In honor of our nation’s birthday, today I present to you one of America’s most defining songs: Battle Hymn of the Republic. As I shared in my July 2024 post, the genesis of this beloved tune is ultimately a story about revision and rebirth—just like the story of America itself. It is a song that reinvented itself time and time again, and continues to do so, even until today.
As you bring to mind the following lyrics, consider the relevance of these powerful words in this era:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword;
His truth is marching on.
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps,
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps:
His day is marching on.
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
Pro Deo et Patria.
Cello: Stephanie Augusta
© Stephanie Augusta Bento, House of Riverenza, 2025.
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