Sunday, October 31, 2021

Each week, you may find information here about the music in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas.  Some of this information is original; most of it is copied from other websites 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:

Ein feste Burg is unser Gott - Anonymous, Lüneburger Orgeltabulatur

In recognition of Reformation Sunday today, this is Luther’s most well-known hymn,  "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God"  (“Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott”).  Luther wrote the words and composed the melody sometime between 1527 and 1529.  It has been translated into English at least seventy times and also into many other languages.  The words are a paraphrase of Psalm 46.  "A Mighty Fortress" is one of the best loved hymns of the Lutheran and Protestant traditions. It has been called the "Battle Hymn of the Reformation" for the effect it had in increasing the support for the Reformers' cause.  Heinrich Heine states that it was sung by Luther and his companions as they entered Worms on 16 April 1521 for the Diet.

The earliest extant hymnal in which it appears is that of Andrew Rauscher (1531), but it is supposed to have been in Joseph Klug's Wittenberg hymnal of 1529, of which no copy exists. Its title was “Der xxxxvi. Psalm. Deus noster refugium et virtus.”  Before that it is supposed to have appeared in the Hans Weiss’ Wittenberg hymnal of 1528, also lost.  This evidence would support its being written in 1527–1529, since Luther's hymns were printed shortly after they were written.

Tradition states that the third Protestant King of Sweden, Gustavus Adolphus, had it played as his forces went to battle in the Thirty Years' War. The hymn had been translated into Swedish already in 1536, presumably by Olaus Petri, with the incipit, “Vår Gud är oss en väldig borg.”  In the late 19th century the song also became an anthem of the early Swedish socialist movement.

It was first translated into English by Myles Coverdale in 1539 with the title, “Oure God is a defence and towre.” The first English translation in common usage was “God is our Refuge in Distress, Our strong Defence” in J.C. Jacobi's Psal. Ger. in 1722. The most popular English version is “A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing” and was translated by Frederick H. Hedge in 1853.

The hymn's enduring popularity in Western Christendom has breached boundaries set in the Reformation as it is now a suggested hymn for Catholic Masses.  It currently appears in the second edition of the Catholic Book of Worship, published by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, though its adoption is not without controversy.

Luther composed the melody, named "Ein feste Burg" from the text's first line, in meter 87.87.55.56.7. This is sometimes denoted "rhythmic tune" to distinguish it from the later isometric variant, in 87.87.66.66.7 meter which is more widely known and used. In 1906 Edouard Rœhrich wrote, "The authentic form of this melody differs very much from that which one sings in most Protestant churches and figures in (Giacomo Meyerbeer's) The Huguenots. ... The original melody is extremely rhythmic, by the way it bends to all the nuances of the text ..." While 19th-century musicologists disputed Luther's authorship of the music to the hymn, that opinion has been modified by more recent research; it is now the consensus view of musical scholars that Luther did indeed compose the famous tune to go with the words.

A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
our helper he, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing.
For still our ancient foe does seek to work us woe;
his craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate,
on earth is not his equal.

Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing,
were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God's own choosing.
You ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth his name, from age to age the same;
and he must win the battle.

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God has willed his truth to triumph through us.
The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
his rage we can endure, for lo! his doom is sure;
one little word shall fell him.

That Word above all earthly powers no thanks to them abideth;
the Spirit and the gifts are ours through him who with us sideth.
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
the body they may kill: God's truth abideth still;
his kingdom is forever! 

This setting was written by an unknown composer and published in the Lüneburger Orgeltabulatur  Lüneburger Orgeltabulatur, a large collection of keyboard works compiled by Franz Schaumkell (1590-1676), organist of St. Johannis, Lüneburg.  Very few of the works in this collection have composers listed.

Triumphal March of Heritage - Uzee Brown, Jr. 

(c. 2008, GIA Publications)

Dr. Uzee Brown, Jr. (b.1950), a native of Cowpens, South Carolina, is an American singer, performer, composer, arranger, educator, and choir director.  Dr. Brown has graduated from Berkshire Music Center, Tanglewood and the University of Siena in Italy, he holds degrees from Morehouse College (B.A.), Bowling Green State University (M.M. in Composition), and University of Michigan (M.M. and D.M.A. in performance). For twelve years he was director of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church Choir and served as chair of the Department of Music at Clark Atlanta University for two years.  For over thirty years, Brown has been an educator on African-American music focusing on Spirituals.  Dr. Brown is currently Professor of Music at Morehouse College where he is Chair of the Creative and Performing Arts Division.

As a composer and arranger Brown has worked in theater. Spike Lee's "School daze" musical prologue, "I'm Building Me a Home," was written by Brown in the late 1970s but was recorded for the soundtrack in 1987 by the Morehouse Glee Club. He has been nominated for the AUDELCO award in black theater as outstanding musical director and arranger for his work in an off-Broadway musical play called ZION.  Outside of theater, Dr. Brown has been president of the National Association of Negro Musicians. While He was featured in the first official publication of the documentary history of the National Association of Negro Musicians by the Center for Black Music Research in Chicago, Illinois.  Brown is co-founder and chairman of the Board of Directors of Onyx Opera Atlanta.

