Birth and Calling

Ithamar Conkey was born May 5, 1815, and grew to serve as a musician in New England churches where weekly worship shaped community life. In an era when many congregations gathered in plain meetinghouses and sang with sturdy devotion, Conkey became known as a capable organist and bass soloist. His “heroism” was not the kind that makes headlines, but the steady courage of showing up—preparing, practicing, and supporting the prayers of God’s people with sound, order, and reverence.

His vocation illustrates a quiet Christian virtue: faithfulness in small duties. “Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, for the Lord and not for men,” (Colossians 3:23). Church musicians often labor unseen, yet their work helps a congregation sing truth together, shaping memory and conviction for decades.

RATHBUN and the Cross

Conkey’s lasting gift to the church is the hymn tune RATHBUN, paired in many hymnals with John Bowring’s text, “In the Cross of Christ I Glory.” The pairing centers worship where Scripture centers hope: at Calvary. In seasons of grief, temptation, or weariness, believers have found their footing again through a melody that carries the church’s confession: our confidence is not in ourselves, but in Christ crucified.

The gospel focus of this hymn echoes the apostolic boast: “But as for me, may I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14). RATHBUN does not demand attention for its composer; it serves the message.

A Quiet Legacy

Conkey’s steady church service outlived his own days. That endurance is part of the wonder of congregational song: faithful craftsmanship can become ongoing witness. A well-made tune teaches doctrine, steadies trembling voices, and joins generations into one testimony. Long after the organ bench is empty, the church still sings—clearer, braver, and more united—because someone once treated worship as holy work.