November 27, 2013
“Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.”
Henry Van Dyke (1852 – 1933)
Born in Pennsylvania, Van Dyke was educated at Princeton and Princeton Theological Seminary. He was a lecturer at the University of Paris and later returned to Princeton where he taught English Literature for many years. He was a friend of Woodrow Wilson who appointed him minister to Luxembourg prior to the First World War. Van Dyke helped to write the Presbyterian Book of Common Worship and was a vocal opponent of American Imperialism foretelling that the country would spend more on war preparation than on education. In addition to dozens of poems, essays and stories he wrote numerous hymn lyrics including the words to Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee.
Good Morning Gloucester 