Objects of Substance- Hymn Book

In November 2020, some minor modifications were made to the words of the first and third stanzas by Dr Bruce Addison. These changes were made to emphasise the beautiful sentiments underlying the Hymn’s core messages while, at the same time, choosing language that was more meaningful and inclusive, in order to meet contemporary expectations and understanding, especially for girls. Trinitarian language, in itself theologically challenging, was replaced with the language of warmth and care. These changes were critiqued by several theologians, including Dr Peter Catt, Dean of St John’s Cathedral.

2021 Annual Speech Day and Distribution of Prizes 18 November 2021 Program.

Such modifications are not new and the quest for contemporary and, more recently, inclusive language, is something which is familiar to us in the 21 st century. The origins might even be evidenced in the feminist movements of the 20 th century, the ideas expressed by Vatican II, and even the ‘it’s time for change’ sentiment of the 1960s. The original text of "Now thank we all our God", in German, was written by Martin Rinkart (1636) and translated into English by Catherine Winkworth in the 19 th Century. So, the words have been interpreted by someone other than the author before and there are probably many other versions of this hymn sung around the globe. The leaving hymn, “Lord dismiss us with Thy blessing”, [sometimes called the dismissal hymn] has been used at End of Year Assemblies since 1975. It is also often sung at the end of school terms. This tradition provides an emotional and heartfelt farewell to those of the School family who are leaving the School and, for many of us, always brings a tear to the eye or a catch in the throat. For other students, this hymn brought great delight because it signalled holidays and was “belted … out, especially [by] the boarders”. (Janet Keefe 1964)