24:42-47

—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 38

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Above:  The Flag of Wales

Image in the Public Domain

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DAVID EVANS (FEBRUARY 6, 1874-MAY 17, 1948)

Welsh Calvinistic/Presbyterian Hymnodist, Composer, and Hymn Tune Harmonizer

Professor David Evans comes to this, A GREAT CLOUD OF WITNESSES:  AN ECUMENICAL CALENDAR OF SAINTS’ DAYS AND HOLY DAYS, via a few sources.  One is The Church Hymnary–Revised Edition (1927), of which he was the Music Editor.  The second source is The Hymnal (1941) of the old Evangelical and Reformed Church.  The third source is The Methodist Hymnal (1966) of The Methodist Church (1939-1968) and The United Methodist Church (1968-).  Three other sources are the companion volumes for each hymnal.  This post also relies on websites, mainly hymnary.org and archive.org.

Before I start writing about Evans, I choose to explain the Presbyterian Church of Wales.  The Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Church organized in 1743.  This denomination formally separated from the Anglican state church in 1811.  The Calvinistic Methodist Church renamed itself the Presbyterian Church of Wales in 1928.  The Calvinistic Methodist denomination in the United States of America merged into the old Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. in 1920.  Welsh Calvinistic Methodism/Presbyterianism was the religious milieu in which Evans lived.

Evans, born in Resolven, Vale of Neath, Glamorganshire, Wales, on February 6, 1874, was a son of Morgan and Sarah Evans.

Our saint pursued a life in music, both secular and sacred.  He studied at Arnold College, Swansea; then at University College, Cardiff.  For a time, Evans was the organist and choirmaster of Jewin Street Welsh Church, London.  When he was 21 years old, our saint earned his Bachelor of Music degree from Oxford.  The Doctor of Music degree from the same institution followed years later.

Evans married Mary Thomas in 1899.  The couple had two sons, one of whom died of the Spanish Influenza of 1918.

From 1903 to 1939, Evans was Professor of Music at University College, Cardiff.  He filled the position Joseph Parry (1841-1903) had vacated.  Our saint became the department chair in 1908.

Beyond University College, Evans contributed much to Welsh music.  He was the leading adjudicator at the Eisteddfod, a great annual national music and poetry observance, for many years.  Evans was also the Examiner of the Central Welsh Board from 1908 to 1920.  Our saint, continuing and expanding the legacy of Ieuan Gwyllt, a.k.a. John Roberts (1822-1877), a Welsh minister and hymnodist, conducted many Welsh Psalmody festivals.  Evans encouraged orchestral music and hymn singing.  He worked to raise musical standards in Wales.  Toward these ends, our saint edited Moliant Cenedl, a volume of what he considered the best hymn tunes.  And, from 1916 to 1922, Evans edited Y Cerddor (The Musician), a literary journal about music in Wales.

Our saint brought his expertise to bear on The Church Hymnary–Revised Edition (1927), for Presbyterians in Scotland, Ireland, England, Wales, Australia, and South Africa.  He, the Music Editor of that hymnal, wrote “The Music,” which immediately followed the preface.  Evans provided practical advice about how to sing properly, especially in a congregational context.  First, however, he wrote the following:

—The Church Hymnary–Revised Edition (1927), vi

(Scan by Kenneth Randolph Taylor)

Evans also harmonized hymn tunes for that hymnal.

Evans composed orchestral works, cantatas, oratorios, choral ballads, anthems, services, and hymn tunes.  Compositions included:

1. Brobugeiliaid, a children’s cantata;
2. Llawenhewch yn yr Ior (Rejoice in the Lord) (1906);
3. The Coming of Arthur (1907), an oratorio;
4. Deffro maénddydd (1909), a choral ballad;
5. Carmen (1909), a “Song for the Opening of the Library in the New College Buildings, Cathays Park;”
6. Alcestis (1928), a cantata; and
7. Gloria (1943), a cantata for the bicentennial of Welsh Calvinistic Methodism.

