The First Hymn | Chris Tomlin & Ben Fielding
4 videos • 134 views • by Worship Together It is not often that an artifact is a song. Found in Egypt and written 1800 years ago, the lyric and musical notations are the oldest surviving Christian hymn ever found - “The First Hymn.” Known by scholars as “P.Oxy 1786”, this artifact was discovered by archaeologists in the ancient Egyptian city of Oxyrhynchus in 1918. Grammy-Award winner Chris Tomlin and Ben Fielding, two of the most respected Christian composers and songwriters, were invited to bring the oldest hymn ever to be found back to life and resurrect the song into a piece of modern worship music thus giving it back to the world almost two millenniums later. Tomlin and Fielding co-wrote “The First Hymn” using the original 35 words and music found on the small piece of papyrus that was unearthed.