Canon Lynell Walker’s post last night speaks beautifully of her desire for “company on the journey,” company that can afford accountability and encouragement. This morning, I experienced some good company we can all share. The Episcopal Church has suggested Bible readings for every weekday called a “Daily Lectionary.” You can link to the ones for this week through http://www.satucket.com/lectionary/1advent2.htm . I love the psalms. They capture poetically feelings that recur in all human experience, including feelings of despair. Somehow, just knowing that generations preserved them by speaking them over and over before they were ever written down speaks loudly to me that the feelings they capture can all be survived. All those generations want us to know that despair is a place on the journey, not the end of the journey. Today’s readings include this portion of Psalm 39:
4‘Lord, let me know my end,
and what is the measure of my days;
let me know how fleeting my life is.
5You have made my days a few handbreadths,
and my lifetime is as nothing in your sight.
Surely everyone stands as a mere breath.
6 Surely everyone goes about like a shadow.
Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;
they heap up, and do not know who will gather.
The same generations who preserved these verses also preserved this portion of Psalm 28, another recommended reading for today:
6Blessed be the Lord,
for he has heard the sound of my pleadings.
7The Lord is my strength and my shield;
in him my heart trusts;
so I am helped, and my heart exults,
and with my song I give thanks to him.
It gives me encouragement to know that all those generations knew both despair and awe at God’s faithfulness. It will help me walk through today with eyes that seek signs of God’s stubborn resolve to keep creating until harmony reigns.
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I can't imagine a journey without music. Everytime I've traveled anywhere, I've always taken my CD player with me. I time the trip and take just enough disks to get me there and back.
Neither can I imagine a spiritual journey without a hymnal. And we Epicopalians are lucky to have the very best. It's a treasure, but I believe it's a well kept secret treasure. I'd like to propose a Thursday night class on hymns and how they can help us on our respective faith journeys.
We can explore the history of our faith by singing hymns written during past ages and comparing them to more modern ones. For instance, try singing Hymn #82, By the Father's Love begotten, written sometime between 348 and 410 a.d., and then sing #104, A stable lamp is lighted, by Richard Wilburn about 1950.
I don't know about you, but theology leaves me cold. Hymns are, however, condensed theology. Someone at work asked me what exactly Epiphany was. I was kind of tongue tied. I should have sang them #135, Songs of thankfulness and praise, because it makes the event crystal clear. During Holy Week, try singing through all of the hymns designated for that time. You'll be able to challenge the final exam at Yale Divinity School!
The Thursday night class that I'd like to see would spend some time exploring the above, and then offer people the opportunity to write their own hymn lyrics and set their words to one of the hymn tunes in our hymnal.
Imagine, we could write hymns with references to our church, our congregation, our times and local problems. We could sing about our clergy, past and present, our local saints, our own heroes.
Then, we could assemble our hymnody efforts into a Trinity Cathedral Hymnal, place them in the pews, and sing them during our services. Over the years, our Trinity hymnal could grow and grow.
I bellieve it would deepen our faith journey together to have our own music for the trip. :)
Anglican Hymns over the centuries represnt the common history of christian thought. #487 Come my way, my truth, my life.... is George Herbert at his finest in symmetry of words, with a haunting VW melody. The music and words of #24 The day thau gavest lord is ended.... epitomizes evensong. Weddings are not complete without the words of Wesley set to Hyfrydol in #657 Love Divine..... Maybe Hymns define the church.
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