God of Mercy and Compassion Lord of Life and Blinding Light - Hodgetts

This is a hymn for Lent, which focuses on truth and light, as well as God's mercy and compassion. The words are patterned on Edumud Vaughan's God of Mercy and Compassion - but focus more on God's action and less on individual sinfulness.

It was written by English Roman Catholic academic, teacher and hymnologist, Michael Hodgetts (1936-2022), and is shared below with the permission of the literary executor of Hodgett's estate. Permission to record or reproduce these words must be requested from hymns@hodgetts.eu

Hymn books where it has been published include:

In Caelo - Songs for a Pilgrim People - Veritas Publications, Ireland 1999
Laudate - Decani Music, England, 2012.

With meter 8.7.8/.7 with refrain, it is almost-always set tot the tune AU SANG QU'UN DIEU: Some sources say that this was written Italian composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (1710-1736), while other say it is a traditional French tune which he adapted.

Downloads

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PowerPoint slides

Examples

Choir with organ, live in a church service:

Virtual choir with electronic organ:

Cantor with organ:

Instrumental - organ:

Instruenntal - piano and violin:

Instrumental - guitar:

Lyrics

God of mercy and compassion, Lord of life and blinding light,
Truth whom creatures would refashion, force on us the gift of sight.

Chorus:
Truth insistent and demanding, love resented and ignored,
Life beyond all understanding, give us peace and pardon, Lord

God most holy and forgiving, penetrate our pride and sloth:
On a people partly living force the gift of life and growth.

Lord who out of love consented to the worst that men could do:
Lord abandoned and tormented, let us love and suffer too.