by Ana Elise Lowe • 3 minutes
This Fourth of July weekend, many of us will likely hear and sing the Star-Spangled Banner. But did you know that before this song became America’s official anthem in 1931, another tune echoed across the land as the de facto national hymn of independence, pride and prayer?
That song was: My Country ‘Tis of Thee.
For many decades, this melody was what Americans turned to when there was a time to be united. But far beyond the patriotic tune lies something deeper. Something Americans today may have never noticed.
Samuel F. Smith, a seminary student at Andover Theological Seminary, wrote the lyrics to My Country ‘Tis of Thee in 1831. The song was first introduced to the public by a children’s church choir at Park Street Church in Boston. The melody was borrowed from God Save the King, a British anthem, which at that time lended familiarity. Instead of singing praises to an earthly king though, Smith’s lyrics point to something higher: faith and liberty.
My country ‘tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the Pilgrims’ pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!
It’s easy to forget that the first songs Americans sang about our country were filled not just with patriotism, but also with prayer. These lyrics aren’t just about national pride; they are about a divinely inspired purpose. The final stanza contains profoundly religious lyrics
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.
The national anthem implores God in a similar manner. When The Star-Spangled Banner is played at the backyard barbeque or baseball game, we only sing the first verse. In fact, most of us only know about the first verse.
Francis Scott Key, however, wrote more. The fourth verse is deeply spiritual and directly acknowledges God’s divine power:
O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their lov’d home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace may the Heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto – “In God is our trust,”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
When we sing these songs, (really, when we sing the first stanza of each one), how often do we realize what the authors are saying? “Author of liberty”? “Praise the Power”? These words aren’t just poetic. They are theological. Smith and Key are claiming something bold. That our freedom doesn’t come from the government. It comes from God.
In that time when public expressions of faith were ordinary, the complete words of these songs were not controversial. They were cultural. They were woven into everyday life, including music sung by children in churches, schools and homes. And yet, most Americans today only know the first verse, if they even remember it at all.
This Fourth of July weekend, as you appreciate the blessings our Founders fought for and take in the fireworks show representing the liberty we have gained, let us take time to remember the foundations of faith and religious freedom in our country. When you hear the national anthem, take it as an opportunity to reflect on how the United States came to be.
Religious liberty has always been a part of America’s DNA. It’s not just a political talking point or a line in the Constitution. It’s the soul of who we are. Samuel Smith understood this and so did Francis Scott Key. These men didn’t separate their faith from their patriotism. In fact, they believed faith was an integral part of what made liberty possible.
My Country ‘Tis of Thee is more than nostalgia. It’s a statement of identity. When we sing these anthems, we shouldn’t just remember the past, but we should also be re-centering on a truth that should still shape our future. The truth is: God is the Author of Liberty and the Power who should be Praised.
At First Liberty, we fight to protect that truth. We work to ensure that all the words of My Country ‘Tis of Thee and The Star-Spangled Banner can continue to be sung, not only as tradition but as a testimony to what God has done.
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