What is the origin and meaning of the phrase “Preaching to the choir”?
” The first reference we can find is from 1973. Many other references date from soon after that, which points to the phrase being coined in that year. For example, this from The Lima News, Ohio, January 1973: “He said he felt like the minister who was preaching to the choir. That is, to the people who always come to church, but not the ones who need it most.” The phrase may not be old but it does express the same idea as an earlier phrase – ‘preaching to the converted’, and is almost certainly a follow-on from that.” Source and further information: http://www.phrases.org.uk/…/…to-the-choir.
