Ask John: Where Did Nerv’s Motto Come From?

Question:
On the commentary track for Eva: Death & Rebirth, Taliesin Jaffe said that the slogan for NERV (God’s in his heaven, all’s right with the world) came from a poem about spring time. He never mentions the title. Would you happen to know what the poem is called and who the author is?

Answer:
This line comes from Robert Browning’s famous 1841 poem “Song, From Pippa Passes”

The year’s at the spring,
And day’s at the morn;
Morning’s at seven;
The hill-side’s dew-pearled;
The lark’s on the wing;
The snail’s on the thorn;
God’s in his Heaven –
All’s right with the world!