Walther's Hymnal

So I had a slight A to Z Challenge slip-up by not posting last night, but since Sundays are free days, I figured I could get away with waiting to post until today.

By this point in the month, I had hoped to explore Walther's Hymnal in depth, but that didn't happen.  Even though I'm not as familiar with it as I had hoped to be, I would still highly recommend this book as a must-have resource for the church musician and anyone who is interested in church music.

This book is an English translation of the German-language hymnal, published in 1847, that C.F.W. Walther put together for Trinity Congregation in St. Louis.  While it doesn't include all of the liturgical resources that the original did, it still includes translations of all the hymns, the order of service, prayers, and selected readings.  It also includes a brief historical introduction and music to tunes that aren't found in The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship, or Lutheran Service Book (LSB).

Some of the hymns are still used in modern hymnals, but unfortunately, many have fallen out of use.  I spent a little bit of time reflecting on some of the hymns in the "Passion of Christ" section.  One of the hymns, which isn't in LSB, really caught my attention.  Because the translation is copyrighted, I won't print the text of it here, but if you can get your hands on a copy of Walther's Hymnal, translated and edited by Matthew Carver, it is listed as hymn 72.  It's a beautiful hymn that ties Christ's passion to our salvation and is a great hymn for Good Friday.  Because of the fifth and final stanza's reference to our own death and the hope we have of eternal life, I also think that it would work well as a funeral hymn.

I can't wait to explore this resource in greater depth and I would encourage anyone interested to consider adding Walther's Hymnal to his or her library!

The Singing Church

Back at the beginning of the month, I posted some thoughts about how people in the church do not speak up when confessing the liturgy. Likewise, people don't sing in church; instead, they mumble the words and make a feeble attempt to sing any sort of note.  Guess what?  As a church musician, I'm giving you permission to sing out, even if you can't sing on pitch!  The point of song in the church isn't to showcase one's singing talent.  It's to reinforce what is being taught and preached through the Word and Sacrament.  Plus, it's a great way to be reminded of what we believe.  I've heard pastors say that when a person is old and his or her memory, including the names of loved ones, is fading, he or she can still sing favorite hymns and parts of the liturgy.  What a beautiful thing to be able to hold on to!

Reflections on Contemporary Worship

Several years ago, I wrote this draft post, but never published it to my blog.  I've done some editing and decided it's time it saw the light of day.

There seems to be a misconception younger generations prefer a more contemporary style, whether it be in music, furniture, religion, etc.  As such, in our churches today, there is push for rock-band, pop-style music to dominate the worship service.  This has become true even within historically traditional, conservative church bodies, including the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS), but is this type of worship music really beneficial to our worship?

As a young confirmand, I went through Luther's Small Catechism and learned to ask the "Lutheran" question, "What does this mean?" Unfortunately, time seems to have dampened Lutherans' ability to really mean it when they ask this question.  The result?  We read through our Catechism and we do our memory work and we take for granted what we're being taught.  We stop questioning and started accepting.

Once we start accepting what we are doing in worship without question, then our churches start thinking that contemporary is the way to go.  The younger generations love rock concerts and pop hits. It's what they want, right?  Let's add it to the service then!  But there's a problem with this kind of thinking.  The contemporary worship style tends to shift the focus.  The band is up front.  The focus is on them.  The music is loud.  The musical focus is on the beat and the rhythm and not the words.  There is applause after each number; it is for the performers.  Much of the music (although certainly not all) is upbeat, with quick tempos and major keys.  The audience leaves feeling joyful, full of life, whatever the music conveys. The service is all about the music and the praise that is being given to God.  Does God really need our praise?  Is there really anything that we can do for Him?  Isn't it He that has done everything for us?  Where are the gifts He has given to us received?

Today's culture is all about me.  It's about what I want, what I feel.  I want this new awesome technology.  You hurt me; my pain is your fault.  Doing this is what makes me happy.  Contemporary-styled worship follows suite. It's all about the awesome music, the good feelings, the hanging out with peers.

Liturgical worship is not focused on making you feel good.  It's not about the music, the feelings, or the people you're with.  It's about receiving the gifts God has given to you!  The liturgy points to Christ.  The hymns point to Christ.  The readings point to Christ.  The sermon points to Christ.  The pastor even points to Christ!  There is no clapping after a hymn.  It's not about how great the arrangement is or how talented the organist or other musicians are.  That's why musicians are usually not at the front of the church.  It's not about them.  They are trying to get the congregation to pay attention to the words being sung, the words that point to Christ's saving work, for you, and to the gifts of life and salvation, given to you!  And the pastor doesn't wear a slick suit; he wears a white robe of servitude, signifying God has called him to administer the gifts to you!

