Vincent William Uher III
Rev. Uher, an Episcopalian Priest, was born on Galveston Island near Texas - 'Born on the Island' - 13 May 1963, and is the fifth-generation to live on the Island. After undergoing a lengthy hospitalization in October, 2000, he retired from the active ministry. Rev. Uher was previously the rector at St. Catherine of Sienna Episcopal Church. He has written a number a very fine hymns and poems, which were available at his website [link is now broken]. A number of his hymns can also be found at Steve Benner's Oremus.org.
 Rev. Uher with a niece Patricia and nephew Joseph. Source: Rev. Uher's website. |
His Christmas-tide songs include:
ADVENT
CHRISTMAS
EPIPHANY
As I have not yet received permission to republish, the texts of Rev. Uher's hymns and carols are not yet reproduced on this site. [see below for a good-news update!]
Shortly after the Columbia shuttle disaster, Fr. Uher wrote the following verse which could be added to "Eternal Father, strong to save" or "Almighty Father, strong to save":
O God who names the starry host
and by whose love not one is lost,
who stretched thine arms wide to the sky
from cross to heav'n so death would die,Oh care for those who traverse space,
embrace them now who touch thy face.Copyright © 2003 by Vincent Uher
Fr. Uher used the Isaiah passage President Bush quoted that day and a bit of an Armenian prayer often quoted by Evelyn Underhill. The final line is based on the poem which President Reagan quoted after the Challenger disaster. Even though this verse was written for a specific occasion of memorial, some minor text changes, reflected here, make it useful as a contemporary prayer for those who travel to outer space.
Feel free to make use of the above. Please let Fr. Uher know if you use it.
In the late winter of 2003, I received an email from Rev. Uher. He is facing additional serious medical problems. Please remember him in your thoughts and prayers.
Update: In September, 2006, I received an additional email from Rev. Uher. I am pleased to report that he is in the process of recovery from those medical issues, and is able to return to writing and some teaching. A new website is being created by friends: http://www.vincentuher.org. It is not up and running yet; please check back.
Fr. Uher has given me permission to reproduce his Advent, Christmas and Epiphany hymns and carols. I am reformatting those works; they will appear soon.
Sources: Homepage of Vincent William Uher III (former link to Rev. Uher's Home Page is broken, but the new link will be established as soon as it is active), Church Publishing web site, and email correspondence with Rev. Uher.
