Be Thou My Vision - History

History

The original Old Irish text, Rop tú mo Baile is often attributed to Dallán Forgaill in the 6th century. An attribution given mostly by the Catholic Church. University College, Cork lists the author of Rop tú mo baile as Author: . The text had been a part of Irish monastic tradition for centuries before its setting to the tune, therefore, before it became an actual hymn. It was translated from Old Irish into English by Mary Elizabeth Byrne, M.A., in Ériu (the journal of the School of Irish Learning), in 1905. The English text was first versified by Eleanor Hull, in 1912, and is now the most common text used. In the 20th century, two new sets of relatively common lyrics were put to the same tune used for the hymn. The first was "Lord of All Hopefullness," written by Jan Struther around 1931. The second was a popular wedding hymn, "God, In the Planning and Purpose of Life," written by John Bell and Graham Maule and first appearing in publication in 1989.