Our fathers thought that they should welcome the gift of evening light with something better than silence, so they gave thanks as soon as it appeared. We cannot say who composed these words of thanksgiving at the lighting of the lamps, but the people use these ancient words, and no one accuses them of blaspheming for singing: "We praise Father, Son, and God's Holy Spirit." - St. Basil the Great, *On the Holy Spirit* par. 73
[Note: this is a reference to the Phos Hilaron which remains in The Lutheran Hymnal as #101; in LW in the Evening Prayer Service as well as in this hymn; and in LSB in the Evening Prayer Service, and as this hymn]
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