The Comforter Has Come: A Song History

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"The Comforter Has Come" is a gospel hymn with words by Francis Bottome, dated 1890 by Hymnary.org.[1] Its tune, by William J. Kirkpatrick, carries the same year.[2] The Cyber Hymnal, which gives the author's name as Frank Bottome, names a collection titled Precious Times of Refreshing and Revival as its source.[3] Bottome was born in Derbyshire, England, in 1823, entered the Methodist Episcopal ministry in 1850 after moving to America, received a doctorate in sacred theology from Dickinson College in 1872, and died in 1894.[4] Kirkpatrick, born in Duncannon, Pennsylvania, in 1838, worked as a carpenter and in the furniture trade before giving himself to music, directing it at Grace Methodist Church in Philadelphia and compiling around a hundred gospel song collections.[5]

Black-and-white woodcut of the apostles gathered together as a dove, the Holy Spirit, shines in rays above them.

Albrecht Dürer, Pentecost, from The Small Passion, woodcut, about 1510. The Holy Spirit descending at Pentecost, a theme under which the hymn is filed; the woodcut has no connection to the hymn itself.

Hymnary.org links the words to scripture including John 14:16 and files the hymn under topics that include the Holy Spirit and Pentecost.[1] The site indexes it in more than 270 hymnals and notes translations into German, Norwegian, Spanish and Swahili.[1] Of the dozens of Bottome texts it lists, this is the one printed most often.[4] A Baylor University collection of Nigerian Christian songs reports that it is a frequent choice in Nigeria at Pentecost, and also when worship turns to revival, consolation or seeking the Spirit's guidance.[6] Maureen Sellers arranges it in DAD tuning for Simply Gospel, Book Three, a 51-page Fingers Of Steel book in her "Simply" series that pairs tablature with standard notation, chords and lyrics and adds her own notes on each song.[7]

Our book that contains the song "The Comforter Has Come"

Sources

  1. Hymnary.org: "The Comforter Has Come" (text).
  2. Hymnary.org: "O spread the tidings 'round" (tune by William J. Kirkpatrick).
  3. The Cyber Hymnal: "The Comforter Has Come".
  4. Hymnary.org: "Francis Bottome".
  5. Hymnary.org: "William J. Kirkpatrick".
  6. Baylor University, Nigerian Christian Songs: "The Comforter Has Come".
  7. Fingers Of Steel: "Maureen Sellers, Simply Gospel, Book Three".
  8. Image: Albrecht Dürer, Pentecost, from The Small Passion, woodcut, about 1510. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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