This month we are learning the hymn “Lord Who Throughout These 40 Days” written by English hymnist Claudia Frances Hernaman in 1873. Over the years Hernaman penned the text of over 150 hymns. She released several hymn collections, many intended for children.
This most common hymn tune used with “Lord Who Throughout These 40 Days” is called St. Flavian. Each of the six verses reuses the same music making the hymn strophic in musical terms. A fitting hymn for Lent, the text of the first three verse explores an aspect of Christ's time in the desert following his Baptism. The last two verses are pleas for Christ's strength in times of our own temptation.
All your family has to do to learn this hymn is sing along with me!
Just right click to download the recordings for your family's use.
If you are new to our hymn study videos, Singing with the Saints is a ministry whose purpose is to bring the ancient Truth, Goodness, and Beauty of the Church into the hearts and homes of Catholic families through sacred music.
We typically begin our Hymn Study time by reviewing an older hymn we have learned, then proceed to the new hymn. Only two of my sons are of reading age, so I introduce a new hymn by having everyone repeat the lines of the first verse after me. Next I sing the first verse once and then have my boys join in the second time through with humming, a neutral syllable, or attempting the words. We sing the current verse we are learning about three times a day during our Morning Liturgy (Morning Time). They pick up a verse in about a week. After our singing we choose a few of the additional activities below to help us dig a little deeper. I have provided some printable sheets for your family’s use, should you be interested in having them participate in any of the following with us.
A Few Ideas for Expanding This Hymn Study:
- Catechesis: discussing the theological truths painted in the text.
- Commonplacing – Florilegium entries: choosing to copy down a line that is personally meaningful.
- Dictation: use a selection from the hymn text
- Ear Training: have your family practice Attentive Listening by drawing what is heard in the text or music
- Handwriting: use a selection from the hymn text
- Memorization
- Narration of Hymn Text: have your family speak and/or write what they remember about the hymn text in their own words
- Singing for Beauty and Enjoyment: add hymn singing to a meal or bedtime ritual
- Vocabulary Enrichment: discuss unfamiliar words and phrases with your family
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Verse 1
Verse 2
Verse 3
Verse 4
Verse 5
You can find all our past Singing with the Saints resources here.
Do you have questions or suggestions for a future hymn to be covered? Please enter them below and I'll do my best to answer and include the hymns in an upcoming Hymn Study.
Help your family grow closer to Mary through the ancient music of the Church!