O Lord of every shining constellation

O Lord of every shining constellation. Albert Frederick Bayly* (1901-1984). Entitled ‘God’s age-long plan’, this hymn was written in 1945 to express a Christian response to the revolutions of science and technology, a topic of particular concern to the author. Its mention of ‘the atom’s hidden forces’ is a reminder of the newly discovered terrors of the atom bomb in 1945 and also of the use of atomic power for peaceful uses. Other words such as ‘constellation’, ‘cell’, and ‘tissue’ were new to hymnody, and were a part of Bayly’s distinctive contribution to modern worship. The hymn was published in Rejoice O People (1950), and then in Sunday School Praise (1958) and in Hymns for Church and...