Evans used a pseudonym (Edward Arthur) for many of his smaller works, such as hymn tunes.

Evans also composed the text of at least one hymn, “I Weave You a Rhyme for Christmas Time.”

Our saint, aged 74 years, died in Rhosllannerchrugog, near Wrexham, Wales, on May 17, 1948.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 8, 2021 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF JOHN DUNS SCOTUS, SCOTTISH ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND THEOLOGIAN

THE FEAST OF SAINT ELIZABETH OF THE TRINITY, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN, MYSTIC, AND RELIGIOUS WRITER

THE FEAST OF JOHANN VON STAUPITZ, MARTIN LUTHER’S SPIRITUAL MENTOR

THE FEAST OF JOHN CASPAR MATTES, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER AND LITURGIST

THE FEAST OF SAINTS PAMBO OF NITRIA, AMMONIUS OF SKETE, PALLADIUS OF GALATIA, MACARIUS OF EGYPT, MACARIUS OF ALEXANDRIA, AND PISHOY, DESERT FATHERS; SAINT EVAGRIUS OF PONTUS, MONK AND SCHOLAR; SAINT MELANIA THE ELDER, DESERT MOTHER; SAINT RUFINUS OF AQUILEIA, MONK AND THEOLOGIAN; SAINT DIDYMUS THE BLIND, BIBLICAL SCHOLAR; SAINT JOHN II, BISHOP OF JERUSALEM; SAINT MELANIA THE YOUNGER, DESERT MOTHER; AND HER HUSBAND, SAINT PINIAN, MONK

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Holy God, whose majesty surpasses all human definitions and capacity to grasp,

thank you for those (especially David Evans)

who have nurtured and encouraged the reverent worship of you.

May their work inspire us to worship you in knowledge, truth, and beauty.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

1 Chronicles 25:1-8

Psalm 145

Revelation 15:1-4

John 4:19-26

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 27, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT JAMES INTERCISUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR

THE FEAST OF HENRY SLOANE COFFIN, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN THEOLOGIAN

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No child should die in the dawn of life.

Above:  Danny Thomas

Image in the Public Domain

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AMOS MUZYAD YAQOOB KAIROUZ (JANUARY 6, 1912-FEBRUARY 6, 1991)

U.S. Roman Catholic Entertainer and Humanitarian

Founder of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Also known as Amos Jacobs

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–Danny Thomas

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Danny Thomas brought joy to many people and saved the lives of a host of children.

Amos Muzyad Yaqoob Kairouz, born in Deerfield, Michigan, on January 6, 1912, was a Maronite Catholic.  His parents, Margaret Taouk and Charles Yaqoob Kairouz, were Lebanese immigrants.  Raised in Toledo, Ohio, our saint graduated from the University of Toledo.  On January 15, 1936, when our saint was 24 years, he married Rose Marie Cassaniti (d. July 12, 2000).

Our saint anglicized his name and became Amos Jacobs then Danny Thomas.  He began performing on radio in Detroit in 1932 then settled in Detroit in 1940.  He worked on radio in various programs, including The Danny Thomas Show (1942-1943 and 1947-1948).  Thomas made the transition to film in the late 1940s.  He starred opposite Doris Day in I’ll See You in My Dreams (1951) and opposite Peggy Lee in The Jazz Singer (1952).  In the early 1950s, Thomas found success in television.  He starred in Make Room for Daddy, a.k.a. The Danny Thomas Show (1953-1965).  He starred in subsequent series and appeared in various televisions specials, also.  Furthermore, Thomas as an actor and a producer, helped other actors get their big breaks.  These thespians included Mary Tyler Moore, Bill Bixby, and Angela Cartwright.  Series Thomas produced included The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and The Mod Squad.

Thomas was a family man.  He and Rose Marie had three children:

1. Margaret Julia “Marlo” (1937-), an actress;
2. Theresa “Terre” (1942-), an actress and singer; and
3. Charles Anthony “Tony” (1948-), a producer.