The “Triumphal March of Heritage” was written for the inauguration of the president of Morehouse College in 1996.

About the Choral Music:

Fairest Lord Jesus - Derek Hakes 

(c. 2008, Beckenhorst Press)

“Beautiful Savior” is thought to have originated as early as 1607, possibly written by German Jesuits, and called “Schönster Herr Jesu“. It first appeared in print in 1677, in the Münster Gesangbuch, with author unknown. It was translated and the fourth stanza was added by Lutheran pastor and theologian, Joseph A. Seiss in 1873.  Originally this song was most likely sung to a Gregorian Chant by the Jesuit monks. The music that was most popular with 17th Century German peasants was a tune from an ancient Silesian folk song.  The tune and the German text were printed together for the first time in 1842 by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben and Ernst Richter under the name “Schönster Herr Jesu” (Most beautiful Lord Jesus). In 1850 the Danish hymnwriter B. S. Ingemann wrote “Dejlig Er Jorden”, which he set to the same melody. An English translation by Jens C. Aaberg was published as “Fair Is Creation”.  Apart from their musical setting, the Danish and German lyrics are unrelated.  According to some accounts, “Fairest Lord Jesus” is called "Crusader's Hymn" because it was sung by German Crusaders as they made their way to the Holy Land.

Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,
O Thou of God and man the Son,
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s glory, joy and crown.

Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,

Robed in the blooming garb of spring:

Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,

Who makes the woeful heart to sing.

Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,

And all the twinkling starry host;

Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer

Than all the angels heaven can boast.

Beautiful savior!  Lord of all the nations!

Son of God and Son of Man!

Glory and honor, praise, and adoration,

Now and forevermore be Thine!

Amen.

Derek K. Hakes has written many choral anthems and handbell arrangements published by multiple publishers.  There is no biographical information available for him.  

About the Hymns:

What Gift Can We Bring

(c.1982, Hope Publishing)

Jane Manton Marshall (b. 1924) has established herself as a leading composer of church music, teaching conducting and composition for more than two decades at Southern Methodist University. From 1975-2010, she served an integral role in the Church Music Summer School, hosted by Perkins School of Theology, to provide training for musicians who have not usually attended seminary. As a clinician and composer, Marshall has had a profound influence on at least two generations of church musicians.

Her anthems are carried by numerous publishers, and she has received lifetime achievement awards for her contribution to church music by the Southern Baptist Church Music Conference and the Fellowship of United Methodist Musicians and Worship Arts. In addition to "What Gift Can We Bring," Marshall contributed greatly to The United Methodist Hymnal (1989), especially in the area of responses for the psalms. Grace, Noted, a collection of her homilies and essays, was published in 1992.  Many of her compositions are standard items in academic and church choral libraries. Marshall is in a very select group of successful composers/lyricists, a dual-talent exemplified in her early works: 'Awake my heart,' 'My Eternal King,' 'He Comes to Us,' the first setting of Albert Schweitzer's words; and 'Fanfare for Easter.'"

The Rev. John Thornburg, a United Methodist hymn writer, served as her pastor during the 1990s. She mentored the Rev. Thornburg, and they often partnered, pairing texts he wrote with tunes she composed for them. Examples of their work may be found in Can God Be Seen in Other Ways (2003) and What Gift Can We Bring (2003). The second volume derives its title from her most well known hymn, "What gift can we bring."

Jane Marshall’s "What gift can we bring" is a hymn of pure gratitude. A lifelong Dallas resident, she composed this hymn in 1980 for the twenty-fifth anniversary of her congregation, Northaven United Methodist Church. Stanza two reflects on heritage, giving thanks for the past and those "who planted and watered so dreams could come true." Stanza three looks to the future that is "full of surprises," yet knowing that regardless of what happens, "we rest in God’s keeping and live in God’s love."

What gift can we bring, what present, what token?

What words can convey it the joy of this day?

When grateful we come, remembering, rejoicing, 

what song can we now offer in honor and praise?

Give thanks for the past, for those who had vision,

who planted and watered so dreams could come true.

Give thanks for the Now, for study, for worship,

for mission that bids us turn prayer into deed.

Give thanks for Tomorrow, full of surprises,

for knowing whatever Tomorrow may bring,

the Word is our promise always, forever,

we rest in God's keeping and live in God's love.

This gift we now bring, this present, this token, 

these words can convey it the joy of this day!

When grateful we come, remembering, rejoicing, 

this song we now offer in honor and praise.

