For over 150 years, children and adults around the world have sung “Jesus Loves Me” in many different languages and cultures. Did the poet have any idea how far-reaching and long-lasting her little song would be? Did Anna Bartlett Warner know she would be buried in the West Point Military Cemetery, along with high-ranking military generals, distinguished soldiers, and other significant people who helped build the United States of America?

Prominent people often make it to a Who’s Who list – those who have excelled in a specific sphere of life. Not every athlete or business tycoon, military strategist, author or actor makes it to such lists. The general, run-of-the-mill achievers are grouped with the rest of their class. Only those whose exploits, excellence and significance surpass others in their field are ranked on a Who’s Who list.

Who’s Who in the Cemetery

West Point Cemetery’s Who’s Who list is impressive. Wikipedia has a list of over 40 ‘significant’ people who are buried there. I scanned down the list but recognized none of the names or their remarkable achievements. Admittedly, I am not familiar with American History. I am a Canadian.

The West Point Military Cemetery is no ordinary burial ground. Even accessing it requires patience and effort. Our GPS brought us to a Check Point to enter the military town. Guards required us to make a U-turn and drive to another location to have our credentials and identity checked. Once verified, we were given an Approved Visitor paper and warned to always keep it on us.

It is America’s oldest military post cemetery. Distinguished Soldiers, Medal of Honour recipients, astronauts, athletes, and family members are buried there. Ordinary civilians are not buried there.

Some monuments are imposing structures. One rather ornate and grande memorial monument can be seen from most locations in the graveyard. Upon closer inspection, it marks the grave of Major General Daniel Butterfield. Not all the monuments were as impressive as Butterfield’s. Many were more modest but still striking.

Interestingly, I checked with approximately fifty Americans in multiple states from various backgrounds and professional disciplines to see who recognized the name of Daniel Butterfield and what he contributed to American history. None who responded recognized the name.

Within walking distance from the very conspicuous ornate Butterfield monument is a barely noticeable small square stone resting on the ground surrounded by grass. Like Butterfield, probably few would recognize Anna Warner’s name either, but here’s the difference: who could dispute the impact of her work around the world over the past 150 years? Few would even notice her modest grave marker in the prestigious and historic cemetery, but countless millions would recognize precisely what she contributed to history and the spiritual well-being of so many worldwide.

A Bible verse came to mind as I thought of Anna Warner’s modest gravemarker in contrast to the more impressive headstones commemorating the outstanding achievements of others.

For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. 1John 2:16-17

The great pleasures and pursuits and achievements of the world are temporary in nature. They loom large at the moment and then fade and vanish from sight. In the rearview mirror of our lives, they grow smaller and smaller while the fast-approaching here and now dominate the vista and vision of our lives.

For a brief period of time, people and their contributions are current in the news, and the thread of their success may be woven into the fabric of history, but even then, the colours of the fabric fade. But those who know Christ as their Saviour and do the will of God – they live lives of eternal significance – a significance that will last forever.

The Bible says:

What is your life? It is even a vapour that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. James 4:14

The Warner Sisters

Back in 1860, Anna wrote a poem to add colour to a novel her sister was writing. Both the Warner daughters were Christians, but times were hard. Their mother died giving birth to Anna, and a few years later, their father, a successful New York City lawyer and investor, lost his wealth in a multi-year depression. The family moved 80 kilometres north and lived in a dilapidated older home in the West Point area on the west side of the Hudson River.

Anna and her older sister Susan turned to writing to generate income to sustain the family and their home in West Point. In 1860, Susan was writing her Say and Seal Christian novel. In one scene, she introduces a little boy named Johnny Fax. He had a very high fever. His Sunday School teacher, Mr. Linden, picked him up in his arms and paced the floor, trying to console him. Little Johnny Fax asked Mr. Linden to sing a song.

When Susan reached that pivotal point in her novel, she asked her sister Anna to write a little poem that she could use as the song Mr. Linden sang to little Johnny, who was about to die. Anna wrote:

For many years the Warner sisters taught Sunday School at West Point, and hundreds of military cadets attended their Bible classes – including Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who later became the 34th President of the United States. (1)

JFK Sings Jesus Loves Me

During World War II, John F. Kennedy’s PT-109 was rammed by a Japanese destroyer and sunk off the Solomon Islands in the Pacific. Kennedy and his crew managed to swim to an island. The islanders Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, famously known for rescuing Kennedy and his crew, joined the American Marines in singing a song every Marine learned at the West Point Military Academy – Jesus loves me, this I know. (2)

The Warner sisters were the one exception to the “No civilians” in the U.S. Military Academy cemetery. Susan and Anna Warner earned this signal honour as Sunday school teachers to generations of West Point cadets. (3)

No, Anna Warner is not remembered for her historic military exploits, nor is the memory of her sustained by some grand monument. But her work lives on. Her song “Jesus Loves Me This I Know” has been sung on every continent in hundreds of countries and in many languages. Anna Warner invested in that which was eternal. She shared the good news of Jesus Christ around the world through her “Jesus Loves Me” lyrics. She shared Christ and the rich teachings of the Bible to thousands of US Marines over the decades until she passed away in 1915. Sharing the Word of God and Christ with others was her passion in life. Her work will live on through the eternal ages.

Who’s Who in Farming

Jesus told the story of a very successful farmer whose life revolved around his agricultural acumen and financial success. Had there been a Who’s Who list of Middle East farmers, he would have ranked highly. It seems he lived for the here and now and dreamed about his retirement. The very afternoon his mind conceived of an expansion to his farming enterprise and a pleasurable future, God spoke to his heart:

But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” Luke 12:20-21

The farmer could boast of outstanding achievements in this life, but he tragically failed to invest in what is important for eternity.

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What About You

The time has come to ask you about your life and what your priorities are, and what your life revolves around. Like the rest of us, you, too, will soon find your place in some graveyard with a marker over your remains. Where does God rank in your life now, and where will you be then? Like Anna Bartlett Warner, are you investing in things that are eternal? Does your life revolve around the Lord Jesus Christ and telling others of His love? Or is it possible you don’t have a relationship with Him? Do you know Him personally? Is He the joy of your life now and your anchor and hope for eternity? What does the best-known verse in the Bible mean to you?

Have you discovered that Jesus loves you and died for your sins? Do you know the other stanzas in the song?

Noel Burden was working at a sawmill on the banks of the Fraser River in BC, Canada, when he trusted Christ as his Saviour, singing “Jesus Loves Me, This I Know…” You can read his personal testimony on this site. If you have a story to tell about “Jesus Loves Me,” – please share it with other readers by posting it in the comment section below.

Sources:

1. https://www.military.com/history/susan-and-anna-warner.html#:~:text=Only%20two%20civilian%20women%20lie,young%20daughters%20to%20Constitution%20Island.
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_Loves_Me
3. https://www.military.com/history/susan-and-anna-warner.html#:~:text=Only%20two%20civilian%20women%20lie,young%20daughters%20to%20Constitution%20Island