1859–1919

Introduction

Born: May 15, 1859, St. Ma­ry­le­bone, Mid­dle­sex, Eng­land.

Died: Feb­ru­ary 25, 1919, Nor­wich, Eng­land.

Buried: Nor­wich Ca­thed­ral, Nor­folk, Eng­land.

portrait

Biography

Henry was the son of J. P. G. Beech­ing of Bex­hill, Sur­rey.

He was edu­cat­ed at the Ci­ty of Lon­don School; Bal­li­ol Col­lege, Ox­ford (BA 1883, MA 1887); and Dur­ham (DLit 1903).

He took Ho­ly Or­ders in 1882, and held a num­ber of posts, in­clud­ing Chap­lain of Lin­coln’s Inn; Pro­fess­or of Pas­tor­al and Li­tur­gi­cal Theo­lo­gy, King’s Col­lege, Lon­don; Clark Lec­tur­er in Eng­lish Li­te­ra­ture, Tri­ni­ty Col­lege, Cam­bridge; and Dean of Nor­wich. He became Ca­non of West­min­ster in 1902, and Preach­er at Lin­coln’s Inn in 1904.

Works

Poem

Caiaphas

The signal comes; Azazel’s goat is dead.
Dead too our sin, and—the atonement fit
Such as His people may to God All-dread
Present and live—have paid their lives for it
A bullock and a ram; that, type of sin;
This, symbol of obedient hearts within.

And now I wash: O whiter than white snow,
Whiter than these white robes make Thou my hands,
Use Thou as I the hyssop, for I go
Before Thy face to do Thy dear commands.
I lift the veil, and thro’ the awful dark
Scatter the blood towards the Holy Ark.

So it is done: For you, O people mine
Thus year by year doth your High-priest atone;
Pouring the innocent blood of goats and kine,
Bending before the mercy-seat alone.
Lo, ye are clean; O bruised, afflicted sore,
God hath forgiven you, go, and sin no more.

Ay, put away from you the accursed thing,
Schism and sedition; give to all their dues:
Why make a Christ when Cæsar is your king,
Why kick against the pricks, O foolish Jews?
Surely ’twere well that one mad man should die,
And not the whole people perish utterly.

Henry C. Beeching
In a Garden, and Other Po­ems, 1895

Sources

Lyrics

Translations