Above:  Trinity Church and Church Yard, Stratford-Upon-Avon, England, 1890

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-ppmsc-08870

Original Greek Text by St. Joseph the Hymnographer (d. 886)

English Translation (1862) by John Mason Neale (1818-1866)

Hymn Source = The Hymnal and Order of Service (1925), The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Synod

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The things of earth in the earth let us lay;

The ashes with ashes, the dust with the clay;

But lift up the heart, and the eyes, and the love,

O lift up the soul to the regions above!

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Since He, the Immortal, hath entered the gate,

So shall we mortals, or sooner or late:

Then stand we with Christ; let us mark Him ascend,

For His is the glory and life without end.

+++++

On earth with His own once the Giver of good,

Bestowing His blessing, a little while stood;

Now nothing can part us, nor distance, nor foes,

For lo! He is with us, and who can oppose?

+++++

So Lord, we commit this our loved one to Thee,

Whose body is dead, but whose spirit is free:

We know that through grace, when our life her is o’er,

In bliss we shall be with the Lord evermore.

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Above:  The Entombment of Christ

Image in the Public Domain

Original Greek Text (700s) by St. John of Damascus

English Translation John Athelstan Laurie Riley (1858-1945)

Hymn Source = The English Hymnal (1906), The Church of England

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What sweet of life endureth

Unmixed with Bitter Pain?

‘Midst earthly change and chances

What glory doth remain?

+++++

All is a feeble shadow,

A dream that will not stay;

Death cometh in a moment,

And taketh all away.

+++++

O Christ, a light transcendent

Shines in thy countenance,

And none can tell the sweetness,

The beauty of thy glance.

+++++

In this may thy poor servant

His joy eternal find;

Thou calledst him, O rest him,

Thou Lover of mankind!

Above:  Cemetery

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-det-4a28669

Original German Text by Count Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf (1700-1760)

Hymn Source = Hymnal and Liturgies of the Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum) (1923)

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From land to land the Christian goes,

Through pain and self-denial;

And finds a haven of repose

From all his earthly trial.

God’s fatherly enbrace

Shall close the pilgrim race;

The precious seed, in weakness sown,

Shall rise in glory not its own.

+++++

Thy race is run, thy struggle o’er,

As conqueror we hail thee;

Blest spirit, free for evermore,

No sorrows now assail thee;

Ascend on wings of love

To join the ranks above;

While e’en thy tenement of clay

Has promise of a brighter day.

+++++

God shall descend with glory crowned,

His majesty disclosing;

Rest, pilgrim, in thy hallowed ground,

In joyful hope reposing;

Rest, spirit ever blest,

Safe on thy Saviour’s breast!

O guide us all, Thou God of light,

From depths of woe to Salem’s height.

Above:  Nevada State Orphanage, Carson City, Nevada

Image Source = Library of Congress

Litany Source = A Book of Worship for Free Churches (1948), the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches in the United States

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Let us thank God for his blessings.  For all thy blessings in creation; for the beauty of earth and sea and sky; for thy manifold works, and the wisdom with which thou hast made them all,

We thank thee, O God.

For the happiness of our earthly life; for peaceful homes and healthful days; for our powers of mind and body; for faithful friends, for the joy of loving and being beloved,

We thank thee, O God.

For the revelation of thy love and for newness of life in our Saviour; for the blessings brought to us by thy holy Church; for the grace of thy sacraments and for our fellowship with thee in Christ,

We thank thee, O God.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

Christ, have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.  From blindness to thy presence in life and sacrament; from hardness of heart and from want of truth, in thought and word and deed,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From all that would injure the body, from unworthy fears and anxieties, from despondency, discontent and despair,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From want of sympathy with friends and neighbors; from harsh judgments and ill-feeling towards any; from idle talk and slander; from want of love for our contrary, and unwillingness to seek the common good,

Good Lord, deliver us.

When we question the value of life; when our sense of duty grows faint through self-indulgence; in suffering and failure; in times of happiness and success; in our days of labor and our nights of rest; in the freedom of youth and the weariness of old age; in the hour of death, and in the day of judgment,

Good Lord, deliver us.

That it may please thee to bless with wisdom and courage to those to whom the people have entrusted power, and to give thy guidance and blessing to all who hold rule over their fellows;

We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.

That it may please thee to inspire all who are seeking to improve the conditions of our industrial life, and to give fortitude and new hope to all who are out of work;

We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.

That it may please thee to solace all who have lost those whom they most loved; to sustain the widows and orphans; to uphold all who are sick and suffering; to protect such as have lost the kindly light of reason; and to supply the needs of the blind, the deaf, and the dumb;

We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.

May the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the splendor of the Eternal Light, remove from our hearts all darkness, now and forevermore.  Amen.

