St Michael & All Angels: Organ and Parish Rooms Appeal
Sponsored Hymnathon - February 24th & 25th 2012
Sir John Betjeman, Hymns and
St Michael & All Angels
Sir John Betjeman said “Hymns are the poems of the people”. He said it on Radio 4 so it must be true!
He also described St Michael & All Angels, Bedford Park, as “a very lovely church and a fine example of Norman Shaw's work.” Sir John was the first patron of the Bedford Park Festival and in 1967 he helped the Bedford Park Society and St Michael’s save many of the best houses in Bedford Park from being knocked down by developers:
http://smaaa.org.uk/festival/40Years.html .
Just before Christmas, a new book came out – The John Betjeman Hymnbook, based on his Radio 4 broadcasts about hymns, their writers and composers. You can buy it at Waterstones in Chiswick, one of the sponsors of the Hymnathon – or on Amazon.
This is the opening paragraph, from the first programme broadcast in July 1975:
"Hymns are the poems of the people. From Abide With Me to Onward Christian Soldiers, they provide us with memories of happier, more devout days of Sunday School and school assemblies, of weddings and funerals. They've given phrases to the language: 'change and decay', 'bright and beautiful', 'soft refreshing rain', 'all is safely gathered in', 'fir and foe', 'meek and mild', 'God moves in mysterious ways' and dozens of others.
"Even today, when it is assumed that we've all give up religion, millions of people enjoy programmes on the radio and television that consist solely of people singing old familiar tunes."
See the full list of hymns, hour by hour -
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