Filler hymn, or a closing hymn to end Feast day services with. Spritely and uplifting. Nothing to alarm any passersby who might unwittingly overhear it. Until you examine what it meant to the people belting it out.
O Lord Thou art my God and King!
I’ll Thee exalt, Thy praise proclaim!
I will Thee bless, and gladly sing,
Forever to Thy Holy Name!
The Lord our God most gracious is,
In Him compassions also flow;
In mercy He is rich to bless,
But unto anger He is slow.
To all the Lord is very good,
Over all His works His mercy is;
Thy works all praise to Thee afford;
Thy saints, O Lord, Thy name shall bless.
Thy Kingdom’s glory they shall show;
they shall Thy power also tell;
So that men’s sons His deeds may know;
His kingdom’s grace that doth excel.
The first verse highlights a god the incoming member was shown. For long-term members, the last three lines of the first verse contained a double-edged sword. For if this very god we were praising was so rich to bless, quick to mercy, and slow to anger, why were we so very troubled, as members of “god’s true church”?
The unspoken answer was always (or the spoken answer, if one was naive enough to consult the ministry for “counselling”), either your faith isn’t strong enough, or your works aren’t good enough. If neither of those explanations appealed, it was obvious that it was simply another “trial” that the member was being “tested with”, so they would be adequate rulers in the kingdom.
The kingdom to come which is reflected in the second verse of this innocuous-seeming filler hymn. Always the kingdom to come, always looking ahead, never looking back. Never looking around at the world, to see it how it really was — and not how the cult wanted you to see it.
Tags: cult control, judaic god, kingdom of god, mystical manipulation
