https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdN7vC2q9Mc 'Wake Awake, For Night is Flying,' arranged by F. Melius Christiansen (St. Olaf College Choir). "Wake, awake! for night is flying,"The watchmen on the heights are crying;"Awake, Jerusalem, arise!"-- Philip Nicolai (Hymnary.org) A couple of weeks ago, I attended a planning workshop at my parish church that took an unexpected turn. The workshop was … Continue reading ‘Awake, for night is flying’: An armchair theologian’s mission statement for Advent and the new year (1 of _?)
It’s not all about green beer: How an Anglican hymn attibuted to St. Patrick got me through a midlife career change and a 12-step recovery program
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqzWs6KPoE St. Patrick's Breastplate, arr. Ron Lewis, Church of the Apostles, Columbia, SC, 2022 It's not all about St. Paddy's Day parades, no matter how much fun it is to march behind your local candidate for city, county or state office. Nor is it always and only about pub-crawling and dyeing the Chicago River green. … Continue reading It’s not all about green beer: How an Anglican hymn attibuted to St. Patrick got me through a midlife career change and a 12-step recovery program
Is the world about to turn? Seeking a ‘sustainable approach to living ethically’ in a dark Advent season
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hPDrkqZGWE Kat Moore, 'Canticle of the Turning' (katherinemoore77 2014). Most of us can't give full-time attention to the brokenness of our national politics, but nor can we tune it out. How do we identify a sustainable approach to living ethically in these difficult times? -- "What Now?" [editorial], Christian Century, Jan. 2025. Advent and Christmas … Continue reading Is the world about to turn? Seeking a ‘sustainable approach to living ethically’ in a dark Advent season
‘How Firm a Foundation’: Reading the lectio divina with a shape-note folk hymn when a hard rain’s about to fall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnQDqufENb0 Sacred Harp singers, Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church, Old Chicora, Fla., 2018. According to longstanding custom in the shape-note singing community, the annual Illinois Sacred Harp Convention is held the Saturday before the third Sunday of September. In 2001 that came out to Sept. 15 -- the Saturday after the World Trade Center was destroyed … Continue reading ‘How Firm a Foundation’: Reading the lectio divina with a shape-note folk hymn when a hard rain’s about to fall
‘Watchman, tell me does the morning …’: A rousing African diaspora version of a shape-note song I like to play for Advent
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yxfMq9yh20 Posted to YouTube (two years ago) by Zippie Elijah. Content advisory. Some very nerdy notes about playing this song the mountain dulcimer are tacked on at the bottom, which may be of limited interest. But it's a fine old hymn in the 19th-century "Sunday school" tradition that in later years would give rise to … Continue reading ‘Watchman, tell me does the morning …’: A rousing African diaspora version of a shape-note song I like to play for Advent
Lovely, beautifully filmed airing of Paul McCreesh’s Praetorius Christmas Mass on Mezzo, the French TV channel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkfkLxmMm3Y Posted to YouTube channel Felices Cantus Baroque, Aug. 5, 2022 Found, while I was looking for something else (which is the way I find some of my favorite videos), a new performance of Paul McCreesh conducting the Gabrieli Consort and Players in the Praetorius Christmas Mass that McCreesh reconstructed out of 16th- and early … Continue reading Lovely, beautifully filmed airing of Paul McCreesh’s Praetorius Christmas Mass on Mezzo, the French TV channel
Nerdy, music major-y question about an Anglo-Irish hymn — worth a listen even if you aren’t a music theory nerd
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqzWs6KPoE Rod Lewis and students, Church of the Apostles, Columbia, SC, Trinity Sunday 2020 Since it looks like I'm about to get locked out of Facebook again (I blogged about it HERE, back in May), I'm going to post something about a hymn that's associated with Trinity Sunday and St. Patrick's Day instead of Advent. … Continue reading Nerdy, music major-y question about an Anglo-Irish hymn — worth a listen even if you aren’t a music theory nerd
It’s beginning to look a lot like Advent — what better time for Christmas chorales, Praetorius and family heritage?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9a3tBYXFNE TENET Vocal Artists et al. of San Diego, in concert in New York City, Dec. 14, 2013 Last year I mentioned to my cousin John that I had downloaded the mp3 files of Praetorius' Mass For Christmas Morning performed by the Gabrielli Consort and conducted by Paul McCreesh. They came, of course, without liner … Continue reading It’s beginning to look a lot like Advent — what better time for Christmas chorales, Praetorius and family heritage?
