Joseph Medlicott Scriven

Joseph Medlicott Scriven was an Irish-born Canadian poet and teacher whose life was defined by profound personal tragedy and an unwavering commitment to the service of others. Born in County Down, Ireland, in 1819, Scriven was highly educated, graduating from Trinity College, Dublin. His early adulthood was marked by the first of many life-altering sorrows; in 1844, on the night before his scheduled wedding, his fiancée tragically drowned. Seeking a new beginning, he emigrated to Canada later that year, settling in Ontario where he took up teaching. However, tragedy followed him to the New World; in 1855, his second fiancée died following a brief illness, leaving him once again in a state of deep mourning.

In the wake of these calamities, Scriven’s life took a turn toward the ascetic and the eccentric. He joined the Plymouth Brethren and dedicated himself to living out the Sermon on the Mount as literally as possible. He became a familiar, if misunderstood, figure around Port Hope, Ontario, where he performed menial labor for the poor, gave away his possessions, and lived a life of voluntary poverty. Despite his education and military background, he often lacked a steady income and stayed in the homes of friends. His neighbors frequently viewed his selfless behavior and his struggles with depression with a mix of confusion and mistrust.

Scriven is best remembered for writing the world-renowned hymn "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." He composed the poem in 1855 specifically to comfort his mother in Ireland during a time of her own intense sorrow. Scriven never intended for the verses to be published or for his authorship to be widely known. The hymn was only discovered near the end of his life when a neighbor, while sitting with him during an illness, found a manuscript of the poem. When questioned about it, Scriven simply remarked that the Lord and he had "it between them." The text was eventually set to a comforting tune by Charles Crozat Converse, which helped it become one of the most famous hymns in the global Christian repertoire.

The themes of the hymn, bearing one's own cross, finding solace in prayer, and the constancy of Christ as a friend, were direct reflections of Scriven's own lived experience. His life ended as tragically as it began; in 1886, he was found drowned in Rice Lake. Due to his lifelong battle with depression, it was never fully determined if his death was an accident or a final act of despair. Regardless of the circumstances of his passing, his legacy remains tied to the message of peace he offered his mother, which has since provided comfort to millions of people facing their own "trials and temptations."