Edgar Allan Poe’s “Hymn” appeared in The Raven and Other Poems (1845). Poe revised it slightly from a version he used in his short story, “Morella.” He originally titled the work, “Catholic Hymn,” but crossed out “Catholic” in a copy of the collection he sent to a friend. It is said that Poe wrote the poem after hearing the bells of a Catholic Church ringing at noon in acknowledgment of the reciting of the Angelus prayer to the Virgin Mary.
AT morn — at noon — at twilight dim —
Maria! thou hast heard my hymn!
In joy and wo — in good and ill —
Mother of God, be with me still!
When the Hours flew brightly by,
And not a cloud obscured the sky,
My soul, lest it should truant be,
Thy grace did guide to thine and thee;
Now, when storms of Fate o’ercast
Darkly my Present and my Past,
Let my Future radiant shine
With sweet hopes of thee and thine!
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The featured image is the Ghent Altarpiece by Jan van Eyck, detail showing the Virgin Mary, and is in the public domain, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
I can’t help but wonder, after reading this “Hymn”, if Edgar Allen Poe was, or at least secretly wanted to be, a Catholic?
I’ve read other things by him that make me think he secretly admired the Church. May God rest his poor soul.
What a remarkable work! Who would’ve thought Poe would have written this? I’m grateful to James Cardinal Gibbons for bringing this to my attention through his instructive book The Faith of Our Fathers.