"Jesus Loves Me" is a

Christian hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

written by Anna Bartlett Warner (1827–1915). The lyrics first appeared as a poem in the context of an 1860 novel called ''Say and Seal'', written by her older sister Susan Warner (1819–1885), in which the words were spoken as a comforting poem to a dying child. The tune was added in 1862 by

William Batchelder Bradbury William Batchelder Bradbury (October 6, 1816 – January 7, 1868) was a musician who composed the tune to " Jesus Loves Me" and many other popular hymns. Biography He was born on October 6, 1816, in York, Maine, where his father was the leader o ...

(1816–1868). Along with his tune, Bradbury added his own chorus "Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus Loves me..." After publication as a song it became one of the most popular Christian hymns in churches around the world, especially among children.

Poem by Anna Bartlett Warner

As originally published in 1860, it appeared in four stanzas, as follows: Jesus loves me—this I know, For the Bible tells me so: Little ones to him belong,— They are weak, but he is strong. Jesus loves me—he who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let his little child come in. Jesus loves me—loves me still, Though I'm very weak and ill; From his shining throne on high, Comes to watch me where I lie. Jesus loves me—he will stay Close beside me all the way. Then his little child will take Up to heaven for his dear sake.

Hymn by William Batchelder Bradbury

''Bradbury's Golden Shower of S.S. Melodies: a new collection of hymns and tunes for the Sabbath school'', edited by Wm. B. Bradbury, New York, 1862: Jesus loves me—this I know, For the Bible tells me so; Little ones to Him belong— They are weak, but He is strong. ''Refrain:'' Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me— The Bible tells me so! Jesus loves me—He who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let His little child come in. ''Refrain'' Jesus loves me—loves me still, Though I’m very weak and ill; From His shining throne on high, Comes to watch me where I lie. ''Refrain'' Jesus loves me—He will stay Close beside me all the way; If I love Him, when I die He will take me home on high. ''Refrain''

History

In 1943 in the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

PT-109 PT1 may refer to: * 486958 Arrokoth (New Horizons PT1), a Kuiper belt object and selected target for a flyby of the New Horizons probe * Pratt & Whitney PT1, a free-piston gas-turbine engine * Consolidated PT-1 Trusty, a 1930s USAAS primary trainer ...

was rammed and sunk. Islanders Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana who found Kennedy and the survivors remember that when they rode on PT boats to retrieve the survivors, the Marines sang this song with the natives, who had learned it from

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

missionaries. This hymn was titled "China" in some hymnals of the 19th century. Some early hymnals, such as ''The Modern Hymnal'' (1926) explain this title with a subtitled note that says, "The favorite Hymn of China". By the time of later hymnals such as the Baptist Hymnal (1956), the subtitle had been dropped and the tune was simply called "CHINA".

Revised versions

The poem and the hymn, or portions of them, have sometimes been revised. Some examples of this are *The book ''Jack Bauer's Having a Bad Day'' presented a version which alternated ''Yes, Jesus Loves Me'' with ''... Loves Us'' and ''Loves You''. *A message presented in the book ''Good Morning Message'' builds on the line refrain as follows: "Yes, Jesus loves me ... Yes, Jesus loves you ... allow Him to help you through your day, every day. ..." *The inspirational book ''From Chains to Change'' presented a version in which the line "Little ones to Him belong" was rendered as "Little ones to Him below".

Notable performances

The song has been recorded by a large number of different artists, either obscure or famous. Some versions include the following: *1972:

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings " Everything Is Beautiful" and " Misty", as well as novel ...

on ''Turn Your Radio On'' *1980: John Fahey on ''

Yes! Jesus Loves Me ''Yes! Jesus Loves Me'' (subtitled ''Guitar Hymns'') is an album by American fingerstyle guitarist and composer John Fahey, released in 1980. It was Fahey's poorest selling release. Reception Music critic Mark Allan praised the album, noting th ...

'' *1975:

Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing gui ...

on ''I Don't Know What the World Is Coming To'' *1991: Jim Eanes and Bobby Atkins on ''Heart of the South'' *1992:

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed " The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston i ...

on '' The Bodyguard'' soundtrack *1994:

Shanice Shanice Lorraine Wilson-Knox (née Wilson; born May 14, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and dancer. Shanice had the ''Billboard'' hit singles " I Love Your Smile" and " Silent Prayer" in 1991 and " Saving Forever for You" in 19 ...

on ''21...Ways to Grow'' *1997:

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Performing rockabilly, pop and country music, she had 47 US chart hits during the 1960s and is ranked fourth in that decade, surpassed onl ...

on ''Precious Memories'' *1998:

Bob Carlisle Robert Mason "Bob" Carlisle (born September 29, 1956) is an American Contemporary Christian singer and songwriter. He performed with several bands, most notably Allies and Billy Thermal, before launching a solo career where he received a Grammy ...

on ''Butterfly Kisses & Bedtime Prayers'' *2000: Rosemary Clooney on ''Many a Wonderful Moment'' *2000:

Aaron Neville Aaron Joseph Neville (born January 24, 1941) is a retired American R&B and soul singer. He has had four platinum albums and four Top 10 hits in the United States, including three that reached number one on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart. ...

on ''Devotion'' *2001: Destiny's Child on '' Survivor'' *2004:

CocoRosie CocoRosie is an American musical group formed in 2003 by sisters Sierra Rose "Rosie" and Bianca Leilani "Coco" Casady. The group's music has been described as folktronica, freak folk and "New Weird America", and incorporates elements of pop, blu ...

on ''La Maison de Mon Rêve'' (a parody denouncing American Christianity) *2006:

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

on ''Songs of Inspiration'' *2008: Dionne Warwick on ''Why We Sing'' *2012: Whitney Houston and

Kelly Price Kelly Cherelle Price (born April 4, 1973) is an American R&B and gospel singer. She started her singing career in 1992. Price originally garnered attention by singing backing vocals for Mariah Carey on multiple songs, including her ''Billboar ...

; Houston's last performance in an impromptu duet at a nightclubWhitney Houston’s Tumultuous Final Days
(February 12, 2012)
music.yahoo.com

Notes