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Many hymns have been written to celebrate great events in the life of Christ. But today’s hymn is only one of a few that have been written for patriotic causes. The occasion for the writing of God of our Fathers was the centennial of the Declaration of Independence in 1876. Many other hymns were written for this event, but only this one has survived.

Today, when it seems that to be "in" one is expected to rule patriotism "out", it is necessary to recall the emphasis of Scripture...

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Many hymns have been written to celebrate great events in the life of Christ. But today’s hymn is only one of a few that have been written for patriotic causes. The occasion for the writing of God of our Fathers was the centennial of the Declaration of Independence in 1876. Many other hymns were written for this event, but only this one has survived.

Today, when it seems that to be "in" one is expected to rule patriotism "out", it is necessary to recall the emphasis of Scripture regarding a Christian’s duty to country. "Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s" commanded the perfect Patriot in Mark 12: 17. And one Christ’s chief disciples wrote, "Submit yourself for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the King, as the supreme authority, or to governors who are sent by him. (1 Peter 2:13)

And the Apostle Paul echoed the same conviction: "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities." (Romans 13:1). This was at a time when the Roman authorities were hardly examples of God-fearing virtue.

To be sure, governments are not infallible and there is room for constructive, honest criticism. But when we critique our country, let us remember that the following is important:

• Pray for America—our hymn is such a prayer
• Pay our taxes—not a happy task, but it is biblical: see Romans 13:7.
• Serve—have you prayed recently for our military men and women?
• Vote—sadly, only about 50% of those eligible, vote in a USA presidential election. And the percentage is lower for all other elections. Of even more concern is that Bible-believing Christians do no better than the general population when it comes to voting!

Some folks insist that America was founded as a Christian nation, but history does not bear this out. But, even if it were true, being born in a Christian nation does not make one a Christian any more than being born in a garage makes one a Chevrolet—or being born in a hospital makes one a doctor! A nation is only Christian when its citizens love and serve Jesus Christ. Therefore, when we pray for our country, let us first pray for the conversion of her citizens.

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Daniel C. Roberts, the 35 year-old rector of St. Thomas Episcopal Church, a small rural church in Brandon, Vermont, wanted a new hymn for his congregation to celebrate the American Centennial in 1876. He wrote "God of Our Fathers" and his congregation sang it to the tune RUSSIAN HYMN.

In 1892, he anonymously sent the hymn to the General Convention for consideration by the commission formed to revise the Episcopal hymnal. If approved, he promised to send his name. The commis...

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Daniel C. Roberts, the 35 year-old rector of St. Thomas Episcopal Church, a small rural church in Brandon, Vermont, wanted a new hymn for his congregation to celebrate the American Centennial in 1876. He wrote "God of Our Fathers" and his congregation sang it to the tune RUSSIAN HYMN.

In 1892, he anonymously sent the hymn to the General Convention for consideration by the commission formed to revise the Episcopal hymnal. If approved, he promised to send his name. The commission approved it, printing it anonymously in its report. Rev. Dr. Tucker, who was the editor of the Hymnal, and George W. Warren, an organist in New York city, were commissioned to choose a hymn for the celebration of the centennial of the United States Constitution.  They chose this text and Warren wrote a new tune for it, NATIONAL HYMN, including the trumpet fanfare at the beginning of the hymn.

It was first published in Tucker’s Hymnal, 1892, with this tune, then in 1894 in the Tucker and Rosseau’s Hymnal Revised and Enlarged. These lyrics were also set to the hymn tune PRO PATRIA in Charles Hutchins’ The Church Hymnal.  But NATIONAL HYMN prevailed and it is the tune to which "God of Our Fathers" is always sung today.

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