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; 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.
Herr, ich habe mißgehandelt – Georg Kauffmann
This chorale
was written by Johann Franck (1618-1677), a burgess and councillor in Guben, Brandenburg. In 1671, he was appointed the deputy from
Guben to the Landtag (Diet) of Lower Lusatia. His hymns appeared mostly in the
works of his friends Weichmann, Crüger and Peter. 110 of them were collected in
his Geistliches Sion, Guben, 1674; and of these the 57 hymns were reprinted as Johann Franck's Geistliche
Lieder, Grimma, 1846. “Herr, ich habe
missgehandelt“ was published in Geistliche Kirchenmelodien, with a tune by Johann Crüger (Leipzig, Germany: 1649). It was translated into
English by Catherine
Winkworth, Chorale Book for England, 1863.
Lord, to Thee I make confession;
I have sinned and gone astray,
I have multiplied transgression,
Chosen for myself my way.
Led by Thee to see my errors,
Lord, I tremble at Thy terrors.
I have sinned and gone astray,
I have multiplied transgression,
Chosen for myself my way.
Led by Thee to see my errors,
Lord, I tremble at Thy terrors.
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.
Just As I Am, Without
One Plea – Dale Wood
“Just as I Am" was first published in the 1836 edition of Invalid's Hymn Book with the subheading "Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37). She added a seventh stanza that same year, when the hymn was also published in her Hours of Sorrow Cheered and Comforted (1836). Widely translated, this hymn has brought consolation to millions.
Just as I am, without
one plea,
but that thy blood was shed for me,
and that thou bidd'st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
but that thy blood was shed for me,
and that thou bidd'st me come to thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, and
waiting not
to rid my soul of one dark blot,
to thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
to rid my soul of one dark blot,
to thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, though
tossed about
with many a conflict, many a doubt,
fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
with many a conflict, many a doubt,
fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just
as I am, thou wilt receive,
wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
because thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
because thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Dale
Wood (1934-2003) was a prominent composer, organist, choral director, and
clinician. He was honored many times by
the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) for his
“very important contribution towards the creation and development of
contemporary American church music”. He
wrote many collections of organ works, most of which are based on both old and
new hymn tunes. Over eight million
copies of his publications have been purchased in over 50 countries.
Echo – Richard Hudson
Richard
Hudson (b. 1924) was born in Michigan and served in the U.S. Navy in WWII,
after which he studied organ at Oberlin, Syracuse University, and in
Amsterdam. He is professor emeritus of
UCLA.
About the Choral Music:
Clara H. Scott (1841-1897) provides us with a hymn of consecration that has been sung for over 100 years. In 1856, Scott attended the first Music Institute held by C.M. Cady in Chicago, Ill. By 1859, she was teaching music at the Ladies' Seminary, Lyons, Iowa. She married Henry Clay Scott in 1861, and published in 1882 the Royal Anthem Book, the first volume of choir anthems published by a woman. Horatio R. Palmer, an influential church musician in Chicago and later New York City, was a source of encouragement for Scott, and helped her publish many of her songs. Three collections were issued before her untimely death, when a runaway horse caused a buggy accident in Dubuque, Iowa.
The text of "Open My Eyes" was written in 1895 shortly before Scott's death. Each stanza reveals an increasing receptiveness to the "Spirit divine." Open eyes lead to "glimpses of truth." Open ears lead to "voices of truth." An open mouth leads to sharing the "warm truth everywhere." An open heart leads to sharing "love to thy children."
The image of open eyes is common in the Bible. In some cases, this is a sign of Christ's healing power, as when Jesus gave sight to the blind man at the pool of Siloam in John 9. Closed eyes, on the other hand, could be a metaphor for avoiding the truth as in the case of John 12:40, a passage following the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem and beginning his journey to the cross: "He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them." The image of open ears is also significant in the biblical witness. Matthew often reprises the theme "Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." Closed ears become a metaphor for a lack of understanding: "For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Matthew 13:15).
While the eyes and the ears are receptive organs, the mouth has the capacity to project. The mouth may project "cursing and deceit and fraud" (Psalm 10:7), or it may be an organ that projects praise, as Psalm 51:15 exhorts us: "O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise." The heart is the only organ included in this hymn that is not visible. It may harbor deceit. Jesus asks in Matthew 9:4, "Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?" But Jesus also realized that the heart has the capacity for purity: "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). The gentle 6/8 meter of Scott's music provides a subtle sense of dancing in tune with the Spirit as we learn to see, hear and speak the truth from our hearts.
Kurt Kaiser's (b. 1934) attended The American Conservatory of Music and Northwestern University School of Music, where he earned both a Bachelor's and Master's degree in music. In 1959, he joined Word Records as Director of Artists and Repertoire. He later became Vice-president and Director of Music there. From 1965 through 1970, Kaiser served as director of the Baylor Religious Hour Choir. Kurt Kaiser and his friend Ralph Carmichael began writing Christian rock musicals geared to reach out to the youth of the time. Crossing denominational boundaries, many of Kurt's compositions have found their way into a number of hymnals, including “Pass It On” and “O How He Loves You and Me”. Kurt has achieved subtle trend changes by maintaining a sensitivity to that which is widely acceptable. His innovative approach has broadened musical styles that are palatable to the church at large. Associations with the Eastman School of Music and the Baylor University acapella choir, as well as many other fine choral groups are indicative of his taste for fine choral literature. Kurt finds it equally challenging to assist volunteer choirs to enjoy singing while bettering their art. He helped to found the Day Spring Baptist Church in Waco, Texas and is their choir director. In 2001 he was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
Open my eyes,
that I may see glimpses of truth Thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
that shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for Thee, Ready
my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit
divine!
