Faith of Our Fathers
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. Hebrews 11: 1,2
Frederick William Faber was raised in an Anglican parsonage in Calverley, Yorkshire, England; but both his parents died when he was young. When he moved to Oxford University as a young man, he came under the influence of the great Roman Catholic, John Henry Newman, author of "Lead, Kindly Light." Following graduation, Faber entered the Anglican ministry, but his soul was troubled. He was drawn to the historic, reverent liturgy of the Catholic faith. On Sunday night, November 16, 1845, he announced to his congregation that he intended to leave the Church of England and be ordained as a Roman Catholic.
For the remainder of his short life - Faber died at fifty-nine - he endeavored to provide a body of hymns for English Catholics to sing. Perhaps his most enduring is "Faith of Our Fathers."
What most Protestants don't know is that Faber wrote this song to remind the Catholic Church of its martyrs during the days of the Protestant King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. "Good Queen Bess," for example, used fines, gallows, gibbets, racks, and whips against those who said Mass, honored the pope, or harbored a priest. Often in the middle of the night, thugs would burst into Catholic homes drag them away to be scourged, fined or seared with glowing irons. The dungeons were choked with victims.
Nicholas Owen was such a victim. Probably a builder by trade, Owen designed countless hiding places for endangered Catholics. He hid them in secret rooms, between the walls, and under the floors. He hid them in stone fences and in underground passages. He designed nooks and crannies that looked like anything but hiding places.
When Nicholas was at last betrayed, he was dragged to the Tower of London and his arms were fixed to iron rings. There he hung for hours, his body dangling. Weights added to his feet increased the suffering. The tortures continued until March 2, 1606 when "his bowels broke in a terrible way" and he passed to his reward.
It was for these Catholic heroes, martyred at the hands of so-called "Protestant" monarch, that "Faith of Our Fathers" was originally written. Now, of course, this great hymn reminds us all of the noble sacrifices made by those in every branch of the Christian family who have passed on their faith to us" ...in spite of dungeon, fire and sword."
Excerpt from "Then Sings My Soul" by Robert J. Morgan
Thomas Nelson Publishers
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