When the clamor of a midday thunderstorm in 1885 gave way to cheerful birdsong and a brilliant rainbow, the Rev. Carl Gustav Boberg felt moved to write down his awesome wonder at God’s creation.
The result was the Swedish pastor’s most famous hymn, titled “O Store Gud” in his native language — literally “O Great God” in English.
The hymn journeyed from Sweden to Germany to Ukraine and eventually to England, where missionaries gave it the title most English speakers know it by today: “How Great Thou Art.”
In a similarly roundabout way, Boberg’s home denomination, the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden, is now part of the Methodist movement. In 2011, Sweden’s Mission Covenant members, Baptists and United Methodists — with The United Methodist Church’s blessing — joined to form the Uniting Church in Sweden.
So Boberg’s well-traveled hymn made a fitting opening when the Uniting Church in Sweden hosted the 22nd World Methodist Conference, bringing together Wesleyan-rooted Christians from around the globe.
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