Hymn-briefing 0002 018 This is my Father's world to bu sung on May 10, 2020

A brief introduction on video for TPCSTL.  這裡有個為本教會製作的聖詩18首簡介影片

This is a Presbyterian hymn, not because of the lyricist was a Presbyterian pastor, the re-arranger was a Presbyterian musician, and it was first published in a Presbyterian hymnal, but because if is a collaboration of many and have been going through many evolutions. It is not the product of a single great person but the collaboration of many, which characterize the way Presbyterian churches work. Heros are not the most important characters, nor the most admired, in the Presbyterian churches.
這可以說是一個長老會的聖詩，不是因為作詞者是一個長老會的牧師，不是因為編曲家是一個長老會的音樂家，也不是因為並且它首先出現在長老會的聖詩中，而是因為這首聖詩是許多人拼湊的成品，而且已經歷了許多演變 。 這不是一個偉大人物的絕佳產物，而是許多普通人物的協作，這體現了長老教會的工作方式。 在長老教會中，英雄不是最重要的人物，也不是最受讚揚的人物。

Author: Maltbie D. Babcock

https://hymnary.org/text/this_is_my_fathers_world_and_to_my

Maltbie D. Babcock (b. Syracuse, NY, 1858; d. Naples, Italy, 1901) graduated from Syracuse University, New York, and Auburn Theological Seminary (now associated with Union Theological Seminary in New York) and became a Presbyterian minister. He served the Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland, and the Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City. In Baltimore he was especially popular with students from Johns Hopkins University, but he ministered to people from all walks of life. Babcock wrote hymn texts and devotional, poems, some of which were published in The School Hymnal (1899). Bert Polman… Maltbie D. Babcock（1858年生於紐約錫拉丘茲； 1901年生於意大利那不勒斯）畢業於紐約雪城大學和奧本神學院（現與紐約聯合神學院有關），並成為長老會牧師。 他曾在馬里蘭州巴爾的摩的布朗紀念長老會教堂和紐約市的磚長老會教堂任職。 在巴爾的摩，他特別受到約翰•霍普金斯大學學生的歡迎，但他牧養的對向是各行各業的人。 巴布科克寫過聖詩歌詞和靈修詩，其中一些發表在《校園聖詩》（The School Hymnal，1899年）中。 伯特•波爾曼… Go to person page >

The original poem contained sixteen stanzas of four lines each.^[3] The poem was set to music in 1915 by Franklin L. Sheppard, a close friend of Babcock. The tune name, TERRA BEATA, means “blessed earth” in Latin.^[4] Sheppard adapted the music from a traditional English melody that he learned from his mother as a child.^[5]  原始的詩，包含十六節，每節四行。[3] 這首詩是1915年由巴比考克的密友富蘭克林·謝巴德（Franklin L.Sheppard）配上旋律的。 曲調名稱 “TERRA BEATA”在拉丁語中意為“受祝福之土地”。[4] Sheppard從他小時候從母親那裡學到的傳統英語歌曲的旋律改編了出這首聖詩的曲調。   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_My_Father%27s_World

One of the peculiarities in this hymn other than its being one of the most popular hymns that almost every hymnal includes it, but in the varieties, it exists. I remember the harmony we use in our 2009 hymnal is different from what I remember as a child. Here is a copy of that old version, scanned from a pocket sized "Hymns of Life"  這首聖詩的特點之一是，它是幾乎所有聖詩集都會納入的「最受歡迎的讚美詩之一」，但卻有多種版本並存。 我記得我們在2009年版的聖詩中使用的和聲與我小時後使用的版本不同。 這裡是有個舊版本的影像，是從我的袖珍版「生命之詩」拍攝而來的。  http://www.christianstudy.com/data/hymns/text/life512.html 
https://hymnary.org/hymnal/HOLC1986

Here is a midi file that demonstrates the sound. 這裡有個 汨締聲型音檔可做參考。

http://www.christianstudy.com/data/hymns/midi/lifehymns/512.mid

Another aspect of the variety is in the lyrics. The lyric in the above old version with Chinese lyrics follows the original content in English. In our 2009 edition, the Taiwanese lyrics have some different focus. It emphasizes that "I am praising the Father who made this world" with slightly different examples of His work, while the original English praises "my Father's world" repetitively. 這首聖詩的多樣性的另一個要點是歌詞。 上面的舊版本中文歌詞遵循英語歌詞的原始內容。 在我們的2009年版聖詩中，台語歌詞的涵意有不同的重點。 台語歌詞反覆地唱說，「我心讚美天父，自然，永活之父」，舉出一些上帝創造物的例子。這跟原詩所宣告的「這是我父親的世界」有所不同。

You certainly have the opportunity to sing whichever you prefer. 您當然有機會，透過我們的多語投影片，選擇用你喜歡的版本來唱出這首歌。

congregational singing 這裡有個會眾唱這首聖詩的實況錄音  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0l0ovik-lR4
choir performance 這裡有個聖歌隊唱這首聖詩的實況錄音  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1e_zqtMAYM

2020/5/6
As I took the breakfast at sometimes after 1pm, I suddenly ran across a new vision about this hymn.  當我今天在下午1點之後吃早餐時，我突然遇到了一個對這首聖詩的新認識。

This is not a perfect hymn because of many points that demand the singers' attention and special treatment in singing, as shown in the demonstration video. 這並不是一首完美的聖詩，因為在示範影片中，顯出裡面有不少需要唱者在唱出聲音的時候要特別處理的點。

How could such a patchwork of hymn be so well-liked and collected in almost every hymnal? 這樣拼湊起來的聖詩怎麼會好聽到，幾乎每本聖詩集詩都要採用呢?
I believe it is because of special traits in showing the moral of Christian faith, implicitly. 我認為，這是因為裡面暗示著基督教信仰的一些主軸。

A perfect work of hymn might make people praise the writer and the composer with awe and try to sing the song faithfully with perfection. A patchwork of hymn inspires the people to join the process of making it better through re-arrangement, translation, and singing.  It demonstration one of the important doctrine about our participation in the creation of God and our duty of tending this world, His product for us with rooms for us to leave our finger and footprints. 一首完美的聖詩詩可能會讓人們讚揚那歌詞作者和作曲者，並嘗試以完美地忠實唱出原作者的寫出來原貌。可是拼湊的聖詩卻會引發許多人的參與，設法重編、翻譯、和用不同的手法唱出來，希望使它變得更好。它正好顯示了關於「我們參與上帝的創造；我們要照料這個世界的責任」這樣的重要教義。；上帝在祂的產品裡留下一些空間讓我們參與、發揮、貢獻，給讓我們一些留下手印和腳跡的空間。

How could we sing this hymn to help others think about our role of maintaining or improving its quality, attraction, and effect on the listeners? 

我們能夠如何唱這首讚美詩，來幫助其他聽到我們歌聲的人去思考「我們那『保持或改善這首歌的品質、吸引力、以及對聽眾的影響」的角色。