We're back! And this year, we've picked another 62 great hymns from our tradition, plus another 16 that were written in during the sign-up process, to create a thrilling 10-week bracket challenge that will crown another 'greatest' hymn alongside last year's winner, Be Thou My Vision.

After ten weeks, this year’s challenge has reached its end, and we have a winner! Thanks to everyone for being part of another year of hymn-battling fun!

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling is a text that was composed by the great hymn writer, Charles Wesley. The Wesleys were strong believers in the power of hymns to be part of our Christian formation and teaching, and this hymn, written in 1747, is among their most beloved.

The hymn’s text is a prayer in the purest sense. It’s a plea for God’s transformative love — the love that excels above all other loves — to fill the hearts of the faithful people. The first verse praises Jesus as the way we know God’s love; the second verse expresses our desire for Christ’s enduring presence in our life. The third voice, the climax of this prayer, reflects our ongoing creation, reconciliation and renewal in Christ’s love, as it asks God to “finish, then, thy new creation, pure and spotless let us be.”

There are several tunes that this text sung by. The most common is Hyfrodol, a Welsh tune by composer Joseph Perry, is the well-known tune to “Alleluia, Sing to Jesus.” Another tune called Love Divine by German composer John Denzel was not contemporary with the hymn, being written in the 1870s.. When Wesley’s words were published in 1749 in a collection called Hymns for those that Seek and Those that have Found Salvation, it did not specify a tune.

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling entered this year’s bracket challenge as one of the write-in requests from several participants during the sign-up process, and those who requested it were specific about which tune they wanted it paired with: Blaenwern.

Blaenwern is a newer Welsh tune, first published in 1905, composed by Willian Penfro Rowlands, a Welsh composer, who named the tune after farm near his home in Wales. With its rich melodic lines, lilting 3/4 beat and strong harmonic structure, it’s a tune that fits the joy of Wesley’s tune well. Its rising second half raises the spirit of the hymn-singer, as they sing, “changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place; till we cast our crowns before thee, lost in wonder, love and praise.”

We genuinely hope you enjoyed this year’s Greatest Hymn bracket challenge.
Thanks for being part of the fun!

And true enough, the hymn that made it through won by just a single vote.

Semifinalists C & D
And in the other semi-final race, we had an easy victory for a fan-favourite write-in ballot candidate.

Here's the full field as it stands right now! There's also a higher-resolution version of the chart available that you can zoom in on.