When Thomas was a young man with a daughter (Marlo) on the way, our saint prayed to St. Jude, patron of hopeless and lost causes,

Show me my way in life and I will build you a shrine.

After becoming successful, Thomas began to raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, in the early 1950s.  The hospital opened in 1962.

Thomas began a great work, for which he became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre and received the Congressional Gold Medal.  The hospital has never changed any of the patients or patients’ families.

Our saint died of heart failure on February 6, 1991.  He was 79 years old.

The hospital he founded continues as a site at which dedicated medical professionals save lives.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

SEPTEMBER 16, 2019 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT CYPRIAN OF CARTHAGE, BISHOP AND MARTYR, 258; AND SAINTS CORNELIUS, LUCIUS I, AND STEPHEN I, BISHOPS OF ROME

THE FEAST OF GEORGE HENRY TRABERT, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, MISSIONARY, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR AND AUTHOR

THE FEAST OF JAMES FRANCES CARNEY, U.S.-HONDURAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MISSIONARY, REVOLUTIONARY, AND MARTYR, 1983

THE FEAST OF MARTIN BEHM, GERMAN LUTHERAN MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER

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O God, your Son came among us to serve and not to be served, and to give his life for the life of the world.

Lead us by his love to serve all those to whom the world offers no comfort and little help.

Through us, give hope to the hopeless,

love to the unloved,

peace to the troubled,

and rest to the weary,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Hosea 2:18-23

Psalm 94:1-15

Romans 12:9-21

Luke 6:20-36

—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), 60

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Above:  The Flag of Mexico, 1916-1934

Image in the Public Domain

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SAINT MATEO CORREA-MAGALLANES (JULY 23, 1866-FEBRUARY 6, 1927)

Mexican Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr

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BLESSED MIGUEL AGUSTIN PRO (JANUARY 13, 1891-NOVEMBER 23, 1927)

Mexican Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr

His feast transferred from November 23

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These two saints became martyrs via the revolutionary government of Mexico.

St. Mateo Correa-Magallanes, born at Tepechitlan, Zacatecas, Mexico, on July 23, 1866, became a Roman Catholic priest.  He, ordained in 1893, served at Concepcion de Oro (1898-1905) and at Colotan (1908-1910).  He went into hiding after the government suppressed the Roman Catholic Church.  His last base of operations was Valparaiso (1926-1927).  Authorities arrested our saint when he was en route to a sick call.  He swallowed the host to prevent its desecration.  The charge was participation in an armed rebellion.  It was a false allegation, of course.  Our saint, while incarcerated, heard the confessions of other prisoners.  When the warden demanded that Correa-Magallanes reveal the contents of confessions, the priest refused.  So he became a martyr on February 6, 1927.  He was 60 years old.

Pope John Paul II declared Correa-Magallanes a Venerable then a Blessed in 1992 then canonized him eight years later.

Correa-Magallanes had administered the First Communion to Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro (listed on the calendar of saints of the Roman Catholic Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada), born at Guadeloupe, Zacatecas, Mexico, on January 13, 1891.  Pro grew up in a devout Roman Catholic family.  The son a mining engineer had solidarity with the poor and the working classes.  At the age of 20 years Pro joined the Society of Jesus.  Due to the ecclesiastical politics during a revolutionary period our saint studied theology abroad.  He, ordained to the priesthood in Belgium at age 36 in 1925, returned to his homeland the following year.  He became an underground priest.  In 1927 authorities captured our saint, accused him falsely of participating in a bombing attempt.  They also sentenced him to die without holding a trial first.  On November 23, 1927, at Mexico City, our saint refused a blindfold, forgave the members of the firing squad, and shouted “Long live Christ the king!” as he died.  There was no public funeral, but many people lined the streets as his body passed by.

