O Cross that Liftest Up My Head
I first heard “O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go” during my seminary days. The version to which I was introduced was the Indelible Grace “rehymned” tune, and it quickly became a favorite. It was the one song I requested be sung at my ordination service, and it swiftly entered into the hymn rotation of both my church and its youth group.
When I moved to Langhorne Presbyterian the hymnals in use included “O Love”, but used its older St. Margaret tune. When I initially heard the classic version I immediately understood why Indelible Grace had rehymned it. St. Margaret is much slower and more contemplative. In many ways the tune captures the essence of the lyrics better than the energetic force of Indelible Grace, but importantly for me as a pastor it is not easy for a congregation to sing well. A wonderful rendition using St. Margaret by the Gettys can be heard here, with a great choral recording here. I want our church to use the hymnal as much as possible, and so the Indelible Grace version was not introduced, while the version of “O Love” in the hymnal is also not in the song rotation due to the difficulty in singing the St. Margaret tune. The result of this is that I haven’t sung “O Love” in years nor given it much thought.
Josh Garrels’ new album Peace to All Who Enter Here, vol. 2 includes a version of “O Love” that is just beautiful…
We Will Feast in the House of Zion
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men.”
That is the closing of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day’. Below is a recording of Sandra McCraken’s ‘We Will Feast in the House of Zion’, recording at her congregation, Covenant Presbyterian Church in Nashville. God have mercy.
Rise! The Woman’s Conquering Seed
Come, Desire of Nations, come,
Fix in Us thy humble Home,
Rise, the Woman’s Conqu’ring Seed,
Bruise in Us the Serpent’s Head.
Now display thy saving Pow’r,
Ruin’d Nature now restore,
Now in Mystic Union join
Thine to Ours, and Ours to Thine.
This is the fourth stanza from Charles Wesley’s original 1739 version of “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing” (originally entitled “A Hymn for Christmas Day”). It’s wonderful. I wonder why it’s not included in the song much anymore.
On Missional Mission-Drift and Psalmody
One of the great concerns of missional theology is the translation of theological language and practice across cultures. While the truth of the gospel does not change, the mode of communicating it can and must depending upon location. This was one of the arguments for the adaptation of rock and pop music in worship. Every musical style and genre will eventually run into the same problem: diminishing returns crossing cultures. A seminary professor of mine once told a story of visiting an evangelical church in Japan that was a slavish copy of American churches. The church had a praise team that dressed like a caricature of American worship leaders and played translated CCM. And it didn’t work, because it failed to account for the differences in American and Japanese culture.
As American and western culture changes, the use of rock music in worship stops meeting the needs that lead to its employment in the first place…
On the Missional Use of Psalmody
When “contemporary” music hit the church scene starting in the 1960s, really picking up and winning out by the late 1990s, one of the arguments for the change in style is that it would be more familiar and appealing both…
