April Carillon Tune

The carillon tune sounding from Goddard Chapel’s tower this month honors our planet home, in anticipation of Earth Day on April 22nd. “All things bright and beautiful” was first published in 1848 in a collection called Hymns for Little Children. Penned by Irishwoman Cecil Frances Alexander (who famously also wrote the beloved Christmas hymn “Once in Royal David’s City”), the hymn may have been inspired by William Paley’s Natural Theology (1802), which celebrated God as designer of the natural world. 

Today the hymn text and its traditionally associated tune, “Royal Oak” (English Traditional, 17th. c), are well loved far beyond its Anglican origins. Indeed, both believers and non-believers the world over value its descriptive imagery of our natural world. 

To hear a performance of the hymn (as sung by the Morman Tabernacle Choir), please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZNt4avXVcI

All things bright and beautiful,

All creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful,

The Lord God made them all.

Each little flower that opens,

Each little bird that sings,

He made their glowing colours,

He made their tiny wings.

All things bright …

The purple headed mountain,

The river running by,

The sunset and the morning,

That brightens up the sky;-

All things bright …

The cold wind in the winter,

The pleasant summer sun,

The ripe fruits in the garden,-

He made them every one:

All things bright …

The tall trees in the greenwood,

The meadows where we play,

The rushes by the water,

We gather every day;-

All things bright …

He gave us eyes to see them,

And lips that we might tell,

How great is God Almighty,

Who has made all things well.

All things bright …