Hi, PoppaGator - "They'll Know We Are Christians," by Peter Scholtes, was published in 1966 by F.E.L. Publications. FEL was a bit heavy-handed in pursuing copyright infringement lawsuits against parishes and dioceses. they won lots of money in the lawsuits, but soon fell out of popularity and went out of business. Rights to their songs were apparently bought up by the Lorenz Corporation, but most FEL songs dropped out of sight. Other publishers had come to the forefront with songs that were more musically sophisticated (and less tied to three chords).

"They'll Know We Are Christians" is one FEL song that's still in use, although it's probably considered a second-tier song by most parishes. It's in the hymnals of both major U.S. Catholic publishers, OCP and GIA.

It's a good song, and I know it by heart, but it does seem kind of "dated" nowadays. I sing it maybe once or twice a year - although I'll use it more often when I'm leading singing for Masses where there is no accompaniment, when I'm looking for a good, strong song that most people know.


-Joe-