See What a Morning

Our friends Keith and Kristyn Getty, along with their frequent collaborator, Stuart Townend, have written a wonderful song celebrating the resurrection. We've sung it as a congregation and as a choral anthem, but it bears repetition here as it will be our closing hymn on Sunday.

The song draws us into the Easter narrative, describing the sights and sounds of that history-changing event. As sudden as the resurrection of Jesus was, the light of realization dawned slowly for many of his disciples. Imagine the relief they felt as the shroud of grief was lifted, as the words Jesus had spoken finally made sense and as the power of His death-conquering life started to spill out onto them.

See what a morning - gloriously bright -
With the dawning of hope in Jerusalem.
Folded the grave-clothes, tomb filled with light,
As the angels announce "Christ is risen!"
See God's salvation plan wrought in love,
Borne in pain, paid in sacrifice;
Fulfilled in Christ the Man,
For He lives, Christ is risen from the dead!

See Mary weeping - "Where is He laid?"
As in sorrow she turns from the empty tomb.
Hears a voice speaking, calling her name:
It's the Master, the Lord raised to life again!
The voice that spans the years,
Speaking life, stirring hope, bringing peace to us,
Will sound till He appears
For He lives, Christ is risen from the dead!

One with the Father, Ancient of Days,
Through the Spirit who clothes faith with certainty;
Honor and blessing, glory and praise
To the King crowned with power and authority.
And we are raised with Him,
Death is dead, love has won, Christ has conquered;
And we shall reign with Him,
For He lives, Christ is risen from the dead!
© 2003 Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)
Keith Getty/Stuart Townend

For a festive rendition of the song, follow the link to the right to see Keith and Kristyn perform.

Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed!

There is a Name

Palm Sunday is, in my opinion, an odd festival day in that it is filled with mixed emotions. On that day we celebrate Christ’s entry into Jerusalem with songs of praise, yet we know that it began a journey that culminated in the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry, and that the fickle crowd’s cry of “Hosanna!” would soon turn to shout of “Crucify him!” The people of Jerusalem were welcoming the one they hoped would reign as the promised Messiah-King, when he had come as the prophesied Suffering Servant.

The song we sing this week, written by Claire Cloninger and Robert Sterling, helps bring those competing roles together. The Hebrew word “hosanna” originally meant “Save, we pray.” By the time of Jesus, it seems to have become a cry of praise. Since a call for God to send salvation is embedded in the word, the people of Jerusalem were getting more than they realized. They wanted a Conqueror, but they got a Savior.

“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 19:38)

“You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)

In the name of Jesus is all the power of the Godhead marshaled for our rescue from sin and death. In the name of Jesus is all comfort for each circumstance of our lives. So our anthem is a two-fold Hosanna: a cry for God’s saving grace through Jesus, and a shout of praise for his finished work.

There is a name
That stills the raging storm inside of me.
There is a name
That heals the hidden wounds no one can see.
When my mind is full of questions
That my heart cannot explain,
I lift my voice and call the name of JESUS.

Hope comes flooding in when I say, “Jesus.”
Mercy covers sin when I say, “Jesus.”
I’m lifted up again by the power that is in his holy name.
I lift my voice to proclaim the name of Jesus.

There is a name,
The sound of it drives evil to its knees.
There is a name,
The power of it brings waves of inner peace.
And I know a day is coming
When every heart shall bow;
And with one voice we’ll raise the name of JESUS.

The blind shall see!
The dead shall rise!
The lame shall leap to praise the mighty name of Jesus!

Hope comes flooding in when I say, “Jesus.”
Mercy covers sin when I say, “Jesus.”
I’m lifted up again by the power that is in his holy name.
I lift my voice to proclaim the name of Jesus.

"Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

Be Thou My Vision

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day (a little belatedly, since it was celebrated on the 17th) we are singing one of the most familiar hymns of Irish origin. The words of “Be Thou My Vision” have been attributed to Dallan Forgaill, an early Irish poet. His first name is actually a nickname meaning “little blind one.” It is said that he studied so intensively that he went blind. Perhaps this adds a new meaning to his text, proclaiming Christ to be his vision. Dallan was later martyred when pirates attacked the monastery at Inniskeel. He was elevated to sainthood in the 11th century.

The music to which we sing the text is also of Irish origin. The tune is named SLANE, after Slane Hill, which is about ten miles from Tara in County Meath. According to Cyberhymnal, “It was on Slane Hill around 433 AD that St. Patrick defied a royal edict by lighting candles on Easter Eve. High King Logaire of Tara had decreed that no one could light a fire before Logaire began the pagan spring festival by lighting a fire on Tara Hill. Logaire was so impressed by Patrick’s devotion that, despite his defiance (or perhaps because of it), he let him continue his missionary work. The rest is history.”

The text itself is not only beautiful poetry; it is also a beautiful prayer of trust and devotion.

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that thou art
Thou my best thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise,
Thou mine inheritance, now and always;
Thou and thou only, first in my heart,
High King of heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of heaven, my victory won,
May I reach heaven's joys,
O bright heav'n's sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever be fall,
Still be my vision, O Ruler of all.

Jesus, My Lord, My Life, My All

The words for this Sunday’s anthem were written by Henry Collins (1827-1919), a little known hymnwriter of the Anglican tradition. He was associated with the Oxford Movement, which was an attempt by many in the Anglican Church to restore traditional aspects of worship. Many of the individuals in the movement, including Collins, later converted to Catholicism. One of the results of the Oxford Movement was the translation of many ancient hymn texts that were originally penned in Latin and Greek.

Collins was raised in the Church of England and eventually became an ordained Anglican minister. Soon after becoming a Catholic, Collins joined the Cistercian order of monks, which emphasizes manual labour and self-sufficiency. Traditionally, Cistercian abbeys have supported themselves through activities such as agriculture and brewing ales. The order abides by the strict Rule of St. Benedict and is more austere in its observance of the rules that the actual Benedictines.

Collins' bent toward the contemplative life can perhaps be heard in the words he wrote in the hymn, “Jesu, my Lord, My God, My All.” The text was altered slightly by the arranger of our anthem, Bob Burroughs, but it retains all of Collins' heartfelt devotion to Christ:

Jesus, my Lord, my Life, my All,
Hear me, blest Savior, when I call;
Hear me, and from Thy dwelling-place
Pour down the riches of Thy grace:
Jesus, my Lord, I Thee adore;
O make me love Thee more and more.

Jesus, too late I Thee have sought;
How can I love Thee as I ought?
And how extol thy matchless fame,
The glorious beauty of Thy Name?
Jesus, my Lord, I Thee adore;
O make me love Thee more and more.

Jesus, of Thee shall be my song;
To Thee my heart and soul belong:
All that I have or am is Thine;
And Thou, blest Savior, Thou art mine.
Jesus, my Lord, I Thee adore;
O make me love Thee more and more.

Collins’ original text includes a stanza omitted from the Burroughs arrangement. It is equal in depth of devotion to the other stanzas, and is a fitting reflection for us during Lent:

Jesus, what didst Thou find in me
That thou hast dealt so lovingly?
How great the joy that Thou hast brought,
So far exceeding hope or thought!
Jesus, my Lord, I Thee adore;
O make me love Thee more and more.