I Vow to Thee, My Country

I vow to thee

my coun­try—all earth­ly things above—

Entire and whole and per­fect

the serv­ice of my love;

The love that asks no quest­ion

the love that stands the test

That lays up­on the al­tar the dear­est and the best;

The love that nev­er fal­ters

the love that pays the price

The love that makes un­daunt­ed the fi­nal sac­ri­fice.

And there’s an­oth­er coun­try

I’ve heard of long ago—

Most dear to them that love her

most great to them that know;

We may not count her ar­mies

we may not see her king;

Her for­tress is a faith­ful heart

her pride is suf­fer­ing;

And soul by soul and si­lent­ly her shin­ing bounds in­crease

And her ways are ways of gen­tle­ness

and all her paths are peace.