Growing up, my favorite two pages in any book were Hymns 381-382 in The Covenant Hymnal (1973): “Day by Day and with Each Passing Moment” and “Children of the Heavenly Father,” both originally written in Swedish by the great Lina Sandell. If the stale old joke is actually true and Swedish is the language of heaven, then surely the … More Children of the Heavenly Father
Here… • Three days after it went up, Mark Bruce’s guest post on Christian college conversations about sexuality was far and away the most-read post of the year at this blog. I think he struck a chord. • And my own post on the topic, expressing hope that such conversations could actually renew evangelicalism, is … More That Was The Week That Was
Here… • Joy, expectation, and Easter Monday. • The plan to take over all media is working out nicely: catch up with our department webisodes as we visit Europe and talk faith and history; and get a sneak preview of the new Pietist Schoolman Podcast. • Forget would-be “Protestant Notre Dames”… Just what makes Notre Dame … More That Was The Week That Was
The church is never more the church than at a funeral. Or so I decided last week, as the members and friends of Salem Covenant joined five families in paying final respects to five saints of the church. I didn’t know all five well, but I am glad that I was able to attend last Friday’s memorial service for Alyce Hawkinson … More Alyce’s Song: Reflections on a Funeral
From my very first Christmastide as a blogger… Because it’s about the parents of Jesus, it makes for a decent sequel to my previous post. Not just Boxing Day, Return Unwanted Gifts Day, or Two Turtle Doves Day, the second day of Christmas has enormous theological importance: It reminds us that when the angels returned to the … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: “What Child Is This?”
Here… • Are American Christians entering a time of exile? (Are Christians ever not living in exile?) How can history guide us? • Getting excited about stumbling across a term paper on Pietism by a college-aged John Howard Yoder is about the nerdiest thing I’ve done this year… …There and Everywhere • If you’ve been following … More That Was The Week That Was
Now that we’re into the academic year and I’m both busier and readership is up, I thought I’d ease into the week by reposting a couple of pieces that you might have missed during the warmer months. I’ll start with a three-part series from July. Which patriotic hymns are most popular? Have they changed over … More Best of The Pietist Schoolman: A Brief History of Patriotism in American Hymnals
By far the most popular American patriotic hymn is Samuel Francis Smith’s “America,” appearing in over 1600 of the hymnals indexed at Hymnary.org — nearly four times as many as Katharine Lee Bates’ “America the Beautiful” and Julia Ward Howe’s “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” five times more than Francis Scott Key’s “Star-Spangled Banner.” And … More “Of thee I sing”: A Brief History of Patriotism in American Hymnals (part 3)
I’m still researching an answer to last Monday‘s closing question: why is it that so many hymnals don’t include popular patriotic hymns? As a placeholder, though, I thought it might be fun to share a rare evening post spotlighting a few songs in this genre that just never found an audience. (Here again, relying on … More “Of thee I sing”: A Brief History of Patriotism in American Hymnals (part 2)
Which patriotic hymns are most popular? Have they changed over time? Researching an Independence Day post in which I didn’t exactly gush with enthusiasm at the inclusion of patriotic songs in American hymnals, I discovered Hymnary.org, “a comprehensive index of hymns and hymnals” supported by the Hymn Society, Calvin College’s Institute of Christian Worship, and … More “Of thee I sing”: A Brief History of Patriotism in American Hymnals (part 1)
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