Alexander Hamilton -- The Soul Ascending into Bliss

We're going to kick this off with a hymn from an unexpected source -- Alexander Hamilton.
Yes, the first Secretary of the Treasury and co-author of the Federalist Papers was a hymnist, albeit of very limited experience. There are only two hymns he is known to have written: the following was submitted for publication in the Royal Danish American Gazette in 1772, in imitation of Jonathan Pope. The other was penned in his last letter to his wife the night before his infamous death in a duel with Aaron Burr. A copy of the earlier hymn, "The Soul Ascending into Bliss," was kept and cherished by his wife in her widowhood.

Hamilton's faith, like that of many of the founding fathers', is a matter of some dispute, but it seems to follow an arc familiar to many. In his youth he was seriously and sincerely devout. The rigors of war and the personal costs of realpolitik appear to have chipped away at his devotion and left a measure of cynicism, if not full-fledged doubt. In the few years before his untimely end he, by all accounts, embraced his faith anew. As he lay dying from his duelling wounds, he earnestedly sought last rites -- even though he was not Episcopalian -- and debated with a minister friend who politely refused the office on the grounds of the sin of duelling. Indeed, as mentioned earlier, one of his last acts on earth was one of hymnody, the text of which I hope to find in my research and make available here soon.

The earlier hymn, which was kept as a sort of 'sacred scripture' (Ron Chernow's term, from his excellent biography of AH) by Eliza Hamilton as proof of her hero's devotion, has not been mated to a suitable tune, to the best of my knowledge. I hope to rectify that soon. If you wish to send me candidate tunes, just remember the meter is 6 lines of 8's. In the meantime, enjoy the text.

The Soul Ascending Into Bliss

Ah! Whither, whither I am flown,
A wandering guest in worlds unknown?
What is that I see and hear?
What heav'nly music fill mine ear?
Eternal glories shine around;
more than Arabia's sweets abound.

Hark! Hark! a voice from yonder sky,
methinks I hear my Saviour cry;
Come, gentle spirit, come away,
come to the Lord without delay;
For thee the gates of bliss unbar'd
thy constant virtue to reward.

I come, oh Lord! I mount, I fly,
on rapid wings I cleave the sky;
Stretch out thine arm and aid my flight;
For oh! I long to gain that height,
where all celestial beings sing
eternal praises to their king.

O Lamb of God! Thrice gracious Lord,
now, now I feel how true thy word;
Translated to this happy place,
this blessed vision of thy face;
My soul shall all thy steps attend
in songs of triumph without end.