There’s a voice in the wilderness crying

There’s a voice in the wilderness crying. James Lewis Milligan* (1876-1961). This hymn was written in 1925 to celebrate the union of The Methodist Church and The Congregational Union of Canada with three-quarters of the congregations in The Presbyterian Church of Canada to create The United Church of Canada on 10 June 1925. Milligan, a journalist, was the head of public relations for church union. The hymn text is based on Isaiah 40: 3-11 – ‘Prepare … a highway for our God’. It was first published in The Hymnary (1930) to HEREFORD, by Samuel Sebastian Wesley*. Hugh Bancroft* composed a new tune for this text, ASCENSION, which appeared in The Hymn Book (1938) published by the Church of...