Description

Far Far Away On Judea’s Plains

John Menzies Macfarlane was born in Stirling, Scotland in 1833. In 1852, along with his
widowed mother and a brother they came to Utah. As he matured he worked as a surveyor,
builder, attorney and a district judge, but it was music that was his passion.

In Cedar City, Utah he organized a choir that toured around southern Utah. He was heard by
Elder Erastus Snow of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Elder Snow encouraged him to move
to St. George.

The year was 1869 and times had been particularly difficult in St. George with hard weather and
a scarcity of food. Elder Snow called two men into his office and asked them to put on a
Christmas program for the people with a new song to lift their spirits. They were Charles Walker
and John Macfarlane. The two men had collaborated before and immediately set to work.
Charles composed words, but John could not envision the music to complete it. He “spoke to
God” about it.

Then one night after retiring to his bed, he suddenly awoke and exclaimed to his wife. “I have
the words for a song, and I think I have the music too!” He went to their small three-octave pump
organ and began to compose while his wife pumped the organ and held before him a bowl with a
burning piece of flannel floating in grease. As he played, the words and music came.
Notwithstanding the chill in the room they labored through the night.

It stood as written and was first performed in the winter of 1869. It is reasonable that John never
expected his composition to be sung beyond the Christmas of 1869 in St George, Utah. But the
hymn captured hearts and began to spread. Today it warms the Christian world every Christmas
season.

It is said that John never wrote both the words and music to another song. His power was music.
The song was first published in the Juvenile Instructor in 1889, three years before John died.

And what is the song… Far Far Away on Judea’s plain.

Source:

https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/KWNJ-79R

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Far,_Far_Away_on_Judea%27s_Plains