http://library.lds.org/nxt/gateway.dll/Curriculum/music.htm/hymns.htm/prayer%20and%20supplication.htm/114%20come%20unto%20him.htm#JD_Hymns.114

and the music (written by Hugh W. Dougall, 1872-1963):

http://www.lds.org/churchmusic/detailmu … seqend=ZZZ

The scriptures cited in the hymnbook are Psalm 55:16–17, 22 and Matthew 11:28–30—both of which are beautiful scriptures that talk about coming unto Christ. 

The third verse mentions three kinds of people who could benefit from coming unto Christ—the depressed, the erring, and the weary.  I feel weary lots of times in terms of my relationship with the church.  I have allowed those feelings to impact my feelings about both God and Christ, which I regret and would like to change.  In thinking about this hymn, I came across a speech that Elder Holland gave at BYU about coming unto Christ (http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=2912).  There are some things in it that I don’t like or am not sure about – the belief that Christ is the “only way” to achieve happiness/eternal life/whatever.  I know that this is a basic premise of Mormonism and of Christianity in general and as I’m typing this, I realize that I may be farther “out” than I am willing to admit.  However, there is much about this central message of Christianity that I like.

Elder Holland said:  “On the example of the Savior himself and his call to his apostles, and with the need for peace and comfort ringing in our ears, I ask you to be a healer, be a helper, be someone who joins in the work of Christ in lifting burdens, in making the load lighter, in making things better.   Isn’t that the phrase we used to use as children when we had a bump or a bruise? Didn’t we say to Mom or Dad, “Make it better.” Well, lots of people on your right hand and on your left are carrying bumps and bruises that they hope will be healed and made whole. Someone sitting within reasonable proximity to you tonight is carrying a spiritual or physical or emotional burden of some sort or some other affliction drawn from life’s catalog of a thousand kinds of sorrow. In the spirit of Christ’s first invitation to Philip and Andrew and then to Peter and the whole of his twelve apostles, jump into this work. Help people. Heal old wounds and try to make things better.”

Holland concludes by saying that Christ “wishes us to come unto him, to follow him, to be comforted by him. Then he wishes us to give comfort to others.”  That’s the central premise of this hymn, I think.  Or at least that’s the take-away message for me.  We’re supposed to do for others what Christ says he will do for us—help us, comfort us, pay attention to us, listen to us, serve us.  Regardless of my questions/confusions/doubts about “the church” and “the gospel,” this is clearly something I can do, both for myself and for others.

• the new hymnal was significantly changed to reflect demographic changes in the church. For instance, they took out “Utah, we love thee.”
• In choosing which hymns would make it into the 1985 hymnal, the Hymnbook Committee reviewed over 6,000 submissions. Author and composer names were withheld so the selection process could focus on the musical or doctrinal merits of the submissions rather than the identity of the composers/authors.
• The doctrinal message was considered by the committee to be more important than the musical and/or literary merit (unless a hymn was considered to be “widely-loved”). I’m familiar with the Spanish hymnal and know that there used to be a song in the old one about brushing your teeth. That one didn’t make the cut in the newer version of the Spanish hymnal. J But what happened to hymns like “Come, thou fount of every blessing?” Does anyone have the inside scoop on that one?
• I feel good knowing that something as important as the official church hymnal out of which we sing every Sunday was changed to reflect increasing diversity within the church. This gives me hope that some of the things I struggle with about the church may be changed or at least diminished. So before I die, the songs in the primary book that talk about fathers’ wisdom, faith, and strength in one verse and mothers’ “happy, smiling faces” might get removed. Wishful thinking?? The Utah song lasted a long time, but was finally cut.

I’ll close with a thought-provoking quote from the Latter-day Hymns book: “From the texts of the hymns that have been preserved, we can discern the values, the collective wisdom, the beliefs, hopes, fears, and even something of the history of the people who wrote them. A hymnbook is a testament to the unique qualities of a people.”

So what can we learn about our beliefs from our hymnal? What do our hymns say about us as a people? I think the hymnal testifies of our belief and hope in Christ, of our unique history and traditions, and of the emphasis we place on serving others and strengthening our families. I feel good about these most basic of beliefs. And when I sing the hymns that talk about Christ, service, and families, I feel good inside. The first presidency message in the intro. of the new hymnal says that hymns “can lift our spirits, give us courage, and move us to righteous action.” Good goals.