In his famous hymn to the church bell, his symbol for the church, he writes "that among all noble voices none could compare with that of the ringing bell." Despite the many fields in which he traced the imprint of the spiritual, the church remained throughout his long life his real spiritual home, a fact which he beautifully expresses in the hymn below.
Hallowed Church Bell, not for worldly centers Wast thou made, but for the village small Where thy voice, as home and hearth it enters, Blends with lullabies at evenfall.
When a child and in the country dwelling, Christmas morning was my heaven on earth, And thy chimes, like angel voices swelling, Told with joy of my Redeemer's birth.
Louder still thy joyful chimes resounded, When on wings of early morning borne, They proclaimed: Awake with joy unbounded, Christ arose this blessed Easter morn.
Sweeter even were thy tolls when blending With the calm of summer eventide And, as though from heaven above descending, Bid me cast all grief and care aside.
Hence when now the day is softly ending, Shadows fall and birds ascend their nest, Like the flowers my head in silence bending, I am chanting with my soul at rest:
When at last, O Church Bell, thou art tolling O'er my grave while loved grieve and sigh, Say to them, their troubled heart consoling, He is resting with his Lord on high.
[11]The printed text is corrupt, but the correction is not obvious. Norway and Finland might have "about as many" or "about half as many".
The Danish church has produced a large number of hymnwriters, who, except for the greatness of Kingo, Brorson and Grundtvig, would have commanded general recognition. The present hymnal of the church contains contributions by about sixty Danish writers. Though the majority of these are represented by only one or two hymns, others have made large contributions.
Kingo, Brorson and Grundtvig, peculiarly enough, had few imitators. A small number of writers did attempt to imitate the great leaders, but they formed no school and their work for the most part was so insignificant that it soon disappeared. Thus even Kingo's great work inspired no hymnwriter of any consequence, and the fifty years between Kingo and Brorson added almost nothing to the hymnody of the church. Contemporary with Brorson, however, a few writers appeared whose songs have survived to the present day. Foremost among these is Ambrosius Stub, a unique and sympathetic writer whose work constitutes a distinct contribution to Danish poetry.