Light of the world, we hail thee

114 Salve Domine. 7. 6. 7. 6. D.

1 Light of the world, we hail Thee,
   Flushing the eastern skies;
   Never shall darkness veil Thee
   Again from human eyes;
   Too long, alas, withholden,
   Now spread from shore to shore;
   Thy light, so glad and golden,
   Shall set on earth no more.

2 Light of the world, Thy beauty
   Steals into every heart,
   And glorifies with duty
   Life's poorest, humblest part;
   Thou robest in Thy splendor
   The simple ways of men,
   And helpest them to render
   Light back to Thee again.

3 Light of the world, illumine
   This darkened land of Thine,
   Till everything that's human
   Be filled with what's divine;
   Till every tongue and nation,
   From sin's dominion free,
   Rise in the new creation
   Which springs from Love and Thee.
                         John S. B. Monsell
                        The Methodist Hymnal 1939 edition

<idle musing>
I don't recall ever singing this hymn, but, as hymnary.org says, "Dr. Monsell’s hymns are as a whole bright, joyous, and musical." However, they go on to say, "but they lack massiveness, concentration of thought, and strong emotion. A few only are of enduring excellence." Maybe that's why I don't recall it?
</idle musing>