pas, Cheshire, England, Heber was educated at
Oxford, where he formed the friendship of Sir Walter Scott. His gift for
writing poetry revealed itself in this period of his life, when he won a
prize for a remarkable poem on Palestine. It is said that Heber, who was
only seventeen years old at the time, read the poem to Scott at the
breakfast table, and that the latter suggested one of the most striking
lines.

Following the award of the prize, for which young Heber had been
earnestly striving, his parents found him on his knees in grateful
prayer.

For sixteen years Heber served in the obscure parish of Hodnet as a
minister of the Church of England. It was during this period that all of
his hymns were written. He was also engaged in other literary activities
that brought him some fame. All this while, however, he nourished a
secret longing to go to India. It is said that he would work out
imaginary journeys on the map, while he hoped that some day he might
become bishop of Calcutta.

His missionary fervor at this time is also reflected in the famous hymn,
"From Greenland's icy mountains," written in 1819. The allusions to
"India's coral strand" and "Ceylon's isle" are an indication of the
longings that were running through his mind.

His earnest prayer was answered in 1822, when at the age of forty years
he was called to the episcopate as bishop of Calcutta. After three years
of arduous work in India, the life of the gifted bishop was cut short.
During this period he ordained the first native pastor of the Episcopal
Church--Christian David.

A man of rare refinement and noble Christian personality, Heber was
greatly beloved by all who knew him. "One of the best of English
gentlemen," was the tribute accorded him by Thackeray. It was not until
after his death, however, that he leaped into fame through his hymns.

The story of how "From Greenland's icy mountains" was written reveals
something of the poetic genius of Heber. It seems that he was visiting
with his father-in-law, Dr. Shipley, vicar and dean of Wrexham, on the
Saturday before Whitsunday, 1819. The dean, who was planning to preach a
missionary sermon the following morning, asked young Heber to write a
missionary hymn that could be sung at the service. The latter immediately
withdrew from the circle of friends to another part of the room. After a
while the dean asked, "What have you written?" Heber replied by reading
the first three stanzas of the hymn. Th