FLAME IN THE MOUNTAINS:
Williams Pantycelyn, Ann Griffiths and
the Welsh Hymn
By H. A. Hodges. Edited by Wyn James
Y Lolfa. 320 pages. £12.99
ISBN 978 1 784 614 546
This is a book which gives a helpful and heart-warming insight into two of the greatest hymn-writers Christ has given to his church.
It is a collection of essays by H. A. Hodges, an English professor who learned Welsh in order to study the work of William Williams and Ann Griffiths. Williams, an ordained minister, was the prolific writer of 750 hymns, including ‘Guide me O Thou Great Jehovah’. Ann Griffiths was a farmer’s daughter who composed just 30. Both had a profound influence on the spirituality of Wales in times of revival.
The Charles Wesley of Wales
Hodges sees Williams as ‘the creator of the modern Welsh hymn’ and describes him as ‘the Charles Wesley of Wales’. He illustrates how his poetry is infused with ‘an overwhelming sense of God, and of God in Christ, and of Christ as God’. His hymns are full of vital experience as well as profound theology.
The section on Ann Griffiths includes an English metrical and prose translation of her hymns. Wyn James also adds a list of scriptural references which unlock the rich biblical imagery she used. Prayerful study of this chapter, with Bible in hand, is worth the price of the book alone. Letters written by Ann Griffiths to her friend and mentor, John Hughes, give an insight into her life and Christian walk. She is particularly honest about the joys and struggles of her prayer life, and also shares the fruit of her meditation on Scripture.
While this book might be considered technical in places, it is also very devotional. The burden of the author was that the hymns of William Williams and Ann Griffiths should be known and appreciated beyond Wales and the Welsh language. Flame in the Mountains goes a long way in helping to realise that vision.
