The First Hymn documentary feature tracks the attempts of historians and musicians to resurrect an ancient Christian hymn and give it back to the world.
P.Oxy 1786 is a scrap of parchment uncovered in the ruins of the Egyptian city of Oxyrhynchus. Specialists were stunned to discover it contained not just the words of the oldest Christian hymn ever to be found, but the music as well. For the first time the world could not only know what these ancient believers were singing about, they could also hear what they sounded like.
The First Hymn Project follows historian and author John Dickson as he traces the history of P.Oxy 1786 from its ancient resting place in Egypt to the United Kingdom, and then its journey to Australia and America as two of the world’s finest Christian musicians seek to resurrect the song for the modern church.