"God Help the Outcasts" from The Hunchback of Notre Dame

I was fortunate enough to be given a ticket to see The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the Community Theatre in Norwell this past weekend. This number, Esmeralda's prayer, seemed so very pertinent, so I looked it up to share. Please join me in praying with her and all those like her, both far away and close to home. May we all learn to live this prayer, and may there come a time when there are no outcasts.

I look from afar... some music for Advent

Advent Responsory (Marlow):

I look from afar: and lo, I see the power of God coming,

and a cloud covering the whole earth.

Go ye out to meet him and say:

‘Tell us, art thou he that should come to reign over thy people Israel?’

High and low, rich and poor, one with another,

go ye out to meet him and say:

‘Tell us, art thou he that should come to reign over thy people Israel?’

Hear, O thou Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a sheep.

Tell us, art thou he that should come?

Stir up thy strength, O Lord, and come to reign over thy people Israel.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.

Words: Early medieval Roman rite (Matins Responsory for the First Sunday of Advent)

Music: Richard Marlow 

http://trinitycollegechoir.com/media/filestore/service-sheets/AdventCarolService2012.pdf 

What is the crying at Jordan 

...in joy and terror the Word is born...

The words are copyrighted, but they may be found in The Hymnal 1982 #69

People, Look East (Eleanor Farjeon - Besançon Carol)

Wonder, Love, and Praise #724

prayer of grief, prayer for peace

Gracious God, your children are at war. Will it never cease? 

So much hate;

so many deep wounds, old and new;

so much suffering and grief.

Let me sit with you in the dirt

as you sit with those wracked with pain.

Surely your tears mingle with theirs.

Send the water of life

to quench these fires

and in their place

light a new fire of love and hope.

We are yours

all of us -

we just don't seem to know it.

from a hymn for the Feast of the Holy Innocents

Still rage the fires of hate today

and innocents the price must pay

while aching hearts in every land

cry out, "We cannot understand!"

- Rosamond E Herklots

Hymn #246 v.3, The Hymnal 1982

 

🥪 👜 Ma’amalade sandwich Your Majesty?

A message for the church from a Europe at war

A message from our Associate, the Rt. Rev. Mark Edington, Bishop of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe, from the American Cathedral in Paris, as the Russian invasion of the Ukraine continues:

God of timelessness,

From chaos and disorder 

you brought forth the beauty of creation;

From the chaos of war and violence

Bring forth the beauty of peace.

God of compassion

You saw the humanity of the outcast and the stranger;

Help us to see the evils of our hatreds and suspicions

and to turn them into the embrace of your Beloved Community.

God of peace,

Through your love on the cross

You overcame the power of violence and death;

Turn us away from the love of power

That we may transform a warring world

through the power of your love. Amen.

hark, what a sound - an advent hymn speaking to all I need

Hark what a sound, and too divine for hearing,
stirs on the earth and trembles in the air!
Is it the thunder of the Lord's appearing?
Is it the music of his people's prayer?

Surely he cometh, and a thousand voices
shout to the saints, and to the deaf are dumb;
surely he cometh, and the earth rejoices,
glad in his coming who hath sworn: I come!

This hath he done, and shall we not adore him?
This shall he do, and can we still despair?
Come, let us quickly fling ourselves before him,
cast at his feet the burden of our care.

Through life and death, through sorrow and through sinning,
he shall suffice me, for he hath sufficed:
Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning,
Christ the beginning, for the end is Christ.

- F. W. H. Myers (public domain)
Thanks to Hymnary.org for the text.  https://hymnary.org/text/hark_what_a_sound_and_too_divine_for_hea

"Conference of Anglican Religious in the Americas" Video

Alice's Restaurant

turkeys outside St. Marina's Guesthouse in Duxbury

It has come to my attention that there are people out there who do not know of Alice's Restaurant. This is wrong, especially within a week of Thanksgiving in the year in which Arlo Guthrie announced his retirement. Therefore, in order to remedy the situation, I bring you a taste of 1967 Turkey Tales.

