The author of the song "What a faithful and tender friend" (EXPIRED)

Born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1820, Joseph Scriven suffered a terrible ordeal early in life. He became engaged to a young girl who, it is said, was very beautiful. They were deeply in love.

But only two days before the wedding date, she accidentally drowned. This grief stayed with Joseph Scriven all his life.

The sudden death of his fiancée had consequences: this tragedy led him to find Jesus Christ as his Savior, his Lord and the divine Friend who brought him consolation.

And he devoted his time to witnessing for his Savior.

He emigrated to Canada at the age of 25, settling in Port Hope, Ontario. There he became known for his generosity. He was quick to give away what he owned, even his clothes, and to help those in need.

His neighbors nicknamed him "the man who saws wood for the poor and sick who can't pay".

This terrible emotional shock gave rise to a lifelong melancholy and original behavior. When he died, his friends erected a monument to his memory.

On this monument is inscribed the full text of a poem with the words: "Four miles north, in Pengelly Cemetery, lies the philanthropist, the author of the masterpiece written in 1857 in Port Hope".

The circumstances in which this poem was written reveal J. Scriven's tender, compassionate character.

In faraway Dublin, his mother had just suffered a great sorrow and was seriously ill.

Unable to travel to see her, he sent her a letter of consolation, enclosing a poem he had written, the first lines of which read as follows:

"They sing the song of Moses, the slave of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: Great and marvelous are your works, O Lord, God, Almighty!

Just and true are your ways, O King of nations!

Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou alone art holy; for all nations shall come and worship before thee; because thy righteous deeds have been made manifest."

(Revelation 15, 3-4)

For the daily expectation of the coming of Jesus Christ, Christian believers are exhorted by the apostle Paul:

"Entertaining yourselves with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and chanting from your heart to the Lord."

(Ephesians 5, 19)

Counting on His help,

Soon we'll have the joy
Of living with Him always

The words of this hymn well convey the degree of intimacy and communion of a sensitive soul who has lived in living relationship with Jesus Christ known as a faithful Friend.

In our time, dominated by the coldness and harshness of a soulless, Godless world, where moral values are repressed and scorned every day, may these words of faith, trust and hope, of simplicity and gentleness, be a consolation to all those who trust in Jesus Christ and wait for him.

May the Lord Jesus Christ, who alone is worthy of our love and praise, be glorified by the hymns that are but a stammering while we await his return.

We owe these words to R. Saillens, author of numerous hymns: "All our songs, even the most beautiful, are only provisional.

Ah, may the day soon come when the Church, united in a single surge of love, will sing the new hymn".

The last hymn in the Book of Revelation is sung by those believers who have "the harps of God":

What a faithful and tender friend

We have in Jesus Christ,

Always ready to hear us

To answer our cry."


These words of consolation were especially intended for his mother, and would probably never have been known to anyone, had not a friend had occasion to read this poem while visiting J. Scriven, who, ailing, was keeping the bed.

This friend thus learned the circumstances of its composition. When another neighbor asked if it was he who had composed the verses, J. Scriven humbly replied: "The Lord and I did it together".


This poem, the product of a tragic life, was set to music and has found a place in various hymnbooks.

WHAT A FAITHFUL AND TENDER FRIEND

What a faithful and tender friend,

We have in Jesus Christ,

Always ready to hear us,

To answer our cry!

He knows our failings,

Our daily downfalls.

Severe in His demands,

He is rich in His love.


What a faithful and tender friend,

We have in Jesus Christ,

Always ready to understand us

When we're in trouble!

Let's tell Him all our fears,

Let's open our hearts to Him.

Soon his holy words

Will give us back true happiness

What a faithful and tender friend,

We have in Jesus Christ,

Soon he will come to take us

To be in heaven with Him!

So let us follow the narrow path

Relying on his help
Soon we will have the joy
To live with Him always


The words of this hymn well convey the degree of intimacy and communion of a sensitive soul who has lived in living relationship with Jesus Christ known as a faithful Friend.

In our time, dominated by the coldness and harshness of a soulless, Godless world, where moral values are repressed and scorned every day, may these words of faith, trust and hope, of simplicity and gentleness, be a consolation to all those who trust in Jesus Christ and wait for him.

May the Lord Jesus Christ, who alone is worthy of our love and praise, be glorified by the hymns that are but a stammering while we await his return. Read more on Asa-Voice


Source : Asa-voice