April 17, 2011
You may notice that we have some young singers in “training”! Stay tuned for Easter!
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This Sunday stands at a unique place in the rhythm of the church’s life. Even its name, Sunday of the Passion/Palm Sunday, exposes the specialness of the day. It is a day of dualities when we will hear two gospel readings—that of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and by contrast, that lengthiest of all Gospel periscopes (selection from the Gospel)—the Passion of our Lord. We gather for a palm procession; we depart, immersed in the heaviness of Holy Week.
The people of Jerusalem knew only the festivity of the day as they expected Jesus to be ushering in the triumph of Israel. Jesus obviously had a different scenario on his mind, for he knew this was only the beginning of the end. “Ignorance is bliss,” as the saying goes. Anyone can praise a victor, but even the disciples departed once they realized what was happening in the days that followed. Sadly, the same is true for many in our churches. “Let me know when the big, happy festivals are coming up,” some say. “I don’t want to ruin my good mood by going on a somber day,” they might as well add. Those who worship faithfully know the risks of coming on a day when we will be confronted with the crimson details of the passion story. But it is worth the risk, for we trade in a superficial, feel-good experience for a deeper, richer encounter with the Christ who has himself gone through it all.
The function of our worship this Sunday will be, as always, to praise the triune God, proclaim the gospel, pray together, offer ourselves in service, and be fed by Christ’s communion with us and by our communion with each other. But we will not merely remember that first Palm Sunday; we will experience it anew. For Christ continues to be praised and lauded, continues to display his scars, continues to come to us and feed us, continues to save and redeem us.
Our music will be part of that experience. With voices and instruments united we will relive the festivity of Christ’s coming and ponder the depths of his suffering and death.
The traditional hymn, “All Glory Laud and Honor” will be our opening processional hymn as we commemorate the triumphal entry into Jerusalem waving our blessed palm fronds. The repeated refrain makes it possible for the verses to be sung by the choir in the loft, with everyone singing the refrain in unison. The choir will sing the stanzas that provide a narrative of the triumphal entry, while the refrain embodies the acclamation of the palm-carrying crowd.
This is one of the few medieval hymns whose authorship is certain, or nearly so. The text, based on Matthew 21:6-11 is ascribed to Theodulf, Bishop of Orleans, by his contemporary Lubus of Ferrieres in a letter written in 837. Evidence indicates that the poem was written at Angers, where Theodulf was imprisoned around 818 for complicity in a plot to overthrow King Louis I, a charge that Theodulf vigorously denied. The following story is told:
On Palm Sunday, 821, Louis the Pious, King of France, was at Angers and took part in the usual procession of the clergy and laity. As the procession passed the place where St. Theodulph was incarcerated he stood at the open window of his cell, and amid the silence of the people, sung this hymn which he had newly composed. The king was so much delighted with the hymn that he at once ordered St. Theodulph to be set at liberty and restored to his see; and ordained that henceforth the hymn should always be used in processions on Palm Sunday (Julian, 426)
The story is so attractive that it is still widely cited, but usually with a disclaimer that it is no more than a pious myth. So?
The Choir will chant Psalm 31:9-16 in four part Anglican Chant. The antiphon, “Have mercy on me, O God”, will be sung to the tune of “O Sacred Head Sore Wounded”, another familiar Holy Week hymn. The words of this Psalm are agonizing to chant, foretelling the words the Christ cried out in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross.
The hymn, “To Mock your Reign, O Dearest Lord” will be sung by all after the sermon. The text of the hymn is matched with Thomas Tallis’ THE THIRD TUNE. The tune has an almost unearthly beauty and may be somewhat unfamiliar to us. But the choir will lead you from the loft in this haunting hymn. The text by Fred Pratt Green graphically describes both the grim realities of the scourging of Jesus before the crucifixion as described in Matthew 27-28 and the paradox of the events themselves:
They did not know, as we do now,
That glorious is your crown;
That thorns would flower upon your brow;
Your sorrows heal our own.
The Communion Anthem sung by the choir in the loft will be, “Jesus so Lowly”, by Harold Friedell.
Jesus so lowly,
Child of the earth
Christen me wholly,
Bring me new birth.
Jesus so lonely,
weary and sad;
Teach me that only
Love maketh glad.
Jesus so broken,
Silent and pale;
Be this the token
Love will not fail.
Jesus, victorious, mighty and free;
Teach me how glorious death is to be.
After communion the congregation will sing the hymn “Alone Thou Goest”, by Francis Bland Tucker, born 1895, died 1984. Tucker has shone as one of the brightest lights in the firmament of a distinguished family of churchmen and was for 22 years the rector of Christ Church, Savannah, Georgia; and was fond of pointing out that he is the successor to John Wesley in that position. The Companion to the 1982 Hymnal says, “His sensitive understanding of language, his solid knowledge of the classics of world literature, and his profound theological insights made him invaluable to the Text Committee as they wrestled with the felicitous alteration of texts (underlining by LMJ). Erick Routley has written, “There is no better twentieth-century writing in either of our two countriesthan to be found in Tucker.” This particular hymn is a free translation by Tucker of a twelfth-century text and completed by him in 1928 for use in the 1940 Hymnal. Another haunting hymn.
Our service closes with a prayer over the people and dismissal.
All depart in silence……
As Holy Week is ushered in once again, we pray that our minds and hearts will be open and ready to ponder our Lord’s sacrifice for us anew.
Lana
Grace Anglican Church
www.gacboi.org
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