The prolific and celebrated American hymn writer, Ruth Duck, died on Boxing Day. Her text for “As a Fire Is Meant For Burning” is a favourite of mine and set here to the traditional shape note tune BEACH SPRING.
This just about gets us to Lent.
Entrance: Gather Us In (Haugen) AOV 1/12
Psalm 91 (McKenna)
Lord, it is good to give thanks to you,’
To give thanks to you.
Gifts: Open My Eyes (Manibusan) AOV 1/166
Communion: To the Table We Are Called (O’Brien/Harvey) AOVD
Recessional: As a Fire is Meant for Burning (Duck) GA 481
500 God, Whose Purpose Is to Kindle [Trueblood / IN BABILONE]
480 Deliver Us, O Lord of Truth [Stuempfle, Jr. / SAINT BERNARD]
638 Where There Is Charity and Love [Connolly / JEREMY]
569 O God, Refine Our Faith [Forster / FRANCONIA]
Blessed
Gathering: Gather Us In (Haugen)
Mass Parts: Mass of St. Ann (Bolduc)
Psalm: Lord, It Is Good (Alonso – The Lyric Psalter)
Gifts: Seek Ye First (Lafferty)
Communion: Taste and See (Moore)
Only This I Want (Schutte)
Closing: Companions on the Journey (Landry)
Snap for a gathering song – I haven’t used “Gather Us In” in ages.
I can’t bring myself to sing “Companions on a Journey,” have you find a way to give it life?
Geoff
It works if the tempo is fast enough. One of our accompanists who likes to do the entrance and closing songs on the organ once played it as a dirge and I couldn’t take it. We usually do two verses of the closing song, but the priest was long gone, the song was barely hanging on after the second refrain, I thought she’d end it, but she went in for verse 2… It was painful, but if it’s taken quickly, it works.
I think even the original recording is too slow. This one is pretty good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBxi0Q_rx2U&ab_channel=SJBChoir
That’s a nice version.
Matching our music to the liturgical flow takes instincts, especially if that flow is people out the door.
cheers
Geoff