Jesus, Lover of My Soul

The story of this hymn

Charles Wesley wrote this within two years of the conversion that set the Methodist revival alight, and published it in 1740. Stories have gathered around it — a storm-driven seabird sheltering at his window, a hiding place from a hostile mob — none of them provable, all of them true to the hymn's plea for refuge. Sung to Aberystwyth or Hollingside, it has been called the finest heart-hymn in the English language, and it has closed a great many funerals.

Where it sits in the service

It serves either end of the service: as a gathering hymn its cry for shelter meets the mourners where they are, and as the closing hymn — especially to Aberystwyth — 'O receive my soul at last' becomes the committal itself. The eight-line verses fill a page quickly; most orders of service print verses one, two and four.

In the programme, list it in the order of service as “Hymn — Jesus, Lover of My Soul” with the leader or choir named beside it.

How it is actually sung

Charles Wesley, and a hymn of shelter in a storm — one of the most quoted at funerals for someone who died after a long illness. Four verses. Sung to several tunes depending on tradition, which is worth checking with the organist before printing, because the congregation will start on the one they know.

Printing the words

Public domain. Name the tune in the programme alongside the words; with this hymn more than most, the tune is the thing that varies between churches.

This is practical guidance rather than legal advice. Reproduction rights vary by territory, by hymnal edition and by the licence your church holds — the church office is the right place to ask, and they answer this question often.