This through countless ages men and angels sing. Glory, laud and honor unto Christ the King, Onward then, ye people, join our happy throng,īlend with ours your voices in the triumph song. Am D His banners go G D D7 G C G Em C D Onward Christian soldiers Marching as to war. Christ the Royal Master leads against the foe. We have Christ’s own promise, and that cannot fail. Chords: G D D7 G Em D A7 Onward Christian soldiers Marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on. Gates of hell can never ‘gainst that church prevail RefrainĬrowns and thrones may perish, kingdoms rise and wane,īut the church of Jesus constant will remain. Kingdoms, nations, empires, in destruction rolled. Long as earth endureth, men the faith will hold, What the saints believèd, that I believe, too. What the saints established, that I hold for true. One in hope and doctrine, one in charity. Like a mighty army moves the church of God īrothers, we are treading where the saints have trod. Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise īrothers lift your voices, loud your anthems raise. On then, Christian soldiers, on to victory! Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,Ĭhrist, the royal Master, leads against the foe Īt the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee Read this hymn, and – today – be a faithful soldier for Christ! This hymn is based on the idea from Ephesians 6 & 2 Timothy 2:3.īut it has long been a favorite hymn of children, and is still sung in many churches today. The Salvation Army has adopted this hymn as their favorite processional. Later, he apologized for this hymn: “It was written in great haste, and I am fearful some of the rhymes are faulty.” He often gave hymnals permission to change the lyrics at their request. But, when Sabine Baring-Gould, a 31-year-old preacher and schoolteacher, wrote this hymn, he simply wanted to write a marching song for his school children as they walked from place to place. When I think of “Onward Christian Soldiers,” I can only hear the untrained voices of a little congregation of friends and family, gathered in mourning and hope, singing it for Grandpa’s last march Home.ONWARD, CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS written in 1867Įver since Paul told the Christians in Ephesus – and also us – to put on the armor of God, Christian writers have used this symbolism of a soldier to as a call to be prepared and to have courage. While each has its merits, neither of these quite captures my memories of this hymn. Of course, whether the hymn had to do with literal marching or not, perhaps for the infantry men who were Christian, just singing these words was a comfort: Crowns and thrones may perish/ kingdoms rise and wane/ But the Church of Jesus/ Constant will remain.Įven many years later, it was one of Grandpa’s favorites.īelow are a couple of options for listening to “Onward Christian Soldiers.” The first is a full choral and orchestral version, the second is instrumental piano with the text written on the screen. (This is in contrast to the “Church triumphant” in heaven, free from all of those struggles and sorrows.) CHRISTIAN LIFE > Christian Warfare SDAH 612 Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,with the cross of Jesus going on before.Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe. Rather, it refers to the Christian life on earth, locked in a struggle against spiritual forces of sin and evil. No, this isn’t a reference to Crusades, or any physical body of Christians charging off into battle. Rather, it’s a hymn of the “Church militant.”* The adaptation of “Onward Christian Soldiers” as a military hymn was, perhaps not quite as fitting as it seems.Īfter all, although lines like Onward Christian soldiers/ Marching as to war sound martial, the hymn doesn’t really refer to traditional warfare. The rest of the video-including some details of this secret meeting between Churchill and FDR- is worth a watch, too. Below is a video clip including FDR and Winston Churchill singing the hymn on HMS Prince of Wales in August of 1941. My grandpa’s Second World War divisional history (as well as other memoirs I’ve come across) describes marching and singing “Onward Christian Soldiers” as a common occurence. The strong rhythm and the rousing wording of the hymn helped make it a marching song for a much different purpose nearly 80 years later, during World War 2. “Onward Christian Soldiers” certainly wasn’t written as a funerary piece.Īnglican priest, Sabine Baring-Gould penned the hymn in 1865. He wrote it to be a marching tune, sung during a procession of the children of his Sunday school. Of course, musical associations are different from person to person. The third verse of “Away in a Manger” will always be the bed-time prayer Dad sang with me, which I now sing with my children.Īnd the thumping, march-y beat of “ Onward Christian Soldiers” will, likely, always be a funeral hymn in my mind. “ I Dream of Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair” always reminds me of my grandma. It’s amazing what strong associations music can forge in memory.
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