An incredibly prolific English poet, George Herbert was also a devout Anglican priest. Faith and talent combined so that all his poetry was written for the glory of God.
His voracious reading of poetry, combined with his talent and cultivation of his gifts, allowed him to produce some great works. Though Herbert didn’t seek literary fame, his poems garnered strong responses. Some pieces shocked people. Others were well-received. Either way, his work influenced many other poets in his day and for years to come.
What Do We Know about George Herbert’s Family?
George Herbert came from a large Welsh family and was born in 1593.
His father died when he was three. His mother, Magdalen Newport, raised Herbert along with her nine other children and ensured they received a good education. Newport was a great admirer of the poet John Donne.
Herbert was schooled at Westminster School in London, followed by university studies at Trinity College, Cambridge. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1613 and his master’s in 1616.
Herbert’s siblings included his famous brother, Edward Herbert. Edward was a philosopher, studied at Oxford, and was the Baron of Herbert Castle. Like his brother, Edward was incredibly prolific, a voracious reader, and led an interesting life as an academic, traveler, musician, and satirist. Some of Edward’s most famous works are The Life and Reign of King Henry the Eighth, published in 1649, and De Veritate, published in 1624.
What Were George Herbert’s Accomplishments as a Priest?
Herbert’s life was not always easy. From 1626 to 1629, Herbert experienced difficult health issues, the loss of his mother, and great poverty. Things began to get better after his marriage to Jane Danvers in 1629 and his decision to pursue the calling of becoming a priest. By pursuing this clerical calling, Herbert became a better writer and developed a deeper faith in Christ.
In 1630, Herbert was ordained as an Anglican priest in the Church of England. He then became the rector at a parish in Bemerton. During his three years as a priest, Herbert gladly served the people in his parish by caring for them, giving them the sacraments, and performing morning and night prayers. Herbert was well known as a humble servant of Christ that truly lived out his vocational calling.
After Herbert died in 1633, his most important work, The Temple Sacred Poems and Private Ejaculations, was published. This volume of poetry conveys the tension between doubt and faith Herbert experienced in his life, his love for writing and language, and his gratitude to Christ for the sacramental gift of life.
Two great literary examples of Herbert’s accomplishment as a priest and poet are the completion of his well-known poems “Christmas” and “Love III.” These two poems are not just well-crafted verses. They provide something universal for any person to relate to. Herbert knew as a priest what it meant to suffer, pray, and celebrate with his congregation. Herbert did not allow the social status of being an Anglican priest as an excuse to seek comfort and security in money or prestige. Herbert knew he was called to serve God’s people and fulfilled that calling to the best of his ability.
“Christmas” was published in 1633 and captures the wonder of Jesus’ Incarnation in the first century. For Christians, Christmas is not just for gathering with family, spreading good cheer, and giving presents. At its root, it is a time to reflect on the coming of the Prince of Peace that became the suffering servant. The speaker in the poem conveys the emptiness experienced after pursuing vain hedonistic pleasures. After the painful shame and grief, the speaker finds that the same God who became incarnate through the Virgin Mary on a cold night in Israel is the same God who comforted them in their grief.
“Love III” was published in 1633 and is a poignant description of Christ’s agape love. The speaker in the poem expresses a reluctance to be forgiven by Christ after experiencing a painful fall from grace. After struggling with the tension of either despair or surrender, the speaker makes a choice: surrender. They find themselves welcomed home to a celebratory feast as the prodigal son was, recorded in Luke 15. This poem is a great work Christians all around the world can relate to. It is honest about the shame that comes from not living up to one’s own standards. However, it also affirms the freedom and joy found in Christ, whose agape is greater than despair and sin.
What Does It Mean that George Herbert Was a Metaphysical Poet?
Herbert was part of the seventeenth-century literary movement known as the metaphysical poets. Other members included John Donne, Andrew Marvell, Henry Vaughan, Abraham Cowley, and Richard Crashaw.
These poets explored theological and philosophical themes in their poetry by seeking to convey how the divine is experienced in life by people. These poets rejected scientific materialism and proclaimed that the purpose of humankind was to glorify God and enjoy him forever. The Bible, Greek philosophy, different mythologies, and metaphysics all inspired the metaphysical poets. Many people have found great spiritual nourishment in their work, and they continue to be studied extensively by academics today.
Who Are Some Christian Poets that George Herbert Influenced?
Herbert’s work went on to inform various poets. Two are particularly worth noting.
Herbert was a great influence on C.S. Lewis. While better remembered today for his apologetics and fiction, Lewis began his writing career as a poet, publishing the works Spirits in Bondage and Dymer. He would continue to write poetry throughout his life. Lewis read The Temple numerous times, gaining great spiritual nourishment from it. In Surprised by Joy, Lewis included Herbert in a list of writers he discovered as an atheist and was surprised to find out were Christians—writers whose works helped lead him to faith. Lewis recommended Herbert’s poetry to many of his correspondents and highly praised Herbert not only in Surprised by Joy but in his literary study The Oxford History of English Literature Excluding Drama.
Another notable poet influenced by Herbert was T.S. Eliot, considered one of the twentieth century’s greatest poets. Among other things, Eliot the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1948. Eliot wrote a critical study of Herbert’s poetry in 1962. The book is a great work of literary scholarship exploring Herbert as a great man with an incredible understanding of language and a God-given talent that he used well.
Best Books by George Herbert
Herbert’s work has been collected in several books, including The Complete Poetry edited by John Drury.
Other great collections of his work include:
Herbert Poems (Everyman’s Library Pocket Poet series)
The English Poems of George Herbert edited by Helen Wilcox
The Temple edited by Henry L. Carrigan
A Priest To The Temple or The Country Parson edited by Ronald Blythe
Great Books about George Herbert
These books are a great resource for studying Herbert’s work and legacy.
Music at Midnight: The Life and Poetry of George Herbert by John Drury
George Herbert: His Religion and Art by Joseph Summers
Reformation Spirituality: The Religion of George Herbert by Gene E. Veith
A Year With Herbert: A Guide To Fifty-Two of His Best Loved Poems by Jim Scott Orick
Spelling The Word: George Herbert and The Bible by Chana Bloch
Working It Out: Growing Spiritually With The Poetry of George Herbert by Joseph L. Womack
Love Three: A Study of A Poem by George Herbert by Aaron Kunin
If you meet George Herbert on the Road, Kill Him: Radically Rethinking Priestly Ministry by Justin Lewis-Anthony
Photo Credit: 1829 portrait by Henry Hoppner Meyer via Wikimedia Commons.
Justin Wiggins is an author who works and lives in the primitive, majestic, beautiful mountains of North Carolina. He graduated with his Bachelor's in English Literature, with a focus on C.S. Lewis studies, from Montreat College in May 2018. His first book was Surprised by Agape, published by Grant Hudson of Clarendon House Publications. His second book, Surprised By Myth, was co-written with Grant Hudson and published in 2021. Many of his recent books (Marty & Irene, Tír na nÓg, Celtic Twilight, Celtic Song, Ragnarok, Celtic Dawn) are published by Steve Cawte of Impspired.
Wiggins has also had poems and other short pieces published by Clarendon House Publications, Sehnsucht: The C.S. Lewis Journal, and Sweetycat Press. Justin has a great zeal for life, work, community, writing, literature, art, pubs, bookstores, coffee shops, and for England, Scotland, and Ireland.
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