I am a Pilgrim and Stranger lyrics and music from 1869 book

"I Am a Pilgrim" is a traditional Christian hymn from the United States, first documented in the mid-19th century. It forms part of the repertoire of

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

, and bluegrass artists. The song combines elements from an " d hymn entwined with Poor Wayfaring Stranger (Sacred Harp - 1844). It appears in The Southern Zion's Songster (1864) and in Hymns For the Camp (1862)." The song references or alludes to several Bible passages, including the refrain, "I am a pilgrim and a stranger" which alludes to

1 Peter The First Epistle of Peter is a book of the New Testament. The author presents himself as Peter the Apostle. The ending of the letter includes a statement that implies that it was written from " Babylon", which is possibly a reference to Rome. ...

2:11 and Hebrews 11:13 and also the lyric "If I could touch the hem of his garment" which references Matthew 9:20 where a woman touches the hem of Jesus' robe and is healed.Steve Turner, ''Turn, Turn, Turn: Popular Songs Inspired by the Bible,'' (2018) (accessed on books.google.com) In July 1924 the song was first recorded by Norfolk Jubilee Quartet, an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

group. Prominent musicians such as

The Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

, and

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Rosewood, Kentucky, United States. His songs' lyrics often discussed both the lives and the economic expl ...

have recorded the song.

References

Gospel songs American Christian hymns 1924 singles Public domain music Bluegrass songs African-American spiritual songs {{Gospel-music-stub