Pope John Paul II declared Pro a Venerable in 1986 and a Blessed two years later.  The fortunes of the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico improved after 1940.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 28, 2016 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT STEPHEN THE YOUNGER, DEFENDER OF ICONS

THE FEAST OF FREDERICK COOK ATKINSON, ANGLICAN CHURCH ORGANIST AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOSEPH PIGNATELLI, RESTORER OF THE JESUITS

THE FEAST OF KAMEHAMEHA IV AND EMMA ROOKE, KING AND QUEEN OF HAWAII

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Almighty God, by whose grace and power your holy martyrs

Saint Mateo Correa-Magallanes and Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro

triumphed over suffering and was faithful even to death:

Grant us, who now remember them in thanksgiving,

to be so faithful in our witness to you in this world,

that we may receive with them the crown of life;

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you

and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 51:1-12

Psalm 116 or 116:1-8

Revelation 7:13-17

Luke 12:2-12

–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), page 714

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Above:  Gaul in 511 C.E.

Image in the Public Domain

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SAINT VEDAST (A.K.A. SAINT VAAST) (DIED 539)

Bishop of Arras and Cambrai

Born in western Francia, St. Vedast became a Roman Catholic priest.  In that capacity he instructed Clovis I (reigned 481-511), the founder of the Merovingian Dynasty, en route to Rheims, and thereby prepared him for baptism in 496.  St. Vedast worked with St. Remigius, Archbishop of Rheims in his missionary work among the Frankish people, becoming Bishop of Arras and Cambrai in 499.  Four decades later, when St. Vedast died, he had established Christianity within his see.

May we Christians of the early twenty-first century remember the fact that we stand on the shoulders of giants such as St. Vedast, whose efforts contributed to our Christian faith.  How far will our influence extend?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

THE FEAST OF CHANNING MOORE WILLIAMS

THE FEAST OF JOHN BROWN, ABOLITIONIST

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Almighty God,

you raised up faithful bishops of your church,

including your servant Saint Vedast.

May the memory of his life be a source of joy for us and a bulwark of our faith,

so that we may serve and confess your name before the world,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Ezekiel 34:11-16 or Acts 20:17-35

Psalm 84

1 Peter 5:1-4 or Ephesians 3:14-21

John 21:15-17 or Matthew 24:42-47

–Adapted from Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 60

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Revised on November 27, 2016

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Winter, by Hendrick Avercamp

Image in the Public Domain

1 (Henry Morse, English Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1645)

• Benedict Daswa, South African Roman Catholic Catechist and Martyr, 1990
• Charles Seymour Robinson, U.S. Presbyterian Minister, Hymn Writer, and Hymnologist
• Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Italian Roman Catholic Composer and Musician
• Mitchell J. Dahood, Roman Catholic Priest and Biblical Scholar
• Sigebert III, King of Austrasia

2 (PRESENTATION OF JESUS IN THE TEMPLE)

3 (Anskar and Rimbert, Roman Catholic Archbishops of Hamburg-Bremen)

• Adelaide Anne Procter, English Poet and Feminist
• Alfred Delp, German Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1945
• James Nicholas Joubert and Marie Elizabeth Lange, Founders of the Oblate Sisters of Providence
• Jemima Thompson Luke, English Congregationalist Hymn Writer; and James Edmeston, Anglican Hymn Writer
• Samuel Davies, American Presbyterian Minister and Hymn Writer

4 (CORNELIUS THE CENTURION)

5 (Martyrs of Japan, 1597-1639)

• Avitus of Vienne, Roman Catholic Bishop
• Jane (Joan) of Valois, Co-Founder of the Sisters of the Annunciation
• Pedro Arrupe, Advocate for the Poor and Marginalized, and Superior General of the Society of Jesus
• Phileas and Philoromus, Roman Catholic Martyrs, 304

6 (Marcus Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, Poet and Hymn Writer)

• Danny Thomas, U.S. Roman Catholic Entertainer and Humanitarian; Founder of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
• Mateo Correa-Magallanes and Miguel Agustin Pro, Mexican Roman Catholic Priests and Martyrs, 1927
• Vedast (Vaast), Roman Catholic Bishop of Arras and Cambrai