Hark! A doleful song for the 196th anniversary of Springfield’s first public hanging Nov. 26, 1826
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4FHvJvrElM ''Hark, from the tombs ...' | Filmed by Alan Lomax and crew, 1982 We have an anniversary coming up this week in Springfield. We probably won't observe the occasion, but Saturday will be the 196th anniversary of the first public hanging here, on Nov. 26, 1826. There's a good story behind it, too. A … Continue reading Hark! A doleful song for the 196th anniversary of Springfield’s first public hanging Nov. 26, 1826
My soul doth magnify my Anglican/ Lutheran heritage: Growing up with the music of Ralph Vaughan Williams
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BNYxujthUA Festival of Lessons and Carols, St. John's Episcopal Church, Ithaca N.Y., Dec. 23, 2018 Maybe it's serendipity. Or maybe it's because God has a wry sense of humor. But I've spent the past week reconnecting with the Anglican tradition in which I grew up. Not because of any discernment or intention on my part, … Continue reading My soul doth magnify my Anglican/ Lutheran heritage: Growing up with the music of Ralph Vaughan Williams
Creolization: Jingoism v. jambalaya in France (with excerpts from my historical papers on the subject)
France 24, Feb. 15, 2022 Voilà! Turns out an obscure academic term I use in my historical writing got to be a political talking point in this year's French elections. The word is "creolization" (créolisation in French), and it's used by cultural anthropologists to describe the cultural blending in creole societies like those of the … Continue reading Creolization: Jingoism v. jambalaya in France (with excerpts from my historical papers on the subject)
Dear Christians, one and all rejoice! — we can study Johann Walther’s (and Luther’s) first chorale book online
d r a f t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpNsuVQ3sUg Selections by Today I stumbled across a YouTube post I expect to spend a lot of time with, even though it features music that's not exactly on the charts today -- and it's a pretty wonky thing to curl up with for light summer reading. It's an audio file … Continue reading Dear Christians, one and all rejoice! — we can study Johann Walther’s (and Luther’s) first chorale book online
John C. Mehrling, 1941-June 11, 2022
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90GonV40di8 St. Thomas Choir of Men and Boys, Saint Thomas Choir School, New York City, 2011 My cousin, John Calvin Mehrling of Waynesville, N.C., died unexpectedly Saturday, in a one-car accident on his way home from a live steam train outing across the mountains in Tennessee. Our extended family is scattered over two continents and … Continue reading John C. Mehrling, 1941-June 11, 2022
Can an 11th-century legend of St. Patrick teach a 21st-century skeptic to pray? Echoes of a hymn from my confirmation
An Ignatian colloquy for Trinity 2020 -- 2 of ___ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqzWs6KPoE St. Patrick's Breastplate, arr. Rod Lewis, Columbia, S.C., Trinity Sunday 2020 Editor's note. As I try to jumpstart my prayer life, I've been experimenting with Jesuit prayer exercises known as Ignatian contemplation and the Triple Colloquy, in which you imagine yourself interacting with Jesus. … Continue reading Can an 11th-century legend of St. Patrick teach a 21st-century skeptic to pray? Echoes of a hymn from my confirmation
Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend / ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Be Present Now’
d r a f t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j219xJKXydg Detleff Korsen Text: Wilhelm II von Sachsen-Weimar (?) 1648, Strophe 4 Gotha 1651, Melodie: Gochsheim / Redwitz 1628, Görlitz 1648, Evangelisches Gesangbuch Nr. 155, aufgenommen in der Kirche St. Cosmae und Damiani in Hassel. Wikipedia has background "Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend" at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herr_Jesu_Christ,_dich_zu_uns_wend Also a digital … Continue reading Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend / ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Be Present Now’
In dir ist Freude / ‘In Thee is Gladness’: Notes and links so I can learn it
d r a f t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1mog6POXNY Evangelische Kirche St. Sebald, Nürnberg, July 24, 2017 (Calvin Hobbes) I came across this 16th-century German hymn online when I was looking for something else. (Serendipity. Story of my life, at least in its better moments.) Checked it out. Decided to try to learn it. Discovered it transposes well … Continue reading In dir ist Freude / ‘In Thee is Gladness’: Notes and links so I can learn it
DRAFT ‘Now rest beneath night’s shadow …’ DRAFT
d r a f t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKyiGWYOQLU St. Thomas Boys' Choir Leipzig, 2016 (CHOR GESANG - Das Musikmagazin). "He who sings prays twice" -- St. Augustine (Catechism of the Catholic Church) Maybe I shouldn't admit this in public, but I've had prayer at the top of my B list for quite a while now. After a … Continue reading DRAFT ‘Now rest beneath night’s shadow …’ DRAFT
‘A child is born in Bethlehem’: New life in an old carol for postmodern, independent cats and misguided sheep
