Early hymn

Lord of light, shine on us;

Lord of peace, dwell in us;

Lord of might, protect us; 

Lord of love, enfold us;

Lord of wisdom, enlighten us.

Then, Lord, let us 

go out as your witnesses, 

in obedience to your command;

to share the good news 

of your mighty love for us

in the gift of your son, 

our saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.

- Eleventh century Latin hymn

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God be in me...

God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes, and in my looking;
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at my end, and at my departing...

~ Sarum Primer, 1538

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Best known Celtic hymn

Be Thou My Vision
Traditional Irish melody/8th century Irish words (Rop tú mo baile)
The words of this great hymn were a part of the Irish monastic tradition for centuries before it became one of the world's most beloved sacred songs. In 1905, on the wave of the Irish Literary Revival it was translated into English by Mary Byrne, an Irish researcher and educator, and versified in 1912 by Eleanor Hull, founder of the Irish Text Society. The melody is called Slane and was named for Slane Hill where Saint Patrick defied the High King Lóegaire in 433 A.D. by lighting candles to celebrate Easter Eve.

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An ignored old hymn

Many old hymns are still in regular use today. The one below by Isaac Watts, written in 1719, is a versification of psalm 41. It has for some reason been left out of most modern hymnals.  The understanding of the word "bowels" has changed dramatically in the last 300 years! Apparently bowels at the time of Watts referred to deep feelings.


Blest is the man whose bowels move
And melt with pity to the poor;
Whose soul, by sympathising love,
Feels what his fellow saints endure.

His heart contrives for their relief
More good than his own hands can do;
He, in the time of general grief,
Shall find the Lord has bowels, too.

His soul shall live secure on earth,
With secret blessings on his head,
When drought, and pestilence and dearth
Around him multiply their dead.

Or if he languish on his couch,
God will pronounce his sins forgiv’n;
Will save him with a healing touch,
Or take his willing soul to Heav’n.

This L.M. version of Ps. xlii., stanzas 1-3, which was published in his Psalms of David, &c, 1719, in 4 stanzas of 4 lines, appears in some collections as "Blest is the man whose mercies move;" and in others, "Blest is the man whose heart doth move," the object being to get rid of the, to some, objectionable expression in the first line. These changes are adopted both in Great Britain and in America.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)