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Chad's avatar

I totally thought this would be about "I have decided to follow Jesus," but I enjoyed this nonetheless.

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Debra Esolen's avatar

Chad, that's a great hymn. I love it!

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Fr. Scott Bailey, C.Ss.R.'s avatar

My goodness! I should think the moderns would excise this from every hymnal. Imagine putting Jesus first!

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Anthony Esolen's avatar

That's right. You know, the more I learn about such things as the YMCA movement, and the Chautauqua movement, and The Knights of Father Mathew (a Catholic temperance movement), the more powerfully I am struck by the intelligence and the forceful moral preaching that the promoters manifested. To speak to five thousand men at once, at that time, when people did not have automobiles or a lot of free time, was quite a feat, and I daresay if we could read their sermons, we'd be abashed. I know that I'm abashed when I read works of literary criticism from before 1950...

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Amy De Rosa's avatar

Wow what a story.

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Debra Esolen's avatar

So many stories!

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Rosemary Morici's avatar

Thank you for this beautiful story.

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Debra Esolen's avatar

We enjoy learning about the hymn writers very much.

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Fr. Roger Boucher's avatar

Great rendition from Tewksbury and the words are appropriate for voting day.

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Debra Esolen's avatar

Father, we had that in mind! And thanks be to God for the reprieve.

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