ADVENT HYMNS: I've often thought that Advent is one of overlooked gems of the church year. It’s easy to jump right into Christmas as soon as Thanksgiving is over, but I believe the observance of Advent helps to deepen one’s understanding of Christmas. Advent is a season of watching and waiting, which in my opinion is marvelously expressed in the many great Advent hymns. The words of these hymns are heavy with scriptural references appropriate to the season and the tunes are some of my favorites. We are singing some great hymns this year, and I think knowing a little bit of the background on some of them might be interesting (sources include the Hymnal Companion 1940 and the Hymnal Companion 1982).
On the First Sunday of Advent, one of the hymns sung at Good Shepherd is somewhat out of its traditional context. The Vespers (Evening Prayer) hymn of Advent is Creator of the stars of night, the words of which, in Latin, date back at least to the ninth century. The chant tune, Conditor alme siderum, has historically been associated with the hymn. Though it has a strong association with the evening, the hymn works thematically any time in Advent: we move from darkness to light and by the end of Advent the days will begin to get longer marking the birth of the Sun of Righteousness, Jesus Christ.
On the Second Sunday of Advent we will sing a hymn which might feel more Holy Week than Advent. The hymn Blest be the King whose coming is paired with Valet will ich dir geben, which is the familiar tune sung to All glory laud and honor sung at the palm liturgy on Passion Sunday. The words for Blest be the King were written in 1960 by Uruguayan Bishop Federico J. Pagura. The tune was written by Melchior Teschner in 1613 as an accompaniment to Valerius Herberger’s hymn for the dying. The tune found in the Hymnal 1982 was originally set for All glory laud and honor by Ronald Arnatt, and since the Hymnal 1871 it has had a strong association with Holy Week in the minds of most Episcopalians. I’m not sure I’ve ever sung this tune outside of Holy Week, but I think any overt link to Easter is probably a good thing. After all, Easter is the focal point of the entire liturgical year, and no matter what the season every Sunday is a glorious celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
One of the hymns we will sing on the Third Sunday of Advent, Hark a thrilling voice is sounding, is one of my favorites. The tune, Merton, was composed by William Henry Monk in 1850 and until very recently was reserved only for this hymn. (In English hymnals published in the last 15 years Merton has been paired with Jesus calls us o’er the tumult.) The hymn at first seems to echo John the Baptist, who is featured in the Gospels on both the Second and Third Sundays of Advent, but the words (originally in Latin and dating back at least one thousand years) take up a great variety of themes and are almost entirely direct scriptural quotations (Romans 13:11-12; Revelation 22:16; Isaiah 60:1-3; John 1:29; Romans 3:24; James 4:8-9; Luke 21:26-27; Psalm 103:10, 14).
The Fourth Sunday of Advent is focused on the Annunciation (celebrated officially on March 25 every year). Several of the hymns that day will quote passages from the Gospel of the day “Hail Mary, full of grace!” One of the hymns we will sing is Ye who own the faith of Jesus. The text was written for the Annunciation by Vincent Stuckey Stratton Coles and included in the English Hymnal of 1906. The Hymnal 1982 includes a greatly shortened version of the hymn with two good, but somewhat difficult, tunes. We will sing a less shortened version of the hymn (we will sing seven of the original, which had eleven verses!) to the tune, Daily, Daily, which it is often paired with. It’s one of the classic “Marian” hymns and one that links seamlessly with the Gospel of the day.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Why I Love Good Shepherd #1
“WHY I LOVE GOOD SHEPHERD” (December 2009)
This article is the first in a series presented by the 2010 Stewardship Committee. If you are interested in submitting an article for the series, please contact Father Matt, we’d love to print your submission! This month we begin the series with a note from Amanda Slattery:
I can make a difference here. There are endless opportunities to contribute to the life of the church community. Rick and I moved to Yorktown in 1980 and immediately looked for the nearest Episcopal church. The first Sunday we attended Good Shepherd was Father Corrigan’s last day, so it was during Father Dresser’s ministry that we grew to know the parishioners and become involved in parish life. We met other members of the church in their homes during “Dinner for Eight”. Debbie Dresser created a folk group and I enjoyed learning new music while playing clarinet with the group. Over the years I have played a number of roles within the church organization and enjoyed many social and educational activities. I have found that my time and talents can be put to good use at Good Shepherd and I can make a difference here. Somewhere along the way we discovered that St. Mark’s, Mount Kisco is closer to our home. But why would we go anywhere else? A church is first and foremost a house of worship, but more than a building, it is a social club and a business staffed to a large extent by volunteers. It’s a cliché, but it’s true: it’s the people that make the church, and it is involvement in the organization of the church and its activities which can be so rewarding. You too can make a difference.
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