Friday, March 28, 2025

It is the 28th of March 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

We are about 100 years into the era of popular music in the West. We’ve had almost a century of the ability to listen to music from various genres in the comfort of your own home. And with this came music tailor-made for specific groups and for different stations that attract certain demographics.  

We have seen “Christian” music designated as “inspirational,” “sacred,” or “Gospel,” but like popular music, it defies simple categories. Elvis, the King of Rock himself, was partial to Gospel music and, did you know: he only won three Grammy’s- and all three for Gospel songs. 2 of them were for versions of How Great Thou Art, and the other would shoot its composer into a new level of fame amongst Christian musicians. The song was “He Touched Me,” and the composer was Bill Gaither- the Godfather of Gospel Music (contemporary Gospel at least), who was born on the 28th of March in 1936. And the world of this new “cross-genre” and soon “cross-generational” music would become his hallmark.

Bill and his wife, Gloria, have written over 700 songs together, and they have 8 Grammys collectively. Bill helped create the Dove Awards- the “Christian Grammy’s” and he himself has won over 40 of the awards- second only to Stephen Curtis Chapman. He won the Dove Award for Songwriter of the Year every year from 1972 to 1977. Elvis made “He Touched Me” famous, but Gaither would become just as famous for his song “Because He Lives”- it was among Billy Graham’s favorite songs and played at his funeral. He and Gloria would be named Songwriters of the Century in 2000 by the American Society of Composers and Publishers (ASCAP).

Gaither was born on this day in 1936 in Alexandria, Indiana- and despite his fame and wealth, he is still residing in Alexandria today. After high school he worked for a time singing in a barbershop quartet for a radio station and then attended Taylor College (now University) and then taught at his hometown high school. He formed a trio with his brother and sister in 1956. His sister would leave the group to go to college and was replaced by Gloria Sickel, later to be Gaither, in 1962.

Part of his success is keeping everything within the house- the Gaithers have run their own record company, booking, and production companies. Their independence has allowed them to work with and hire the musicians they like and they have earned a reputation as generous and are repeatedly lauded by artists from Larry Norman to Amy Grant to Toby Mac. The Gaither Vocal Band, or the “New Gaither Vocal Band,” would serve as Bill’s main creative outlet through the 80s with a collection of singers from Steve Green to Michael English and Mark Lowry (who you know as the guy who wrote “Mary Did You Know?”)

What has likely cemented Bill’s fame for all time began in the early 90s when he began work on an album called  “Homecoming”- it was a collection of favorites with other gospel stars. In these very early days of “reality” tv the “behind the scenes” footage that was released was as popular as the music itself (and like early reality tv- we can notice today much more easily how staged early “reality” tv looked!)

The “Gaither Homecoming” became a popular series of ads, television shows, and concerts. They involved the ever-affable Gaithers, inviting old stars and newer stars in the broad gospel genre to talk and tell the stories behind their songs. (You might remember Vh1’s Storytellers, which played with a similar format in the mid-90s). The videos had/have a cross-genre and cross-generational appeal, leading to their proliferation from DVD to now on YouTube, where his YouTube videos have over 1 billion views.

A man shot to fame by his hit for Elvis but sustained by a life long creative partnership with his wife composing over 700 songs- the Godfather of Modern Gospel- Bill Gaither, still with us today- a happy 89th birthday.

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and 2 Corinthians:

6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it….

14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 28th of March 2025 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by whom you can see live on April 10th at the CHA AMA- go to the chacelebrate page to sign up! He is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by counting down the hours to the opening pitch- let’s go Yusei Kikuchi-  Dan van Voorhis. 

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.