Praying Twice

The Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost September 29, 2019 Musician angels, Flemish, c. 1290 Today's gospel reading recounts the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the poor beggar. In the parable, Lazarus suffers from illness, poverty, and hunger in this life but, upon his death, is "carried away by angels to be with Abraham." Our offertory anthem, "In paradisum" from Requiem by Gabriel Faure, refers to Lazarus in its portrait of heavenly bliss:                                                      May the angels lead you into paradise;                                            May the martyrs welcome you upon your arrival, ...

The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost September 22, 2019 At Trinity Cathedral, we have been fortunate to premiere several works by Omaha composer Michael McCabe. This Sunday, you will have the opportunity to hear his new choral setting of our Trinity Cathedral hymn. The text, "God of hope and joy and wonder," was written by a Nebraska hymn poet, Rae E. Whitney.  Michael visited our Cathedral Choir rehearsal this week and shared his thoughts about "Hymn to the Trinity." We sing this text regularly as a congregational hymn, both at Trinity Cathedral and for diocesan occasions. Ten years ago, we commissioned a challenging, unaccompanied choral setting of the text by William Bradley Roberts. In contrast, Michael sought to compose a more accessible setting that could be sung by parish choirs throughout the Diocese of Nebraska and the wider church. It is his intention to send a copy of the anthem to every parish in the diocese. The anthem is published by Randall Ega...

The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost September 15, 2019 This fall, we are celebrating the musical contributions of composer David Ashley White on the occasion of his 75th birthday. White, an Episcopalian, is a composition professor at The University of Houston and composer-in-residence at Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas. His sacred compositions are widely published and performed, and two of his hymns are included in The Hymnal 1982 and Wonder, Love, and Praise . Today's communion anthem, "No More a Stranger or a Guest," is White's arrangement of the early American hymn tune, Resignation . The words are a metrical paraphrase of Psalm 23 ("The Lord is my shepherd") by the great 18th century hymn writer, Issac Watts. This familiar hymn appears in The Hymnal 1982 , number 664.  The pastoral imagery of the psalm is adapted into a poetic, rhyming format, allowing for easy memorization in an era when printed hymnals were scarce. Iss...

The Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost September 8, 2019 If you were editing a hymnal, which hymn would you choose as number one? It's an interesting question, and one that every denomination addresses differently. Looking at a church's hymnal can tell you a great deal about its approach to the Christian faith. In the Episcopal Church, the first section in our hymnal is entitled "Morning." These eleven hymns speak of beginning each new day in prayer, praise, and thanksgiving. They are filled with imagery of light, life, and the beauty of creation. But why are they first? Because, in the Episcopal Church, our hymnal is always correlated with The Book of Common Prayer . And the first liturgy in the BCP (as we commonly abbreviate the title) is Daily Morning Prayer. So, since the BCP begins with "Morning," so does our hymnal. As Christians, we are called to begin each day in prayer and song. Our entrance hymn, "Not here for high and hol...