Thursday, September 17, 2026

0:00It is the 17th of September, 2026. Welcome to the Christian History Aluminac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. I'm Dan VanVoris. Today is the feast day of Hildegard of Bingen, the sible of the Rhine and perhaps the most famous woman composer in church history. This is not a show about her. If you go to the unofficial transcript at 1517.org, I've got a link to the show we did do on her a few years ago. Today's show is about a woman who stands in the Great Tradition of Hildegard of poets and theologians who found the avenue of himnity as most appropriate for their gifts. She was Emily Julian, Countess of Schwarzberg Rudelstadt, Neh Countess of Barbie Muleingen. That's a lot of names and very German.

1:03You may have never heard of her. She is, though, by some accounts the most prolific female hymn writer of all time, at least in German. If you do know her, it's likely on account of her most famous hymn, known in English as Who knows how near my end may be. This under the title Preparation for Death, and the manuscript is dated by the Countess to this, the 17th of September, in 1686. So who was Emily Julian and how did her own life and contacts help her develop such a large corpus and one that could speak well to grief? Emily or Amalie was born in 1637 in Rudelstadt in Turingia. On fact, if you're listening to this show today, I am very close to Rudelstadt in Turingia. She was born into the noble von Barbie family. The timing is important. The 30 years war was raging and the Protestant hero Gustavus Adolfus had just been slain

2:04in nearby Lutzen. Her family fled to live at the estate of the Schwarzberg Rudelstadt's. Before Emily turned five, both of her parents had died. These killed as many as conventional warfare. She was raised with her cousins in a devout Lutheran home. We have record of her reading and taking notes in the works of Luther and in the prayer book of Johann Arnt. The family tutor, Herr Fritch, founded a society for noble women called the Fruch Bringenda Jesus Koselle Schaft, modeled on a similarly named society for intellectuals, this fruit bearing society for Jesus. Fritch and the society would help Emily publish her hymns. She did so under the name Freundin Deslames, or Friend of the Lamb, each of the women had been given a name that began with Friend of. She wrote some 600 hymns. Many of them are deeply personal so much so that himnologist John Julian suggests they

3:06would not be appropriate for corporate worship. You may also see her designated as a pietyst, which I promise you is rarely a helpful tag, and especially for someone living in the 1600s. In the tumult of war, the loss for parents and in death, she found solace in her faith and in those affective elements of the faith that brought her consolation. This is perhaps best seen in her most popular hymn, translated by Catherine Winkworth as who knows how near my end may be in her Lyra Germanica II in 1858. It's a massive 12 stands of hymn, often paired down to seven or even three stanzas. A note on the manuscript noted that it was written on the occasion of the sudden death of Duke George of Saxiais in aqua hunting. It is decidedly Lutheran and sacramental with verses such as, in holy baptism long ago, I joined me to the living vine. How lovest me in him I know in him thou dost accept me thine, and I have eaten his own

4:11flesh and drunk his blood, nor can I be forsaken now, nor doubt a fresh, I am in him, and he and me. The final stanza encompasses the general theme of the hymn, and thus I live in God at peace and die without a thought of fear, content to take what God decrees. For through his son my faith is clear, his grace shall be in death my stay, and peace shall bless, my dying day. She and her husband had one surviving son they lost at least one child, and she would live through the deaths of all of her cousins and siblings. Towards the end of her life she took to having a devotion every Friday from noon to three in commemoration of the death of Jesus. It is said she died on the 3rd of December, which was a Friday at three o'clock after her devotions. Surely his grace was in her death, her stay, and peace did bless her dying day. Emily Julian, author of Who Knows How Near My, and may be him written on this, the 17th

5:18of September, in 1686. The last word for today comes from the daily electionary in Psalm 145. I will exalt you my God the King, I will praise your name forever and ever. Every day I will praise you and extol your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise, his greatness, no one can fathom. One generation commends your works to another, they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works and I will proclaim your great deeds. They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in love.

6:20This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 17th of September, 2026 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. This show is produced by man who thought it was the Austrians who had the Barbie. He's Christ for Gillespie, the show is written and read by man, sorry about that niche joke, I'm doing a lot of these at one time and they don't all. I'll hit, I'm Dan VanVoris, you can catch us here every day. And remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true. Everything is going to be okay.