A Thanksgiving

John Henry Newman 1801 (London) – 1890 (Edgbaston)



Lord, in this dust Thy sovereign voice
       First quicken'd love divine;
I am all Thine,—Thy care and choice,
       My very praise is Thine.

I praise Thee, while Thy providence
       In childhood frail I trace,
For blessings given, ere dawning sense
       Could seek or scan Thy grace;

Blessings in boyhood's marvelling hour,
       Bright dreams, and fancyings strange;
Blessings, when reason's awful power
       Gave thought a bolder range; {46}

Blessings of friends, which to my door
       Unask'd, unhoped, have come;
And, choicer still, a countless store
       Of eager smiles at home.

Yet, Lord, in memory's fondest place
       I shrine those seasons sad,
When, looking up, I saw Thy face
       In kind austereness clad.

I would not miss one sigh or tear,
       Heart-pang, or throbbing brow;
Sweet was the chastisement severe,
       And sweet its memory now.

Yes! let the fragrant scars abide,
       Love-tokens in Thy stead,
Faint shadows of the spear-pierced side
       And thorn-encompass'd head.

And such Thy tender force be still,
       When self would swerve or stray,
Shaping to truth the froward will
       Along Thy narrow way. {47}

Deny me wealth; far, far remove
       The lure of power or name;
Hope thrives in straits, in weakness love,
       And faith in this world's shame.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:03 min read
121

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABAB XCXC DEDE FXFX CGCG XHXH IJIJ KLKL XMXM
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,323
Words 204
Stanzas 9
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

John Henry Newman

Blessed John Henry Newman CO, also referred to as Cardinal Newman, was an important figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century. more…

All John Henry Newman poems | John Henry Newman Books

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