Take My Life and Let It Be

Frances R. Havergal (1836-1879) originally composed her text in eleven couplets as a hymn of "self-consecration to Christ" on February 4, 1874. She told the following story about writing this hymn:

I went for a little visit of five days [to Areley House, Worcestershire, in December 1873]. There were ten persons in the house, some unconverted and long prayed for, some converted but not rejoicing Christians. [God] gave me the prayer, "Lord, give me all this house." And He just did! Before I left the house, everyone had got a blessing. The last night of my visit. . . I was too happy to sleep and passed most of the night in praise and renewal of my own consecration, and these little couplets formed themselves and chimed in my heart, one after another, till they finished with "Ever, only, all, for Thee."

The text is a "catalog" hymn that lists aspects of our lives and offers them in Christ's service.  "Take My Life and Let It Be" was first published in the 1874 appendix to Charles B. Snepp's Songs of Grace and Glory (1872). A twelfth couplet was added at some later point, producing the six stanzas published in the Psalter Hymnal.

Although her formal education was sporadic because of poor health, Havergal learned six foreign languages, including Greek and Hebrew, and was well read in many subjects. She began writing poetry at an early age and was also an accomplished singer and pianist. The daughter of a clergyman, she had a conversion experience at the age of fourteen and was confirmed in the Church of England in 1853. Taking seriously her own words "take my silver and my gold," she sent all her jewelry to the Church Mission Society to be sold. She also supported other charitable organizations. Her more than one hundred hymns were originally published in leaflets and later gathered into seven collections: Ministry of Song (1869), Twelve Sacred Songs for Little Singers (1870), Under the Surface (1874), Loyal Responses (1878), Life Mosaic (1879), Life Chords (1880), and Life Echoes (1883), as well as in one large volume, Poetical Works (1884).

The tune MESSIAH, also sometimes called HEROLD, was written by Ferdinand Herold (1791-1833). 

Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee.

Take my moments and my days; let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of thy love.

Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for thee.

Take my voice and let me sing always, only, for my King.

Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from thee.

Take my silver and my gold; not a mite would I withhold.

Take my intellect and use every power as thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it thine; it shall be no longer mine.

Take my heart it is thine own; it shall be thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour at thy feet its treasure store.

Take myself, and I will be ever, only, all for thee.

First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas

A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus

Sunday, October 24, 2021

 Each week, you may find information here about the music in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas.  Some of this information is original; most of it is copied from other websites 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:

Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz - Georg Kauffmann

"Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz?"  is a very old German chorale, which has been set by many composers, both for organ and for choir.  The chorale melody is found on undated manuscripts that appeared around the middle of the 16^th century in Nürnberg. One of these is listed as coming from Nürnberg in 1561. The composer and/or text author is unknown. For many years it had been thought that Hans Sachs could have written both song and melody. The melody was noted on a manuscript from Crailsheim in 1565.  The chorale text has a total of 14 verses.  The source of the text and general theme are very similar to “His Eye is on the Sparrow.” 

Why are you afflicted, my heart,
why are you full of care and enduring sorrow only for temporal possessions?
Place your trust in your Lord God who has created everything.

He cannot and will not abandon you,
he knows well what you lack, heaven and earth are his!
Your father and your God. who stands beside you in all distress.

Since you are my God and father
you will not abandon your child, you fatherly heart!
I am a wretched clod of earth, on earth I know no consolation.

The rich man builds on his goods;
I shall trust in God’s care. Although the world scorns me,
I believe with confidence, who trusts in God will lack nothing.

Elias, who feeds you
when there is no rain for so long in time of such hard famine?
A widow from Sidon to whom you were sent by God.

As he lay beneath a juniper tree
God’s angel came from heaven and brought him food and drink.
He went on a long jouirney to the mountain named Horeb.

God did not forget Daniel 
as he sat among the lions. He sent his angel down,
he had good food brought to him by his servant Habakuk.

Joseph was sold into Egypt,
imprisoned by Pharaoh the king For his reverence for God
God made him a great lord so that he could feed his father and brothers.

The faithful God also did not forsake
the three men in the burning fiery furnace, he sent down his angel,
protected them from the fire’s heat and helped them in all distress.

Ah God, you are as rich today
as you were from eternity, my trust stands by you;
be the only refuge of my soul, then I have enough here and hereafter.

Temporal glory I happily do without,
only grant that I may share the eternal glory that you have gained
by your harsh, bitter death; for this I ask you, my Lord and God.

Everything that in this world,
whether it is gold, silver or money, wealth or temporal possessions,
lasts only a short time and is of no help for blessedness.

I thank you , Lord Jesus Christ,
for what has been revealed to me through your truthful word;
bestow constancy also on me for the blessedness of my soul!

    Praise, glory and honour be given to you
    for all your consideration for me. In humility I ask you:
    let me never from your face be driven away.

