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HYMN FOR NINTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST I Know a Kingdom...
Danish: Jeg ved et evigt himmerig German: Ich weiss ein ewiges Himmelreich Norwegian: Eg veit i himmelen ei borg Text: Hans Christensen Sthen (1544-1610) Tune: Hallingdal Folktune Malmö fortress Congregation: 1. I know a kingdom without end, Where shines a bright tomorrow. There is no weeping there, nor sin, No any tears of sorrow. Congregation: 2. Within it dwells God’s only Son In splendor and in glory; My hope and comfort, he’s the one Who waits in heaven for me. Congregation: 3. A pilgrim here, I’m on my way, Away from my deceiver. I’m bound for heav’n, I long to be Beside the crystal river. Christ: 4. I have redeemed you with my blood And I will come to greet you. I’ll fill your heart with all things good, With joy and gladness meet you. 5. My word and holy sacraments I graciously have given. I take into myself your sins To make your home in heaven. 6. When gold and joy lose their allure And worldly things assail you, I’m waiting here to reassure Your faith, for I’ll not fail you. Congregation: 7. Into the world I naked came. Now all that I have gathered I leave behind without a claim When passing through death’s waters. 8. And this I know, one morning bright When death’s dark night is over, My body will arise from night And heav’nly joys discover. 9. So help us, dear Lord Jesus Christ; Your blood for us was given, Your bitter death and sacrifice Has won for us bright heaven. 10. I thank you Lord eternally, My gracious God forever, For you have been so kind to me In Jesus Christ our Savior! Tr. Gracia Grindal MEDITATION (Once again I am using an older blog as my eyes make writing difficult. I am having a corneal transplant on July 22 so things should be better next week.) Jesus in the parables for next Sunday speaks of how precious the kingdom of heaven is by showing how people in this world desire great and beautiful treasures. The hymn shows the kingdom in different images. When hymn texts are translated from one language to another, it is probably not mainly for what they say, but the tune they are associated with. A beautiful melody is universal and people want to sing it. They need words. Poets who love music want to make it available to people in their own language. This hymn was on the lips of many medieval people in Northern Europe, scholars say. Where it started is vague. It clearly had German roots. The melody, however, was not this one. The text has been in the hymnals of Danes since the Reformation. I grew up with it in the Concordia Hymnal. It is where I first saw the strange name of the Danish pastor Hans Christensen Sthen. The spelling always interested me. He preceded the three great Danes of hymnody, and was a worthy poet. Then I started seeing it on CDs of religious folk/pop and choral singers in the north. The text was longer than what was in our hymnal and involved a dialogue between Christ and the congregation. But what grabbed me was its beautiful folk tune. Its beauty and longing for the heavenly kingdom are simply transfixing. Performances range from classical choral to rock and roll. A text longing for release from this world is not what the hedonists of our generation might be interested in, but here we have it. It has been very popular. Up against death the song teaches, the allures of the world do not count for much. We need something eternal. I am glad it is popular. Beauty is a tool for evangelism. And the church has much beauty to tell. It is likely that as some of those who came to love the hymn face their pilgrimage over the river, the words they sang in their youth will sound in their heads as they begin the journey. We know how even those with severe Alzheimers can remember words of songs long after they have lost the ability to have a conversation. What better reasons to have beautiful melodies with gospel words for people to sing: “When death’s dark night is over, /My body will arise from night/ And heav’nly joys discover.” The words teach them the way of salvation, how Jesus' sacrifice has won us heaven. So lovely, so true. God works in mysterious ways his wonders to perform! St. Petri Church in Malmö where Sthen served HYMN INFO Sthen was a pastor in the kingdom of Denmark, which at the time included much of southern Sweden, or Skåne, right across the water from Copenhagen. He heard the German version of this and translated it for inclusion in his En liden Vandringsbog before 1600. It was included in Danish collections until Kingo in 1699 who did not use it, but it remained in the memory. It was translated into Nynorsk by Bernt Støylen in 1905 and has become a constant presence in the repertoires of Gospel singers. It is a little difficult for a congregation, but people love to hear it. LINKS Sissel with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir https://youtu.be/f1FoX_llovk Embledamene/Woman’s Choir https://youtu.be/BnlibFNTY88 Anne Lise Berntsen and Nils Asheim https://youtu.be/3-akPXtkges Tor Gustafson Quartet/jazz version https://youtu.be/DGfqm1CHXao SKRUK https://youtu.be/xp398Dt1VOI Saxophone and Organ https://youtu.be/CQafteL1Qd8 Sissel in 1995 https://youtu.be/y4eRS64nooo __________________________________________ As you plan for Bible study in your congreegation or in your own personal devotions this coming year, this collection of sonnets on the life of Jesus drawn from all of Scripture might be a resource for you. Scholars are coming more and more to show Jesus as the fulfillment of the OT prophecies and this book helps with that study. "With these 366 sonnets, remarkable in artistry and number, Gracia Grindal has made literary history. The scriptural and theological knowledge that supports these poems is vast, but it is the imagination infused with the holy in poem after poem that reveals the poet's grace and skill and the astonishing work of the Spirit." --Jill Baumgartner, Poetry Editor, Christian Century, and professor of English emerita, Wheaton College https://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Harmony-Gospel-Sonnets-Days-ebook/dp/B08L9S4Z1T/ref=sr_1_3_nodl?dchild=1&keywords=Grindal&qid=16145
HYMN FOR EIGHTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST. Heavenly Sunshine
