Rock of Ages (Christian hymn)
Rock of Ages is an English hymn. The German translation is titled Rock of Ages.
Text and melody
The text comes from the Calvinist preacher Augustus Montague Toplady and first appeared in 1775 in the Gospel Magazine. A publication together with the melody was composed by Thomas Hastings to 1830.
The title Rock of Ages ( " Rock of Eternity " ) refers to God and builds so far to Isaiah 26.4 LUT to: "Therefore leave you forever in the Lord; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock. " ( Luther translation ). In the tradition of the Calvinist doctrine of predestination the lyrics then stresses the overwhelming role of God in salvation history: neither by their own works or by faith man can be saved, but only by God - ultimately arbitrarily exercised - grace ( " Thou must save, and thou alone " ). Accordingly, he appears naked, helpless and empty-handed before the crucified Christ and hopes to be cleansed of his sins and to find refuge in God. Toplady is thus in contradiction to the particular Methodist theology of his rival John Wesley, that a human being after all, but the grace of God indeed can achieve by his faith not by works.
Sample (Organ solo) of Rock of Ages? / I
Genesis
According to tradition, Toplady said to have been inspired to write his song by an incident in the Cheddarschlucht (Somerset, England). Toplady, a preacher from the nearby village of Blagdon was surprised when crossing the ravine of a storm. After he had found shelter in a crevice, given the title came to mind and he wrote the lyrics on the back of a playing card down. The column still bears the name "Rock of Ages " and is also listed on some maps.
Effective history
The piece was one of the favorite works of the Prince Consort Albert, at its deathbed it was also played. It was also listed at the funeral the British Prime Minister Gladstone in Westminster Abbey in 1898 and 1901 when the U.S. President Harrison.
In particular, Rock of Ages but was caught by the gospel music. Today it is one of the central pieces of this style of music and the repertoire of many artists and choirs. Mention may be made about Amy Grant, Johnny Cash, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Al Green, Jim Nabors, Mahalia Jackson, The Golden Circle Choir, The Chuck Wagon Gang, The Stanley Brothers and The Martins.