Georg Friedrich Kauffmann (1679-1735) was a Baroque composer and organist from southern Germany who composed primarily sacred works for the organ and voice.  Late in his life, Kauffmann started to publish a complete edition of his organ chorales; however, he died of consumption before they had been completely published. His widow completed the publication of the Harmonische Seelenlust.  While they did not make a great first impression, over the next century they became one of the most significant achievements in German organ music, and remained in high demand well into the 19th century.  

About the Piano Music:

Come, All Christians, Be Committed - Vicki Collinsworth 

(c. 2014, Lorenz Publishing)

Eva Lloyd (1912-2006) was educated at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville (BS) and the University of Missouri Kansas City (MA). She taught in Missouri elementary and secondary schools, and English literature 15 years at Northwest Missouri State University. She also directed the Women’s Mission Union.  “Come, All Christians, Be Committed” was written in 1966 and was first published in the Seventh Day Adventist Hymnal.  The text challenges and encourages each of us to press on in service and dedication to the Lord.

The tune BEACH SPRING was written by Benjamin F. White (1800-1879), was coeditor of The Sacred Harp (1844). He came from a family of fourteen children and was largely self-taught. Eventually White became a popular singing-school teacher and editor of the weekly Harris County newspaper.  BEACH SPRING has been used as the setting for many hymns.

Come, all Christians, be committed To the service of the Lord.

Make your lives for Him more fitted; Tune your hearts with one accord.

Come into His courts with gladness; Each his sacred vows renew.

Turn away from sin and sadness; Be transformed with life anew.

Of your time and talents give Him- They are gifts from God above

To be used by Christians freely To proclaim His wondrous love.

Come again to serve the Savior; Tithes and off’rings with you bring.

In your work, with Him find favor, And with joy His praises sing.

God’s command to love each other Is required of ev’ry one.

Showing mercy to each other Mirrors His redeeming Son.

In compassion He has given Of His love that is divine.

On the cross sins were forgiven; Joy and peace are fully thine.

Come in praise and adoration, All who on Christ’s name believe.

Worship Him with consecration; Grace and love will you receive.

For His grace give Him the glory, For the Spirit and the Word;

And repeat the Gospel story Till the world His Name has heard.

Vicki Collinsworth studied piano performance and pedagogy at Centenary College in Shreveport, Louisiana.  She has been a church musician since the age of sixteen and serves as Music Director/organist at First Christian Church in Tullahoma. After retiring from 20 years of piano teaching, Collinsworth devotes most of her time to composing and arranging.  She received the "Most Creative Composer" award in the instrumental division for five years at Joseph Martin's composer symposium in Atlanta, Georgia.  

About the Choral Music:

What Shall I Render to My God? - Austin Lovelace 

(c. 1955, Canyon Press)

Charles Wesley, M.A. (1707-1788) was the great hymn-writer of the Wesley family, and perhaps, taking quantity and quality into consideration, the great hymn-writer of all ages. Charles Wesley was the youngest son and 18th child of Samuel and Susanna Wesley, and was born at Epworth Rectory. In 1716 he went to Westminster School, being provided with a home and board by his elder brother Samuel, until 1721, when he was elected King's Scholar, and as such received his board and education free. In 1726 Charles Wesley was elected to a Westminster studentship at Christ Church, Oxford, where he took his degree in 1729, and became a college tutor. In the early part of the same year he became one of the first band of "Oxford Methodists.”

In 1735, he went with his brother John to Georgia, as secretary to General Oglethorpe, having received Deacon's and Priest's Orders on two successive Sundays. He returned to England in 1736, and in 1737 came under the influence of Count Zinzendorf and the Moravians.  On Whitsunday, 1737, [he "found rest to his soul," and in 1738 he became curate to his friend, Mr. Stonehouse, Vicar of Islington, but the opposition of the churchwardens was so great that the Vicar consented that he "should preach in his church no more." Henceforth, he worked with his brother John, and he became an indefatigable itinerant and field preacher. On April 8, 1749, he married Miss Sarah Gwynne. His marriage, unlike that of his brother John, was a most happy one; his wife was accustomed to accompany him on his evangelistic journeys, which were as frequent as ever until the year 1756, when he ceased to itinerate, and devoted himself to the care of the Societies in London and Bristol and to the spiritual care of prisoners in Newgate. 

He had long been troubled about the relations of Methodism to the Church of England, and strongly disapproved of his brother John's “ordinations” in the new church. Wesley-like, he expressed his disapproval in the most outspoken fashion, but the differences between the brothers never led to a breach of friendship. When he died, he was buried in Marylebone churchyard. His brother John was deeply grieved because he would not consent to be interred in the burial-ground of the City Road Chapel, but Charles said, "I have lived, and I die, in the Communion of the Church of England, and I will be buried in the yard of my parish church." Eight clergymen of the Church of England bore his pall. He had a large family, four of whom survived him; three sons, who all became distinguished in the musical world, and one daughter, who inherited some of her father's poetical genius. The widow and orphans were treated with the greatest kindness and generosity by John Wesley.

