“Praise God in song: proclaiming His greatness and giving Him thanks.” ~ Psalm 69:30
The man with a big heart beamed
with pride as he heard a Boston children's choir sing for the first time in
public, a tune he’d written a few months ago. It was the summer of 1832 when
immigration to America was increasing at a notable rate due to political and
social upheavals in Europe. As a result, Americans were unsure about whether
the union would survive the strain.
Months earlier, Samuel Francis Smith, a 24-year-old theology
student who spoke several languages, had been asked to translate some European
songs into English for a new hymnal the publisher was compiling. His eyes fell
on a German song entitled "God Bless Our Native Land."
The song, simply titled "America," would
eventually be better known by its first few words:
"My Country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing: Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, From every mountainside, let freedom ring!”
A tribute to our homeland, it prays reverence to God
and pleads for His continued guidance. This song nearly sings itself – unites
our minds and hearts, and in a matter of minutes transports us to a lofty place
in another time.
Smith later declared that he had not intentionally tried to
write a patriotic song, but it soon took on a life of its own. It served as our
de facto national anthem until “The Star-Spangled Banner” was adopted nearly a century
later in 1931.
After graduating from Harvard
and the Andover Seminary, Dr. Smith became an influential minister in several
New England churches, composing over 150 hymns before his passing in 1985 at
the age of 88. Today the song, decidedly easier to sing than the National
Anthem, continues to inspire.
As its popularity increased, "America" was
accepted for use in public schools and civic ceremonies. When Martin Luther
King Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963 from the
steps of the Lincoln Memorial to over 200,000 civil rights supporters, the
refrain - "Let freedom ring!"- climaxed his historic speech. More
recently, Both Presidents Obama and Trump included the song as part of their
inauguration celebrations.
Each time Samuel Smith's masterpiece is heard, we should
thank our Heavenly Father for all the blessings we enjoy as Americans. Sing it courageously.
Sing it proudly, and most of all, sing it with gratitude in your heart.
“Our fathers’ God to thee, Author of
liberty, To Thee we sing. Long may our land be bright, with freedom’s holy
light, protect us by Thy might, Great God our King! ~ America,
Verse 4 by Samuel Francis Smith