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRyiOB4as9c DR Pigekor (Danish National Girls' Choir), dir. Philip Faber, 2021 Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art. -- Charlie "Bird" Parker (Wikiquote). … Continue reading ‘A child is born in Bethlehem’: New life in an old carol for postmodern, independent cats and misguided sheep
Praying for good courage in a hospital emergency room … and quiet confidence while sweating out a scary diagnosis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phngTmv7IW4 From "Mountain Vespers" service for Holden Village by Dr. Kent Gustavson Many of us pray best in church, or in the resonant silence of an empty cathedral. Others pray at home, relying on candles, music or other aids to help ease them into a prayerful attitude. Me? It seems like I pray best in … Continue reading Praying for good courage in a hospital emergency room … and quiet confidence while sweating out a scary diagnosis
‘How Firm a Foundation’: Calling on a shape-note folk hymn in the hospital … and later by my fireside at home
Cross-posted to my trad music blog Hogfiddle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzUUkWwBZdI Recorded for online worship service on Sept. 6, 2020, Providence Church, Austin, Texas. This is the story of how I came to be singing an old Baptist folk hymn from the Sacred Harp under my breath as the anesthesia was taking hold last week in the cath … Continue reading ‘How Firm a Foundation’: Calling on a shape-note folk hymn in the hospital … and later by my fireside at home
‘They wanted a king, what they got was bread’ — some preliminary thoughts on the feeding of 5,000 and the Eucharist
Benedictine Church of the Multiplication at Tabgha in Galilee. John 6 [NRSV]. [...] 10 Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they[c] sat down, about five thousand in all. 11 Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who … Continue reading ‘They wanted a king, what they got was bread’ — some preliminary thoughts on the feeding of 5,000 and the Eucharist
‘Christ was born in Bethlehem’ — an Appalachian ballad that sums up Holy Week and the Easter season
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzmzb1ZyL6c Norm Williams, Amanda Parker and Bob Mallalieu, Maidencreek Festival, Maier's Grove, Blandon, Pa., Aug. 29, 2010 (song begins at 1:29). Our services for Holy Week are all online this year, and it's quite a different experience for someone who always sang in the choir and couldn't quite shake the feeling they were performances. I … Continue reading ‘Christ was born in Bethlehem’ — an Appalachian ballad that sums up Holy Week and the Easter season
A ‘Lutheropalian’ take on confirmation classes and an Anglican hymn based on an old Irish legend of St. Patrick at Tara
https://www.facebook.com/peter.ellertsen/posts/2783699998557695 St. Patrick's Day came this year in a flurry of good news, answered prayers and an affirmation of my childhood faith. It came in the middle of a busy week, and I didn't even remember it was St. Paddy's until evening when I saw the pictures of corned beef, cabbage and full Irish breakfasts … Continue reading A ‘Lutheropalian’ take on confirmation classes and an Anglican hymn based on an old Irish legend of St. Patrick at Tara
Canned fish at Christmas, the ‘most charitable construction’ and Luther’s catechism: Notes on a Norskie heritage
Editor's note: While I was looking for other posts to link to my year's-end spiritual formation review, I came across this draft. Apparently I started it just before the Covid-19 pandemic hit town, and I never got back to as my concerns and priorities shifted dramatically. It looked like it was worth salvaging, so I … Continue reading Canned fish at Christmas, the ‘most charitable construction’ and Luther’s catechism: Notes on a Norskie heritage
Advent festival at Sewanee: ‘Comfort, comfort ye …,’ but there’s a catch: We’ve got to act on the things that give us comfort
Screen shot from Sewanee's website. Click HERE to watch video of this year's Festival of Lessons and Carols (on YouTube) ... and HERE for bulletin with lyrics. One of the silver linings to sheltering in place during the Covid-19 pandemic has been re-establishing connection with old friends on social media ... and, through them, nostalgia … Continue reading Advent festival at Sewanee: ‘Comfort, comfort ye …,’ but there’s a catch: We’ve got to act on the things that give us comfort
Scratch outline — ‘Swedes in Roger Williams’ Garden’ (pinned here for easy reference, other posts below)
Rough notes and outlines for a research project ... Working title?: "Swedes in Roger Williams' Garden: Acculturation Inclusion and Community in Swedish Immigrant Churches, 1848-1861″ -- or -- "Luther’s Dear Angels in Swede Town: Acculturation in Immigrant Churches, 1848-1860-1861″ ... potentially expanding the presentation I gave at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in … Continue reading Scratch outline — ‘Swedes in Roger Williams’ Garden’ (pinned here for easy reference, other posts below)
No Norwegian Jesus in Pastor Lenny’s decolonized Lutheran church? Uff da!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APMu32sC2nM&t=5s So we're reading the Rev. Lenny Duncan's Dear Church: A Love Letter from a Black Preacher to the Whitest Denomination in the US for an online book study group in my ELCA parish. We're the "whitest denomination" of his title (although I have to wonder if the Old Order Amish aren't kinda white, too), … Continue reading No Norwegian Jesus in Pastor Lenny’s decolonized Lutheran church? Uff da!
