Author Unknown

One of my favorite authors is the oft-quoted guy (or gal) named Anonymous.

Who first coined the Latin Caveat emptor (“Let the buyer beware”) or Cave canem (“Beware of the dog”)? We don’t know, but these expressions date far back into antiquity. The proverb, “One picture is worth a thousand words” originated in China, but we don’t know who said it first.

Who first spoke about “keeping up with the Joneses” or observed, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”? No one knows. Nor do we know the origin of the expressions, “Time is of the essence,” “It’s all in a day’s work,” or “A woman’s work is never done.”

No one knows who authored many popular nursery rhymes, including “Little Jack Horner,” “Jack and Jill,” and “Jack Be Nimble”—although I’m guessing it was someone named Jack.

“Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep” appears in The New England Primer of 1737, but the author isn’t identified. Another witty but unnamed New Englander gave us the maxim, “Use it up, wear it out; make it do, or do without.”

And what about the songs from unknown composers? “Yankee Doodle”? Author unknown. The grand old spiritual “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”? Only the Lord knows who sang it first. Francis Scott Key wrote the words to America’s national anthem and Samuel F. Smith wrote “My Country, ’Tis of Thee,” but the tunes of both songs are attributed to unknown composers.

We don’t know who wrote the lyrics to great hymns like “Come, Thou Almighty King,” “How Firm a Foundation,” or “Just a Closer Walk With Thee.” The hymnal identifies “The First Noel” simply as an “old English carol.” “O Come, All Ye Faithful” was translated into English by Frederick Oakley, but the original Latin version *Adeste, Fideles *was penned by an unknown author long before. The same is true of the Dutch folk song we use at Thanksgiving, “We Gather Together,” which was translated by Theodore Baker but originated with an unknown author in the Netherlands.

The classic hymn “Be Thou My Vision” is set to an old Irish tune, and its authorship is uncertain. Some trace the lyrics back to an Irish poet named Dallan Forgaill or to the man known as St. Patrick. Either way, the author never collected any royalties. He must have believed the line in the song that says, “Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise.”

In these days when grandstanding and self-promotion are so common, it’s important to remember that life’s highest goal is* not* “man’s empty praise.” John was the disciple whom Jesus loved, but he humbly left his own name out of the Gospel attributed to him. King David accomplished great things, but when his leaders collected an impressive offering to build the temple, he humbly asked the Lord, “Who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand” (1 Chronicles 29:14).

It’s been said, “Great things happen when no one cares who gets the credit.” I don’t know who originally said that, but he or she was right.