Hymns, sung in sacred places, are intended to offer praise to a deity or to unify a congregation in reverence and purpose.  Historically, hymns have incorporated the language of war to describe the struggles against unseen forces of evil and rally followers towards divine purposes.  However, that language … the language of militant battles and self-righteous conquest … has given us veiled permission to colonize and replaced the larger message of peace and good-will with one of war and destruction.

The hymns embroidered on this child's choir robe were taken from Methodist and Presbyterian hymnals. They are all in the public domain and have been sung in churches for centuries. 

The use of a deconstructed military uniform as a base for this garment dramatizes the insidiousness of warlike images as an adjunct to worship.