Text: Henry Jeffreys Zelley (1859-1942) Tune: George H. Cook (??-1948) arr. Charles Fuller 1. Walking in sunlight all of my journey Over the mountains, through the deep valeJ esus has said, I'll never forsake thee Promise divine that never can fail. R/ Heavenly sunshine, Heavenly sunshine Flooding my soul with glory divine. Hallelujah, I am rejoicing Singing His praises, Jesus is mine. 2. Shadows around me, shadows above me, Never conceal my Savior and Guide; He is the light, in Him is no darkness Ever I'm walking close to His side. R/ 3. In the bright sunlight, ever rejoicing, Pressing my way to mansions above, Singing His praises, gladly I'm walking, Walking in sunlight, sunlight of love… R/ My sister and brother by the Philco radio MEDITATION (I am awaiting a cornea transplant and cannot see very well so this is a slightly edited repeat.) Jesus saying that the righteous will shine like the sun made me think of this old chestnut and its place in our family's Sunday mornings. From the big brown Philco radio in the parsonage living room, every Sunday morning at 8:00 sharp, we would hear Rudy Atwood playing Heavenly Sunshine at the beginning of Charles Fuller’s Old Fashioned Revival Hour. My father, who had been up since 5:00 working on his sermon, now had breakfast ready for us. The fragrance of coffee and fresh scones made its way up the stairs. My sister, five years younger, would be down in the kitchen enjoying the music and the time with our father. It was the Lord’s Day, Sunday! How could you not be excited? Once again we could gather together in the church for Sunday School and church. Once again we could study and hear God’s Word! Sleeper, awake! After a breakfast of fresh baked scones and homemade strawberry jam, we would have devotions and then get ready for church while mother seared the roast beef for Sunday dinner—mashed potatoes and roast carrots, plus….while Fuller preached. Rudy Atwood led the Old Fashioned Revival Hour quartet in familiar Gospel songs, and Mrs. Fuller would read letters from troubled souls who had been blessed by the services the week before. "Take it away, honey," he would say and then she began. Memories that grow dearer as I grow older, "flooding my soul with glory divine!" HYMN INFO Charles E. Fuller Charles E. Fuller, (1887-1968) who in 1947 founded Fuller Theological Seminary, had grown up in southern California where his prosperous parents owned orange groves. He graduated from Pomona College ready to work as a chemist in his father’s citrus business. In 1916 he was converted and his life changed direction. After some years teaching Sunday School, he entered what is now called BIOLA University (Bible Institute of Los Angeles). Although he had been a Presbyterian, his views changed to a more fundamentalistic view so he moved to the Baptist Church and became a Baptist pastor in 1925. He was called to Calvary Church where he ministered for some time. As his ministry grew, Fuller quickly realized he could send his message via radio to many thousands more. In 1933, he established the Gospel Broadcasting Association. In 1937, he began national broadcasts of the Old Fashioned Revival Hour on the Mutual Broadcasting System. People came to hear the broadcasts in the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, so they had a live audience. The Gospel Quartet, along with Rudy Atwood’s Gospel playing, plus his wife’s reading of the letters, gave it a down home feeling. By 1942, the audience numbered over ten million. In 1968, he made his last broadcast and died soon thereafter. Scholars have noted that he was a skillful administrator, with a shrewd sense of how radio could advance his ministry and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His preaching and his establishment of Fuller Seminary, now one of the major evangelical institutions in America, made him a force for good in what would become the rise of the evangelical movement that developed after him. Rudy Atwood Rudy Atwood (1912-1992), Fuller's musician, began playing the piano as a young boy and then for church. Fuller heard him playing and asked him to be his musician. Atwood became a famous gospel pianist, much sought after for concerts and workshops on how to play Gospel music. As of 2015, recordings of the old programs are streamed weekly on the internet. Zelley, the author of the hymn text, was a scholar who earned a Ph.D. He became a big promoter of the camp meeting movement. A prolific writer of hymn texts, writing over 1500, he did his seminary work at Pennington Seminary. Cook, the composer, is not very well known. He spent his life working in church music contexts, composing, performing and leading musical events. He died in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. Fuller arranged the chorus and left out the stanzas. LINKS Rudy Atwood/Heavenly Sunshine! https://youtu.be/BEk1wwp8i0Q Amazing Grace Studio Choir—with the stanzas which Atwood did not use https://youtu.be/jVCeoQSjhP8 A medley of gospel songs with the choir beginning with Heavenly Sunshine https://youtu.be/Wf2ZwCsM3yo Rudy Atwood in Concert, medley of Gospel songs https://youtu.be/bjClkILZCeY The Old Fashioned Revival Hour—lots of programs to hear https://www.ofrh.com/listen
HYMN FOR THE SEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST When Seed Falls on Good Soil
The Sower Van Gogh Text: Norman Olsen (1932-2023) Tune: Fred Jackisch (1922-2022) 1. When seed falls on good soil It’s born through quiet toil, Where soil receives, The earth conceives The blade, the stem, the fruit, the leaves Good soil, oh, mother earth, The womb, where seed takes birth. 2. God’s Word in Christ is seed; Good soil its urgent need; For it must find In human kind The fertile soil in heart and mind. Good soil! A human field A hundred-fold to yield. 3. Plow up the trodden way, And clear the stone away; Tear out the weed, And sow the seed. Prepare our hearts your Word to heed, That we good soil may be. Begin, O Lord, with me! REFLECTION (I am having trouble with my eyes so this is a repeat and one of my favorite blogs.) Most stories, a famous critic Northrup Frye once noted, go from beginning, middle to end, from life to death. The Christian story, however, goes from middle to end to beginning. That is the good news and mystery of our faith. The poet Dante knew that—his great epic The Divine Comedy begins with his near drowning. As he is going under, a light from heaven comes to him and raises him up into new life. The seed is a major image for Jesus. It is a central parable of the kingdom because it tells the story of the death and then life of the seed. It first of all describes faith, but he also uses it to describe himself. “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” John 12:24 It helps to be a farmer when one listens to Jesus—most everyone around him worked the land and understood his imagery in a way that today’s people may not. I can think of