As a hymn-writer Charles Wesley was unique. He is said to have written 6500 hymns, and though, of course, in so vast a number some are of not good, it is amazing how many are excellent. His feelings on every occasion of importance, whether private or public, found their best expression in a hymn. His own conversion, his own marriage, the earthquake panic, the rumours of an invasion from France, the defeat of Prince Charles Edward at Culloden, the Gordon riots, every Festival of the Christian Church, every doctrine of the Christian Faith, striking scenes in Scripture history, striking scenes which came within his own view, the deaths of friends as they passed away, one by one, before him, to name but a few. He also wrote hymns for little children, a branch of sacred poetry not included by Isaac Watts. The saying that a really good hymn is as rare an appearance as that of a comet is disproved by the work of Charles Wesley; for hymns, which are really good in every respect, flowed from his pen in quick succession, and death alone stopped the course of the perennial stream.

“What shall I render to my God” by Charles Wesley* (1707-1788) has the same first line as the metrical version by Isaac Watts of Psalm 116, which is probably why it remained unpublished for many years. It was printed in Volume 8 of George Osborn’s The Poetical Works of John and Charles Wesley (1868-72), in which he printed ‘Versions and Paraphrases of Select Psalms’. This was headed ‘Psalm CXVI’.

Lovelace has set this text to the tune FAIRFIELD, which is found in the University of Virginia Collection of Folk Music.  Winston Wilkinson made extensive recordings of folk tunes from 1932-1938, and subsequently transcribed them as part of the Federal Music Project funded by the WPA, which preserved a large body of American music.  

Austin C. Lovelace (1919-2010) was called by many the Dean of American Church music. Lovelace got his first job as a church organist when he was 15 and went on to do workshops and recitals in 45 states and six countries.  He received his A.B. from High Point College in 1939 and his M.S.M. and D.S.M. from the School of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary in New York City in 1941 and 1950, respectively. He was Past President and a Fellow of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada. Dr. Lovelace was Minister of Music Emeritus at Wellshire Presbyterian Church in Denver, Colorado. Over many years he worked at a number of Methodist and Presbyterian churches in Colorado, North Carolina, Illinois, and Nebraska. He also worked at Union Theological Seminary in N.Y.C., Garrett Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, and Iliff School of Theology in Denver. He traveled widely as a Director of Music for general conferences, lecturer, and consultant. He was the organist for the Assembly of the World Council of Churches in 1954. He believed in cradle-to-grave music programs, fostering children, youth, and adult choirs.  Known for his sense of humor, Lovelace wrote five books, including Hymns That Jesus Would Not Have Liked, which included gems he unearthed such as “When the Bells of Hell Go Ting-a-Ling for You and Not for Me”.  He was a prolific writer and composer with over 800 compositions for church in print, as well as numerous articles and books on church hymnody.

What shall I render to my God For all his mercy’s store?

I’ll take the gifts he hath bestowed And humbly ask for more.

The sacred cup of saving grace I will with thanks receive,

And all his promises embrace And to his glory live.

My vows I will to his great name Before his people pay,

And all I have, and all I am, Upon his altar lay.

Thy lawful servant, Lord, I owe to Thee whate’er is mine.

Born in Thy family below, And by redemption Thine. 

Thy hands created me, thy hands From sin have set me free;

The mercy that hath loosed my bands Hath bound me fast to thee.

Praise Him, ye saints, the God of love, who hath thy sins forgiv’n,

Till gathered to the church above, We sing the songs of heav’n.

About the Hymns:

Jesus Calls Us

Cecil Frances Alexander (1823-1850) married William Alexander, an Anglican clergyman who later became the Anglican Archbishop for all of Ireland. Alexander was an outstanding young woman by virtue of ability, education, and service.  While still quite young, she and her sister operated a school for the deaf, and she also published a highly successful book of hymns for children––designating the profits for the benefit of the school. Her hymns are mostly for children, and were published in her Verses for Holy Seasons, with Preface by Dr. Hook, 1846; Poems on Subjects in the Old Testament, pt. i. 1854, pt. ii. 1857; Narrative Hymns for Village Schools, 1853; Hymns for Little Children, 1848; Hymns Descriptive and Devotional, 1858; The Legend of the Golden Prayers 1859; Moral Songs, N.B.; The Lord of the Forest and his Vassals, an Allegory, &c.; or contributed to the Lyra Anglicana, the S.P.C.K. Psalms and Hymns, Hymns Ancient & Modern, and other collections. She wrote 400 hymns during her lifetime –– mostly children's hymns––but "Jesus Calls Us" and "All Things Bright and Beautiful" are the best known.

