This week, both our Gospel and Old Testament readings involve the healing of lepers. The more intriguing story of the two comes from 2 Kings 5: 1-17 and features the story of Namaan. Namaan, though he was a great man and a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Namaan was sent to see the prophet Elisha, who instructed Namaan to wash in the Jordan seven times, where his flesh would then be restored and cured of his leprosy. Namaan was frustrated with this, but he regrettably entered the river and found himself clean. Amazed, he became humbled and pledged to be a true servant of the Lord.
HYMNS AND SONGS
We Come To You For Healing, Lord (Opening Hymn- 7:45 AM, 9:00 AM)
Much like Namaan went to God for healing, it is also a need that we have at times. Our bodies, minds, and souls all need some form of healing at some point, and through prayer, we can hope to receive it. Herman Stuempfle, the long time leader of the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, penned this lovely hymn with the need for healing in mind. The image of Christ as the great physician is referenced in stanza three, and gives thanks to all the physicians and nurses around that heal our wounds with their God given gifts and willingness to serve.
This text is set to the hymn tune MARTYRDOM, a rather common tune from late 18th century England. It accompanies the Stuempfle text quite nicely, and as the end of stanza four says, we "trust that through our nights and days your grace will heal, sustain."
In All Our Grief (Hymn of the Day- 9:00 AM)
This is a congregational response to Namaan's predicament. Whether it is the leprosy that Namaan suffers from, or any other affliction that we deal with, we are able to turn to God, knowing that he knows all that we do and the pain we all feel.
It can be easy to want to give up, to become vindictive, wallow in self pity, and blame others for certain problems. Stanza two of this hymn pleads that we resist those temptations. Poet Sylvia Dunstan implies that there is in fact a way that love is best served. Given that line is followed by the refrain of the Kyrie, it implies that the way to best serve is to trust in the Lord for all the healing.
The closing stanza continues to encapsulate our need to continually put our trust and faith in God. It's a plea to God himself, that he show us that he is always near and that he will not leave us lost.
Come, Ye Disconsolate (Communion Hymn- 9:00 AM)
The lasting message of this hymn is that earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal. While on Earth, we can continually use this message as both motivation and strengthening our faith. In stanza three, we get led into the sacrament of the Eucharist, where we are invited to "Come to the feast of love; come, ever knowing earth has no sorrow but heav'n can remove."
Day By Day (Communion Hymn- 9:00 AM, Opening Song- 11:15 AM)
Though the words to this poem were written over 120 years ago, this is a prayer that is still relevant and worthwhile today, and I feel that it would have been very meaningful for Namaan following his healing. Anyone that is suffering from potential peril needs to hear these words. There is really nothing I can add to further clarify and enlighten this poem, so I think I will just include the entire third stanza below, and hope that this can be a verse you may some day choose to commit to memory and pray to yourself during times of trial.
Oh what joy to know that you are near me
when my burdens grow too great to bear;
Oh, what joy to know that you will hear me
when I come, O Lord, to you in prayer.
Day by day, no matter what betide me,
you will hold me ever in your hand.
Savior, with your presence here to guide me,
when my burdens grow too great to bear;
Oh, what joy to know that you will hear me
when I come, O Lord, to you in prayer.
Day by day, no matter what betide me,
you will hold me ever in your hand.
Savior, with your presence here to guide me,
I will reach at last the promised land.
Abide With Me (Closing Hymn- 7:45 AM, Communion Hymn- 9:00 AM)
While Henry Lyte's hymn, Abide With Me, is frequently used at funerals, I feel that it has an important place in this Sunday's service. Stanza three is a good example of why. "I need thy presence every passing hour. What but thy grace can foil thy tempest's power?" Whether it is a sickness, a personal struggle, or some other type of inner demon, grace, hope, and faith will always carry us through.
The closing stanza of this hymn is an amazing interpretation of what we hope to view, hear, and experience as we pass through to the promised land. And even as heaven's morning breaks and the vain shadows of earth flee, God will abide with us from everlasting to everlasting.
CHORAL ANTHEM
Evening And Morning- arr. Nick Klemetson (Hymn of the Day- 7:45 AM, Offering- 9:00 AM)
From time to time, I like setting hymns from the ELW so they would be appropriate for the Chancel Choir to sing, and this was one of those hymns that was just calling to be set. The exciting text by the great German hymn writer Paul Gerhardt yielded a lot of great ideas and possibilities.
The arrangement plays out almost like a musicological journey from the late 16th century to today. The first verse is set in the style of a renaissance dance. The open fifths in the organ, the lowered 7th scale degree, and the whistling that the choir will do (imitating a woodwind) are all characteristic of the dance music of that time.
The style of stanza two is rather difficult to explain. At 2:30 of this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A02VoJFv-jk&feature=related you'll find my inspiration for this stanza. Frequently in renaissance mass settings, composers will occasionally put all voices involved together homophonically to emphasize a certain portion of the text. While it was inspired by a renaissance mass, it still features late 19th century harmonies over the words "Calm all my terrors, blot all my errors."
Verse three jumps ahead about a century, and was inspired by what comes at the 2 minute mark of this piece. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9Ltr2uw-Pc This style of writing was common in mid-17th century Germany, with a chorale sung by the highest voices using a technique called augmentation, that is, stretching it out underneath florid contrapuntal writing in the lower voices.
Stanza four comes into the 20th century with a standard rendition of the hymn with a free organ harmonization and a descant on the top, bringing the hymn to its wonderful conclusion.
This will also be the hymn of the day at the 7:45 AM service sung in a standard fashion without the choir.
INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
Two Settings of Evening and Morning- John Eggert, Kevin Hildebrand (Prelude: 7:45 AM, 9:00 AM)
These are both settings which feature the German chorale from our Offering piece. The first features a flute obbligato with the tune sounding in the tenor range with the schalmei reed on the organ. The second puts the tune in the soprano on top of a waltz like pattern in the accompaniment.
Fanfare on Evening and Morning- John Eggert (Postlude: 7:45 AM, 9:00 AM)
This setting introduces the tune right away and presents it in a quasi-canonical style. The harmonic possibilities of this tune are brought to the forefront here in a very joyful manner.
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This is the final lectionary week of Jesus' healing ministry for the time being. Next week, Jesus will climb the mountain and experience the Transfiguration, during which we will experience and enjoy some of the most wonderful music of the season.
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