(CP) Timothy Dudley-Smith, a former bishop within the Church of England and the prolific hymn author behind such songs as “Lord, Through the Years” and “Tell all, my Soul,” has died at age 97.
Dudley-Smith, credited with having written the lyrics for roughly 400 hymns, died within the early hours of Aug. 12, in response to the Diocese of Norwich. He is survived by three children and 4 grandchildren.
The Rt. Rev. Graham Usher, bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich, said in a press release that Dudley-Smith was “much-respected” and “particularly involved with education and vocations throughout the diocese.”
“When I became Bishop of Norwich, Bishop Timothy wrote a most warm and inspiring letter, and we corresponded further about his passion for the environment,” said Usher.
“Of course, he was a widely known hymn-writer, including the blockbuster ‘Tell out my soul’ which has encouraged many individuals of their Christian faith or so as to add their ‘yes’ to God’s call of their lives and make a commitment to following Jesus.”
Born Dec. 26, 1926, in Manchester, Dudley-Smith was educated at Cambridge and ordained in 1950 to a curacy at Northumberland Heath in Kent, in response to an obituary posted by The Church Times. He would later function archdeacon in Norwich and bishop of Thetford.
Dudley-Smith supported the evangelistic efforts of the Rev. Billy Graham, actively helping with the American preacher’s effort when he got here to London in 1954.
In addition to being bishop of Thetford from 1981-1991, Dudley-Smith also served as general secretary of the Church Pastoral Aid Society from 1965-1973 and director of the Evangelical Alliance from 1987-1992.
Dudley-Smith said that he didn’t have “musical ability,” noting that he only wrote the lyrics for the a whole lot of hymns credited to him. Nevertheless, for his widely popular sacred music, he can be awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2003 for his “services to hymnody.”
“It is the hymn author’s privilege to supply to the worshippers words during which to clothe and express the aspirations and emotions of the center,” said Dudley-Smith, as quoted by The Christian Institute.
He believed that a superb hymn “should be true to divine revelation and true to Christian experience,” and this included being “true to the revelation of the Bible — whether a revelation of the character of God, of the person and work of Christ, or the dignity, degradation and destiny of men and ladies.”
To mark his eightieth birthday in 2006, fellow hymnist Canon Michael Saward wrote concerning the extensive accomplishments of the previous bishop.
“Everyone knows Tell out my soul (May 1961) and Lord, for the years (February 1967),” said Saward, as quoted by The Living Church. “Yet, of all today’s hymn-writers, he might be alone in producing the very best percentage of Rolls Royce texts and a really small scrap-yard of old bangers.”
© The Christian Post