–Pages 306-309

Above:  Funeral, 1926

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-hec-34270

Text by Greville Phillimore (1821-1884)

Hymn Source = In Memoriam (1884)

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Peace be in the house of death!

When we lay us down to sleep,

Lord, receive the fleeting breath,

Dry the eyes of those that weep.

Thou hast made our grave a bed,

Thou that livest and wast dead.

+++++

We will lay us down in peace,

And in safety take our rest,

Thou hast won the great release,

In Thy triumph we are blest;

Yet the human spirit quails;

Jesu! strengthen when it fails–

+++++

Be the stronghold of that hour,

Be our solace, hope and stay.

Arm of might, and Rock of power,

Chase the doubt, and still dismay;

When we yield the dying breath,

Peace be in the house of death.

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Above:  Country Churchyard, Monona County, Iowa, 1940

Photographer = John Vachon (1914-1975)

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-USF34-060720-D

Text (1832) by Margaret Mackay (1802-1887)

Hymn Source = William Gustave Polack, The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal (1942), Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America

Margaret Mackay wrote more hymns than this one, but “Asleep in Jesus” is the most popular of her works of that genre.  (I had to consult obscure and long out-of-print sources at archive.org to find other hymns she wrote.)  This hymn debuted in The Amethyst; or Christian’s Annual (1832).  She composed the text after visiting a rural cemetery, that of Pennycross Chapel, or the Chapel of St. Pancras, in Devonshire, England.

Seldom does a hymnal contain all six stanzas.  I have a collection of hymnals old and recent (mostly old).  Usually, when I found this hymn, I found four stanzas–not always the same ones.  Occasionally I located five stanzas on a page.  I had to resort to a hymnal companion volume to find all six stanzas.

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Asleep in Jesus! Blessed sleep,

From which none ever wakes to weep;

A calm and undisturbed repose,

Unbroken by the land of woes.

+++++

Asleep in Jesus! Oh, how sweet

To be for such a slumber meet,

With holy confidence to sing

That death has lost his venomed sting!

+++++

Asleep in Jesus! Peaceful rest,

Whose waking is supremely blest;

No fear, no woe, shall dim that hour

That manifests the Saviour’s power.

+++++

Asleep in Jesus! Oh, for me

May such a blissful refuge be!

Securely shall my ashes lie

And wait the summons from on high.

+++++

Asleep in Jesus! Time nor space

Debars this precious “hiding-place”;

On Indian plains or Lapland snows

Believers find the same repose.

+++++

Asleep in Jesus! Far from Thee

Thy kindred and their graves may be;

But there is still a blessed sleep,

From which none ever wakes to weep.

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Above:  Christ Blessing, by Nardo di Cione

Image in the Public Domain

Text (1901) by Cleland Boyd McAfee (1866-1944), a minister of the former Presbyterian Church in the United States (1861-1983), after two nieces died concurrently of diphtheria

Hymn Source = The Presbyterian Hymnal:  Hymns, Psalms, and Spiritual Songs (1990), Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

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1.  There is a place of quiet rest,

Near to the heart of God,

A place where no sin can molest,

Near to the heart of God.

O Jesus, blest Redeemer,

Sent from the heart of God,

Hold us, who wait before Thee,

Near to the heart of God.

2.  There is a place of comfort sweet,

Near to the heart of God,

A place where we our Savior meet,

Near to the heart of God.

O Jesus, blest Redeemer,

Sent from the heart of God,

Hold us, who wait before Thee,

Near to the heart of God.

3.  There is a place of full release,

Near to the heart of God,

A place where all is joy and peace,

Near to the heart of God.

O Jesus, blest Redeemer,

Sent from the heart of God,

Hold us, who wait before Thee,

Near to the heart of God.

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This is post #1550 of GATHERED PRAYERS.

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Above:  Cemetery

Image in the Public Domain

Hymn Sources = The Lutheran Hymnal (1941), Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America, and William Gustave Polack, The Handbook to The Lutheran Hymnal (1942)

Original German Text (1686) by Amilie Juliane, Countess of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1637-1706)

Composite English Translation (1941), including contributions from Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878)

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1.  Who knows when death may overtake me!

Time passes on, my end draws near.

How swiftly can my breath forsake me!

How soon can life’s last hour appear!

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray

Thy peace may bless my dying day.

2.  The world that smiled when morn was breaking

May change for me ere the close of day

For while on earth my home I’m making

Death’s threat is never far away.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray

Thy peace my bless my dying day.

3.  My end to ponder me ever

And, ere the hour of death appears,

To cast my soul on Christ, my Savior,

Nor spare repentant sighs and tears.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray

Thy peace may bless my dying day.