no better hymn than this one for Sunday. It is written by pastor Norman P. Olsen, a crusty, no nonsense Lutheran pastor, who served congregations that were filled with farmers or whose livelihood was directly affected by the weather and the flourishing of crops around them. This is where all eyes were looking west to see what the My great uncle Freddie preparing the soil on his farm on the other side of Cyrus from Norman weather would bring. Norman died last year at a ripe old age while living on a farm near Cyrus, Minnesota, where my mother grew up. He was a dear friend and colleague of mine.. He could see around him the way the seed was planted, how it took root in the rich soil, and then sprouted up into golden fields of wheat, waving under the blue skies of summer, then the harvest, the stubble plowed under and then winter. His earthy sense of the world around him and the Gospel makes this hymn so profound. This isn’t something that happened only in Jesus’ time and place; it happened as he looked out at the fields around him. The notion of being fruitful is richly Christian. Our story which has a goal and a journey in it, is not about one triumph after another, a progress from lowly to holy. It is really a story of growth and fruitfulness on that journey—of savoring the life around us, of seeing what needs to be done and doing it, enjoying it fully, knowing there is a new world up ahead that will beggar our imaginations. We can enjoy the present because we know the future which is present to us in Jesus. St. Augustine said that Jesus is not only the country where we belong, but the way to it. To use a phrase from a translation of Paul Gerhardt's hymn, "If God Himself be for me," when Jesus is with us, our heaven has begun. So pray that God’s work will begin in you, as Norman has it in the hymn, and enjoy each phase of growth along the way. Norman Olsen HYMN INFO Born in New Jersey to Norwegian immigrants, Norm came to Minnesota when he enrolled at Concordia College in Moorhead. He served congregations around Minnesota. Norm and I worked for several years on the ReClaim hymnal. He knew how to write prayers with the kind of syntax that made Cranmer’s prayers in the Book of Common Prayer so powerful. They have that orotund sound and breathe the truth of faith into their hearers. The LBW committee found this hymn to be one of the few contemporary texts they could use. A composer in his congregation had set it, but the LBW wanted another tune. So the chair of the music committee, Frederick Jackisch wrote the tune in the LBW. The text’s tight rhymes made for a good tune. Another piece of hymn trivia, the name of the tune: Walhof--Karen Walhof, secretary to the project, from Augsburg Fortress press who helped put the hymnal together, was much beloved by the LBW committees. Giving the tune her name was a nifty way to honor all her work. LINKS Razmies https://youtu.be/YqptGonR1gU?si=MlUr1Whp1139tCxv United Methodist Congregation https://youtu.be/Z3Yr1WfvO9U Congregation and choir https://youtu.be/avDmNisejWg __________________________________________________ NB: To read my sonnets on Augustine's notion of Christ being the country where we belong and the way to that country, buy my recent book which has twelve sonnets on the idea, reflecting on Augustine's On Christian Doctrine. It is availabe at FinishingLinePress.com or Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, plus several other sites. Thank you.
HYMN FOR THE SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST Come unto me, ye weary
Jesus teaching the disciples. Giotto Text: William Chatterton Dix, 1837-1898 Tune: 7676D 1 "Come unto me, ye weary, and I will give you rest." O blessed voice of Jesus, which comes to hearts oppressed! It tells of benediction, of pardon, grace, and peace, of joy that hath no ending, of love which cannot cease. 2 "Come unto me, dear wand'rers, and I will give you light." O loving voice of Jesus, which comes to cheer the night! Our hearts were filled with sadness, and we had lost our way, but thou hast brought us gladness and songs at break of day. 3 "Come unto me, ye fainting, and I will give you life." O cheering voice of Jesus, which comes to aid our strife! The foe is stern and eager, the fight is fierce and long, but thou hast made us mighty, and stronger than the strong. 4 "And whosoever cometh I will not cast him out." O patient love of Jesus, which drives away our doubt, which, though we be unworthy of love so great and free, invites us very sinners to come, dear Lord, to thee! Christ teaching. James Tissot REFLECTION Jesus wraps up his instructions on discipleship with a prayer of thanksgiving to his Father for revealing these mysteries to the simple and children, rather than the scholars. He finishes with his much loved words of promise that he will give us rest and that his burden is light. These are wonderful and comforting words to hear after the grim warnings he has given us about what we can expect as we bring his word to others: Persecution and hatred. While these words may seem contradictory, they are not. We are looking at what is penultimate and ultimate. We can live through these terrors and sufferings, which could be awful, because we know that ultimately we will be safe. Fear of being hurt is often enough to stop people from standing up for what is the truth, but the disciples, who will have seen Christ’s resurrection, could firmly believe that they were safe. Christ by his resurrection had shown that he was victor over sin, death and the devil. Thus, the martyrs could go to the stake in confidence that no matter their suffering and pain, Christ would be there to give them the victory. Martyrdom of Andrew One of the proofs of the resurrection, in fact, the church has used down through the ages, is that none of the apostles, who all were brutally martyred, denied the resurrection. The apostles had been suspected of plotting to lie and say that Christ had been raised from the dead even if it were not true. None of them, however, denied the resurrection as they each faced a terrible death. They had reason to recall these words as their lives came to their violent ends. In fact, they knew the rest Jesus promised to provide was theirs already, even as they took courage during their suffering. As the hymn has it, Christ has made us “stronger than the strong.” The apostles must have felt his promise coming true as they were facing their torture. His promise to give us rest is another way for him to say, don’t worry. Fear will make you fail., but you need not fear. Fears and anxieties cause us to imagine all kinds of fearful things that keep us from doing what we have been called to do for our Lord. Here he promises us the strength to endure. Rest in that. William Chatterton Dix HYMN INFO Chatterton Dix is unusual for his time. He lived during the Anglo-Catholic revival in England which was led by Anglican divines of every kind. Dix, however, was a layman, a successful businessman, who became a hymn writer. His most famous hymns are "As with Gladness Men of Old." and "Alleluia, Sing to Jesus." The tune for this text is not settled. And while the hymn is loved by many, and the performances below are genuine, it doesn’t seem as if it appears in festival versions. LINKS Burbank First UMC/Piano version https://youtu.be/GnxpFE10MEc?si=G1W_ZLtSM_qTJCBy St. Matthew Lutheran Choir https://youtu.be/W84_K5rddQE?si=yyQ5dFC63jwnsus3 WCF Music https://youtu.be/4nh95yGTFzI?si=FsrJyqBsZvF0W9r2