‘The UK Blessing’ — in a time of fear and political rancor, a virtual choir calls, gathers, enlightens and makes us holy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUtll3mNj5U&fbclid=IwAR1A_TK23D99XEordzKjoE_uhYP7qNlMJO6T54d8QBxXLMREi5sREyrBNQA The UK Blessing -- 992,403 views (as of Monday night, May 4) -- Premiered May 3, 2020 This weekend marked the two-month anniversary of the day I went into voluntary self-quarantine when I got out of the hospital. As luck would have (good luck, for a change), a virtual choir video came out to … Continue reading ‘The UK Blessing’ — in a time of fear and political rancor, a virtual choir calls, gathers, enlightens and makes us holy
For flatlanders, too: ‘What We Lost When We Lost Our Hymnals’
I saw this article -- "What We Lost When We Lost Our Hymnals" -- on the Appalachian Magazine website, where an anonymous editor or webmaster recalled, with a real sense of nostalgia, "... the sight of my mother holding up a raggety old red hymnal and singing to the top of her lungs the songs … Continue reading For flatlanders, too: ‘What We Lost When We Lost Our Hymnals’
Seeking the holy in a trad Irish music festival video from Derry, a 10th-century Irish poem and choir practice at a Lutheran church in downstate Illinois
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpYuSmDbxnA Paddy Callgahan, "Be Thou My Vision," Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, Derry, 2013 So a couple of weeks ago I posted an update on my prayer life, which stalled out recently as I navigated a welter of day-to-day crises, to the blog. And a fellow retired English professor named Elizabeth, who blogs on WordPress at … Continue reading Seeking the holy in a trad Irish music festival video from Derry, a 10th-century Irish poem and choir practice at a Lutheran church in downstate Illinois
‘Christmas in the Ashram’ and an upcoming holiday jam session playlist at Hickory Glen. Namaste, y’all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_gcboDpLPw Tom Prasada-Rao and Cary Cooper perform "Christmas at the Ashram" at the Center for Spiritual Living Dallas's Mystic Note Cafe Holiday Show on December 1, 2012. Copy of a blast email (lightly edited) I sent today to participants in the Clayville-Prairieland slow jam and tune learning circle that meets at Hickory Glen. I'm cross-posting … Continue reading ‘Christmas in the Ashram’ and an upcoming holiday jam session playlist at Hickory Glen. Namaste, y’all.
A joyful South African freedom song (by way of Sweden) of Word, sacrament and witness for Pentecost XVII
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSqvj9d1VgQ 'Haleluyah Pelo Tsa Rona' sung by the Concordia College-New York Tour Choir and the Mt. Lebanon [Pa.] United Lutheran Church Chancel Choir, March 2013. Jason Thoms, Director. Sunday's gospel reading at Peace Lutheran was from St. Luke. “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be … Continue reading A joyful South African freedom song (by way of Sweden) of Word, sacrament and witness for Pentecost XVII
Of a gentle nudge from Jehovah, a Scots-Irish folk hymn and a childhood table grace on the interstate north of Lincoln
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRdS5dIVmbM RESIGNATION, "My shepherd will supply my need ..." (Southern Harmony, No. 38) Bob Meeks Memorial Singing at Harrods Creek Baptist Church, Brownsboro, Ky., April 28-29, 2012. Before I get into what I'm about to say, I'd like to state for the record I don't believe the Common Lectionary was designed with me in mind. … Continue reading Of a gentle nudge from Jehovah, a Scots-Irish folk hymn and a childhood table grace on the interstate north of Lincoln
‘Build Us Up, Lord’ — swinging into a new parish church year at Peace Lutheran
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkenPwCU-Q8 "Build Us Up, Lord," by Mark Glaeser and Donna Hanna (ELW 670) MaryRuth72 One of my favorite things about August, along with the State Fair, yellowing corn- and beanfields beginning to dry before harvest, shorter days and cooler nights, is choir practice. It's like a little foretaste of the feasts to come, as we … Continue reading ‘Build Us Up, Lord’ — swinging into a new parish church year at Peace Lutheran
Of the St. Louis Jesuits, the liturgical renewal movement and an ecumenical hymn on Reformation Day
James Martin, editor of America magazine, shared a tribute to the most influential 20th-century American musicians you've probably never heard of. It's by staff writer Jeannette Cooperman of St. Louis Magazine, and it was picked up by the National Catholic Reporter. Unlike most media profiles, it gets into the craft -- and the musicality -- … Continue reading Of the St. Louis Jesuits, the liturgical renewal movement and an ecumenical hymn on Reformation Day
Ordinary Time 