"Lord of all life, below, above, Whose light is truth, whose warmth is love, We ask no luster of our own. "Grant us thy truth to make us free, And kindling hearts that burn for thee, One holy light, one heavenly flame.” This noble lyric is greatly admired in both England and America and is more widely used than any other hymn that Holmes wrote. A few years ago when the Survey of New York was preparing to issue a hymnbook of one hundred selections, a jury of twelve men, of all faiths and social beliefs, Jew, Ethical Culture, Socialist, etc., was asked to choose the hymns. As might have been expected there was wide disagreement. But of all the hymns submitted, four succeeded in obtaining eight votes each, and one of the four was this "Sunday Hymn." And indeed, the very qualities which make this hymn so generally acceptable have brought upon it severe criticism, because, forsooth, "it could be sung as well by Parsees or Buddhists" as by Christians! But if in the whole range of church hymnody, here and there a hymn be found breathing the spirit of humble and loving worship, and of devoted trust in the "Lord of all being”—and so framed that it appeals to those of every creed who look up with aspiring hearts to the "Lord of all life," is it not rather a matter of joy and gratitude than of alarm and censure? The last time that Dr. Holmes appeared in public was at a celebration of the Boston Young Men's Christian Union. He brought a message in verse, closing with this petition which seems to open a window into the very heart of the old man of eighty-four: "Our prayers accept; our sins forgive; Shape for us holier lives to live CHAPTER XIII BACON, DUFFIELD, BETHUNE LEONARD BACON 1802-1881 THE closing years of the eighteenth century and the opening years of the nineteenth, witnessed a most remarkable awakening of missionary zeal on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1795 the London Missionary Society was launched, followed in less than four years by the great Church Missionary Society. Already, in 1793, William Carey had sailed for India, the first foreign representative of the Baptist Churches of England, and about the same time Dr. Coke was organizing the work of the British Wesleyans. Naturally the mother country with its older and stronger churches led the way, but America was not far behind. The famous "Haystack Meeting," which was followed by the organization of the American Board, was held in 1806. The Baptists started their society in 1814, the Methodists in 1819, and the Episcopalians one year later. Within a single generation practically all of the larger denominations had en |