"Gott liebt diese Welt" (God loves this world) is a Christian hymn with words in German written by Walter Schulz in 1962, who added a melody in 1970. It expresses God's love for the world, expanding on John 3:16. The hymn was originally written for a Protestant youth gathering in East Germany, intended as an encouragement in difficult times after the erection of the Berlin Wall. It appeared in Protestant and Catholic hymnals, and other songbooks.
| "Gott liebt diese Welt" | |
|---|---|
| Christian hymn | |
| Key | C major |
| Written | 1962 (1962) |
| Text | by Walter Schulz |
| Language | German |
| Based on | John 3:16 |
| Melody | by Walter Schulz |
| Composed | 1970 (1970) |
Walter Schulz [de] was a Protestant pastor who served from 1956 as Landesjugendpastor (state youth pastor) for the Evangelisch-Lutherische Landeskirche Mecklenburgs.[1] In that function, he wrote the text of "Gott liebt diese Welt" in 1962 for a Protestant youth gathering (Evangelischer Jugendtag) in Schwerin. A year after the Berlin Wall was built, he faced suppression and criticism of Christian beliefs by the regime of East Germany. He was interested in putting out a message of encouragement.[1]
The song became part of the Protestant hymnal Evangelisches Gesangbuch as EG 409, and of the Catholic hymnal Gotteslob as GL 464.[2] The hymn is also part of other songbooks, including ecumenical collections and books for young people.[3]
The words of the hymn are in eight stanzas of five lines each, with the final stanza being a repetition of the first.[4] It follows a strict formal scheme: the first line of each stanza is "Gott liebt diese Welt"; in the two framing stanzas this line is repeated at the end, while the last line similarly often begins with "Gott" and always ends with "Welt".[4] The rhyme scheme is ABABA. The song, written in the first-person plural, expresses God's love of the world and especially of "us" people, following a verse from the Gospel of John, "God so loved the world" (John 3:16).[4] The inner lines name ways of this love.[4]
The melody begins like a fanfare[1] with a downward triad seemingly in a major key but moves to the minor mode and church keys.[4]
Klaus Wallrath composed a Liedermotette Gott liebt diese Welt in 2014, setting the full text for mixed choir, organ and brass.[5]
The hymn was used as the title of a collection of choral music for church services and secular use, containing 50 settings for a convention of youth choirs in 2015. It was published by Bärenreiter.[6]