The Rev. Michael Joncas keeps a framed piece of “On Eagles’ Wings” sheet music in his home. The hymn, written by Joncas, was recited by President-elect Joe Biden during his acceptance speech Saturday. (Photo courtesy of Michael Joncas)
In President-elect Joe Biden’s acceptance speech Saturday, he recited “On Eagle’s Wings,” a hymn written by University of St. Thomas artist-in-residence and St. Paul priest the Rev. Michael Joncas.
“On the last days of the campaign, I began thinking about a hymn,” Biden said. “It goes like this: And he will raise you up on eagle’s wings, bear you on the breath of dawn, make you shine like the sun and hold you in the palm of his hand.”
Joncas wrote the hymn in Washington, D.C., in 1976 after learning that his friend’s father had a heart attack. He sang the hymn for the first time at his wake in Omaha, Nebraska.
The song can now be found in Christian hymnals across denominations and has been translated into multiple languages. It’s used for funerals, baptisms and moments of hope, like Biden did in his speech.
“I’ve been just blown away by how God has used this song to comfort people in all sorts of situations,” Joncas said. “It’s not just a funeral song — it can be used in times of great joy, as well.”
Joncas serves as an artist-in-residence and research fellow in the Catholic Studies department, a position assigned to him by former St. Thomas president the Rev. Dennis Dease. Since earning that position, he has written multiple hymns, including one for the university and one for President Julie Sullivan.
Joncas believes Biden saw a new interpretation in his work in a deeply divided country, believing that the meaning of a work of art is constructed by both those who create and receive it.
“I realized afterward that he had actually come up with a new interpretation — he knows that an eagle can’t soar unless it uses both wings,” Joncas said. “It’s, in a way, a statement about the healing that he’s hoping for in the country. Together, we can actually soar. But you know, if there’s a broken wing, then we’re not going to soar.”
After Biden quoted his work, Joncas said his phone would not stop ringing with messages of congratulations.
“One of my sisters said ‘Oh! Are you gonna go to the inauguration and sing it?’ I said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to get an invitation to do that,’ … and my sister broke in and said ‘Well, could you get us all tickets for the inauguration?’” Joncas laughed. “Shows what my family is like.”
“I actually am going to write (Biden) a letter just to offer him my prayers as he begins his work,” Joncas said. “I don’t expect to be at the inauguration.”
Emily Haugen can be reached at haug7231@stthomas.edu.