O Come Ye Children of Men Mortal

Author: Christopher Dock

Dock, Christopher. (ca.1698--1771). Mennonite. Came from Germany sometime between 1710 and 1714. Four years later he opened a school for the Mennonite children on the Skippack in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. On September 28, 1735, he purchased 100 acres in Salford Township nearby and opened a second school, thereafter three days a week in each school. For several summers he also taught a Mennonite school in Germantown. A devout, sensitive lover of children, it was his custom to remain in the schoolroom each day after the children had left and pray for each individually. In this devotion, he was found dead on his kneed in the school one evening in 1771. His classrooms were adorned with illuminated mottoes from his pen. His method of o… Go to person page >

Translator: John J. Overholt

John J. Overholt was born to an Amish family of limited means in the state of Ohio in 1918. As a child he was soon introduced to his father's personal collection of gospel songs and hymns, which was to have a marked influence on his later life. With his twin brother Joe, he early was exposed to the Amish-Mennonite tradition hymn-singing and praising worship. An early career in Christian service led to a two-year period of relief work in the country of Poland following World War II. During that interim he began to gather many European songs and hymns as a personal hobby, not realizing that these selections would become invaluable to The Christian Hymnary which was begun in 1960 and completed twelve years later in 1972, with a compilation… Go to person page >