''Lamp Unto My Feet'' is an American

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

religious program that was produced by

CBS Television CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

and broadcast from November 21, 1948, to January 21, 1979, on Sunday mornings. The title comes from

Psalm 119 Psalm 119 is the 119th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English of the King James Version: "Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord". The Book of Psalms is in the third section of the Hebrew Bible, the ...

: "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

Overview

The program used a combination of drama, music, and dance to explore the histories, cultures and theological philosophies of the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

faiths. Most episodes in later seasons followed a reality-based documentary format, featuring various faith-based organizations and figures; a 1969 installment profiled the Lend-A-Hand Center in

Knox County, Kentucky Knox County is a county located in Appalachia near the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,193. Its county seat is Barbourville. The county is named for General Henry Knox. It is one ...

, and a 1970 installment featured Elizabeth Platz, the first woman in North America

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

by a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

church body. In 1979 this program and another long-running CBS religious series, ''

Look Up and Live ''Look Up and Live'' was a 30-minute television anthology series. The series was produced in cooperation with the National Council of Churches and aired on CBS from January 3, 1954 to January 21, 1979. It was a non-denominational Sunday morning ...

'', were combined to form a new show called ''For Our Times'' (April 28, 1979 to 1988), sponsored by the

National Council of Churches The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, usually identified as the National Council of Churches (NCC), is a left-wing progressive activist group and the largest ecumenical body in the United States. NCC is an ecumenical partners ...

, New York Board of Rabbis, and

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 2001 after the merger of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Co ...

. The introduction was a simple voice-over, proclaiming " It is better to light one candle, than to curse the darkness," while a candle was being lit in a dark room.

Guest stars

Notable guest stars included

Mahalia Jackson Mahalia Jackson ( ; born Mahala Jackson; October 26, 1911 – January 27, 1972) was an American gospel music, gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was ...

Kim Hunter Kim Hunter (born Janet Cole; November 12, 1922 – September 11, 2002) was an American theatre, film, and television actress. She achieved prominence for portraying Stella Kowalski in the original production of Tennessee Williams' ''A Streetcar ...

, Luther Adler, Edward Mulhare, Arthur Hill,

Beatrice Straight Beatrice Whitney Straight (August 2, 1914 – April 7, 2001) was an American theatre, film, television and radio actress and a member of the prominent Whitney family. She was both an Academy Award and Tony Award winner, as well as a Primetime Em ...

, Eydie Gorme,

The Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American vocal pop group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style predated the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ...

, and

Aline MacMahon Aline Laveen MacMahon (May 3, 1899 – October 12, 1991) was an American actress. Her Broadway stage career began under producer Edgar Selwyn in ''The Mirage'' during 1920. She made her screen debut in 1931, and worked extensively in film, the ...

Production

Producers of the series included Isabelle Redman and Pamela Ilott.

References

External links

* * {{emmytvlegends title 1948 American television series debuts 1979 American television series endings 1940s American drama television series 1950s American drama television series 1960s American drama television series 1970s American drama television series Black-and-white American television shows CBS original programming American English-language television shows American religious television series CBS television dramas

Overview

Guest stars

Production

See also

References

External links