Open my ears, that I may hear voices
of truth Thou sendest clear;
And while the wavenotes fall on my
ear, everything false will disappear.
Silently
now I wait for Thee, Ready my God, Thy will to see;
Open my ears, illumine me, Spirit
divine!
Open my mouth, and let it bear
gladly the warm truth everywhere;
Open my heart and let me prepare
love with Thy children thus to share.
Silently
now I wait for Thee, Ready my God, Thy will to see;
Open my heart, illumine me, Spirit
divine!
About the Hymns:
O
Worship the King
Grant’s text was influenced by William Kethe’s paraphrase of Psalm 104 in the Anglo-Genevan Psalter (1561). Grant’s text was first published in Edward Bickersteth’s Christian Psalmody (1833) with several unauthorized alterations. In 1835 his original six-stanza text was published in Henry Elliott’s Psalm and Hymns. Stanza 3 was omitted in the Psalter Hymnal.
Rather than being a paraphrase or versification, the text
is a meditation on the creation theme of Psalm 104, focusing on God’s creation
as a testimony to his “measureless might.” More personal in tone, stanzas 4 and
5 confess the compassion of God toward his creatures and affirm with
apocalyptic vision that the “ransomed creation, with glory ablaze” will join
with angels to hymn its praise to God. In the last verse, Grant points to Christ as
the ultimate reconciler of a broken, but still beautiful creation. An original
last stanza that we no longer sing reads, “The humbler creation, though feeble
their lays, with true adoration shall lisp to Thy praise.”
Jesus,
United by Thy Grace
Charles Wesley (1707-1788) was the great
hymn-writer of the Wesley family, 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. As a hymn-writer Charles Wesley was unique.
He is said to have written no less than 6500 hymns, and though, of course, in
so vast a number some are of unequal merit, it is perfectly amazing how many
there are which rise to the highest degree of excellence. 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
rumors 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, all furnished occasions for the exercise of his
divine gift. The saying that a really
good hymn is as rare an appearance as that of a comet is falsified 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.
All of
Wesley's hymns are biblical. They convey the big themes of our faith:
forgiveness, love, and charity. Our Song of Prayer today is another favorite,
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling." This hymn presents the idea of
incarnation: Jesus is the incarnation of God's love. There is no more central
Christian concept than this: that Jesus came to be love incarnate, God with us.
Where
Charity and Love Prevail
Omer Westendorf (1916-1997) was one of the leading
composers following the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Beginning at age 20, he received his master’s
degree in music at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and for most of his
professional musical career served as organist and choirmaster at St.
Bonaventure Church in Cincinnati. Under his direction the Bonaventure Choir
sang concerts and recorded sacred music for several decades. One of his greatest achievements was the
founding of the World Library of Sacred Music in 1950 and World Library
Publications in 1957. These organizations have been primary distributors of
music for the Mass in the United States and beyond.
Westendorf was also known for his lectures and seminars on sacred music, consultations on liturgical music and as a hymn writer. Westendorf’s People’s Mass Book, 1964, was the first vernacular hymn and service book to implement the Catholic liturgies decreed by Vatican Council II. He wrote Music Lessons for the Man in the Pew to teach the art of sight reading choral music.
“Where charity and love prevail” (1961) provides an English hymn version of a 9th-century Latin hymn, “Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est” (Where there is charity and love, God is there) based on 1 John 4:16. Traditionally, this is the final hymn on Maundy Thursday, called in the Latin tradition Mandatum novum (New Commandment), referring to the act of washing of the disciples’ feet initiated by Jesus.
Scholar H. Myron Braun comments on this ancient ritual: “[The Latin chant] is said to date from the ninth century . . . with its emphasis on community within the faith, on Christians holding one another in love and concern . . . It is appropriate for . . . [Maundy Thursday] when we note the “new commandment” that we love one another, and also several times in Eastertide when the lectionary leads us to reading on love from the Gospel and the epistles of John.”
The text draws directly on John 13:34, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” This version appeared first in Westendorf’s People’s Mass Book (1976). Before the publication of The UM Hymnal in 1989, the hymn appeared in the Supplement to the Book of Hymns (1982) with a plainsong melody.
Westendorf was also known for his lectures and seminars on sacred music, consultations on liturgical music and as a hymn writer. Westendorf’s People’s Mass Book, 1964, was the first vernacular hymn and service book to implement the Catholic liturgies decreed by Vatican Council II. He wrote Music Lessons for the Man in the Pew to teach the art of sight reading choral music.
“Where charity and love prevail” (1961) provides an English hymn version of a 9th-century Latin hymn, “Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est” (Where there is charity and love, God is there) based on 1 John 4:16. Traditionally, this is the final hymn on Maundy Thursday, called in the Latin tradition Mandatum novum (New Commandment), referring to the act of washing of the disciples’ feet initiated by Jesus.
Scholar H. Myron Braun comments on this ancient ritual: “[The Latin chant] is said to date from the ninth century . . . with its emphasis on community within the faith, on Christians holding one another in love and concern . . . It is appropriate for . . . [Maundy Thursday] when we note the “new commandment” that we love one another, and also several times in Eastertide when the lectionary leads us to reading on love from the Gospel and the epistles of John.”
The text draws directly on John 13:34, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” This version appeared first in Westendorf’s People’s Mass Book (1976). Before the publication of The UM Hymnal in 1989, the hymn appeared in the Supplement to the Book of Hymns (1982) with a plainsong melody.