 

Lo, these many moons later, Alice is just trying to stay in her home. That would not be the old church as described in the song, in which she has not lived for decades, but the cottage she rents in Provincetown. For more on that and on her reminiscences of the song's story, read Arlo Guthrie's 'Alice's Restaurant' Is A Thanksgiving Tradition. But This Year The Real Alice Needs Help. 

Lord, Who throughout this Quarantine

Note that this quarantine is currently taking place during Lent. Therefore, this setting is particularly appropriate for those familiar with the hymn Lord, who throughout these forty days.

However, I don't usually end up laughing during the original. Maybe that is about to change...



Many thanks to the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa for a much-needed laugh.

Just found their blog: https://catherinescafe.blogspot.com/ and signed up, as they seem like women I'll enjoy meeting (virtually, anyway). And yes, I am now following them on Twitter, too.

Here's the original:

I Bind Unto Myself Today - St. Patrick's Breastplate

This seems particularly appropriate in such a time.

"I bind unto myself today the strong Name of the Trinity...I bind this day to me for ever, by power of faith, Christ's Incarnation... I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead..." 

What strength could be greater?

And part I have loved since childhood:

Christ be with me,
Christ within me,
Christ behind me,
Christ before me,
Christ beside me,
Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort
and restore me.

Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ in quiet,
Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of
all that love me,
Christ in mouth of
friend and stranger.

At Trinity Episcopal, Fort Wayne, we used to sing this middle section before the gospel reading every week. This recording has a different tune for the middle section than the Episcopal hymnal has, but the words are still there and powerfully comforting.

May it be prayer and blessing to you, too, and may Christ, the One who is our Rock and our Salvation, the One who will never abandon us, be truly present in your life, now more than ever.



text via YouTube:

I bind unto myself today the strong Name of the Trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, and One in Three. I bind this day to me for ever, by power of faith, Christ's Incarnation; his baptism in Jordan river; his death on cross for my salvation; his bursting from the spicèd tomb; his riding up the heavenly way; his coming at the day of doom: I bind unto myself today. I bind unto myself the power of the great love of cherubim; the sweet "Well done" in judgment hour; the service of the seraphim; confessors' faith, apostles' word, the patriarchs' prayers, the prophets' scrolls; all good deeds done unto the Lord, and purity of virgin souls. I bind unto myself today the virtues of the starlit heaven the glorious sun's life-giving ray, the whiteness of the moon at even, the flashing of the lightning free, the whirling wind's tempestuous shocks, the stable earth, the deep salt sea, around the old eternal rocks. I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead, his eye to watch, his might to stay, his ear to hearken, to my need; the wisdom of my God to teach, his hand to guide, his shield to ward; the word of God to give me speech, his heavenly host to be my guard. Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger. I bind unto myself today the strong Name of the Trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, and One in Three. Of whom all nature hath creation, eternal Father, Spirit, Word: praise to the Lord of my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord.

maybe today you need this Ode to Joy flashmob

It's a time of worldwide anxiety. Instead of overdosing on news, sometimes it's good to put oneself in another key. Just watched this thanks to Jay Arnold at  https://twitter.com/JadedCreative/status/1238081405713821698 and thought I'd share - we're all in this together.

It occurs to me that sometimes we don't know who's around us any more than these bystanders are cognizant of the musicians' presence among them. Now is a good time to be aware of each other - both to help and to give thanks - and also to be alert for glimpses of God's beauty and goodness even in the midst of crisis.

In English:

1 Joyful, joyful, we adore thee,
God of glory, Lord of love;
hearts unfold like flowers before thee,
praising thee, their sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;
drive the dark of doubt away;
giver of immortal gladness,
fill us with the light of day.

2 All thy works with joy surround thee,
earth and heaven reflect thy rays,
stars and angels sing around thee,
center of unbroken praise,
field and forest, vale and mountain,
blooming meadow, flashing sea,
chanting bird and flowing fountain,
call us to rejoice in thee.

3 Thou art giving and forgiving,
ever blessing, ever blest,
wellspring of the joy of living,
ocean depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our Brother:
all who live in love are thine;
teach us how to love each other,
lift us to the joy divine.

Thanks to Hymnary.org (https://hymnary.org/hymn/EH1982/376) for these.

over the river and through the woods to peace

Slow down. Be outside virtually even if you feel - or are - quarantined inside. Peace to all of you - and thanks to KB for sharing it!

