Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807-March 24, 1882) was an American poet. He served for 20 years as Professor of Belles-Lettres at Harvard University, 1834-54. He wrote such poems as: Evangeline, 1847; The Song of Hiawatha, 1855; The Courtship of Miles Standish, 1858; and Paul Revere's Ride, 1861.
In his brother's Ordination Hymn, Longfellow wrote:
<Christ to the young man said:
"Yet one thing more:
If thou wouldst perfect be,
Sell all thou hast, and give it to the poor,
And come and follow me!"
Within this temple Christ again, unseen,
Those sacred words hath said,
And His invisible hands to-day have been
Laid upon a young man's head.
And evermore beside him on his way
The unseen Christ shall move,
That he may lean upon His arm and say,
"Dost Thou, dear Lord, approve?"
Beside him at the marriage feast shall be
To make the scene more fair:
Beside him in the dark Gethsemane
Of pain and midnight prayer.
O holy trust! O endless sense of rest!
Like the beloved John
To lay his head upon our Saviour's breast,
And thus to journey on.> 1807HL001
In 1861, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's wife died in a tragic accident when her dress caught on fire while she was preserving some hair clippings in wax.
Henry's son was injured in the spine during the Civil War.
On Christmas in 1863, Henry made no entry in his journal.
On Christmas Day in 1864, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, wrote a poem he titled, "Christmas Bells":
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men
And thought how, as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men
Till, ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice, a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth, I said
For hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
God is not dead; nor doth he sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow remarked:
<Man is unjust, but God is just; and finally justice triumphs.> 1807HL002
<Nothing with God can be accidental.> 1807HL003
<For me, a line from mother is more efficacious than all the homilies preached in Lent.> 1807HL004
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1807HL001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, His Brother's Ordination Hymn. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 292.
1807HL002. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Bless Your Heart (series II) (Eden Prairie, MN: Heartland Sampler, Inc., 1990), 6.12.
1807HL003. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Bless Your Heart (series II) (Eden Prairie, MN: Heartland Sampler, Inc., 1990), 12.17.
1807HL004. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, statement. For Mothers (Heartland Samplers, Inc., 5555 W. 78th St. Suite P, Edina, MN, 55439, 1994), 4.8.