"I love the Church, the holy Church, The birth, the bridal, and the grave, Be mine, through life, to live in her, To die in her, the spouse of CHRIST, The Mother of us all." CHRISTIAN Ballads. HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF CHRIST CHURCH, PHILADELPHIA. INTRODUCTION. THERE is no building in our city, and it may be doubted whether there is any in our country, around which so many hallowed associations cluster, and which calls up so many time-honoured and holy reminiscences, as the venerable structure known as Christ Church. It is nearly a century and a half since the first humble edifice was erected on the spot where the present beautiful building now stands; and this last has withstood the storms and the tempests of more than a hundred years. In a country so new and changeful as ours, where the most sacred and venerable piles are often sacrificed to the love of gain, and not unfrequently pulled down to make room for what is miscalled |