The Church’s one foun­da­tion
Is Je­sus Christ her Lord,
She is His new cre­ation
By wa­ter and the Word:
From Heav’n He came and sought her
To be His ho­ly bride,
With His own blood He bought her
And for her life He died.

She is from ev­ery na­tion,
Yet one o’er all the earth;
Her char­ter of sal­va­tion,
One Lord, one faith, one birth;
One ho­ly name she bless­es,
Partakes one ho­ly food,
And to one hope she press­es,
With ev­ery grace en­dued.

The Church shall ne­ver per­ish!
Her dear Lord to de­fend,
To guide, sus­tain, and cher­ish,
Is with her to the end:
Though there be those who hate her,
And false sons in her pale,
Against both foe and trai­tor
She ev­er shall pre­vail.

Though with a scorn­ful won­der
Men see her sore op­pressed,
By schisms rent asun­der,
By he­re­sies dis­tressed:
Yet saints their watch are keep­ing,
Their cry goes up, How long?
And soon the night of weep­ing
Shall be the morn of song!

’Mid toil and tri­bu­la­tion,
And tu­mult of her war,
She waits the con­sum­ma­tion
Of peace for­ev­er­more;
Till, with the vi­sion glo­ri­ous,
Her long­ing eyes are blest,
And the great Church vic­to­ri­ous
Shall be the Church at rest!

Yet she on earth hath un­ion
With God the Three in One,
And mys­tic sweet com­mun­ion
With those whose rest is won,
With all her sons and daugh­ters
Who, by the Mas­ter’s hand
Led through the death­ly wa­ters,
Repose in Ed­en land.

O hap­py ones and ho­ly!
Lord, give us grace that we
Like them, the meek and low­ly,
On high may dwell with Thee:
There, past the bor­der mount­ains,
Where in sweet vales the Bride
With Thee by liv­ing foun­tains
Forever shall abide!