This past week we heard the hymn sung and played at the services for Ronald Reagan. Over the last few decades, it has become one of the most well-known and popular hymns of the Christian faith. There was a recording released in 1971 by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards that became a hit worldwide. Since that time, many recordings have been made that included "Amazing Grace."

As a matter of fact, about a year ago, I noticed that many of my CD's included the hymn. I decided to burn a CD that included all the versions in my library. I ended up with a CD containing 16 different recordings of "Amazing Grace." I thought it might be boring to listen to an entire CD of the same song sung many times. I was surprised to find it was not boring at all. There is such a variety of musical styles. I included everything from the Hee-Haw Gospel Quartet to the London Symphony Orchestra. I sometimes listen to it in the car when I am driving.

The original hymn was written in the 18th century by John Newton. The hymn tune is an old American folk melody entitled "Loving Lambs." John grew up as a rebellious young man in England, and eventually became the captain of a slave ship. Conditions on those slave ships were deplorable. Men, women, and children were jammed into those ships. Many died before arriving in America. During a particularly stormy journey, he was reading Thomas A Kempis's book, "Imitation of Christ." The combination of the deadly storm and the message from the book caused Newton to turn his life around. He eventually became a preacher and had a popular following. Shortly before his death, he proclaimed in a loud voice, "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior."

The original version had six stanzas. The stanza that appears last in most hymn books was not written by Newton. That is the familiar:

Bill Moyers did a whole program on "Amazing Grace" some years ago. In it, he remarked that there have been over 130 verses written by various people. Everyone has their favorite verse. Mine is one of the original ones:

I would not call this the greatest hymn ever written. It does not rank with the hymns of Isaac Watts as far as hymn quality goes. However, there is something about this hymn that has captured the imagination of our time. Perhaps people who are searching for meaning in there own lives have caught the simple idea from the old slave trader that a God of Love can forgive even the vilest of sinners. So his "Amazing Grace" extends even to me.