We had an amazing time at the PCA (Presbyterian Church in America) WIC (Women in the Church) conference last weekend down in Atlanta. I was asked to bring some musicians down to lead a hymn sing (weaving stories of hymns and hymnwriters in between the hymns we sang) and then we led worship for the main session on Saturday morning as well. The women were such an encouragement to us - probably 3,000 showed up for the concert and probably half of them were still there when it was over - even though it ended at 11pm after a very full day for all of them. We had chance to hear from many ladies who have been fans of IG for years, as well as meet many who were learning abut the work we’ve been doing for the first time.
At the end of the Saturday session where Paige Brown spoke, we led the women in singing an obscure text to the tune of “Tis So Sweet” and I had numerous requests for the words. So, here they are below. My friend Matthew Perryman Jones 1st showed me this text which he found in a hymnal by a group that was descended from the Brethren.
Hast Thou Heard Him, Seen Him?
anonymous early 20th century hymn (alt. Kevin Twit)
1. Hast thou heard Him, seen Him, known Him?
Is not thine a captured heart?
Chief among ten thousand own Him;
Joyful choose the better part
Chorus: Captivated by His beauty
Worthy tribute haste to bring;
Let His peerless worth constrain thee
Crown Him now unrivaled King.
2. What can strip the seeming beauty
From the idols of the earth?
Not a sense of right or duty
But the sight of peerless worth (repeat chorus)
3. ‘Tis the look that melted Peter
‘Tis the face that Stephen saw
‘Tis the heart that wept with Mary
Can alone from idols draw (repeat chorus 2x)
And here is the original text from the hymnal:
Thought I would post the full original text as well - in case someone uses a different tune. I really like verse 4 but it didn’t work as well using a verse/chorus tune. Anyway, here is the full text (the one line has a suggested change by me)
Hast Thou Heard Him, Seen Him, Known Him?
1. Hast thou heard Him, seen Him, known Him?
Is not thine a captured heart?
Chief among ten thousand own Him;
Joyful choose the better part
2. Idols oft they win thee, charm thee
Lovely things of time and sense
Gilded thus does sin disarm thee
Honeyed lest thou turn thee hence [or, “Honeyed lest thou turn to Him]
Chorus: Captivated by His beauty
Worthy tribute haste to bring;
Let His peerless worth constrain thee
Crown Him now unrivaled King.
3. What has stripped the seeming beauty
From the idols of the earth?
Not a sense of right or duty
But the sight of peerless worth
4. Not the crushing of those idols
With its bitter void and smart
But the beaming of His beauty
The unveiling of His heart
5. Who extinguishes the taper
Till they hail the rising sun
Who discards the garb of winter
Till the summer hath begun
6. ‘Tis the look that melted Peter
‘Tis the face that Stephen saw
‘Tis the heart that wept with Mary
Can alone from idols draw
That is awesome! I love it. How funny that it was found in a Bretheren hymnal. My mother’s family were all Bretheren.
Thanks for posting it.
Nan (PCA pastor’s wife who is kicking herself for not being at the conference if just because of the great music! But Canada to Atlanta is too long a trip!)
Thought I would post the full original text as well - in case someone uses a different tune. I really like verse 4 but it didn’t work as well using a verse/chorus tune. Anyway, here is the full text (the one line has a suggested change by me)
Hast Thou Heard Him, Seen Him, Known Him?
1. Hast thou heard Him, seen Him, known Him?
Is not thine a captured heart?
Chief among ten thousand own Him;
Joyful choose the better part
2. Idols oft they win thee, charm thee
Lovely things of time and sense
Gilded thus does sin disarm thee
Honeyed lest thou turn thee hence [or, “Honeyed lest thou turn to Him]
Chorus: Captivated by His beauty
Worthy tribute haste to bring;
Let His peerless worth constrain thee
Crown Him now unrivaled King.
3. What has stripped the seeming beauty
From the idols of the earth?
Not a sense of right or duty
But the sight of peerless worth
4. Not the crushing of those idols
With its bitter void and smart
But the beaming of His beauty
The unveiling of His heart
5. Who extinguishes the taper
Till they hail the rising sun
Who discards the garb of winter
Till the summer hath begun
6. ‘Tis the look that melted Peter
‘Tis the face that Stephen saw
‘Tis the heart that wept with Mary
Can alone from idols draw
What affiliation are the “brethren”?