4.  Help me now set my house in order

That always ready I may be

To say in meekness on death’s border:

Lord, as Thou wilt, deal Thou with me.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray

Thy peace may bless my dying day.

5.  Reveal the sweetness of Thy heaven,

Earth’s galling bitterness unfold;

May I, amid this turmoil riven,

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

Thy peace may bless my dying day.

6.  My many sins blot out forever

Since Jesus has my pardon won;

In mercy robed, I then shall never

Fear death, but trust in Thee alone.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

7.  His sorrows and His cross, I know,

Make death-beds soft and light the grave,

They comfort in the hour of woe,

They give me all I fain would have.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray

Thy peace may bless my dying day.

8.  Naught shall my soul from Jesus sever;

In faith I touch His wounded side

And hail Him as my Lord forever,

Nor life nor death shall us divide.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

9.  Once in the blest baptismal waters

I put on Christ and made Him mine;

Now numbered with God’s sons and daughters,

I share His peace and love divine.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

10.  His body and His blood I’ve taken

In His blest Supper, feast divine;

Now I shall never be forsaken,

For I am His, and He is mine.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

11.  Then may death come today, tomorrow,

I know in Christ I perish not;

He grants the peace that stills all sorrow,

Gives me a robe without a spot.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

12.  And thus I live in God contented

And die without a thought of fear;

My soul has to God’s plans consented,

For through His Son my faith is clear.

Thy blest eternity behold.

My God, for Jesus’ sake I pray.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Above:  Cemetery Plan 1861

Image in the Public Domain

Three stanzas in the 1863 translation by Simeon Comenius Chitty (1831-1902)

Hymn Source = Hymnal and Liturgies of the Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum) (1923), Moravian Church in America

+++++++++

1.  The solemn moment is impending,

When my career shall end in death,

My course unto the grave is ending,

And soon may come my latest breath;

My God and Saviour, hear my prayer,

Me for my dying hour prepare.

2.  So teach me, Lord, my days to number

That I may wisdom’s path pursue;

That nothing may my soul encumber,

Oh, let me keep the Cross in view;

My God and Saviour, hear my prayer,

Me for my dying hour prepare.

3.  To-day let death come, or to-morrow,

I know that I in Jesus live;

Thee will I serve through joy and sorrow,

The robe of righteousness I have;

My God and Saviour, hear my prayer,

Me for my dying hour prepare.

Above:  A Cemetery, Between 1904 and 1920

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-det-4a28669

Original Czech Text (1519) by Luke of Prague (1458-1528)

German Translation (1531) by Michael Weisse (1480-1534)

English Translation (1858) by Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878)

Hymn Source = Hymnal and Liturgies of the Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum) (1923), Moravian Church in America

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1.  Now lay we calmly in the grave

This form, whereof no doubt we have

That it shall rise again that day

In glorious triumph o’er decay.

2.  His soul is living now in God,

Whose grace His pardon hath bestowed,

Who through His Son redeemed him here

From bondage unto sin and fear.

3.  Then let us leave him to his rest,

And homeward turn, for he is blest.

And we must well our souls prepare,

When death shall come, to meet him there.

4.  So help us, Christ, our Hope in loss;

Thou hast redeemed us by Thy Cross

From endless death and misery;

We praise, we bless, we worship Thee.

Above:  Christ the Merciful

Image in the Public Domain

Hymn Source = The Lutheran Hymnary (1935), Norwegian Lutheran Church of America/The Evangelical Lutheran Church

Original German Words (1610) by Martin Behm (1557-1622)

English Translation (1858) by Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878)

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1.  Lord Jesus Christ, my life, my light,

My strength by day, my trust by night,

On earth I’m but a passing guest,

And sorely with my sins oppressed.

2.  Far off I see my fatherland,

Where through Thy grace I hope to stand,

But ere I reach that paradise,

A weary way before me lies.

3.  My heart sinks at the journey’s length,

My wasted flesh has little strength,

Only my soul still cries in me,

Lord, fetch me home, take me to Thee!

4.  O let Thy sufferings give me power

To meet the last and darkest hour;

Thy cross the staff whereon I lean,

My couch the grace where Thou hast been.

5.  Since Thou hast died, the pure, the just,

I take my homeward way in trust,

The gates of heaven, Lord, open wide,

When here I may no more abide.

6.  And when the last great day is come,

And Thou, our Judge, shalt speak the doom,

Let me with joy behold the light,

And set me then upon Thy right.

7.  Renew this wasted flesh of mine,

That like the sun it there may shine,

Among the angels pure and bright,

Yea, like Thyself in glorious light.

8.  Ah, then I have my heart’s desire,

When singing with the angels’ choir,

Among the ransomed of Thy grace,

For ever I behold Thy face!