7 (Helder Camara, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Olinda and Recife)

• Adalbert Nierychlewski, Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1942
• Daniel J. Harrington, U.S. Roman Catholic Priest and Biblical Scholar
• Gregorio Allegri, Italian Roman Catholic Priest, Composer, and Singer; brother of Domenico Allegri, Italian Roman Catholic Composer and Singer
• Moses, Apostle to the Saracens
• William Boyce and John Alcock, Anglican Composers

8 (Josephine Bakhita, Roman Catholic Nun)

• Cornelia Hancock, U.S. Quaker Nurse, Educator, and Humanitarian; “Florence Nightingale of North America”
• Jerome Emiliani, Founder of the Company of the Servants of the Poor
• John of Matha and Felix of Valois, Founders of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity
• Josephina Gabriella Bonino, Founder of the Sisters of the Holy Family

9 (Bruce M. Metzger, U.S. Presbyterian Minister, Biblical Scholar, and Biblical Translator)

• Alto of Altomunster, Roman Catholic Hermit
• Porfirio, Martyr, 203

10 (Scholastica, Abbess of Plombariola; and her twin brother, Benedict of Nursia, Abbot of Monte Cassino and Father of Western Monasticism)

• Benedict of Aniane, Restorer of Western Monasticism; and Ardo, Roman Catholic Abbot
• Henry Williams Baker, Anglican Priest, Hymnal Editor, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator
• Norbert of Xanten, Founder of the Premonstratensians; Hugh of Fosses, Second Founder of the Premonstratensians; and Evermod, Bishop of Ratzeburg
• Philip Armes, Anglican Church Organist

11 (ONESIMUS, BISHOP OF BYZANTIUM)

12 (Absalom Jones, Richard Allen, and Jarena Lee, Evangelists and Social Activists)

• Benjamin Schmolck, German Lutheran Pastor and Hymn Writer
• Charles Freer Andrews, Anglican Priest
• Julia Williams Garnet, African-American Abolitionist and Educator; her husband, Henry Highland Garnet, African-American Presbyterian Minister and Abolitionist; his second wife, Sarah J. Smith Tompkins Garnet, African-American Suffragette and Educator; her sister, Susan Maria Smith McKinney Steward, African-American Physician; and her second husband, Theophilus Gould Steward, U.S. African Methodist Episcopal Minister, Army Chaplain, and Professor
• Michael Weisse, German Moravian Minister and Hymn Writer and Translator; and Jan Roh, Bohemian Moravian Bishop and Hymn Writer
• Orange Scott, U.S. Methodist Minister, Abolitionist, and first President of the Wesleyan Methodist Connection

13 (AQUILA, PRISCILLA, AND APOLLOS, CO-WORKERS OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE)

14 (Abraham of Carrhae, Roman Catholic Bishop)

• Christoph Carl Ludwig von Pfeil, German Lutheran Hymn Writer
• Cyril and Methodius, Apostles to the Slavs
• Francis Harold Rowley, Northern Baptist Minister, Humanitarian, and Hymn Writer
• Johann Michael Altenburg, German Lutheran Pastor, Composer, and Hymn Writer
• Victor Olof Petersen, Swedish-American Lutheran Hymn Translator

15 (New Martyrs of Libya, 2015)

• Ben Salmon, U.S. Roman Catholic Pacifist and Conscientious Objector
• Henry B. Whipple, Episcopal Bishop of Minnesota
• John Tietjen, U.S. Lutheran Minister, Ecumenist, and Bishop
• Michael Praetorius, German Lutheran Composer and Musicologist
• Thomas Bray, Anglican Priest and Missionary

16 (Philipp Melanchthon, German Lutheran Theologian and Scribe of the Reformation)

