Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Prelude
Ebenezer - J. Wayne Kerr
Sometimes, organ pieces based on hymn tunes don't have precise titles. They are usually just named after the hymn tune that they are based on. That is the case with both the prelude and postlude today, basedon the hymn tune of our opening and closing hymn (same hymn with divided stanzas).
This setting has a ritornello that runs throughout. A ritornello is a short, repetitive refrain that reoccurs throughout the piece. In the case of most hymn tune organ compositions, it is the tune itself that breaks up the ritornello. Here, that is certainly the case, and the tune is ornamented upon using mordents and additional elaborations of the melody.
An interesting facet of this tune is its unusual meter of 12/8. This composition, in 4/2 time, makes the tune sound as though it is based on triplets, creating a duple/triple contrast between the ritornello and the tune statement.
Opening Hymn
Through the Night of Doubt and Sorrow vv. 1-3
As our primary scripture this week is Exodus 3:15, this hymn describes the start of a long journey similar to the one that Moses takes throughout the book of Exodus.
This is a tricky one. The exterior stanzas are simple enough... they are the story of a group of people treading forward through their journey towards a destination, "the end of toil and gloom." The middle stanzas, however, I found very difficult to interpret. The "light of God's own presence" at the beginning of stanza two refers to the Pillar of Fire from the Book of Exodus, which guided them through day and night (Exodus 13:21-22). The hymn continually mentions "one." What this "one" is is definitely up for interpretation, and I would love to hear thoughts from anyone on what that "one" might be.
Stanza four will be reserved as the closing hymn this Sunday, which sends us out on our own journey.
Hymn of the Day
Bless God, O Now, The Journey
This hymn encapsulates the message for the day; like Moses, Peter, and Jesus Christ before us, we are all on a journey of faith. We call come upon opposition from barriers that may or may not want to hold us back.
Sylvia Dunstan (1955-1993) details the struggles of this journey through her first two stanzas. We journey through noise, silence, giving, and taking. Through deserts, water, and mountains, we travel until we find the road that faith is built upon. In stanza three, we are joined by the "divine, eternal lover" who meets us and guides us solidly along the path, not just when we need it, but always. We can all empathize with Moses here, bound with a task that he feels is insurmountable. Through the strength and support of the great I AM, we can all travel down our road of faith and arrive at the promised land.
Sylvia Dunstan (1955-1993) details the struggles of this journey through her first two stanzas. We journey through noise, silence, giving, and taking. Through deserts, water, and mountains, we travel until we find the road that faith is built upon. In stanza three, we are joined by the "divine, eternal lover" who meets us and guides us solidly along the path, not just when we need it, but always. We can all empathize with Moses here, bound with a task that he feels is insurmountable. Through the strength and support of the great I AM, we can all travel down our road of faith and arrive at the promised land.
Offering
Where Your Treasure Is - Marty Haugen
Don and Kris Meyer will be providing this lovely Marty Haugen song for the offering this weekend. Accompanied by Don's guitar, Don and Kris always inspire and uplift the congregation with their wonderful gifts.
Communion Hymns
Around You, O Lord Jesus
This is a beautifully simplistic poem based around the idea of joining Jesus at the Holy table of Communion. We hear the invitation of Jesus and gratefully accept it. This invitation brings us closer to Jesus and into his loving heart from where we will never depart.
This tune, despite coming from a Dutch psalmbook dating from c. 1570, actually sounds much more like it was written in the mid to late 19th century. The melody has a beautiful lilt and is supremely singable.
This tune, despite coming from a Dutch psalmbook dating from c. 1570, actually sounds much more like it was written in the mid to late 19th century. The melody has a beautiful lilt and is supremely singable.
For The Bread Which You Have Broken
Much like the first hymn, this communion text is wonderfully simplistic. We are thankful and grateful for bread, wine, and the words of God. The promise of love, the gift of peace, and the call to heaven from God embrace and guide our lives. We are connected from generation to generation by those who came before us and who will still come. We pray that the ties that bind us together be unbreakable.
The tune comes from the Gross Catolisch Gesangbuch (Large Cathloic Songbook). This was compiled by David Gregor Corner in 1625 (and subsequent editions), and contained almost 200 tunes.
Closing Hymn
Through The Night Of Doubt and Sorrow v. 4
The opening concludes here. We go onward as sisters and brothers, with the power of the cross as our aid and assurance.
Postlude
Ebenezer - Sam Batt Owens
Sam Batt Owens enjoyed a long career as an organist, composer, and church musician, before passing away in 1998. This setting of EBENEZER also contains a ritornello, though its form is quite different. The pedal plays a walking bass line, while the right hand and left hand play a contrary motion motive. These motives are surrounded by the tune, and again, the duple/triple contrast is emphasized.
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