“My Lord and my God!” These words were exclaimed by the disciple Thomas, as recorded in this Sunday’s Gospel reading (John 20:19-31). After Thomas had refused to believe the other ten disciples when they told him “We have seen the Lord,” Jesus shows up again a week later. As on the previous Sunday, the fear-filled disciples were quarantining as it were, in a house and behind locked doors. Jesus suddenly appears in their midst with his comforting words, “Peace be with you.” This is followed by his gracious invitation to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side.”
On Sunday we get to sing about this encounter between Thomas and the risen Christ in our closing hymn, “We walk by faith, and not by sight” (hymn 209 in The Hymnal 1982). I wouldn’t call this a typical Easter hymn. There are no alleluias in it and no fanfares. Most of the words have just one syllable. There is only one exclamation point in the text, and that comes where the quotation is borrowed directly from John 20:28, “My Lord and my God!” In its four short stanzas, “We walk by faith” gives us a concise, no-nonsense picture of that “Sunday after” gathering. The hymn is sung to a simple, gentle melody, unlike so many jubilant Easter hymns where we can imagine long processions of choirs parading down the aisles of cavernous cathedrals. For these reasons, maybe this is an ideal Easter hymn during these pandemic times.
The words for “We walk by faith” come from Henry Alford (1810-1871). He wrote the hymn for the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle (December 21). It was published first in his book with a title almost as long as the hymn, Psalms and Hymns Adapted to the Sundays and Holydays throughout the Year (London, 1844). Even though the text relates to Sunday’s reading from John 20, the opening words come from 2 Corinthians 5:7 (“for we walk by faith, not by sight”).
Henry Alford was the son of a rector and was ordained in 1833. A Greek scholar, parish priest, and organist, he also wrote keyboard and vocal music and eighteen hymns, including the Thanksgiving favorite “Come, ye thankful people, come” (hymn 290 in The Hymnal 1982). From 1857 to 1871 he was dean of Canterbury Cathedral.
The tune that we sing with “We walk by faith” was composed by Gordon Slater (1896-1979). It appeared first in Songs of Praise for Boys and Girls (London, 1929) with the hymn “Dear Father, keep me through this day.” The tune is called ST. BOTOLPH, named for St. Botolph’s Parish Church in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. Slater was organist there from 1919 to 1927, after serving in the British Armed Forces during World War I.
As one author states, this “hymn assumes from the very first line a Christian and biblical definition of faith as a supernatural trust in the Lord Jesus Christ...Such a faith eagerly and regularly receives the Lord’s good gifts.” This supernatural trust in the Lord Jesus Christ is a gift from the Holy Spirit, renewed each day as we recall our washing in the baptismal waters. I especially appreciate that the hymn does not emphasize a “doubting Thomas” but rather reaches its climax in Thomas’ confession of faith, “My Lord and my God!” In his commentary on “We walk by faith,” Carl Daw points out that this movement from doubt to faith “serves as a model for the ongoing mission of the church and for the faith journey of individual believers.” Let’s remember that as we sing this hymn.
We walk by faith, and not by sight; no gracious words we hear
From him who spoke as none e’er spoke; but we believe him near.
We may not touch his hands and side, nor follow where he trod;
But in his promise we rejoice; and cry, “My Lord and God!”
Help then, O Lord, our unbelief; and may our faith abound,
To call on you when you are near, and seek where you are found:
That, when our life of faith is done, in realms of clearer light
We may behold you as you are, with full and endless sight.