HYMN FOR THE FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST. The Lord will provide
Isaac and Abraham. Viborg Cathedral in Denmark by Skovgaard 1 Tho' troubles assail, and dangers affright, Tho' friends should all fail, and foes all unite; Yet one thing secures us, whatever betide, The promise assures us, The Lord will provide. 2 The birds without barn and storehouse are fed; From them let us learn to trust for our bread: His saints what is fitting shall ne'er be deny'd, So long as it's written, The Lord will provide. 3 We may, like the ships, by tempests be toss’d On perilous deeps, but need not be lost: Tho' Satan enrages the wind and the tide, Yet scripture engages, The Lord will provide. 4 His call we'll obey, like Abra'm of old; We know not the way, but faith makes us bold; For tho' we are strangers, we have a good guide, And trust in all dangers, The Lord will provide. 5 When Satan appears to stop up our path, And fills us with fears, we triumph by faith: He cannot take from us (tho' oft he has try'd) The heart-cheering promise, The Lord will provide. 6 He tells us we're weak, our hope is in vain, The good that we seek, we ne'er shall obtain; But when such suggestions our graces have try'd This answers all questions, The Lord will provide. 7 No strength of our own, nor goodness we claim, Our trust is all thrown on Jesus's name; In this our strong tower for safety we hide; The Lord is our power, The Lord will provide. 8. When life sinks apace, and death is in view, The word of his grace shall comfort us through; Not fearing nor doubting with Christ on our side, We hope to die shouting, The Lord will provide. REFLECTION Of the Scripture lessons suggested for this day, the account of Abraham and Isaac is by far the most compelling and well known. It is among the most discussed and difficult in the whole Bible. That God should demand Abraham sacrifice his son to prove his loyalty shocks many. At the same time, it cannot be dismissed. It appears through the Bible and many see Isaac as a precursor to Jesus who also trudges up a hill carrying the tree on which he will die. And this time his Father, God, lets it happen. It is all for our salvation. Newton’s text covers many of the teachings of Jesus in Matthew we have been struggling with over the past weeks—the birds God feeds, the temptation of Jesus, our facing of our own deaths and losing our lives when we take up our crosses—are all here. Each circumstance is difficult, but Christians, following in the footsteps of Abraham, Jesus and countless other faithful disciples, go forward believing the Lord will provide. “We hope to die shouting, The Lord will provide!” I can’t make the Isaac story palatable to everyone, nor should I. It needs deep discussions from us in small groups and studies. And it would profit from being discussed with this hymn at the forefront, sung over and worked with during the conversation. Faith is always a step into the darkness. We walk by faith, but not by sight. To take those steps, we need a guide, our Lord, who has promised to be with us and lead us into green pastures where we will stay forever with him. I say this trembling. Yet I believe it. HYMN INFO John Newton Written in 1775 for a worship service in the Great House of Olney, where Newton and William Cowper served, this hymn began with the line from the Genesis account, “The Lord will provide.” The two, who collaborated on the collection known as the Olney Hymns, 1779, included this text. It has been shortened over the years and the salient stanza on Abraham is often excluded. For more on Newton click below. It seems to have lost its place in current hymnody, but the contemporary worship musicians have found it and sing it a lot. The tune is not quite settled, so any LM meter tune might fit, but here are a couple of performances. LINKS The Story of Amazing Grace and John Newton/15 minutes well worth your time https://youtu.be/8m8AHHduTM0 The Lord will Provide Matthew Smith https://youtu.be/YfTjEMVfqew?si=-8nE3Fgdfd9ZYldn The Lord will Provide/Biblogic Music #20 https://youtu.be/PS1jTfDIBcE?si=RfFfp4RDp01xO9Va
HYMN FOR FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST Beautiful Savior
Jesus teaching the disciples. James Tissot Text: Anonymous Tune: Schönster Herr Jesus, Silensian folk 1. Beautiful Savior, King of creation, Son of God and Son of Man! Truly I'd love Thee, truly I'd serve thee, Light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown. 2. Fair are the meadows, Fair are the woodlands, Robed in flow'rs of blooming spring; Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer; He makes our sorr'wing spirit sing. 3. Fair is the sunshine, Fair is the moonlight, Bright the sparkling stars on high; Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer Than all the angels in the sky. 4. Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations, Son of God and Son of Man! Glory and honor, Praise, adoration, Now and forevermore be Thine! Tr. Joseph Seiss (1823-1904) Jesus. Rembrandt REFLECTION Jesus’ Semon on Mission, given before he sends out his disciples, is filled with instructions and warnings that are not for the faint of heart. It seems to go against many of the conventional thoughts we have about Jesus and Christianity. Isn't he all about peace and reconiliation? It is shocking to hear Jesus say he has come to bring a sword which will cause division even in the most sacred of relationships—between parents and children—although he doesn’t mention between husband and wife. How does that work? Children of missionaries hear this with understanding, especially in the past when their parents would travel out in the bush leaving them at the mission school alone for months on end. It often engendered bitterness and sorrow for many. But Jesus is telling the truth here. While I don’t want to be one who tries to soften Jesus’ saying and explain the hard words away, maybe it can be compared with the story of Isaac. God had to know whom Abraham loved more—Isaac or him. It is a terrifying story, but it has a truth we all know deep down: for things to be right in our relationship with God AND our family, loving God first puts all other loves in their proper place. Nothing is worse for a child than to be worshiped by his or her parents. It is idolatry and Scripture rails against idolatry. Right worship vs. idolatry is the story of the entire Bible. Furthermore, while this account is worse than the Isaac story—there is no angel or ram in the thicket nearby—Jesus doesn’t come bearing a sword like a warrior. He is in his own person the sword, the one who in his very being separates us from unbelievers. To hear his word and follow him is to go his way and leave behind anything that demands our false worship. As our hymn makes clear, nothing in all of creation is more lovely, pure or shining than Jesus. When we know that and follow him, everything is put right, ultimately. That does not mean there is no suffering, nor sorrow. While he promises that we are more precious than many sparrows, he also promises us that when we follow him, we will be hated by the world. When we do take up our crosses to follow him, however, we will have found life and can believe that all will be well. Even during our suffering, he “makes our sorrowing spirit sing.” HYMN INFO Joseph Weiss The author of the German text is unknown. Joseph Seiss is the translator. Most Americans know it from the St. Olaf choral tradition—it is the signature anthem of several Norwegian American Lutheran college choirs. Bernhard Severin Ingemann (!789-1862), one of Denmark’s greater poets, was given a copy of the German hymn, “Schönster Herr Jesu,” and wrote "Deilig er Jorden" to it. Originally a funeral hymn, it became a Christmas hymn because its last stanza refers to Christmas night. The tune is very likely from Silesia. Mozart used it, as did Swedish troubadour Carl Michael Bellman (1740-1795). Many Norwegians say "Deilig er Jorden," is "Fairest Lord Jesus" when they want a translation, but it is not that either. Same tune, three different texts! Here you can hear the Christiansen arrangement and "Deilig er Jorden" in Norwegian and Danish. LINKS Kenneth Jennnings Conductor emeritus conducts a mass choir; notice Anthon Armstrong, his successor, singing with the choir https://youtu.be/UYrfcNG2vsM St. Olaf Choir with Anton Armstrong, current conductor of the choir https://youtu.be/0QJ4TkIcSkk Deilig er Jorden/Oslo Gospel Choir https://youtu.be/A0TmOCmT5qY Deilig er Jorden/Danish Radio and audience https://youtu.be/dz0ooyQjnYs Deilig er Jorden/St. Michaelis in Hamburg https://youtu.be/f4qP48IkX_A ______________________________________ For your daily devotions "With these 366 sonnets, remarkable in artistry and number, Gracia Grindal has made literary history. The scriptural and theological knowledge that supports these poems is vast, but it is the imagination infused with the holy in poem after poem that reveals the poet's grace and skill and the astonishing work of the Spirit." --Jill Baumgartner, Poetry Editor, Christian Century, and professor of English emerita, Wheaton College https://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Harmony-Gospel-Sonnets-Days-ebook/dp/B08L9S4Z1T/ref=sr_1_3_nodl?dchild=1&keywords=Grindal&qid=16145
HYMN FOR THIRD SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST His Eye is on the Sparrow
Text: Civilla Durfee Martin (1866-1948) T une: Charles Hutchinson Gabriel (1856-1932 Jesus teaching the disciples James Tissot 1..Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come, Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav’n and home, When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He: //His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;// R/ I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free, For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me. 2. “Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear, And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears; Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see; //His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; //R/ 3. Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise, When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies, I draw the closer to Him, from care He sets me free;| //His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;// REFLECTION Jesus healing the paralytic The more I read Scripture the more it feels like I have never read it before. It is always new and surprising. Jesus in Matthew 10 is instructing his disciples on what they are to do on their mission: proclaim that the Kingdom of heaven is at hand and then to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers and cast out demons. Jesus has given the disciples power to do what he has been doing. These miracles are no small thing—raising the dead no less! Doing this is certain proof the kingdom of heaven is near. In his instructions he invests them with his powers. Thus they bring Jesus, the kingodm of heaven, with them to do the works he commends to them. This list of miracles is not in the command he gives in his Great Commission, Frederick Bruner says in his wonderful commentary on Matthew. There we are to baptize and teach all that he commanded, and he will be with us always. Because he is with us, we will bring the kingdom wherever we go, that is sure, but do we do anything but baptize and teach? Or as we go as salt and light, or sheep among wolves, will we be called to act in his name with healing, casting out demons and raising the dead? It isn't clear. Maybe we are to wait in each encounter we have with another for a word from the Lord. He tells us not to prepare a speech beforehand to defend ourselves when we are hauled before our persecuters. At that moment we will be given the words to say. It is the mystery and surprise of the Christian life, always to be waiting on the Lord in every new situation. As our hymn has it, I know he watches me. It is not a picnic to do as he commands, either. Doing as he commands will bring persecutions and suffering to us, something Jesus describes vividly. This is what it means to bear our crosses, he says. One has to believe in the dread purposes of the Lord to fathom some part of these instructions with their consequences. Yet we are not to fear. God is watching over us as he cares for the