Proverbs 11:30
Words by A. Katherine Hankey, 1834-1911
Music by William G. Fischer, 1835-1912
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The evangelical emphasis or movement really began in England
during the mid-eighteenth century with the ministeries of such
leaders as George Whitefield and John and Charles Wesley. The
movement in its earliest days reached mainly the lower and
middle classes of society with the upper classes remaining quite
aloof from its influence. During the nineteenth century,
however, the evangelical movement began to have considerable
influence upon the upper classes as well. One such influential
group was known as the Clapham Sect because the activities of
this group centered in the elite suburb of Clapham in Southwest
London. These men were wealthy evangelical philanthropists,
students of the Bible, and men of prayer. They gave freely of
their time, talents, and money to spread the gospel. Though
these individuals generally maintained their membership within
the Anglican Church, their emphasis was always on the necessity
of personal conversion and guidance by the Holy Spirit rather
than on a mere reliance upon the sacraments and rituals of the
Church. There are numerous examples of the zealous ministries
carried on by these influential Christian laymen, including a
number of members of Parliament, who exercised great compassion
upon the masses of impoverished people throughout the United
Kingdom. A noted historian says of this Clapham Sect, "Never in
the history of Anglicanism had any group exercised so profound
an influence."
Katherine Hankey was born in 1834, the daughter of a wealthy
English banker. Though the members of her family were prominent
members of the Anglican Church, they were always associated with
its more evangelical faction. Her father was one of the
influential members of the Clapham Sect. Early in life
Katherine, or Kate, as she was affectionately known, caught this
same evangelical concern from her father. She began organizing
Sunday School classes for rich and poor throughout London. These
classes had a profound influence throughout the city with a
large number of the young students in turn becoming zealous
Christian workers. Kate also did considerable writing, including
such works as Bible Class Teachings, a booklet on confirmation,
as well as a number of books of verse. All of the royalties
received from these publications were always directed to some
foreign missions project.
When Katherine was only thirty years of age, she experienced a
serious illness. During a long period of recovery she wrote a
lengthy poem on the life of Christ. The poem consisted of two
main sections, each containing fifty verses. The first section
of the poem was entitled "The Story Wanted." It was from this
part of her poem that she later adapted the words for another of
her familiar hymn texts, "Tell Me the Old, Old Story." This hymn
has since become another of the church's classic children's
hymns.
Later that same year while still recovering from her illness,
Kate Hankey completed the second part of her peom on the life of
Christ. This sequel to the first section was entitled "The Story
Told." From these verses came the text for "I Love to Tell the
Story," written in the same meter but with a different accent
than her other familiar hymn text.
Being musically inclined, Kate also composed her own tunes for
these two texts. Her hymns received little notice, however, when
used with this music. The following year, 1867, a large
international YMCA convention was held in Montreal, Canada. One
of the speakers at the convention, Major General Russell from
England, closed his emotionally charged message to the delegates
by quoting the verses from Miss Hankey's two hymn texts. In the
audience that day was a noted American gospel musician, William
H. Doane, composer of more than 2,000 gospel songs. Mr. Doane
was greatly moved by these lines and promptly composed musical
settings for both texts.
Later a new musical setting, which replaced Doane's music for "I
Love to Tell the Story," was composed by William G. Fischer, a
Philadelphia musician and piano dealer. Fischer also added the
refrain for the hymn, "I love to tell the story! 'Twill be my
theme in glory-to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His
love." In 1875 the hymn appeared in its present form in Bliss
and Sankey's collection, Gospel Hymns and Sacred Songs, which
brought "I Love to Tell the Story" to the attention of
evangelical congregations everywhere. Both of Katherine Hankey's
hymns are still widely used today.
Quoted from "101 Hymn Stories" by Kenneth Osbeck. Kregel Publishers, P.O. Box 2607, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, 1982.
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