Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost
Last week we took a minor detour from the sermon series based around Jesus as the Bread of Life. In the verses we explore this weekend, Jesus makes a connection between the act of Communion, his parallel of the body and blood to the bread and wine, and the eternal life granted to him and to all of us by his crucifixion. He said that though their ancestors ate bread and still died, it was not the true bread. Only the bread from heaven, brought through Jesus, would grant eternal life.
PRELUDE
Three Preludes on SCHMÜCKE DICH- Timothy Flynn, Marcel Dupré, and Johannes Brahms
Rather than play the longer prelude based on this chorale by J.S. Bach, I've elected to play three shorter versions of the chorale, each from a different era and from a different country.
The first, by contemporary composer Timothy Flynn, features the tune in a solo reed in the tenor registry. It is accompanied by a lyrical, at times dissonant, line of either one or two voices. The use of a partial 2 2/3 tone on the organ creates the illusion of anywhere from 2-4 tones sounding at once.
The second setting by Marcel Dupré is the shortest and most straightforward. Dupré's volume of 79 German chorales are said to be preparatory works to the music of Bach. They emphasize independence in the hands surrounded by a straightforward rendition of the tune. Like the first piece, it is contained in the tenor, and the trio-like quality of the short work means active counterpoint in both the other manual and the pedal.
Finally, the Brahms setting comes from his collection of Chorales, op. 122. It is the most complex harmonically, and the tune is in the soprano. The harmonic structure is very romantic in character, featuring a lot of advanced and complex motion, which contrasts with the tune.
OPENING HYMN
When In Our Music God Is Glorified
This hymn has a very interesting history, particularly as it relates to the tune it is sung to. First of all, when the hymn was originally written in 1971 with the intention to be used with Vaughan Williams' tune SINE NOMINE. It was eventually decided that the tune ENGELBERG, by C.V. Stanford, was not as intrinsically tied to a text as SINE NOMINE was to "For All The Saints," and would be a more appropriate fit.
Both ENGELBERG and SINE NOMINE are similar in character. They are strong, march like, and triumphant... perfectly fitting for the nature of the text. However, if you look in the ELW, immediately preceding the ENGELBERG tune, this same hymn is set to the tune FREDERICKTOWN. Unlike the first two tunes, FREDERICKTOWN has a completely different character. Seeing how the character of these tunes affect the text could be a thesis in itself. What can simply be said is that both tunes reflect the essence of these texts in different, yet very effective ways.
HYMN OF THE DAY
We Eat The Bread Of Teaching
Jesus makes the point that by eating the body and blood in his name, we become one with him. That is the message of this hymn, contained at the end of the refrain, "... we all are one at Wisdom's holy feast." It is likely that this is a new hymn for most. The ELW is the only hymnal where it is contained, which I feel makes it very important that we, as ELCA Lutherans using this hymnal, sing it.
Upon first inspection, it appears that the word Wisdom is being used to depict God. There is good reason for thinking that. After looking closer however, I believe that Wisdom is actually referring to the church universal. In stanzas one and two, Wisdom is referred to as a "she." I'm not saying that God cannot be depicted as female; several hymns do this already (see ELW 735). But if you look at the context of both stanzas, we see that it is more likely that it is referring to the church itself, rather than God of Christ. This, along with the unity between us and Christ, makes this a wonderful hymn of the day.
OFFERING
Prelude in B minor op. 32, no. 10- Sergei Rachmaninoff
Rachmaninoff wrote two sets of preludes throughout his life. The op. 32 set is the later of the two, and features some of his greatest writing for piano.
Number 10 in the set has possibly the most interesting story behind it. He was inspired by Arnold Böcklin's painting, titled The Return. He composed this set of preludes during his first American tour from 1909-1910, debuting such works as his famous third piano concerto. It's possible that in coordination with the painting, he was longing to return home as well.
The piece is in four sections, the first and fourth of which are similar in character. The middle two contain pianistic elements which are characteristic of Rachmaninoff's signature style. The first features the main melody crammed into the middle of very thick, full, triplet rhythm chords. The second contains large flourishes which lead back to the initial first portion of the piece with its signature dotted rhythms.
COMMUNION HYMNS
Come, Let Us Eat
This traditional Liberian tune, adapted for hymnal usage by Billema Kwillia, is familiar for many of us due to its inclusion in Marty Haugen's liturgy, "Tree Of Life." The first three stanzas are tied to the act of Communion, the first being body, the second blood, and the third being the communal presence among us with Christ at the table.
The concluding stanza will be used separately as a post-communion canticle, as we gather up and go out into the world.
Soul, Adorn Yourself With Gladness
This is one of the most theologically complex hymns in our entire hymnal. If we could sum it up with one line from the hymnal, I would choose line three from stanza one... "Bless the one whose grace unbounded this amazing banquet founded."
Unity, eagerness, joy, and peace are all common themes throughout the stanzas. The metaphor of a bride meeting her husband (as in Revelation) is throughout the second stanza. In the third, the sense of wonder through the miracle of communion almost overcomes the writer, calling it a "glorious consolation" and labeling the Bread of Life as "boundless."
POSTLUDE
ENGELBERG- David Cherwien
It is merely a coincidence that the last several weeks have contained music by David Cherwien. This is a piece that I have wanted to play for a long time, but have always shied away from due to its apparent difficulty.
After an opening fanfare, the work takes off in a torrent of toccata-like eighth notes, all based on the "Alleluia" motive from the ENGELBERG tune. It is as though the word "Alleluia" repeats over and over again each time that motive goes by. The entire tune is presented in the pedals, though the 5/4 time signature that most of the piece is in obscures that slightly. The piece shifts to a 6/4 time about halfway through, which squares the phrases and creates an even foundation for the tune to sound.
The conclusion of the fanfare is similar to the opening, complete with two of the most dissonant, exciting chords in recent organ literature.
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