Henry van Dyke

1852–1933 · American clergyman, poet & diplomat

Henry van Dyke was an American Presbyterian clergyman, Princeton professor, and diplomat who served as U.S. Minister to the Netherlands. He wrote widely read devotional and literary works, including the Christmas tale The Other Wise Man and the hymn text “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee.” His brief sundial meditation on the subjectivity of time became his most quoted lines — and, decades later, a magnet for false attribution to Shakespeare.

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“Time is very slow for those who wait, very fast for those who are scared, very long for those who lament, very short for those who celebrate, but for those who love, time is eternal”

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