Matthew, the Bretheren are what you might call a “non-denominational” denomination. Often referred to as “Plymouth Bretheren” they are not a denomination in the official sense of the word. They are dispensational, Baptistic…. you know, I’ll just cut and paste some Wikipedia here for you. From what I can tell it seems quite accurate. My mother grew up in a “closed” bretheren church. She and her sisters were not allowed to take communion in their family assembly because they sometimes wore pants. Here is some of the Wikipedia stuff (I’m sure far more than you were expecting! LOL! But ask and you shall receive!):
The Plymouth Brethren are unusual in not recognising a denominational name; they do not generally refer to themselves as “Plymouth Brethren,” nor do they regard themselves as a denomination. Thus there is no denominational headquarters and no governing body to which local assemblies are accountable. Local assemblies are autonomous but are often informally linked with each other.
The Plymouth Brethren refer to themselves as “the assemblies,” and members are called “the brethren,” “saints,” or “believers.” Members are usually aware of the term “Plymouth Brethren” but deny it applies to them since they don’t consider themselves a denomination.
A common distinguishing characteristic of a Plymouth Brethren meeting place is an outdoor sign indicating a weekly service set apart for “Breaking of Bread,” “The Lord’s Supper,” or “The Remembrance Meeting,” which is how they refer to communion.
Many Plymouth Brethren assemblies meet in a building called a “Gospel Hall”, “Evangelical Room”, “Gospel Chapel”, “Bible Chapel”, or “Bible Church”. Generally speaking, the term “Hall” is preferred by exclusive or closed brethren and the term “Chapel” by open brethren.
The Plymouth Brethren are basically conservative evangelical Christians, generally dispensational in their theology, and have much in common with other conservative evangelical Christian groups. Their notable distinctions lie in a combination of the doctrinal and practical matters related to the conduct of the “meeting of the church.”
The Brethren believe in the divine inspiration of the Bible and that the same Bible gives clear guidance about how services of worship are to be held. These include:
* the primary importance of the weekly communion service
* the communion is not led or administered by a single individual
* the freedom and the responsibility for men to vocally participate in services
* the silence of women (whose heads must be covered during meetings of the local church) in most Plymouth Brethren assemblies
* the importance of preaching the gospel
* the rejection of a separation of believers into clergy and laity classes, and
* the plurality of leadership (usually as elders and deacons) as opposed to an ordained, professional clergy class.
Baptism and communion are the only two ordinances. All assemblies adhere to the practise of full immersion baptism, which is required before participation in fellowship. Sharing the exact beliefs of a local assembly may be a necessary condition for fellowship in some local assemblies, though this condition is much less common in “open” assemblies. Some Exclusive Brethren practice infant or household baptism. They also sing the hymn “Man of Sorrows” quite often; it is commonly recognized as the official brethren hymn.
[edit]
History
The movement was begun by several men who felt that the established Church had become too involved with the secular state and had abandoned many of the basic truths of Christianity. They included:
* John Nelson Darby
* Dr. Edward Cronin[4] — a pioneer of homeopathy
* Dr. Edward Wilson
* John Gifford Bellett[5] — prized Classics researcher of Trinity College, Cambridge
* ex-Quaker Benjamin Wills Newton[6] or Benjamin Wills Newton (in German)
* Francis William Newman[7] — younger brother of Cardinal John Henry Newman
* George Müller[8] — founder of the Bristol Orphanage and a stated teacher in Bethesda Chapel, Bristol
* missionary Anthony Norris Groves
* Francis Hutchinson[9]
One group began by meeting in households in Ireland, and were dubbed “brethren” because of their practice of calling each other “brother” instead of the titles favoured by other denominations. The movement soon spread throughout the UK and by 1831, the group assembled in Plymouth, England had over 1,500 members. These members became known as “The brethren from Plymouth” and soon were simply called the “Plymouth Brethren”. The group is also known as the Assembly Movement. The term Darbyites has also been used, although is uncommon and refers mainly to the Exclusive branch.
Matthew S., I love you man, but I wish you would use a different name when posting– people think you are me!
The brethren are like the “no-name brand” of evangelicals. I started a brethren wiki (www.brethrenpedia.com) and it’s amazing how many people have been influenced by them
Shawn
Hast thou heard him, seen him …
I stumbled onto this while searching for Brethren and Homeopathy - and was intrigued. I’d like to find out whose interested in brethren doctrines and literature, also in the history of the Brethren movement …
I’ve recorded an acoustic rendition of the hymn, and it’s available for anyone to download for free at http://www.HisMagnificence.com.
I’ve actually recorded an acoustic rendition of the hymn, and it’s available for anyone to download for free at http://www.HisMagnificence.com.