November 16, 2014

Each week, you may find information here about the organ music and hymns in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas.  Some of this information is original; much of it is "borrowed" from other sources such as Wikipedia, GBOD, and hymnary.org.  It is my hope that this information will enhance your understanding and enrich your worship experience.  

About the Organ Music:

Te ofrecemos – Jeffrey Honoré

The composition and dissemination of music from cultures in the southern hemisphere began in earnest in the Roman Catholic Church in the late 1960s following the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) whose documents acknowledged the “genius of all races” and encouraged congregational singing.  Compositions in vernacular musical styles followed. Early folk Masses paved the way for reinforcing cultural identity through congregational music. Even though the forms of the Mass are set, composers found ways to contextualize them for their own situations.  Spanish language Masses reflected the dance forms, musical instruments, and folkloric patterns of specific cultures throughout Central and South America as well as in the Caribbean. 

“Let Us Offer to the Father” is an offertory song from one of the earliest of the Central American Masses, the Misa Popular Nicaragüense (c. 1968). The dance-like cross rhythms give a sense of celebration (fiesta) as the people make their offerings and prepare to receive communion.

            Let us offer to the Father, with the bread and with the wine,

            All our joys and all our sorrows; all our cares, Lord, all are thine.

            From the country, from the city, from the riches of the land,

            We bring back to our Creator many gifts of heart and hand.

            All your people here together bring you offerings of love,

            Joining with your whole creation, seeking liberty and peace.

            Glory be to God, the Father, and to Christ, the living Son,

            Who together with the Spirit make the holy Three-in-One.

Jeffrey Honoré has served as a choir director in churches of many different denominations and worked as an organist, trombonist and voice teacher. He is the liturgical music director of St. Matthias Parish in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and directs the archdiocesan choir. Jeffrey received the Vatican II Award for Distinguished Service in 1999.

 Give Me Jesus – Richard Billingham

Give Me Jesus originated as an African-American spiritual written during the time of slavery in the United States.  The lyrics of Give Me Jesus are simple, but poignant. Whether we are in tragedy or triumph, whether we are weathering storms or counting treasures, our hearts’ desire should simply be Jesus.  That Give Me Jesus was written by people stripped of all dignity and every human possession says so much about what Jesus is, what He can give and His very nature!

In the morning, when I rise
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

When I am alone,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

I heard my mother say
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world
Just give me Jesus

Dark midnight was my cry
Give me Jesus
You can have all this world
Just give me Jesus

And when I come to die,
Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world,
Just give me Jesus.

Richard Billingham (b. 1934) is an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois and organist at First Methodist Church of Chicago and the Chicago Temple.

 We Bring the Sacrifice of Praise – Tim Doran

Written by Kirk Dearman, this praise chorus expresses the text of Hebrews 13:15: “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise--the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.”

We bring the sacrifice of praise
Unto the house of the Lord.
And we offer up to You
The sacrifices of thanksgiving;
And we offer up to You
The sacrifices of joy.

Tim Doran, an accomplished arranger, composer, and studio musician, lives in the Los Angeles area. He is the organist at LaHabra Hills Presbyterian Church, as well as an accompanist for several local high school and college choirs. His arrangements are a natural result of his experience as a piano and organ teacher and his awareness of the need for quality arrangements.

About the Choral Music:

Yours is the Kingdom – Cindy Berry

Cindy Woods Berry was born in Houston, Texas and attended Houston Baptist University. She is a composer and arranger of numerous sacred choral works, children's musicals and piano collections. She frequently serves as a choral and keyboard clinician, leading "composer weekends" and various other workshops throughout the country. She has been the recipient of annual ASCAP Special Awards. Berry currently lives in Killeen, Texas, where her husband Bruce is Minister of Music at First Baptist Church, and where she serves as a pianist and children’s choir director.

            All praise I give to You alone, Father and Creator,

            Alpha and Omega, Redeemer and Sustainer.

            Holy Lamb of God, blessed Prince of Peace,

            I will never cease to praise You.

I could never comprehend the grace You’ve freely given.

            Wondrous is Your love for me, higher than the heavens.

            As I abide in You, as You live through me,

            May others see Your glory.

            As I bow before You, I would give You praise.

            I would serve You only and walk in Your ways.

            For Yours is the kingdom, Yours is the power,

            And the glory forever, forevermore. Amen.

About the Hymns:

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

Charles Wesley (1707-1788) was a prolific hymn writer of the 18th century. Coming from a musical family, he left a lasting legacy of congregational song.  The youngest of 18 children, Charles possessed prodigious talents that soon blossomed. Little did he know that “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling,” would rise to become one of the most popular and consistently vocalized Christian songs.  Writing hymn texts that are solidly based on the Scriptures gives them an appeal across denominational lines. It is estimated that during his lifetime, Wesley penned more than 9,000 poems of a spiritual nature, 6,000 of which are hymns. What really set Charles apart from other hymn writers was his effective use of scriptural allusions, providing a spiritual roadmap whereby individuals could imagine a Christ-centered life. His writings were passionate and well-crafted, conveying the true essence of Christian teaching. 

Charles Wesley

A substantial number of his writings were completed while riding on horseback to his evangelical meetings.  Scholars suggest that he was able to compose about 10 lines of verse daily for 50 years. Charles’ brother John sometimes served as editor to his hymns. John’s typical response was, “some were good, some were mediocre, and some were exceptional.” John can also be credited with improving the singability of Charles’ hymns.

Both John and Charles were instrumental in changing the spiritual environment of Britain during the 18th century. In doing so, they formed the bedrock of what Methodism has become worldwide. Their unwavering devotion to expressing Christian spirituality through hymns has impacted individuals across all denominational lines.  We are fortunate to be the recipients of the poetic genius of Charles Wesley. He influenced Methodism more than any other hymn writer. Upon hearing of Charles’ death, an elderly Londoner asked, “Who will write poetry for us now?” 

“Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” was first published in a collection of hymns entitled Hymns for those that Seek, and those that Have, Redemption in the Blood of Christ (1747). The incipit (opening line) was a play on the opening line of John Dryden’s (1631-1700) poem “Fairest Isle, All Isles Excelling” set to music by Henry Purcell (1659-1695) in the generation before Charles Wesley was born.  The hymn is written around a progression of thoughts: (1) our prayers for the Holy Spirit, (2) praying for the return of our Lord through the second coming, and (3) prayers for the finalization of his new creation.

When Wesley referred to “second rest” in his hymns, it specifically applies to the “second birth,” “second blessing,” “second gift.” All of these are directed toward achieving full “sanctification” or “Christian perfection.” This is an important theological tenet of Methodist preaching from the very beginning. Wesley’s phrase, “changed from glory into glory” is almost a direct quotation from 2 Corinthians 3:18 (KJV). Wesley describes that day in heaven when “we take our place, till we cast our crowns before thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.”

Now Thank We All Our God

Martin Rinkart (1586-1649) was the Bishop of Eilenberg, Germany during the Thirty Years’ War.  Since Eilenberg was a walled city, it became a place of refuge for fugitives of the war, and also a place of famine and disease due to overcrowding.  In 1637, at the height of their misery, Rinkart was the only clergyman left in the city who could perform the 40 or 50 daily burial services, one of which was for his wife.   The city was sacked three times by invaders.  During this time, Rinkart managed to write 7 dramas and 66 hymns.  The hymn “Nun danket alle Gott” was originally titled “Tisch-Gebetlein” (a little prayer before the meal).  This humble prayer of thanksgiving is laid out simply and beautifully in the first verse.  This verse of thanks is followed by a verse asking for strength in time of trial and a doxology.   The tune, “Nun Danket” is named for Rinkart's text, has been associated with it ever since they were published together by Johann Crüger (1598-1662) in his Praxis Pietatis Melica (1647).

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty" is a hymn based on Joachim Neander's German chorale Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, published in 1680. John Julian, in his A Dictionary of Hymnology, calls the German original "a magnificent hymn of praise to God, perhaps the finest creation of its author, and of the first rank in its class." It was the favorite hymn of King Frederick William III of Prussia, who first heard it in 1800

The melody used by Neander, first published in 1665, is probably based on a folk tune. The common name given to this melody is "Lobe den Herren". Several variants were published with various secular texts between 1665 to 1680, when Joachim Neander published his German hymn, Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, using its meter. The text paraphrases Psalm 103 and Psalm 150.