sparrows of the field. We can sing because we are happy in him. Let not your heart be troubled! Ultimately, we can trust that he will keep us safe. HYMN INFO Civilia Martin Civilla Martin and her husband were visiting a married couple. The wife had been bedridden for twenty years, and the husband confined to a wheelchair. When she asked him how they were doing he remarked, “His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.” From that exchange came this hymn. Charles H. Gabriel who set it to music was among the more prolific writers of Gospel songs—they think over 7,000--and this is among his most beloved. He grew up on a farm in Iowa where his father was a singing school leader. He learned music from him but was never trained. He served as organist in several churches, one in San Francisco and Chicago where he became the musician with the Homer Rodeheaver Publishing company. He edited over 35 Gospel Song books, plus many other collections. His most famous song after this one is “Brighten the Corner Where You Are.” The song became Ethel Waters’ signature tune. She had come to hear Billy Graham in Manhattan in 1957 and rededicated her life to Christ. Cliff Barrows heard she was there and asked her to sing for them over the next years. She became a regular at the Billy Graham revivals. Ethel Waters and Billy Graham LINKS Ethel Waters version https://youtu.be/Fo3-p3GDV6w?si=vOIF3QU_9T3clYDd Lynda Randle, David Phelps, Reggie Smith https://youtu.be/g5XZK4hDRKg Whitney Houston (her last recording} https://youtu.be/kg81gddHA4M Mississippi Children’s Choir https://youtu.be/Q_8pUqXADTE
HYMN FOR SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST The Summons
Text: John Bell. Tune: Irish folk (For reasons of copyright, I cannot display the text, but it is found in almost every contemporary hymnal today.) Calling of Matthew Caravaggio REFLECTION The Calling of Matthew is one of the most dramatic in the gospels. Jesus appears and sees Matthew in the counting house with the worst of the worst according to the Judean people of the day. He is a traitor to them, serving himself and the Roman government. One could hardly go lower in the opinion of the people around Jesus. Still he walks in, calls Matthew to follow him, and Matthew stands up and leaves everything behind to follow. The call has utterly changed him. He is the kind of person Jesus says he came to serve—he came to minister to sinners, he announces at the dinner after the calling. After the dinner, he will raise Jairus' daughter from the dead and heal the woman with the isue of blood. Matthew will be there to see who Jesus is. Jesus call to Matthew is paradigmatic. All of us are sinners, sinners are all God has to work with. In the story of Kristus kommer (Christ is coming). Asta Nørregaard Matthew and all the other disciples, we see Jesus showing us what it means to follow him. They see him, healing the sick, feeding the hungry, casting out demons, stilling the storm, raising the dead and teaching. As they follow they are gradually being made into disciples—remember Jesus says in his calling to Andrew and Peter that he will make them fishers of men. As they follow, they become salt, light, a city on the hill. And when Jesus leaves and gives the great commission at his ascension, he commands them to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teach all things that he has taught them. Today many think that means the have a set of goals for transforming the world, but Jesus is not saying that, he says go to your neighbor, the person next to you, and wherever you go you will be bringing Christ with you and he will transform those who hear his word and see his work. To serve the neighbor is to love them. And that means, in Jesus’ terms, to respond in love to the needs of those present to us, not with a set of programs, but actual help for them. In today’s world of efficiency, we make abstractions about what people need and design programs that serve not an individual, but some abstraction. That misses the point: programs dehumanize and make the neighbor abstract. We are to be present to the neighbor and trust that in our own beings Christ is present and leading us to know what the person standing before us needs. Matthew will be learning this in his three year schooling with Jesus. An exciting thought: every encounter is a new one with Christ who inhabits our world in everyone we meet. HYMN INFO John Bell John Bell has been something of the guru of recent contemporary hymnody over the past quarter century. A Scottish pastor and at one time serving the Iona community, he has been noted especially for his use of Celtic folk tunes for his texts. These folk tunes which seem washed in the deep blue waters of the turbulent North Sea can make almost any text sound great, but Bell’s skill with a text, especially in the repetitions one finds in this text, works especially well with this gorgeous Scottish tune. Bell, born in Kilmarnock in Ayrshire, had musical talent from the beginning and intended to a music teacher, but a call to the ministry, especially to serve the poor, changed the direction of his life. He served as associate pastor at the English Reformed Church in Amsterdam. From there he returned to the Church of Scotland as a youth pastor. He began writing hymns along with his colleague Graham Maule, when he realized there were no hymns on various topics central to the Christian faith. This has become one of the most popular of his hymns and can be found in most contemporary hymnals around the world. It is all about what it means to follow Christ. Note too that it is from the point of view ofJesus who is the speaker calling us, something recent hymns have done, and oddly, many on the call of God to the Christian, such as "I, the Lord of Sea and Sky," and "Borning Cry." LINKS Chet Valley Churches (see the lyrics here) https://youtu.be/uu7ihXeTsMQ?si=YlD83WWPKKVfLTuR First Plymouth Church Lincoln Nebraska https://youtu.be/1EOmW1_gJwY?si=E0nuC0n5_pwgj3F6 The University of Notre Dame Folk Choir https://youtu.be/TY13dATqEKc?si=bThzR97H0vo9zw-_ Orchard Enterprises https://youtu.be/VFXAmB_Iq7k?si=4IfHBYfF_hElyUBn
HYMN FOR THE VISITATION
The Visitation Albertinelli May 31 is the day the church remembers Mary's visitation to Elisabeth. Click on this link to find out more about the festival. https://www.hymnfortheday.com/post/hymn-for-the-visitation-and-pentecost-2
HYMN FOR TRINITY SUNDAY I Bind unto myself today
