Giving thanks on Thanksgiving

Readers I know I am thankful for any chance to sing a familiar hymn. However, for Thanksgiving hymns, there are really two types: those for the fall Thanksgiving holiday, and those for giving thanks without regard to the season. The former are more uniquely suited for this week in November, and also less well known.

From a range of American hymnals of the past 120 years — plus The English Hymnal (1906) from the CoE — I identified eight hymns listed as a “Thanksgiving” hymn. I discussed these eight hymns in a column yesterday in the North American Anglican.

Below is the table I made up for my own reference with the hymn texts, tunes and sequences in the hymnals:

Text	Tune	TEH	1892	1916	1940	1982	2017
Come, ye thankful people, come	St. George's Windsor	289	193	421	137	290	203
For the beauty of the earth	†	309		425	296	416	206
We plow the fields and scatter	Claudius	293		423	138	291	204
Now thank we all our God	Nun danket	533	466	422	276	397	200
Praise to God, immortal praise	Dix		192	420	140	288	591
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation	Lobe den Herren	536			279	290	349
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow	Old Hundredth				139	380	208
We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing	Kremser				315	433	199

Notes: 

• 1892 tunes vary by edition, so tunes taken from the 1896 xx
• 2017 is the new REC hymnal: Magnify the Lord aka Book of Common Praise 2017.
• † For this hymn, the tune varies between hymnals

Note also that it is not until 1928 that Thanksgiving is offically observed by the ECUSA Book of Common Prayer.

Harvest Hymns

The first three hymns are harvest hymns suitable for singing in the fall. Of these three, my personal favorite is “We plow the fields and scatter,” both for the tune (with harmony) and the text:

We plow the fields, and scatter
The good seed on the land,
But it is fed and watered
By God's almighty hand;
He sends the snow in winter,
The warmth to swell the grain,
The breezes and the sunshine,
And soft refreshing rain.

Refrain: All good gifts around us
Are sent from heaven above;
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all his love.

He only is the Maker
Of all things near and far;
He paints the wayside flower,
He lights the evening star;
The winds and waves obey him,
By him the birds are fed;
Much more to us, his children,
He gives our daily bread.
Refrain

We thank thee, then, O Father,
For all things bright and good,
The seedtime and the harvest,
Our life, our health, our food:
No gifts have we to offer
For all thy love imparts,
But that which thou desirest,
Our humble, thankful hearts.
Refrain

The greatest personal disappointment was find that when singing “For the beauty of the earth,” the tune I associate with this hymn — Dix — is only used with a hymnal that didn’t exist five years ago.

Giving thanks

Most of the remaining hymns sing praise to God in a manner that could be done year round, such as “Praise to God,” “Praise to the Lord,” and “Praise God.” In this category, it’s impossible to beat “Now thank we all our God” by Martin Rinkart; it certainly was familiar to everyone present when we sang it last Sunday. 

One hymn — “We gather together” — is associated with Thanksgiving only because of the opening phrase; however, the remaining text is from a 1597 hymn giving thanks after Spanish persecution of Dutch Protestants. It only gradually entered American hymnals in the mid-20th century, based on a late 19th century translation.