The sun in all its strength, is soaring

The sun, in all its strength, is soaring. Nicolai Frederik Severin Grundtvig* (1783-1872), translated by Alan Gaunt* (1935-2023). This hymn is from ‘I al sin glans nu straler solen’, one of Grundtvig’s greatest hymns for Pentecost. It demonstrates one of the most striking stylistic features of Grundtvig’s hymn writing, its constant combination of natural imagery (from the Danish countryside in particular) with biblical and liturgical imagery. This is not only a question of literary convention; it implies a powerful theological affirmation of the continuing significance of the created order in the context of the redemption and fulfilment of God’s world. In the first three stanzas, Grundtvig...