• Charles Todd Quintard, Episcopal Bishop of Tennessee
• Christian Frederick Martin, Sr., and Charles Augustus Zoebisch, German-American Instrument Makers
• Louis (Lewis) F. Kampmann, U.S. Moravian Minister, Missionary, and Hymn Translator
• Nicholas Kasatkin, Orthodox Archbishop of All Japan

17 (August Crull, German-American Lutheran Minister, Poet, Professor, Hymnodist, and Hymn Translator)

• Antoni Leszczewicz, Polish Roman Catholic Priest, and His Companions, Martyrs, 1943
• Edward Hopper, U.S. Presbyterian Minister and Hymn Writer
• Janini Luwum, Ugandan Anglican Archbishop and Martyr, 1977
• Johann Heermann, German Lutheran Minister and Hymn Writer
• John Meyendorff, Russian-French-American Orthodox Priest, Scholar, and Ecumenist

18 (Colman of Lindisfarne, Agilbert, and Wilfrid, Bishops)

• Barbasymas, Sadoth of Seleucia, and Their Companions, Martyrs, 342
• Guido di Pietro, a.k.a. Fra Angelico, Roman Catholic Monk and Artist
• James Drummond Burns, Scottish Presbyterian Minister, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator

19 (Nerses I the Great, Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church; and Mesrop, Bible Translator)

• Agnes Tsao Kou Ying, Agatha Lin Zhao, and Lucy Yi Zhenmei, Chinese Roman Catholic Catechists and Martyrs, 1856, 1858, and 1862; Auguste Chapdelaine, French Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary, and Martyr, 1856; and Laurentius Bai Xiaoman, Chinese Roman Catholic Convert and Martyr, 1856
• Bernard Barton, English Quaker Poet and Hymn Writer
• Elizabeth C. Clephane, Scottish Presbyterian Humanitarian and Hymn Writer
• Massey H. Shepherd, Jr., Episcopal Priest, Ecumenist, and Liturgist; Dean of American Liturgists

20 (Henri de Lucac, French Roman Catholic Priest, Cardinal, and Theologian)

• Stanislawa Rodzinska, Polish Roman Catholic Nun and Martyr, 1945
• Wulfric of Haselbury, Roman Catholic Hermit

21 (John Henry Newman, English Roman Catholic Priest-Cardinal)

• Arnulf of Metz, Roman Catholic Bishop; and Germanus of Granfel, Roman Catholic Abbot and Martyr, 677
• Robert Southwell, English Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1595
• Thomas Pormort, English Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1592

22 (Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl, and Christoph Probst, Anti-Nazi Martyrs at Munich, Germany, 1943)

• Bernhardt Severin Ingemann, Danish Lutheran Author and Hymn Writer
• Margaret of Cortona, Penitent and Founder of the Poor Ones
• Praetextatus, Roman Catholic Bishop of Rouen
• Thomas Binney, English Congregationalist Minister, Liturgist, and “Archbishop of Nonconformity”

23 (Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp of Smyrna, and Irenaeus of Lyons, Bishops and Martyrs, 107/115, 155/156, and Circa 202)

• Alexander Akimetes, Roman Catholic Abbot
• Austin Carroll (Margaret Anne Carroll), Irish-American Roman Catholic Nun, Author, and Educator
• Samuel Wolcott, U.S. Congregationalist Minister, Missionary, and Hymn Writer
• Stefan Wincenty Frelichowski, Polish Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1945
• Willigis, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Mainz; and Bernward, Roman Catholic Bishop of Hildesheim

24 (MATTHIAS THE APOSTLE, MARTYR)

25 (Gregory of Nazianzus the Elder, Nonna, and Their Children:  Gregory of Nazianzus the Younger, Caesarius of Nazianzus, and Gorgonia of Nazianzus)

• Bernhardt Severin Ingemann, Danish Lutheran Author and Hymn Writer
• Felix Varela, Cuban Roman Catholic Priest and Patriot
• John Roberts, Episcopal Missionary to the Shoshone and Arapahoe
• Karl Friedrich Lochner, German Lutheran Minister and Hymn Writer
• Theodor Fliedner, Renewer of the Female Diaconate; and Elizabeth Fedde, Norwegian Lutheran Deaconess

