By Rev. Aidan Moon

An Icelandic Doxology

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking this SoundCloud link. 

“Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously;
let this be made known in all the earth.”

Isaiah 12:5, English Standard Version

In the center of Reykjavik, Iceland, stands Hallgrimskirkja, the cathedral of the Church of Iceland. It is a profound visual symbol, a spire designed to resemble the natural landscape of crags and mountains. Its towering spire provides a stunning view of Reykjavik and its surrounding environs.

What might be less well known is the cathedral’s namesake, Hallgrímur Pétursson, an Icelandic pastor and poet from the 1600s. He also provided a stunning view, but rather than visually, he gives poetic perspective. He is well known in Iceland for his “Passion Hymns,” a collection of hymns reflecting on the work of Christ. In them, he reflects on the passion, delighting in the goodness of God:

“Thou art, O Christ, the everlasting Son!
Thou, by Thy Death, for sinful man a share
In Thy divine inheritance hast won,
And made him with Thyself, God’s Son, co-heir,—
Thyself, the One Begotten of God’s love!
Therefore let all the sons of men upraise
To Thee, God’s Son, an anthem of high praise,
Through endless days, in earth and heaven above.”

– Hallgrímur Pétursson

Pétursson reminds us of the necessity of doxology, of praise. For it is in praise that our delight in God is made complete, our joy at Christ’s work for us perfected in love for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. May we too be reminded to upraise an anthem of high praise to our Lord, who came as a child, and won for us sinners a divine inheritance, children of God.

Copyright Family of Christ Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado