| Frederick Whitfield was born and reared
in England and was graduated from Trinity College in Dublin,
Ireland. He studied for the ministry and was ordained in the
Church of England. He was first appointed to parishes in
Yorkshire, and later served at Greenwich near London. He wrote this hymn in 1855 while still a student at Trinity College. It is written in Common Meter structure. The first and third lines have eight syllables, and the second and fourth have six. Many hymns of the 18th and 19th century were written in this form and could be sung to any of the Common Meter tunes. Other such hymns are "Amazing Grace," "There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood," "Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed" and "O God, Our Help in Ages Past." Scroll back to the top of the page and try singing "O How I Love Jesus" to some of these familiar tunes. (omit the refrain) In less than ten years after its first printing, the hymn began to appear in hymnals in America. Churches on the western frontier and rural churches in the eastern states usually only had one copy of a songbook, and it contained only the words. The preacher or song leader would give the tune and then would "line out" the hymn by reading ahead line-by-line as the congregation sang the hymn. (A technique often used today by "praise and worship" leaders.) The refrain is not part of Whitfield's original hymn, but was later added by some unknown person. Characterized by simplicity and a lilting style, the tune used here is typical of camp meeting songs that emerged in America in the early 19th century.
Piano Arrangement and MIDI
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