Impressed by her hymns, her husband, Bishop Alexander, asked her to write a hymn for use during the coming Sunday worship on St. Andrew's Day based on the call of  Simon, Andrew, James, and John (Matthew 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-18).  She wrote this hymn, "Jesus Calls Us," for that occasion.  The first verse of this hymn begins, "Jesus calls us o'er the tumult of our life's wild, restless sea"––acknowledging the call of those first disciples by the Sea of Galilee.  A recurring theme is "Christian, love me more"––"Christian, love me more than these" ––"serve and love thee best of all."  Those words were inspired by John 21:15, where Jesus, after the resurrection, asked Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?"  Her text was published in the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge's (SPCK) Hymns for Public Worship (1852). Though written for a relatively minor saint's day, this hymn quickly gained popularity. 

The tune GALILEE was written for this text by W. H. Jude in 1887.  William Herbert Jude (1851-1922) was an English composer and organist. He was a precocious child, and attended Wisbech Grammar School where records note that by age eight he was composing incidental music for school plays. He later attended Liverpool Organ School and Liverpool College of Music. By 1881, he was organist for the Blue Coat Hospital and Stretford Town Hall near Manchester, as well as being a lecturer and teacher. As a recitalist, he was asked to "open" over 1000 new organs across the UK, Ireland and Australia. He was frequently referred to as "the most brilliant organist of the day".  Christian texts and topics appear frequently in Jude's compositions. He was an admirer of the British evangelist Rodney "Gipsy" Smith, and published a collection of Gipsy Smith's Favourite Solos in 1903. Jude appears to have supported the temperance movement; "Fight the Drink", a song by Jude with lyrics by A Sargant, appears in a collection of his music with the note that it was "sung at the Crystal Palace Festival by 5000 people". Between 1890 and 1894, the composer embarked on a tour of Australia and New Zealand. Beginning in 1904, he served as editor for several musical periodicals, including Monthly Hymnal, Minister of Music, and Music and the Higher Life. He also compiled several hymnbooks: Mission Hymns in 1911 and Festival Hymns in 1916. 

Jesus calls us o'er the tumult of our life's wild, restless sea;

day by day his sweet voice soundeth, saying "Christian, follow me."

As, of old, apostles heard it by the Galilean lake,

turned from home and toil and kindred, leaving all for his dear sake.

Jesus calls us from the worship of the vain world's golden store,

from each idol that would keep us, saying "Christian, love me more."

In our joys and in our sorrows, days of toil and hours of ease,

still he calls, in cares and pleasures, "Christian, love me more than these."

Jesus calls us; by thy mercies, Savior, may we hear thy call,

give our hearts to thine obedience, serve and love thee best of all.

God of the Ages

“God of the Ages” (originally “God of Our Fathers”) was written for a small rural parish in Brandon, Vt., for the nation’s centennial celebration in 1876. Daniel Crane Roberts (1841-1907) was a New Englander who served as a private in the 84th Ohio Volunteers during the Civil War. Following the war, Roberts was ordained a deacon and then a priest in the Episcopal Church. His parishes were in Vermont and Massachusetts, and Concord, N.H., where he served St. Paul’s Church for 29 years.  He was also widely known throughout New Hampshire for his work as president of the New Hampshire Historical Society, as chaplain of the Grand Army of the Republic and as an active member in the Knights Templar. 

Roberts’ hymn was first published in the 1892 edition of the hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church with the tune RUSSIAN HYMN.  George Warren (1828-1902), organist of the St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New York City, was commissioned in 1894 to write a new tune for the celebration of the Centennial of the United States Constitution. NATIONAL HYMN was the result. The 1894 official hymnal of the Episcopal Church used the tune NATIONAL HYMN with this text and this has been the exclusive pairing ever since. The text with NATIONAL HYMN entered American Methodist hymnals in 1905. 

In his Companion to The UM Hymnal Carlton Young notes several changes made in the original text as the Hymnal Revision Committee, following its own guidelines, “attempted to reduce where possible the predominance of masculine pronouns and images.” 

This hymn’s stirring lyrics and majestic tune represent, albeit subtly, the common 19th-century assumption of Manifest Destiny: God will lead us from the war and pestilence of our earlier captivity to the freedom and light of peace. In 1901, Roberts wrote, “I remain a country parson, known only within my own small world.” In reference to his one significant literary work, he noted, “My little hymn has thus had a very flattering official recognition. But that which would really gladden my heart, popular recognition, it has not received.” Before his death in 1907 he was awarded several honors including the Doctor of Divinity by Norwich University.

God of the ages, whose almighty hand

Leads forth in beauty all the starry band

Of shining worlds in splendor through the skies,

Our grateful songs before Thy throne arise.

Thy love divine hath led us in the past,

In this free land by Thee our lot is cast;

Be Thou our Ruler, Guardian, Guide, and Stay,

Thy Word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.

From wars alarms, from deadly pestilence,

Be Thy strong arm our ever-sure defense;

Thy true religion in our hearts increase,

Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.

