My faith looks up to thee
My faith looks up to thee. Ray Palmer* (1808-1887).
Written in 1830, when Palmer, newly graduated from Yale, was teaching in a school for girls in New York. He put it aside until meeting Lowell Mason* in Boston. Mason asked Palmer for a hymn for his projected collection, Spiritual Songs for Social Worship (1831). When Palmer sent these words, Mason wrote a tune for them, OLIVET, which is still the customary tune. Some books vary the selections and order of stanzas. Some omit the original stanza 4:
When ends life’s transient dream
When death’s cold sullen stream
Over me roll;
Blest Savior, then in love,
Fear and distrust remove,
O bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul.
This is the...
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MLA style (see MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.)
. "My faith looks up to thee."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press. Web. 25 Jan. 2026.<
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/m/my-faith-looks-up-to-thee>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "My faith looks up to thee."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed January 25, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/m/my-faith-looks-up-to-thee.