The liturgical service is not straight-forward with songs and Scripture readings and a message.  It has many different parts to it, many of which retain their Latin labels.  Guess what that means!  We get to ask the question, "What does this mean?"  What's that mean in Latin?  Why is it called that?  Why is it in the service?  What gifts are given through it?

Many today are drawn to contemporary worship, but not everyone under the age of 25 enjoys it.  I am a young person and the contemporary service seems empty to me.  When I attend a liturgical worship service, I do not understand every part of the service, but that doesn't matter.  I know that everything in the service is based off of Scripture and delivers God's gifts to me.  As a young Lutheran, I am intrigued by what I don't understand and I am driven to search for the answers to questions of "What does this mean?"

Preparing for Lent

One of the classes I'm taking this semester is all about preparing soon-to-be Directors of Parish Music to enter the field.  One of the topics we recently covered in class was newsletter and bulletin inserts.  As we as a church prepare to enter the season of Lent, a meditation on our own sinfulness and Christ's saving work done to redeem us, I wrote these informative sample blurbs for my class assignment.

What is a Tenebrae service?

The word Tenebrae is Latin for “darkness.”  In the Middle Ages, Tenebrae services were held in the evenings during Holy Week, prior to the Triduum (Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil).  Today, Tenebrae services are held on Good Friday.  The service usually includes seven to ten Scripture readings followed by silent time for reflection and the singing of all or part of a hymn.  Readings from the Passion Narrative are typically used, although traditionally the readings were taken from various Psalms.  After each reading, a candle is extinguished.  Once the sanctuary is dark, the service concludes with the strepitus, a loud noise (often a book slamming shut) representing the tearing of the Temple curtain and the closing of Christ’s tomb.  In some churches, one candle, the eternal light, is carried out of the sanctuary until the Easter Vigil.  The people then leave in silence. 

What are the Pre-Lent services?

Although in the three-year lectionary the Transfiguration is celebrated at the end of the season of Epiphany, the one-year lectionary celebrates it several weeks earlier to allow for three Pre-Lent Sundays.  These Sundays are in preparation for the Lenten season and include Christ’s foretelling of His death and resurrection from Luke 18.  We often call these Sundays by Greek terms, Septuagesima (“seventy days”), Sexagesima (“sixty days”), and Quinquagesima (“fifty days”).  While Quinquagesima is fifty days before Easter, the other two Sundays are not exactly seventy or sixty days from Easter. 

Hymn of the Month: LSB 419

This month we explore the Lenten hymn “Savior, When in Dust to Thee” by Robert Grant, a British hymn writer who spent much of his life in India.  The text of this hymn poetically depicts Christ’s saving work for us in the midst of our hopeless sinfulness.  God calls to us to repentance (Ezek. 18:30–32) and so we implore at the end of every stanza “[h]ear our penitential cry!”   Thanks be to God that He has sent His Son to redeem us and wash away all of our sin!

In the first stanza, we sing of our repentance “in dust and ashes” (Job 42:6).  Like the tax collector in Jesus’ parable who “would not even lift up his eyes to heaven,” we sing of how “to the skies scarce we lift our weeping eyes” (Luke 18:13; stz. 1).

Christ, who is God, began His redeeming work of us sinners from the moment He came down to earth.  In stanza two, we remember the humility of His birth at Bethlehem (Luke 2:1–7) and His temptation in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1–11).

Stanza three has us recall the events of Holy Week.  We reflect on Jesus’ prayer at Gethsemane (Mark 14:32–42) and His crucifixion and death (Mark 15:21–39; John19:31–37).

At the end of this stanza we, with David, humbly say “be gracious to me, O Lord, for to you do I cry all the day” (Ps. 86:3).  How wonderful it is that He has heard our cry!

The final stanza of this hymn gives us a glimpse forward beyond the crucifixion.  Here, we sing of Christ’s death (Luke 23:46), His burial (Luke 23:53), His resurrection (Luke 24:5–6), and His ascension into heaven (Luke 24:50–53).  While our focus during Lent is on penitence and remembering that Christ came down to bear our sins, we cannot forget that He rose, and because He rose, we too shall rise!

Online sources:

-  What is Pre-Lent

-  Lex Orandi:  Pre-Lent

-  One Year Lectionary and Pre-Lent

-  more about Pre-Lent

-  Hymnary:  Savior When in Dust to Thee

-  Hymnary:  Robert Grant

-  more about  Robert Grant

Print Resources:

-  Lutheran Service Book

-  Gathered Guests, 2nd ed.