| Media Release | June 6 , 2000 |
Lost verse puts Christ into the National Anthem An early version of "Advance Australia Fair" referring to "...Christ our head and cornerstone" will be sung at the Celebrating 2000 event at Stadium Australia, following its use in 1998 at the last Global March for Jesus gathering in Canberra. Tens of thousands of Christians from across the country are expected to march to the Stadium, coming to celebrate the person who divided history into BC and AD and the birth of the Church, while praying through the night for people in need in Australia and other nations.. The marches from four directions to the stadium, will again remind our legislators that our future is secure to the extent that we surrender our hearts to Him and recognise His rightful place in our land. “It seems to us to be appropriate that we restore this verse to the anthem as it was often sung, just as we get the new millennium underway,” explained Celebrating 2000 spokesman, Mal Garvin. “For the tens of thousands of Australians coming and the millions they represent, it captures what they know to be needed by our nation if it is to provide a fulfilling future for the next generation.” The extra “lost” verse the Christians will use was sung as part of the anthem in Smithton, Tasmania as early as the 1930s; "With
Christ our head and cornerstone, we'll build our Nation's might, Certain Australian governments seemed to disapprove of the sentiment of some of these verses, and were inclined to discourage their rememberance. The song was written and composed by Peter Dodds McCormick and first performed in 1878. It was proclaimed as the national anthem for the second time in 1984, (after it was chosen by the Whitlam government in 1974, and later rejected by the Fraser government). Several versions with different combinations of the verses are found in different references. Some refer to Captain Cook and his courage and seem to be saluting England rather than Australia. Some of the verses are very difficult to locate in old references and it could be that the original has been lost. “The verse we are using was passed onto us by a woman in Queensland who believed it to have been in the original version,” says Promotions Officer, Dave Mitchell. “While we have been unable to verify that with any historic documents, we have been unable to say she is wrong either. With the verse expressing what is in the hearts of most Australians, we have decided to sing it together. It’s significant to remember that 72% of Australians still tell the census-taker they are Christians.” An all night outdoor prayer vigil from 6pm to 6am during Saturday night will also draw attention to the unprecedented persecution of Christians and the plight of children across the world as we start the new millennium. More
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