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New Year Opens, A
Hymn composed by
Traditional ScottishContextual information
In my long exploration of our Unitarian, Universalist, and UU hymnody, I never found a hymn that felt “just right” for the New Year and all of the rituals that can accompany it.
As my longing for a New Year hymn grew, I discovered one of Jim Bennett’s albums of hymn instrumentals (The Lone, Wild Bird) and fell in love with his interpretation of CANDLER, an old Scottish hymn tune. I’m convinced that listening to Jim’s music became a prayer: to receive inspiration to write this hymn text, and then to find Jim to ask for his blessing and help to publish his arrangement here. It’s an honor that Jim agreed to bring this collaboration into the world.
Thanks to Kimberly Lilley and Will Bristol for their assistance with this hymn.
If you wish to pair this hymn–whether sung congregationally or by the choir–with a meaningful exploration of its text in worship, Erika created this resource on WorshipWeb: reflection questions with suggestions for congregational participation and opportunities to create ritual in worship.
From Jim:
This tune is a fine example of a beautiful melody with a sense of movement and a form (AABA) that never goes out of style. It goes back at least to the 18th century, having been chosen by Robert Burns to set his poem “Ye Banks and Braes.” I first discovered it paired with Charles Wesley’s text “Come, O Thou Traveler Unknown.” It pairs perfectly with Rev. Erika Hewitt’s evocative text “A New Year Opens.”
In my long exploration of our Unitarian, Universalist, and UU hymnody, I never found a hymn that felt “just right” for the New Year and all of the rituals that can accompany it.
As my longing for a New Year hymn grew, I discovered one of Jim Bennett’s albums of hymn instrumentals (The Lone, Wild Bird) and fell in love with his interpretation of CANDLER, an old Scottish hymn tune. I’m convinced that listening to Jim’s music became a prayer: to receive inspiration to write this hymn text, and then to find Jim to ask for his blessing and help to publish his arrangement here. It’s an honor that Jim agreed to bring this collaboration into the world.
Thanks to Kimberly Lilley and Will Bristol for their assistance with this hymn.
If you wish to pair this hymn–whether sung congregationally or by the choir–with a meaningful exploration of its text in worship, Erika created this resource on WorshipWeb: reflection questions with suggestions for congregational participation and opportunities to create ritual in worship.
From Jim:
This tune is a fine example of a beautiful melody with a sense of movement and a form (AABA) that never goes out of style. It goes back at least to the 18th century, having been chosen by Robert Burns to set his poem “Ye Banks and Braes.” I first discovered it paired with Charles Wesley’s text “Come, O Thou Traveler Unknown.” It pairs perfectly with Rev. Erika Hewitt’s evocative text “A New Year Opens.”
Tune Name
CANDLER
Tune Name
Text Meter
Irregular
10.9.10.9
Composer
Traditional ScottishHymn Arranger
Composer Background information
Composer Website LinkSpiritual tags
Other tags
Lyricist Background information
Rev. Erika Hewitt (she/her) isn’t just a UU minister but also a Preacher’s Kid who started attending church in utero, making church hymns one of her earliest languages. She has served as Lead on Sing Out Love since its development in 2023.
Arranger Background information
Jim Bennett (he/him) grew up in New York hearing many different styles of music and studying piano. After settling in Virginia, he served in music ministry in the United Methodist Church from 1990 to 2014, and since 2014 in the Episcopal Church. Jim loves hymn tunes and spirituals and they often become wonderful vehicles for improvisation.
Lyrics
The year behind me: a book laid open,
With stories both joyful and hard to behold.
I invite those tangled mem’ries to surface,
And cherish those longing to be retold:
Here I loved well;
Here, made brave choices; and
Here’s where my friends helped my brokenness mend.
That goodness blesses me, grateful and hopeful,
As last year’s pages come to their end.
Spirit, keep my eager heart softer and open
To mem’ries whose bitterness still bears a sting.
For harms I wielded, may I seek forgiveness;
Let go of resentment to which I still cling.
Here I struggled;
And here my anger grew;
Here’s where my loneliness turned to despair.
May I humbly sift through those sobering stories
For courage that stirs me to growth and repair.
Yet deeper pain appears in some pages:
They’re tear-stained and torn where grief raked my heart.
Not only errors and failures and struggles,
But losses that shook my world apart.
Here, a death I mourned;
Here, a sad farewell;
Here’s where I’m haunted by what might have been.
O Spirit: Hold me, restore me, and heal me;
Sustain me with hope as a new year begins.
A new year opens, its blank space a threshold
For all that seems possible in the Unknown.
May we meet the Myst’ry and all of its promise:
Companions who choose not to journey alone.
When will joy burst forth?
Where will grief rain down?
How will we meet each new day that arrives?
May our loving choices become a bold chorus:
A “yes” to the forming edge of our lives.
Resources
Music XML and MEI and MIDI and Musescore files