Thursday, May 06, 2004
Hymnody Revisited
I'm just a man ahead of my time, I guess. Within days after my entry about hymns (Apr. 23), this thread opened up at World Magazine Blog.
And, to my shrieking horror*, I realized that my list of favorite hymns was far from complete. How could I have missed:
Beneath the Cross of Jesus
Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us
Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed
I Know Whom I Have Believed
Christ the Lord is Risen Today
Abide With Me
Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior
Be Thou My Vision
Lead Me to Calvary
Low in the Grave He Lay (aka Up From the Grave He Arose)
How Firm a Foundation
The Church's One Foundation
O Worship the King
Angels From the Realms of Glory
This Is My Father's World (I can't listen to the music from Fellowship of the Ring without thinking of this one)
I also commend to you the wholly lovely hymn by St. Francis of Assisi, All Creatures of Our God and King. Even when we fallible, imperfect humans fail to praise God as we ought, "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows forth His handiwork." All creation honors God:
But one of the most haunting and beautiful hymns I've ever heard was one whose name I can't remember. I only heard it sung once, when I was about ten years old, in a huge church in downtown Uruapan, Michoacan, Mexico. We had just returned from a week-long mission to the coast city of Colonia Lazardo Cardenas, and we were attending a last service with all of the short-term missionaries we'd been escorting around the city and doing interpretation work for, and one of the hymns sung contained a line that moved me to tears -- probably the first time I ever wept while singing a hymn. (But not the last, by far.)
Hermosisimo el camino, hacia a la eternidad.
A loose translation of the line, preserving as much of its dignity as I can, would be, "Surpassingly beautiful is the road that leads to eternity."
That's it; that's all I remember about the song. I can sing that snippet to this day, but the rest of the hymn -- words, music, title -- is lost to me. But I do remember that I lost it at that point; I simply could not finish singing it. I have a vague memory of Mom asking me what was wrong, and not being able to explain it; but at that moment all I could think about was my great-grandparents, whom I knew to be in heaven at that very moment, and the way the words meshed with the minor notes of the chorus was moving enough without thinking of the people I knew who at that very moment were standing before the throne of God offering their own praises.
Which, of course, is the whole point of hymns. On Sunday morning, we are not attending a social club or an entertainment. We are joining with the angelic hosts and the living creatures and the saints who have already crossed over the river; we join with them in spirit to offer worship and praise to the Most High God. The music we choose to employ in our worship is not inconsequential. God desires worship "in spirit and in truth"; and while a heartfelt rendition of the shallowest P&W song is better than a cold and unfeeling performance of any hymn on my lists, is it not better to give greatest room to that music that teaches us the most about God, and uses a more elevated style of music and literary form in the words, than what we might listen to while driving around town?
I don't know... maybe I'm just being too narrow and crotchety. Again, there are obviously plenty of people who benefit from the music I hold in lesser regard, and there are plenty of people praising God with it. Who am I to judge? All I know is that most modern music (with some glorious exceptions) leaves me cold, while the hymns listed here and at World Mag Blog make me want to fly to my Lord and offer Him all the honor and praise I can muster. In the end, each person must decide what brings them closer to "spirit and truth."
Thanks to all the commenters at World Magazine Blog for reminding me of the hymns I love.
---------
*Note: I did not really shriek.
|
And, to my shrieking horror*, I realized that my list of favorite hymns was far from complete. How could I have missed:
Beneath the Cross of Jesus
Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us
Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed
I Know Whom I Have Believed
Christ the Lord is Risen Today
Abide With Me
Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior
Be Thou My Vision
Lead Me to Calvary
Low in the Grave He Lay (aka Up From the Grave He Arose)
How Firm a Foundation
The Church's One Foundation
O Worship the King
Angels From the Realms of Glory
This Is My Father's World (I can't listen to the music from Fellowship of the Ring without thinking of this one)
I also commend to you the wholly lovely hymn by St. Francis of Assisi, All Creatures of Our God and King. Even when we fallible, imperfect humans fail to praise God as we ought, "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows forth His handiwork." All creation honors God:
Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
But one of the most haunting and beautiful hymns I've ever heard was one whose name I can't remember. I only heard it sung once, when I was about ten years old, in a huge church in downtown Uruapan, Michoacan, Mexico. We had just returned from a week-long mission to the coast city of Colonia Lazardo Cardenas, and we were attending a last service with all of the short-term missionaries we'd been escorting around the city and doing interpretation work for, and one of the hymns sung contained a line that moved me to tears -- probably the first time I ever wept while singing a hymn. (But not the last, by far.)
Hermosisimo el camino, hacia a la eternidad.
A loose translation of the line, preserving as much of its dignity as I can, would be, "Surpassingly beautiful is the road that leads to eternity."
That's it; that's all I remember about the song. I can sing that snippet to this day, but the rest of the hymn -- words, music, title -- is lost to me. But I do remember that I lost it at that point; I simply could not finish singing it. I have a vague memory of Mom asking me what was wrong, and not being able to explain it; but at that moment all I could think about was my great-grandparents, whom I knew to be in heaven at that very moment, and the way the words meshed with the minor notes of the chorus was moving enough without thinking of the people I knew who at that very moment were standing before the throne of God offering their own praises.
Which, of course, is the whole point of hymns. On Sunday morning, we are not attending a social club or an entertainment. We are joining with the angelic hosts and the living creatures and the saints who have already crossed over the river; we join with them in spirit to offer worship and praise to the Most High God. The music we choose to employ in our worship is not inconsequential. God desires worship "in spirit and in truth"; and while a heartfelt rendition of the shallowest P&W song is better than a cold and unfeeling performance of any hymn on my lists, is it not better to give greatest room to that music that teaches us the most about God, and uses a more elevated style of music and literary form in the words, than what we might listen to while driving around town?
I don't know... maybe I'm just being too narrow and crotchety. Again, there are obviously plenty of people who benefit from the music I hold in lesser regard, and there are plenty of people praising God with it. Who am I to judge? All I know is that most modern music (with some glorious exceptions) leaves me cold, while the hymns listed here and at World Mag Blog make me want to fly to my Lord and offer Him all the honor and praise I can muster. In the end, each person must decide what brings them closer to "spirit and truth."
Thanks to all the commenters at World Magazine Blog for reminding me of the hymns I love.
---------
*Note: I did not really shriek.
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