derived from
devotional poems that were never intended as hymns by their writers. This
is true of the beautiful morning hymn, "New every morning is the love,"
and the equally beautiful evening hymn, "Sun of my soul, Thou Saviour
dear." Both of these gems in the treasury of hymnody have been taken from
one of the most famous devotional books ever written--John Keble's "The
Christian Year."

Keble was born at Fairford, England, April 25, 1792, the son of a country
vicar. The only elementary training he received was at the hands of his
gifted father, but at the age of fifteen years he was ready to enter
Oxford University. Here he distinguished himself as a brilliant scholar,
and at the age of twenty-three he was ordained as a clergyman of the
Church of England. He remained as a tutor at Oxford for a number of
years, but when his mother died he returned to Fairford to assist his
father. Although he received a number of tempting offers at this time, he
preferred to labor in this obscure parish, where he might be of help and
comfort to his father and his two sisters.

It was not until 1835, when his father died and the home was broken up,
that Keble accepted the vicarage of Hursley, another humble and scattered
parish, with a population of 1,500 people. He married in the same year,
and here he and his devoted wife labored until 1866, when they passed
away within six weeks of each other.

It was in 1827, when Keble was only twenty-seven, that he yielded to the
strong entreaties of his father and many of his friends and consented to
publish the volume of poems known as "The Christian Year." The verses
follow the church calendar, and it was the author's desire that the book
should be a devotional companion to the Book of Common Prayer. For this
reason it has been called "The Prayer Book in Poetry."

Keble was so modest concerning his work that he refused to permit the
volume to bear his name, and so it was given to the world anonymously.
The work was a marvelous success. From 1827 to 1867, a year after the
author's death, the book had passed through one hundred and nine
editions. Keble used a large part of the proceeds derived from the sales
of his book in helping to rebuild the church at Hursley. He also was
instrumental in having churches built at Otterbourne and Ampfield,
hamlets that belonged to his parish.

Religious leaders, as well as literary critics, have been unanimous in
rendering tribute to this remarkable volum