The Trinity Andrei Rublev Text: St. Patrick (5th century, probably) Tune: Irish folk 1. I bind unto myself today the strong name of the Trinity by invocation of the same, the Three in One and One in Three. 2. I bind this day to me forever, by power of faith, Christ’s incarnation, his baptism in the Jordan river, his death on cross for my salvation, his bursting from the spiced tomb, his riding up the heavenly way, his coming at the day of doom, I bind unto myself today. 3. I bind unto myself today The virtues of the starlit heaven, the glorious sun’s life-giving ray, the whiteness of the moon at even, the flashing of the lightning free, the whirling wind’s tempestuous shocks, the stable earth, the deep salt sea around the old eternal rocks. 4. I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead, God’s eye to watch, God’s might to stay, God’s ear to hearken to my need, the wisdom of my God to teach, God’s hand to guide, God’s shield to ward, the word of God to give me speech, God’s heavenly host to be my guard. 5. Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me. Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger. 6. I bind unto myself the name, the strong name of the Trinity by invocation of the same, the Three in One and One in Three, of whom all nature has creation, eternal Father, Spirit, Word. Praise to the Lord of my salvation; salvation is of Christ the Lord! Tr. Cecil Frances Alexander (1818-1895) St. Patrick REFLECTION This kind of song uses an old Irish pre-Christian concept, Lorica, which means breastplate. The word is also found in Ephesians 6, urging believers to put on the breastplate of righteousness. Scholars note that it bears the mark of St. Patrick’s Christianity, with its deep sense of the battle between good and evil and the need to cry out every day to Christ for protection and praise. Along the way it tells the story of Christ’s becoming flesh to live with us and bring us salvation. In the middle the Irish blessing and prayer for protection in stanza 5—Christ be all around me so that I am enveloped completely in Christ—in a way clothed in him—but here the clothing is armor against the evil one. Sages have said that the first thing the wicked one does is persuade us that he does not exist. People dabble in magic and unknown spirits because they don’t think there is anything out there. But then they realize they are imprisoned by the darkness. As G. K. Chesterton said when people stop believing in God, they don't believe in nothing, they believe in everything. St. Patrick knew the world was filled with spirits of every kind. The only way he could fight the evil one was in Jesus' name, arming himself every day to be kept safe. Whether or not you have a sense of those principalities and powers in your life, this song from ancient Ireland is a good way to remind yourselves of all the ways in which you can be armed for the daily spiritual battles you are fighting. The devil cannot endure Jesus' Name. Say it out loud as you begin your day or end it. Then, like Luther, who also had a keen sense of the enemy in his life, you can go about or go to sleep in confidence that Christ is with you, protecting and keeping you safe. HYMN INFO We know very little with certaintly about St. Patrick's life, exactly when he lived, only that he was the child of Roman Britons. He came to Ireland as a slave with his captors and worked as a shepherd. He learned to speak and write the language during that time. He escaped and then came back as a missionary. He was fundamental to the conversion of Ireland and created a Celtic Christianity that differed a bit from Roman Christianity. Cecil Francis Alexander Cecil Frances Alexander, the writer of "Once in Royal David’s City," and "All Things Bright and Beautiful," plus many more children’s songs, was born in Dublin, and married an Anglican priest who became Bishop of Derry and Archbishop of Armagh; she loved all things Irish. She was asked by the Dean at the Chapel Royal of Dublin Castle to do a metrical version of the prayer, or Lorica, as the Dean referred to it. She quickly did so. This is an especially complicated hymn because it basically has three metrical parts so needed at least two tunes, and a chant in the middle. Composer Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924), also born in Ireland, and taught at Trinity College, Cambridge University, set it using two Irish tunes. While it hasn’t quite made the hit parade, it is always there on St. Patrick’s Day or Trinity Sunday, or whenever people need an Irish blessing. Hymnal committees in the past half century have put it into their hymnals and since it has gotten more attention among Lutherans and Episcopalians in this country, especially. LINKS Choir of Trinity College, Melbourne University https://youtu.be/gXj_epqheMw Moises Pacheco/solo https://youtu.be/UuzYaDrwwz8 Concordia Seminary chorus https://youtu.be/DhROzB1rxPY Ramoya https://youtu.be/kJme6cEKoxI
HYMN FOR PENTECOST Holy Spirit, Guide Us/Come Holy Spirit, God and Lord
Text: Gracia Grindal Tune: Amanda Husberg Holy Spirit, guide us, Guides us to the truth. Point to Christ our Savior, Christ who is the truth. Holy Spirit teach us, Teach us there is life. Point to Christ our Savior, Christ who gives us life. Holy Spirit, show us, Show us Christ the way, Point to Christ our Savior, Christ the only way. Pentecost. Emil Nolde REFLECTION Pentecost is the end of the festival part of the year and the beginning of ordinary time, as the liturgical churches call the time between now and Advent 1. Except for Saints Days Mary’s Visitation and Assumption, and All Saints Day, the rest of the time is ordinary. This does not mean that they are banal or without life. Hardly. Because of the gift of the Holy Spirit, every day is filled with new life. Because the Spirit is with us, we can see to see the miracles all around us in creation, for us northerners, the glories of the spring, summer and autumn days when all the earth is busy growing our food, clothes, fuel and all we need to live through the long winters. But more than that, the Spirit gives us the life we need to enjoy our family and friends, and ultimately life with God. These are all miracles. A miracle brought to us by our God who, unlike idols humans worship as gods made by their hands, is not a creature, but creator of all things, not a being, but being, I Am who I am or I will be who I will be, love itself, one who gave of himself so we could be friends, and enjoy him forever.. The entire scope of the festivals of the church year is a narrative on how God has done that—by sending his son at Christmas, and dying and rising for us at Easter, and now by his Spirit, sparks new life in us, life that will last forever. He wants us to take pleasure in all