The grace of God appeared

The grace of God appeared: 

Salvation to us all!

It calls us to live in this age

With godly self-control.

 

The grace of God appeared,

And trains us now to live 

Against the passions of this world,

This grace that God does give.

 

The grace of God appeared; 

In blessed hope we wait

To see the coming of the Christ

Whose glory is so great.

 

The grace of God appeared,

Who gave himself for all; 

He calls us all to God's own work,

To claim God's holy call.

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, November 2024, after Titus 2:11-14.

MUSIC: Tune FESTAL SONG, William H. Walter, 1872.

 

 

This might be even more futile than "Come, you faithful ones, rejoicing" for Christmas Eve; here is a text based on a reading from the RCL. Specifically, it's from the Christmas Eve *epistle reading,*, possibly the loneliest text in the RCL. Nonetheless, here it is.

A little apocalypse song (Luke's version)

When our handmade temples have been thrown down,

Not a stone has been left on stone;

When the force of wrong comes to squelch the song

That is all we have ever known;

When wars abound, rumors all around,

And our hearts are bereft and numb,

Don't give in to lies, but look to the skies

For the Son of Man to come.

 

Refrain:

The heavenly signs that will mark the times

Are for all and not just for some;

So raise up your eyes, looking to the skies

For the Son of Man to come.

 

When the false one comes, saying "I am he!", 

Leading millions to go astray,

Let your minds get wise to the blasphemous lies

And hold on to the narrow way.

The prophets false with their vain assaults,

They will fail, so do not succumb!

You will stand up straight as you watch and wait

For the Son of Man to come.

 

Refrain

 

When the fig tree blooms with its leaves of green

Then you know summer's almost here;

When you see these signs, hold this in your minds 

That the reign of our God draws near. 

Be on your guard, though the times are hard,

To injustice do not be numb; 

Be alert always till the final days

When the Son of Man will come!

 

Refrain

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, November 2024, after Luke 21

MUSIC: Tune STAR OF THE COUNTY DOWN, Irish melody.

 

For a couple of weeks I've been convinced I would never write another hymn, and I wasn't sure I wanted to. I needed to test myself, and the portion of Luke's "little apocalypse" (as opposed to Mark's) that comes along for Advent 1C somehow became the challenge that drew me out. (The tune is public domain but the arrangement from which I am working is copyright, so I'm being especially cautious here and only giving an incipit.)  I don't expect for this ever to be sung, but maybe it broke the funk. 

The blind man who sat by the road

The blind man who sat by the road out of town

Was there every day of the week,

And those passing by on the road heard him call;

For coin or for food he would seek. 

Each day was the same; all the travelers came, 

Each day of the week, of the year,

Until one day he heard joyful cries from a crowd,

And he heard that it was drawing near.

 

This man by the road, Bartimaeus his name,

Made ready to cry out for aid,

But then he was caught by a name from the crowd

And his cry for alms thus was stayed.

For Jesus of Nazareth was on the way,

As near as he ever would be!

Bartimaeus cried out with great pleading and fear,

"Son of David, have mercy on me!"

 

The crowd tried to hush him, but he would not so;

He cried even louder again.

The crowd now grew hushed as it came to a halt;

Then one voice called out, "Bring him in."

The blind man jumped up, tossed his cloak to the side,

And stumbled his way to the man;

And to Jesus he pleaded with all of his heart,

"O my Teacher, let me see again!"

 

When Jesus said, "Go, for your faith has now healed you,"

Dark fell away from his eyes.

And then he beheld what he missed for so long,

The clouds and the trees and the skies.

But he did not go, though the Teacher said so;

His heart drew him rather to stay.

So he gathered himself and fell in with the crowd,

And he followed his Lord on the way.

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, October 2024, after Mark 10:46-52.

MUSIC: Tune SAMANTHRA, American folk melody.

 

 

This story has been bugging me for years to set it in some kind of form for congregational singing. I had used this tune for a previous setting, for the parable about the bridesmaids. While this is not a parable, it is a story, and tunes like this were made for telling stories. And I couldn't resist the subtitle.

Can you drink the cup I drink

"Can you drink the cup I drink,

Filled with painful, bitter wine?

My baptism, can you bear,

This sore burden that is mine?"

 

Worldly rulers will not bend,

Lording over all they claim.

Those who follow Jesus dear

Will be servants in his name.

 

For the Son of Man did come 

All to serve and show the way

And to set his people free,

Now to live in God's new day.

 

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, October 2024, after Mark 10:35-45.

MUSIC: Tune AUS DER TIEFE RUFE ICH, attr. Martin Herbst, 1676.

 

 

When two of the disciples seek privileged places at Jesus's side, his response turns from direct reprimand to describing what being a follower of Jesus looks like. Personally, it didn't seem right to glorify the two disciples by name here, but Jesus's answer is worth a hymn reflection. 

 

The rains that fall without remorse

The rains that fall without remorse 

         have washed their lives away.

For those caught in its deadly course,

Or broken by its brutal force,

         O Holy One, we pray.

 

The seas that surged beyond their shore

         have swept their lives away.

For those who lost it alll, and more,

Are longing for their lives before,

         O Holy One, we pray.

 

The winds that howl with reckless power

         have blown their lives away.

For those who in the ruins cower,

Who seek relief for just one hour,

         O Holy One, we pray.

 

O God of rain and wind and sea,

         when will the horrors cease?

For those who seek what cannot be,

Come, bring relief and set them free.

         O Holy One, grant peace.

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, September 2024.

MUSIC: Tune REST, Frederick Charles Maker, 1887.

 

 

after Helene

How will I show my faith to you?

How will I show my faith to you?

How will you know who rules my heart?

I pray my deeds will show me true

And thus show my faith's better part.

 

How will I show my faith to you?

How will you know my faith is real?

My words alone, they cannot do

What this world needs to grow and heal.

 

How will I show my faith to you?

How will you know whose child I am?

I pray my God will give me tasks 

That show my faith is not a sham.

 

How will the world know faith is real,

Not mere belief, self-righteous claim?

When church acts out its works of love

To high and lowly all the same.

 

 

TEXT: Charles Spence Freeman, August 2024, after James 2:18.

MUSIC: Tune GERMANY, Gardiner's Sacred Melodies, 1815.

 

 

For this verse-right-after-a-lectionary-reading text, the best approach seemed to be to bring some humility to the author's brash claim ("I will show you my faith by my works"), humility that had better be present when we make such a claim (as well as a lot of prayer). 

We welcome you, O Christ

We welcome you, O Christ our Lord;

            We lift our praise in one accord.

We give you thanks in everything;

            We honor you as now we sing.

 

Yet your own word has called us out;

            The very welcome that we shout

Is called in question – doubt, indeed – 

            By how we turn from those in need.

 

The hungry stranger at our door,

            The one who scrubs our dirty floor,

The migrant, homeless; yes, our call

            Is always to receive them all.

 

While we your church have argued loud

            For power, for strength, for status proud,

You welcome these whom we’ve reviled

            As once you welcomed one small child.

 

Recall us to true welcome, Lord, 

            That all in you may be restored

To health and hope in everything,

            And we true praise to you might bring.

 

 

Text: Charles Spence Freeman, September 2021, after Mark 9:30-37.

Music: Suggested tune ROCKINGHAM, Second Supplement to Psalmody in Miniature, 1783; harm. Edward Miller, 1790.

A cursory reading of the indicated lectionary passage will make clear this is no close paraphrase; it is perhaps best described as a response, perhaps with some repentance about it, to that passage and Jesus's instruction to the disciples in it.