26 (Antonio Valdivieso, Roman Catholic Bishop of Leon, and Martyr, 1495)

• Andrew Reed, English Congregationalist Minister, Humanitarian, and Hymn Writer
• Charles Sheldon, U.S. Congregationalist Minister, Author, Christian Socialist, and Social Gospel Theologian
• Emily Malbone Morgan, Founder of the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross
• Jakob Hutter, Founder of the Hutterities, and Anabaptist Martyr, 1536; and his wife, Katharina Hutter, Anabaptist Martyr, 1538
• Paula of Saint Joseph of Calasanz, Founder of the Daughters of Mary

27 (Nicholas Ferrar, Anglican Deacon and Founder of Little Gidding; George Herbert, Anglican Priest and Metaphysical Poet; and All Saintly Parish Priests)

• Anne Line and Roger Filcock, English Roman Catholic Martyrs, 1601
• Fred Rogers, U.S. Presbyterian Minister and Host of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood
• Gabriel Possenti, Roman Catholic Penitent
• Marian Anderson, African-American Singer and Civil Rights Activist
• Raphael of Brooklyn, Syrian-American Russian Orthodox Bishop of Brooklyn

28 (Anna Julia Haywood Cooper and Elizabeth Evelyn Wright, African-American Educators)

• Mary Lyon, U.S. Congregationalist Feminist and Educator
• Joseph Badger, Sr., U.S. Congregationalist and Presbyterian Minister; First Missionary to the Western Reserve
• Samuel Simon Schmucker, U.S. Lutheran Minister, Theologian, and Social Reformer

29 (John Cassian and John Climacus, Roman Catholic Monks and Spiritual Writers)

• Luis de Leon, Spanish Roman Catholic Priest and Theologian
• Patrick Hamilton, First Scottish Protestant Martyr, 1528

Lowercase boldface on a date with two or more commemorations indicates a primary feast.

Above:  Text of “Of the Father’s Love Forgotten”

Image in the Public Domain

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SAINT MARCUS AURELIUS CLEMENS PRUDENTIUS (348-413)

Poet, Polemicist, and Hymn Writer

St. Marcus Aurelius Clemens Prudentius came from an upper class family in Roman Spain in 348.  He grew up to write poems, hymns, and prose polemics in defense of the Roman Catholic faith as factions debated and formulated core doctrines of the faith.  Two of his classic works are “Of the Father’s Love Begotten” (translated into English at the top of this post) and “Earth Has Many a Noble City,” the English translation of which follows:

Earth has many a noble city;
Bethlehem, thou dost all excel;
Out of thee the Lord from Heaven
Came to rule His Israel.

Fairer than the sun at morning
Was the star that told His birth,
To the world its God announcing
Seen in fleshly form on earth.

Eastern sages at His cradle
Make oblations rich and rare;
See them give, in deep devotion,
Gold and frankincense and myrrh.

Sacred gifts of mystic meaning:
Incense doth their God disclose,
Gold the King of kings proclaimeth,
Myrrh His sepulcher foreshows.

Jesu, whom the Gentiles worshipped
At Thy glad Epiphany,
Unto Thee, with God the Father
And the Spirit, glory be.

KRT

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Almighty God, beautiful in majesty, majestic in holiness: You have shown us the splendor of creation in the work of your servant St. Marcus Aurelius Clemens Prudentius.  Teach us to drive from the world all chaos and disorder, that our eyes may behold your glory, and that at last everyone may know the inexhaustible richness of your new creation in Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Isaiah 28:5-6 or Hosea 14:5-8 or 2 Chronicles 20:20-21

Psalm 96

Philippians 4:8-9 or Ephesians 5:18b-20

Matthew 13:44-52

–Adapted from Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006)

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Revised on November 27 2016

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