his gifts and be what he created us to be, the salt of the earth and light of the world, so that life will also flourish among us here and now. Enjoy, enjoy and take heart—this world with its sin and sorrow is not the last word. Christ is and wherever he is, because of the Spirit there is life abundant! HYMN INFO Amanda Husberg This Pentecost hymn is repetitious, easily memorized and simple—if you look at the end of the stanzas you will see truth, life, and the way, which Jesus is. I wrote it for my set of texts on the Book of Mark after hearing my second cousin from Norway, the missionary Per Kivle, preach on Pentecost in which he spoke of the Holy Spirit as the one who points to God and teaches and leads us. The late Amanda Husberg caught that simplicity with her sweet tune and descant. Husberg in her long life wrote many hymn tunes and other music for the church. After graduating from Concordia College in Seward, Nebraska, she moved to Brooklyn where she lived until she died. Along with playing the organ at her congregation for many years, she made stained glass art that was one of her many hobbies. LINKS For information on the great hymn by Martin Luther on the Holy Spirit, click here. https://www.hymnfortheday.com/post/hym-for-pentecost The Castle Church Congregation singing the hymn in Wittenberg https://youtu.be/PozwJVZts50?si=h-iiY4ufl45s5Xrx Radial by the Ordharc https://youtu.be/rGtnAJfxE18?si=u3M6VbhsfxmVnL-k This link takes you to a blog of mine on the recent book celebrating the publication of the first Lutheran hymnals. https://www.hymnfortheday.com/post/hymn-for-pentecost-3-and-remarks-on-the-500th-anniversary-of-lutheran-hymnals Text © Copyright 2008\Wayne Leupold Editions. Tune © Copyright 2012 Wayne Leupold Editions
HYMN FOR ASCENSION DAY AND SUNDAY I See You Standing, Lamb of God
Text: Hans Adolph Brorson (1694-1764) Tune: Norwegian Folk tune Ascension of Jesus. From the Rubbula Gospels, 6th century I see you standing, Lamb of God, Now at your Father’s right, But, oh, how painful was your road That led to Zion’s height! And what a burden that you bore; The world’ distress and shame. It made you fall so you could share The woe that none could name. O spotless Lamb, it was your will, In love thus bound to be Upon the cross on Calvr’ys hill, From sin to set us free. With lion strength, your nail-pierced hands Our death the death-blow gave And broken were our prison bands When you broke from your grave. Around your throne a throng does stream In raiment white as snow. Their eyes like suns with radiance beam The Lamb of God to know. The story how He chose to be A servant for our sake, The angels will eternally Sing anthems with your praise. Twelve times twelve thousand now acclaim, Each with their harp in hand Upon their brow, your Father’s name Makes know that happy band. As voice of many waters rise In rapt’rous symphony, To you who won us Paradise Eternal praises be. REFLECTION The ascension. by Giotto Ascension Day is not celebrated in the US much, although the Europeans have traditionally made it a holiday. It has turned into a kind of spring day, in Germany, with spargel (asparagus) in many forms on the menu. It should be, however, a major festival in churches still. It marks the coronation of Jesus as King and his taking up his place beside his Father in heaven, as we confess every Sunday in the creed. The best resource on this is Sarah Hinlincky Wilson’s Forty Facets of the Ascension, available at her website. https://thornbushpress.com/product/forty-facets-of-the-ascension/ Even if you have had to turn the seventh Sunday in Easter into Ascension celebrations, you should make the day special. One way is to study up on this book. The hymn I have chosen uses the language of Stephen in his sermon and ecstatic comments as he is dying—he sees Jesus standing by the Father. This not just an accident of Luke’s prose. He really is pushing a theological point that is worth noting. After Stephen’s exclamation that he sees Jesus in heaven standing by the Father, they go to kill him. It is pure blasphemy to see Jesus as the high priest now standing in the high holy place, heaven’s hill after standing on the holy hill of Mt. Zion. See Psalm 24, etc. There is much more to the story, but it intrigued me that my favorite Danish hymn writer, Brorson, in his Swan Songs, written as he lay dying, used Stephen’s language to describe the hosts of heaven. Most think of this as a hymn for All Saints Day, but in my tradition it was always there for Ascension, because of the first line. Those of us who are long in the tooth remember the embarrassment our generation felt with the idea of heaven up there as the three-story universe had it, so we always wondered where Jesus went as the disciples gazed up at him. Where was he going? After Yuri Gagarin, the Soviet Cosmonaut, became the first man in space, the Soviets noted that he hadn’t seen Jesus in space. (Some say he said that, but the record is not clear on that.) Now scholars are saying Jesus went into another dimension from which he will come again to reign “on earth as it is in heaven.” The biblical writers and scholars struggle to explain that, but we can take it on faith that as Jesus was raised up bodily, so we will be, not as spirits, but as resurrected flesh that Paul struggles to describe or at least hint at in 1 Corinthians 15. All we can do is wait in hope for that day. HYMN INFO Hans Adolph Brorson Hans Adolph Brorson is among the three great writers of hymnody in Denmark. He grew up in Jutland where his father was pastor of the small parish of Randerup. He also became a pastor and later Bishop of Ribe. He served Christ Church in Tønder, a rich city of lacemakers who supported the church where he served as the Third Danish pastor since German was as common as Danish in the church. Brorson began writing Danish hymns in 1732 when he wrote a brief series of Christmas hymns in an effort to restore the central focus of Christmas tide from a drunken holiday to a Christian one. His first little volume of some few hymns—"Your little ones dear Lord are we," "My Heart is filled with Wonder," "In this happy Christmastide," and "I’ve found now the fairest of roses" are still among the most popular hymns for Christmas in the Nordic countries. The last collection he wrote, the Swan Songs, contain many of his more popular hymns on heaven, like "Behold a Host," and this one. LINKS Staff Band of the Norwegian Armed Force https://youtu.be/OUEjj74Ugwk?si=CqxnK8gXrp35N176 Susanne Lundeng https://youtu.be/tVcofPtYnW8 Bergen Domkantori https://youtu.be/gzKxp1Dzzx4?si=I1H-3o5m_mPbvOBt