Pentecost 9, July 31, 2011
Genesis 45:1-15
Psalm 133 from BCP
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32
Matthew 15:10-28
“I vant to be alone!” was the dramatic cry of legendary actress Greta Garbo. Most of us will never experience or understand the intense pressures faced by celebrities, but at least their fame and financial means often give them the opportunity to get the solitude they want.
I’ve been known to utter the same cry at times in my life. “I want to be alone,” might be the plea of our organist upon hearing the janitor entering with the vacuum cleaner. “We want to be alone,” complain the singers in the Lofty Pews when they hear the Altar Guild arrive to set up for a service. Music coordinators or worship leaders are usually happy when they are left alone to decide on music for a service, yet often feel pressure from many directions to alter the selection of music and hymns. Wanting to be left alone can be a cop-out at times. But being alone can also be a time of retreat, reflection, and renewal. I look forward to Saturdays when I am “left alone” to write the Lofty Pew Notes and polish the music for the next day.
Jesus also desired alone time on earth. Our Lord is presented to us in a very human fashion as this Sunday’s gospel reading opens. He has just heard of the tragic beheading of John the Baptist. Matthew records that Jesus withdrew into a boat to a deserted place by Himself. He had much to contemplate. John was his relative, His forerunner, His baptizer, His preacher! How different John’s life would have been had he not gotten involved with Jesus! What did this mean for all the others who proclaimed Him as the Savior? Was he signing their death warrants, too?
But Jesus’ retreat time, deserved as it was, was cut short; the crowds heard where He was headed and followed. Seeing them, He had compassion and cured their sick. And there is even more work to do, for the crowd stays through the evening. The disciples are concerned for the people’s mealtime, for the high cost of providing enough food, and for the chaos that could ensue. Shouldn’t they give a supper break so the people can go into the villages to buy food? Jesus chooses another storyline, one that creates a sensation of its own and proclaims the kingdom of God in a most profound way. More than five thousand are fed from five loaves and two fish, and the copious leftovers are a sermon in themselves! There is nothing reposeful about this day!
Sorrow and joy stand side by side on this day in Jesus’ life. It is a day of weariness and great activity, of retreat and full charge ahead, of solitude and massive crowds, of bad news and exuberant Gospel. Is it that Jesus cannot make up His mind? No, His day is one of contrasts because He is responding to the diverse needs around Him. As His messengers in this world, we want nothing other than this for ourselves.
We will sing O God of Bethel, By whose Hand as our processional hymn and present, in this hymn, our vows, our prayers before the throne of grace and ask God to spread His sheltering wings around us till all our wanderings cease and we unite with Him in peace at our “Father’s abode.”
The words of this hymn were written by Phillip Doddridge (b 1702). Phillip was an English independent theologian, writer, and poet. He became minister of Kibworth chapel in 1723, though was not ordained until a few years later. He founded his own academy for the training of Independent ministers in 1729 and was known and respected by fellow independents such as Watts, Anglicans such as bishops William Warburton and Thomas Secker, and “Methodists” such as the Wesley brothers.
The hymn has two versions printed in our hymnal. The first one is a unison setting, the second is in harmony (SATB) with the melody in the tenor line. This is the musical term fauxbourdon. In hymn singing there is a treble descant superimposed upon the melody being sung by the congregation. Listen for this from the singers in the loft.
God Has Spoken To His People, the sequence hymn, was well received when we had this hymn in our service recently. It is a stirring hymn by the Rev. Dr. Willard F.. Jabusch, set to a very engaging Hasidic folk melody, TORAH SONG, challenging God’s people to action in response to the Creator’s word. The text was altered for use in Hymnal ’82 to make its imagery totally consistent with Hebrew scripture and thus an even more authentic partner of the Hasidic melody. The emphasis on joy, of which music is an essential component, is a characteristic feature of the Hasidic movement of Judaism, founded by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov (1700-1760). We find this fun to sing, yet the words call us to open our ears to hear God’s word being read to us -- the people -- as we bookend the reading of the Gospel with verses 1&2 before and 3&4 after. HALLELUJAH!
Now Let Us All Praise God and Sing will be the anthem sung from the Lofty Pews. Here it is on Youtube at “Festival of Pipes", an organ dedication concert of worship presenting the newly renovated 1875 George W. Ryder tracker organ. Organist: Peter Vantine. Choir: MCC Choir. Date: May 4, 2008. Location: Middleton Congregational Church.
Psalm 17:1-7, 16 from BCP is the appointed Psalm for Sunday and will be sung in SATB Anglican Chant. Please feel free to join in the antiphon when we sing it. You have the words printed in your insert. I think you will catch on to the melody when we sing it for you at the beginning.
Have you noticed that we have had some new faces in the Lofty Pews recently? This week we will be joined by Abbe Adam’s daughter visiting from California. We are thrilled to have her as an alto with us while she is visiting Boise.
Also, we have enjoyed having Rick Capezza in the Lofty Pews the last few weeks. Rick is taking the Chaplain’s course this summer at St Luke’s Medical Center and is a member of Christ the King Anglican Church in Spokane, one of our sister churches in the Western Diocese of ACNA. He and his wife, Rachel have 3 adorable children. The children were thoughtfully named, Kyrie Eleison (“Lord, have mercy!”), Antonio Giovanni (priceless grace of God”) and Epiphany Joy (“revelation of joy”). It’s been a pleasure singing with you, Rick and having your tenor voice blend with our quartet.
Thank you also to Darrell Ludders and Bruce Moberly for joining us when they can and the faithful soprano, Sharon Helppie. What a blessing! Abbe Adams and Mary McGuire join us regularly to make music from the Lofty Pews with Pat O Neil on the organ.
I Come with Joy to Meet My Lord is our recessional hymn. The words of this wonderful hymn were written by the contemporary English hymn writer, theologian, and activist for world development, the Rev. Brian Wren (b. 1930). He wrote it for his congregation at Hockley, Essex, “to sum up a series of sermons on the meaning of communion.” The text begins with the individual worshiper, who comes “with joy to meet my Lord”; moves into the corporate dimension, “the new community of love”; and ends in the spirit of the dismissal in the Eucharist, “together met, together bound, we’ll go our different ways, and…in the world we’ll live and speak His praise.”
Yes, we want to be alone at times. But, more importantly, we want to join with Jesus in His daily routine of meeting needs in the world around us. As we sing this hymn, contemplating the meaning of the words, let us consider “going our different ways” to meet the needs of our friends and neighbors as we “live and speak” praise to our Lord and Savior by telling others about Him. HALLELUJAH!
Sources:
Hymnal ’82 Companion
Faith Looking Forward
Facebook
Deacon Ron Jutzy
Tune My Heart to Sing
No comments:
Post a Comment