Cecil Frances Alexander
1818-1895 19th century
Saying the highest things in words a child can carry.
Who was Cecil Frances Alexander?
Irish, the wife of a clergyman who became an archbishop, she wrote hundreds of hymns, most of them first intended for catechism children, and gave the royalties of her books to a school for the deaf and mute. She also translated the old breastplate of Saint Patrick, an early medieval Irish prayer, in a version still sung today. She spent her days visiting the poor of the diocese.
In their own words
There is a green hill far away, without a city wall, where the dear Lord was crucified, who died to save us all.
I bind unto myself today the strong Name of the Trinity.
Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me.