Title: Beautiful Savior
Author: Unknown
German title: Schönster Herr Jesu
Translation: Joseph A. Seiss, 1823-1904
Relevant Scripture verse: “And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.” – Matthew 17:1-2 ESV
1 Beautiful Savior, King of creation, Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I'd love Thee, truly I'd serve thee, Light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown.
2 Fair are the meadows, Fair are the woodlands, Robed in flow'rs of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer; He makes our sorr'wing spirit sing.
3 Fair is the sunshine, Fair is the moonlight, Bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer Than all the angels in the sky.
4 Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations, Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, Praise, adoration, Now and forevermore be Thine!
What did Jesus look like? To this question, the Bible mostly leaves us hanging. The four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John devote basically no attention to the question of Jesus’ appearance. Clearly, they had more important things to worry about. It didn’t matter so much what Jesus looked like. Much more important was the question of his identity. Who was Jesus, and who is he for us? That is the issue that should occupy us.
Yet if we understand the “Suffering Servant” speeches from the Old Testament book of Isaiah as a reference to what would be the future suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross, we learn that Jesus’ appearance was nothing special: [H]e had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not (Isaiah 53:2-3).
So, where do we get the idea of a Beautiful Savior? The one exception to the Gospels’ lack of concern for Jesus’ appearance comes out in what is often called the Transfiguration. Jesus goes up “a high mountain” with disciples Peter, James, and John. They are joined by Moses and Elijah from the Old Testament. There on that mountain, [Jesus] was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. Jesus isn’t exactly described as “beautiful” here, but one can imagine that being one possible description of the scene on that unnamed mountain.
What Lutherans most often sing as “Beautiful Savior” is therefore especially popular on the Sunday of the Transfiguration, usually observed the Sunday before the beginning of the forty days of Lent. But it is more generally a song of praise and adoration appropriate for many occasions, and I have also seen it used on Easter Sunday. In many Lutheran churches, this hymn is staple of their worship life. Love of this hymn is in many Lutheran congregations, especially in North America, a sign of being “truly Lutheran.” Interestingly, the translation of “Beautiful Savior” is mostly unique to Lutheran churches. In hymnals of other Christian traditions, it is translated as “Fairest Lord Jesus,” which is actually a more literal translation of the German Schönster Herr Jesu.
The importance of “Beautiful Savior” for Lutheran churches is a tad ironic given that the original German hymn appears to have arisen in a Roman Catholic context of the seventeenth century. It first appeared in a Roman Catholic songbook in the city of Münster in 1677. It’s message, however, is universal and can be used in most any Christian setting.
My most vivid memory of this hymn comes from a pastoral situation almost exactly ten years ago. While preparing for my doctoral comprehensive exams and under great anxiety, I was home alone while my wife and son were away for a few days. At the time, I was not actively serving as a pastor; my wife was serving in that capacity in our small community in South Dakota. But when a church member was near death at the time, I was happy to cover that situation and provide an end-of-life commendation service.
Hymns are, in my experience, an underutilized tool in pastoral care situations. Especially hymns that are well-known have a way of speaking to people in distress, even when individuals have diminished mental capacity. That day, I walked up to the local nursing home and spoke with the woman in question. I asked her if she had a favorite hymn. Her response was, “Beautiful Savior.” I sang for her the first two verses, prayed with her, and then returned home. After my wife’s return, she spoke with the woman’s family about funeral arrangements. Before her death, she commented to her family how meaningful it was for her to hear those beloved words one last time.
Even in the darkness of impending death in that care facility, “Jesus shone brighter” and “made her sorrowing spirit sing.”
You can access below a video of the St. Olaf College choir of Northfield, Minnesota: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=beautiful+savior&iax=videos&ia=videos&iai=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DzDMsZc_BPLQ
Author: Unknown
German title: Schönster Herr Jesu
Translation: Joseph A. Seiss, 1823-1904
Relevant Scripture verse: “And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.” – Matthew 17:1-2 ESV
1 Beautiful Savior, King of creation, Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I'd love Thee, truly I'd serve thee, Light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown.
2 Fair are the meadows, Fair are the woodlands, Robed in flow'rs of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer; He makes our sorr'wing spirit sing.
3 Fair is the sunshine, Fair is the moonlight, Bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer Than all the angels in the sky.
4 Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations, Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, Praise, adoration, Now and forevermore be Thine!
What did Jesus look like? To this question, the Bible mostly leaves us hanging. The four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John devote basically no attention to the question of Jesus’ appearance. Clearly, they had more important things to worry about. It didn’t matter so much what Jesus looked like. Much more important was the question of his identity. Who was Jesus, and who is he for us? That is the issue that should occupy us.
Yet if we understand the “Suffering Servant” speeches from the Old Testament book of Isaiah as a reference to what would be the future suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross, we learn that Jesus’ appearance was nothing special: [H]e had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not (Isaiah 53:2-3).
So, where do we get the idea of a Beautiful Savior? The one exception to the Gospels’ lack of concern for Jesus’ appearance comes out in what is often called the Transfiguration. Jesus goes up “a high mountain” with disciples Peter, James, and John. They are joined by Moses and Elijah from the Old Testament. There on that mountain, [Jesus] was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. Jesus isn’t exactly described as “beautiful” here, but one can imagine that being one possible description of the scene on that unnamed mountain.
What Lutherans most often sing as “Beautiful Savior” is therefore especially popular on the Sunday of the Transfiguration, usually observed the Sunday before the beginning of the forty days of Lent. But it is more generally a song of praise and adoration appropriate for many occasions, and I have also seen it used on Easter Sunday. In many Lutheran churches, this hymn is staple of their worship life. Love of this hymn is in many Lutheran congregations, especially in North America, a sign of being “truly Lutheran.” Interestingly, the translation of “Beautiful Savior” is mostly unique to Lutheran churches. In hymnals of other Christian traditions, it is translated as “Fairest Lord Jesus,” which is actually a more literal translation of the German Schönster Herr Jesu.
The importance of “Beautiful Savior” for Lutheran churches is a tad ironic given that the original German hymn appears to have arisen in a Roman Catholic context of the seventeenth century. It first appeared in a Roman Catholic songbook in the city of Münster in 1677. It’s message, however, is universal and can be used in most any Christian setting.
My most vivid memory of this hymn comes from a pastoral situation almost exactly ten years ago. While preparing for my doctoral comprehensive exams and under great anxiety, I was home alone while my wife and son were away for a few days. At the time, I was not actively serving as a pastor; my wife was serving in that capacity in our small community in South Dakota. But when a church member was near death at the time, I was happy to cover that situation and provide an end-of-life commendation service.
Hymns are, in my experience, an underutilized tool in pastoral care situations. Especially hymns that are well-known have a way of speaking to people in distress, even when individuals have diminished mental capacity. That day, I walked up to the local nursing home and spoke with the woman in question. I asked her if she had a favorite hymn. Her response was, “Beautiful Savior.” I sang for her the first two verses, prayed with her, and then returned home. After my wife’s return, she spoke with the woman’s family about funeral arrangements. Before her death, she commented to her family how meaningful it was for her to hear those beloved words one last time.
Even in the darkness of impending death in that care facility, “Jesus shone brighter” and “made her sorrowing spirit sing.”
You can access below a video of the St. Olaf College choir of Northfield, Minnesota: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=beautiful+savior&iax=videos&ia=videos&iai=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DzDMsZc_BPLQ