Refresh thy people on their toilsome way;

Lead us from night to never ending day;

Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,

And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine

First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas

A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus

Sunday, October 17, 2021

 Each week, you may find information here about the music in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas.  Some of this information is original; most of it is copied from other websites 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:

God has Spoken by His Prophets - Benjamin Culli 

(c.2015, Concordia Publishing)

George Wallace Briggs (1875-1959) was a Canon of Worcester Cathedral and one of the most distinguished British hymn writers and hymnologists. Six of his hymns appear in the Episcopal Hymnal of 1940 (American). Another hymn on the Bible entitled "Word of the living God" was written for the 25th Anniversary of the British Bible Reading Fellowship and was sung in Westminster Abbey on June 5, 1947. Canon Briggs was a leading member of the Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland. He was also the composer of several hymn times, six of which appeared in British hymnals. In addition to his work as a clergy man of the Church of England and hymnologist, he was active in the field of religious education, being largely responsible for two books with wide circulation in Britain, Prayers and Hymns for used in Schools and The Daily Service. These books had great influence on the worship practices of British schools, public and private. It is of historic interest that he is the author of one of the prayers used at the time of the meeting of Churchill and Roosevelt on H.M.S. Prince of Wales in 1941 when the Atlantic Charter was framed.

“God has Spoken by the Prophets” was first published in Ten New Hymns from the Bible, 1953.  

God has spoken by the prophets, Spoken the unchanging Word;
Each from age to age proclaiming God the One, the righteous Lord!
’Mid the world’s despair and turmoil One firm anchor holding fast:
God eternal reigns forever, God the first and God the last.

God has spoken by Christ Jesus, Christ, the everlasting Son,
Brightness of the Father’s glory, With the Father ever one;
Spoken by the Word incarnate, God of God ere time was born;
Light of light, to earth descending, Christ as God in human form.

God is speaking by the Spirit, Speaking to our hearts again,
In the age-long word declaring God’s own message, now as then.
Through the rise and fall of nations One sure faith is standing fast:
God abides, the Word unchanging, God the first and God the last.

Benjamin M. Culli is an active composer, a church musician, and a senior keyboard publications editor at the Hal Leonard Corporation. He is the organist at Peace Lutheran Church in New Berlin, Wisconsin.  Culli studied music education at Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois, and after graduation worked as a high school and elementary school band director. In addition to his duties as a band director, Benjamin also directed the children’s choir and the adult handbell choir.  He has composed music for organ, choir, chamber ensembles, and concert bands.

About the Piano Music:

I Surrender All - Jim Martinez 

(c. 2019, Hope Publishing)

"I Surrender All" is a Christian hymn, with words written by American art teacher and musician Judson W. Van DeVenter (1855–1939), who subsequently became a music minister and evangelist. It was put to music by Winfield S. Weeden (1847–1908), and published in 1896.Van DeVenter said of the inspiration for the text:

For some time, I had struggled between developing my talents in the field of art and going into full-time evangelistic work. At last the pivotal hour of my life came, and I surrendered all. A new day was ushered into my life. I became an evangelist and discovered down deep in my soul a talent hitherto unknown to me. God had hidden a song in my heart, and touching a tender chord, He caused me to sing. 

Following his decision to surrender his life to the Divine, Van DeVenter traveled throughout the United States, England, and Scotland, doing evangelistic work. Winfield S. Weeden, his associate and singer, assisted him for many years. Toward the end of his life, Van DeVenter moved to Florida, and was professor of hymnology at the Florida Bible Institute for four years in the 1920s. After his retirement, he remained involved in speaking and in religious gatherings. Van DeVenter published more than 60 hymns in his lifetime, but "I Surrender All" is his most famous.

All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give;

I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence daily live.

All to Jesus I surrender, humbly at His feet I bow,

Worldly pleasures all forsaken; take me Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus I surrender, make me, Savior, wholly Think;

Let me feel Thy Holy Spirit, truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee;

Fill me with Thy love and power, let Thy blessing fall on me.

All to Jesus I surrender; now I feel the sacred flame.

Oh, the joy of Thy salvation!  Glory, glory to His name!

I surrender all, I surrender all.

All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all.

Jim Martinez (b. 1966) is a Steinway Piano Artist and has performed/recorded with Jazz notables Lionel Hampton, Christian McBride, Roy Hargrove, Cheryl Bentyne (of the Manhattan Transfer), and many others. His performances have taken him from New York to Sydney, Australia. Martinez worked as pianist/musical director for Joan Rivers and Bob Newhart at Harrah’s in Lake Tahoe. He is the founder, Executive and Artistic Director of the Roseville Jazz Festival, which takes place annually near Sacramento, CA.

About the Choral Music:

Give Me Jesus - Howard Helvey 

(c. 2008, Beckenhorst Press)

“Give Me Jesus” originated as an African-American spiritual written during the time of slavery in the United States.  The lyrics and tune 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, In the morning, when I rise,

In the morning, when I rise, Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus, Give me Jesus,
You may have all this world,
Give me Jesus.

