So, I was singing in the shower one day recently (yes, I sing in the shower), and for whatever reason America the Beautiful popped into my head. Perhaps it was because it was Sunday, perhaps it was because I was thinking patriotic thoughts after having watched Blackhawk Down the night before, God alone knows. Anyway, as I sang it occurred to me that I have most often sung this hymn in church. Then it occurred to me that there can’t be a more inappropriate place to sing it. I mean, the entire song is basically an ode to the nation, which is the definition of idolatry. Three of the four verses of the song are addressed directly the country, not God as one might expect while singing hymns in church.
Music is an amazing form of worship, and I love singing in church, be it hymns, praises or spiritual songs, but let’s be honest, America the Beautiful, judged by its lyrics, simply doesn’t fit the bill well at all. Yes, it is in many ways a plea, a call for blessing on the nation, and could thus be justified, but, again, let’s be honest here, when most people sing the song, they’re not prayerfully hoping for God’s blessing on the United States, but pridefully considering the largess of their wonderful homeland. Such is the extent of American vanity.
Having said that, let me say, for the record, that I firmly believe the
As for America the Beautiful, perhaps we should rethink its incorporation into the modern psalter. It is a fine song, deserving to be sung at sporting events, civil ceremonies, family gatherings and the like, but I have a hard time believing that people singing it on Sunday morning at their local church are offering a praise to God. More likely they are pondering the aesthetic value of the Rocky Mountains, or sunset on the great plains, and how tragic it would be for anyone to worship the created in the face of their Creator.
