The Praise of God’s People: A Hymnological and Theological Analysis of ‘Praise to the Lord the Almighty’

Abstract

Congregational hymn singing in the praise of God has been a major aspect of liturgy among mission churches in Nigeria since the early nineteenth century. Over time there has been a consistent decline and or neglect in congregational hymn singing among Christian denominations. This paper is a hymnological as well as a theological interpretation and analysis of the hymn ‘Praise to the Lord the Almighty’ which aims at eliciting understanding and fostering congregational hymn singing in Faith Baptist Church Port Harcourt, Rivers State. A historical survey of the life of the author, hymn background, poetic and hymn tune analysis were carried out on the song to achieve an in-depth interpretation of the author’s ideology about praise to God. Findings reveal that there were three incommunicable aspects of the nature of God, nine reasons for the praise, and a call to praise God leading to a better understanding of the hymn and a commitment by the congregation to live daily a life of praise to God