Dark midnight was my cry, Dark midnight was my cry,
Dark midnight was my cry, Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus, Give me Jesus,
You may have all this world,
Give me Jesus.

Oh, when I come to die, Oh, when I come to die,

Oh, when I come to die, Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus, Give me Jesus,
You may have all this world,
Give me Jesus.

Howard Helvey (b. 1968) was awarded the international choral-composition first prize in 2006 by the John Ness Beck Foundation.  Helvey also concertizes frequently as a pianist, conducts (and co-founded) the professional Cincinnati Fusion Ensemble, and in 1998 was appointed as organist/choirmaster of historic Calvary Episcopal Church in Cincinnati. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in composition and piano performance from the University of Missouri (Columbia) and the University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music, and, as a Chautauqua Scholar, studied piano at New York's Chautauqua Institution.

About the Hymns:

Blessed Assurance

Fanny Jane Crosby (1820-1915), born in New York and died in Connecticut, wrote over 8,500 gospel hymns. In 1972, Hope Publishing Co. found over 1,000 unpublished manuscripts. Her work defined what it meant to be a successful writer of gospel hymns.  By the age of six weeks, Fanny Crosby was completely blind. She entered the New York School for the Blind at age twelve. She began writing hymns and poetry at age twelve.  Her collaborators in publishing gospel hymns included the most successful and popular composers of her day, including William Bradbury, William Doane, Robert Lowry, Ira Sankey, and William Kirkpatrick. Crosby used numerous pen names in publishing her songs, including: Ella Dale, Mrs. Kate Gringley and Miss Viola V. A.  She married blind musician Alexander Van Alstyne, and the British most often refer to her by her married name rather than Fanny Crosby.  She was a lifelong Methodist and her contributions to The United Methodist Hymnal (1989) include: “Blessed Assurance,” “Close to Thee,” “I Am Thine, O Lord,” “Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross,” “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior,” “Rescue the Perishing,” and “To God Be the Glory.”

Phoebe Knapp (1839-1908) was a composer of music for hymns and an organist.  Knapp was born in New York City. Her parents were Walter C. Palmer and Phoebe Worrall Palmer.  She married Joseph Fairchild Knapp, one of the founders and the second president of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and he had a pipe organ installed in their apartment.  She and her husband were members of the John Street Methodist Episcopal Church in New York City. The hymn writer Fanny Crosby was also a member of that church and a friend of the Phoebe’s.  She wrote over 500 hymn tunes, the most familiar being the tune now called ASSURANCE for Fanny Crosby's lyrics “Blessed Assurance”. 

Crosby was visiting her friend Phoebe Knapp as the Knapp home was having a large pipe organ installed. The organ was incomplete, so Mrs. Knapp, using the piano, played a new melody she had just composed. When Knapp asked Crosby, "What do you think the tune says?", Crosby replied, "Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine."  The hymn appeared in the July 1873 issue of Palmer's Guide to Holiness and Revival Miscellany, a magazine printed by Dr. and Mrs. W. C. Palmer.  

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.

Perfect communion, perfect delight, visions of rapture now burst on my sight.

Angels descending bring from above echoes of mercy, whispers of love. 

Perfect submission, all is at rest. I in my Savior am happy and bless’d,

watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love. 

This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.

Trust and Obey

This hymn was inspired in 1886 when the composer of the music, Daniel B. Towner (1850-1919), was the music leader during one of Dwight L. Moody’s famous revivals. Towner provided the following account cited by Moody’s musical partner, Ira D. Sankey, in his biography, My Life and the Story of the Gospel Hymns:   “Mr. Moody was conducting a series of meetings in Brockton, Massachusetts, and I had the pleasure of singing for him there. One night a young man rose in a testimony meeting and said, ‘I am not quite sure—but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.’ I just jotted that sentence down, and sent it with a little story to the Rev. J. H. Sammis, a Presbyterian minister. He wrote the hymn, and the tune was born.”  Sammis is said to have composed the lines of the refrain upon receiving the letter.

As is the case with most gospel songs, these lines provide the central theme around which all of the stanzas were written. The text and first Towner’s tune, TRUST AND OBEY, appeared in the 1887 collection, Hymns Old and New, and has been included in countless hymnals since. Methodist hymnals in the United States have carried it since 1897. 

When we walk with the Lord  in the light of his word, 

what a glory he sheds on our way!  While we do his good will, 

he abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey. 

Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, 

but our toil he doth richly repay; not a grief or a loss, 

not a frown or a cross, but is blest if we trust and obey.

But we never can prove the delights of his love 

until all on the altar we lay; for the favor he shows, 

for the joy he bestows, are for them who will trust and obey.

Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at his feet, 

or we'll walk by his side in the way; what he says we will do, 

where he sends we will go; never fear, only trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there's no other way 

to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. 

First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas

A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus