When fear and grief had barred the door
When fear and grief had barred the door. Basil Ernest Bridge* (1927-2021).
Written in April 1983, and first printed in Stainer & Bell’s series Hymns and Congregational Songs (Vol 1 no 1, 1988). It was subsequently included in BPW. The words are based on John 20: 19-23. The final line of the penultimate stanza, ‘Love's freedom know’, refers to Jesus’s charge to his disciples to offer forgiveness; the same Greek word can mean ‘forgive’ and ‘release’. In stanza two, ‘what’ has occasionally been misprinted as ‘with’. It is not recorded in Hymnary.org: it seems to be unknown outside Britain.
Valerie...
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MLA style (see MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.)
. "When fear and grief had barred the door."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press. Web. 15 Feb. 2026.<
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/w/when-fear-and-grief-had-barred-the-door>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "When fear and grief had barred the door."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed February 15, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/w/when-fear-and-grief-had-barred-the-door.