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descending
Comes our homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.

Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
Comes the powers of hell to vanquish
As the darkness clears away.

At His feet the six winged seraph,
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!

The Hymnal 1982 #324

English poem by Gerard Moultrie used in the Anglican Communion, the Catholic Church, Western Rite Orthodoxy, and the Lutheran Church - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_all_mortal_flesh_keep_silence

Of the Father's Love Begotten

Of the Father's love begotten,

ere the worlds began to be,

he is Alpha and Omega,

he the source, the ending he,

of the things that are, that have been,

and that future years shall see,

evermore and evermore!

O that birth for ever blessèd,

when the Virgin, full of grace,

by the Holy Ghost conceiving,

bore the Savior of our race;

and the Babe, the world's Redeemer,

first revealed his sacred face,

evermore and evermore!

Let the heights of heaven adore him;

angel hosts, his praises sing;

powers, dominions, bow before him,

and extol our God and King;

let no tongue on earth be silent,

every voice in concert ring,

evermore and evermore!

Christ, to thee with God the Father,

and, O Holy Ghost, to thee,

hymn and chant and high thanksgiving,

and unwearied praises be;

honor, glory and dominion,

and eternal victory,

evermore and evermore!

Author: Aurelius Clemens Prudentius

Translation by John Mason Neale (our founder)

#82 Hymnal 1982

Hark What a Sound - music for your Advent prayer

Hark what a sound, and too divine for hearing,

stirs on the earth and trembles in the air!

This is one of my favorite Advent hymns, much beloved at St. Margaret's. We just sang it this week, and once again this year I have a copy in my room for prayer. It speaks to so much in this season, particularly in times where we are in need of hope.

"Surely he cometh..."

"He shall suffice me, for he hath sufficed."

This is the promise of Advent.



Hark what a sound, and too divine for hearing,
stirs on the earth and trembles in the air!
Is it the thunder of the Lord's appearing?
Is it the music of his people's prayer?

Surely he cometh, and a thousand voices
shout to the saints, and to the deaf are dumb;
surely he cometh, and the earth rejoices,
glad in his coming who hath sworn: I come!

This hath he done, and shall we not adore him?
This shall he do, and can we still despair?
Come, let us quickly fling ourselves before him,
cast at his feet the burden of our care.

Through life and death, through sorrow and through sinning,
he shall suffice me, for he hath sufficed:
Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning,
Christ the beginning, for the end is Christ.*


If you'd like to listen to an arrangement for brass of this hymn tune while meditating on the words, here you are:

*Frederick William Henry Myers, author

tune: Highwood  - R.R. Terry, composer

For more on the hymn: https://hymnary.org/text/hark_what_a_sound_and_too_divine_for_hea

to whom I am grateful for the text so I didn't have to type it all out from our sheet music. 

Advent Carol Service: St John’s Cambridge 1982 (George Guest)

A Grateful Day with Brother David Steindl-Rast - Gratefulness.org

About “A Grateful Day

O DAY OF PEACE

Can it really have been eighteen years since 9/11?

I still remember waiting, sitting on the floor in front of the television with the other sisters, saying, "Show the flight number. Show the flight number. Show the flight number." The entire Haitian house - that is, our SSM Sisters in that convent - were on a 6AM American Airlines flight out of Boston that morning. And then there were our Sisters who work for Trinity Wall Street, right there at St. Paul's Chapel at Ground Zero.

All OK. None unaffected.

So many others didn't find such good news at the end of the day.

I still think of Deora Bodley, who was on the plane that went down in PA. She was in my mother's class in grade school - third or fourth grade, I'm not sure which. I prayed for her family tonight and remembered the story I heard about her mother in vigil waiting to hear...

And so tonight when we had Evensong alongside St. John's Duxbury, I looked at the face of a sister who had been there in NYC and thought how many more there must be out there tonight.

Eighteen years? Tonight there are many for whom it must seem yesterday. And we all go on. And we all hope. We live, we find joy, we remember... whatever it is.

