Issues Etc. – Top 5 Hymns
Over the last few days I’ve been getting caught up on some of the Issue Etc programs that have been diligently downloaded to my iPod. In particular, I have especially appreciated the 5-part series on the Top 5 hymns voted by Issues Etc listeners. I anticipated that “Lord, Thee I Love With All My Heart” would make it, but I was pleasantly surprised to see that the top hymn was “God’s Own Child, I Gladly Say It.”
These are all well worth listening to. And if you haven’t decided to have “God’s Own Child, I Gladly Say It” sung at your funeral service, I think you’ll be convinced that you might want to add it.
J.S. Bach: The Music Lives On
Each year on July 28, the church commemorates Kantor J.S. Bach. It was on this date in 1750 that Bach — musician, composer, and servant of the church — entered into eternal rest.
When I think of Bach and his death, the first thing that comes to mind is the closing chorale to his St. John Passion. He closes this Passion with the final stanza of Martin Schalling’s hymn text “Lord, Thee I Love with All My Heart.”
Soundtrack of Life
Imagine watching Star Wars or some other favorite movie with one big change: no music. The plot and characters would still be there, but we would miss that familiar music that moves the story forward.
And yet, do Luke Skywalker or Darth Vader even know that there is a soundtrack backing up their lives? In the case of Darth Vader, it was a soundtrack that accompanied his entire life from birth to death. What is your soundtrack?
LSB Resources: Additional Indexes
For a number of years I’ve had lofty goals to catalog my music library — not just the books, but also the individual pieces within the book, associated hymn tunes, composers, when I used a piece, etc. While I haven’t made much progress on the cataloging, awhile back I did create the underlying structure that would link everything back to Lutheran Service Book and the associated hymn tunes. Through that project I had the data to create several indexes that had more detail than those provided in the back of the LSB editions — primarily around the hymn tunes used in LSB.
On Texts and Tunes
Hymn texts and tunes are often intimately connected in a worshiping community. The tune helps to carry and reinforce the text and make the text more memorable. Moreover, singing helps us to inwardly digest the hymn text.
A Blessed Epiphany
Blessings to you on this feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord when we commemorate “God in man made manifest.” Lutherans usually associate Phillip Nicolai’s “O Morning Star, How Fair and Bright” (LSB 395) — the queen of the chorales — with this day.
It is a hymn full of comfort and devotional thought. Jesus the bright Morning Star. God’s blessings in the midst of life’s difficulties. Those blessings being the gifts God gives us in His means of grace that sustain us. Then strengthened and nourished, we go forth and proclaim the story as we wait for the feast to come.
The Church’s Song Goes On
As night turns to day this Saturday night and Sunday morning, the faithful awake and make their way to their place of worship and sing the church’s songs. As one song ends in one place, another is started or overlaps with the first. A massed choir, though separated geographically, united in a common message. The prayers and songs of the faithful continually ascend to God and each other.
A Case for Hymnody
Pastor Peters at Pastoral Meanderings makes a compelling case for the use of the church’s vast wealth of hymnody: This treasury helps teach the faith to each generation. In many cases hymns (or what we sing) are remembered far longer by the people in the pews than the pastor’s sermon (and I don’t mean any disrespect to pastors – I highly value the sermon).
Diving into Hymnody
If you like hymnody, and Lutheran hymnody in particular, there are several blogs you should visit.
CPH Goes MP3
Just a quick note — it looks like CPH has finally got into the 21st century with selling some of their CD’s as MP3′s. According to a CPH press release (no longer available), you can now buy selected CPH audio products from Amazon and iTunes. Both “Heirs of the Reformation” and “Martin Luther: Hymns, Ballads, and Chants” are available for download. The interesting thing is that the price on Amazon is $17.98 and $15.98 respectively, but the iTunes prices are $24.99 and $34.99. Hmm . . .
Both are excellent CD compilations of some of the finest Lutheran hymnody and a worthy addition to your audio library.
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