'Bukun Ni Fun Ohun / Blest Be The Tie That Binds

Author: John Fawcett, pub. 1782

'Bukun ni fun ohun, T' o de wa po n'nu 'fe; Idapo awon olufe, Dabi ijo t' orun. Niwaju 'te Baba, Li awa ngbadura; Okan n' ireti at' eru, Ati ni itunu. Awa mb' ara wa pin Ninu wahala wa; Awa si mb' ara wa sokun Ninu 'banuje wa. Nigbat' a ba pinya, Inu wa a baje; Sibe okan wa y'o j' okan N' ireti ipade. Source: YBH #318

Blest be the tie that binds Our hearts in Christian love; The fellowship of kindred minds Is like to that above. Before our Father’s throne, We pour our ardent prayers; Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one— Our comforts and our cares. We share our mutual woes; Our mutual burdens bear; And often for each other flows The sympathizing tear. When we asunder part, It gives us inward pain; But we shall still be joined in heart, And hope to meet again. From sorrow, toil, and pain, And sin we shall be free; And perfect love and oneness reign Through all eternity.

REV. FAWCETT’S DILEMMA — TO GO OR STAY?

Imagine it! Rev. John Fawcett (1739-1817) was a young preacher in Wainsgate, which seemed then to be the middle of nowhere. (Think Wuthering Heights.) The Yorkshire countryside in Northern England was barren and cold.

The people — goodhearted, hardworking, mostly illiterate — had next to nothing. They supplemented their pastor’s meager stipend with wool and potatoes. Nor was there a parsonage. Instead, Fawcett, his wife and four children were passed from one family to the next, a few months here, a few months there, no place to call their own. They suffered chilly drafts and ate porridge with their host families.

Poverty was nothing new to Fawcett. Orphaned at 12, he became an indentured servant at 13, worked 14 hours a day, and taught himself to read at night. When he was 15, he stood in an outdoor crowd of 20,000 to hear a sermon by George Whitefield, “the marvel of the age,” and set his mind on becoming a preacher.

One day in 1772, after seven years of pastoring in Yorkshire, 33-year-old Fawcett got the call. He had established a reputation as a theologian, inspiring preacher, and serious scholar and was now wanted in London. London!

It seemed a dream come true, to move to lively London where his family’s standard of living would vastly improve. The city had good schools, libraries, sophisticated music and art, churches with stained glass, and educated colleagues for deep conversation. Fawcett agonized over the tempting offer and finally said YES!

The family packed up, climbed into a wagon, and waved to people who had come many miles to say goodbye. The scene was so wrenching, however, that Fawcett realized he couldn’t leave. He turned the horses around, unpacked, and stayed in Yorkshire for another 45 years.

Out of this experience, he wrote the most famous of his 160 hymns, “Blest Be the Tie that Binds.” It became a favorite hymn for Christians facing separation, an affirmation that friendship and community are the true measures of wealth.

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