I offer this hymn as a prayer for us all as we seek to heal our broken world, giving thanks for Carl Daw's gift in hymn writing that permits us to express that prayer more deeply.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry on immigration: ‘Who is my neighbor?’

"Deeply embedded in the Christian faith, indeed deeply embedded in the Jewish tradition, which is the mother of the Christian faith, and deeply embedded in the faith and traditions and values of many of the world’s great religions, is a profound conviction in a sure and certain value and virtue that care for the stranger, the alien, the visitor, is a sacred duty, a sacred vow.

In the Hebrew scriptures in the book of Deuteronomy, the book writes and says you shall love the stranger, for remember you were once strangers in the land of Egypt.

In the 25th chapter of Matthew in the New Testament, Jesus in the parable of the last judgment says that when you welcomed the stranger, when you did it to these who are members of my family, you have done it to me."



transcript via https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/presiding-bishop-issues-video-message-on-immigration-who-is-my-neighbor/

Rachel Held Evans Funeral

Here's the original link to the service livestream: https://rachelheldevans.com/funeral
 (I've also included the YouTube version made of it below.)

The link also includes the bulletin pdf with the participants, hymns, etc.  Liturgical participants included Nadia Bolz-Weber preaching, Sarah Bessey and Austin Channing Brown reading, Audrey Assad singing, and Winnie Varghese celebrating (I recognized her soothing voice from General Convention before I knew she was there). There were others, but those are the ones with whom I was familiar and whose presence was somehow comforting - how much more to her family and friends. I had also become familiar with Jeff Chu through that time of prayer while Rachel was sick, and his leading of the Prayers of the People was moving.

But hearing from her little sister Amanda Held Opelt both made me laugh and moved me to tears. Plenty to think about, too. One thing she said that I don't think will necessarily get quoted seems important to me: "What was most special about her was her love. She's one of the least branded people I know. We all know, she was horrible at Instagram. She was the worst. And I think while other writers were working on their image and working on their brand, Rachel was working on her relationships. She was listening, she was leaning into people's pain, she was hearing their stories, she was being changed by their stories."  She wrote a song about her sister after she'd read Rachel's Searching for Sunday - that she never sang to her - I think it's called "Bloodlines and Intercessions." Hope someone publishes the words. Maybe she'll record it... Meanwhile, you should watch the service and listen - it's somewhere around the half hour mark. Wish I could be such a good sister to mine...

From her service (1979 Book of Common Prayer via the online bulletin):

O God of grace and glory, we remember Rachel before you and thank you for giving her to us to know and to love as a companion in our pilgrimage on earth. In your compassion, console those who mourn. Give us faith to see that death has been swallowed up in the victory of Christ so that we may live in confidence and hope until, by your call, we are gathered into the company of all your saints; by the power of your Holy Spirit we pray. Amen.



COMMENDATION

Leader: You only are immortal, the creator and maker of humankind; and we are mortal, formed of the earth, and to earth shall we return. For so did you ordain when you created me, saying, "You are dust, and to dust you shall return." All of us go down to the dust; yet even at the grave we make our song: Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

People: Give rest, O Christ, to your servant with your saints, where sorrow and pain are no more, neither sighing, but life everlasting.

Leader: Merciful Savior, we commend Rachel to you. Receive her as a sheep of your own fold, a lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming. Accept her into the arms of your mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of your saints.


And here's something from the BCP (p.507) that wasn't in the bulletin but that is really important. And it lines up well with what Nadia Bolz-Weber's sermon, which you simply must hear for yourself. It starts right about minute 50 on the video.

The liturgy for the dead is an Easter liturgy. It finds all meaning in the resurrection. Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we too, shall be  raised.

The liturgy, therefore, is characterized by joy, in the certainty that "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present,  nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else  in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ  Jesus our Lord."

This joy, however, does not make human grief unchristian. The very love  we have for each other in Christ brings deep sorrow when we are parted  by death. Jesus himself wept at the grave of his friend. So, while we  rejoice that one we love has entered into the nearer presence of our Lord, we sorrow in sympathy with those who mourn.

So hold them all in your prayers, especially Dan, her husband, and her little ones.  And hold yourself gently if you, too, are grieving right now, as so many are. 

Peace be with you all.