Music for the 16th Sunday after Pentecost
Year A, September 13, 2026

OPENING VOLUNTARY Two Settings of "Herzlich tut mich verlangen"
J. Walther (1684-1748), Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706)

One of the most beloved Lutheran Chorales, the tune was written by Hans Leo Hassler (1564-1612). He was a Lutheran, but he wrote several settings for the Roman Catholic mass and even played and conducted in the Catholic churches of Augsburg, Germany.

The tune is mostly associated with the text "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded." Today, we sing it with "Our Father, We Have Wandered" at the Hymn of the Day.

GATHERING HYMN In Thee Is Gladness ELW 867

Grace Cathedral, San Francisco

The Italian composer Giovanni Giacomo Gastoldi (c. 1550-c.1622) included this tune in his balletti - dance rhythms written for vocal, rather than instrumental, music.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship credits Johann Lindemann (1549-1631) with the text, but his authorship has been called into question in recent years. 

Today's second reading says we belong to Jesus, and this hymn boldly claims that Jesus also belongs to us. 

HYMN OF THE DAY Our Father, We Have Wandered ELW 606

Kevin Nichols (1929-2006), a Roman Catholic priest, wrote this text with the parable of the prodigal son in mind. He also intended for it to be sung with this tune.

It also relates to the story that Jesus tells in today's gospel reading. The slave enjoys the mercy offered by his king, but shows no mercy in dealing with a fellow slave. 

The harmonization, by J. S. Bach, is slightly different than what we normally hear because it borrows elements from two of his harmonizations used in the St. Matthew Passion.

MUSICAL OFFERING Out of the Depths Richard Frost
The text of this song comes from Psalm 130, but it closely relates to today's gospel reading by highlighting God's boundless mercy. Instead of a God who holds our sins against us, we find a God who always forgives.

San Diego, California

COMMUNION HYMNS
Bless the Lord, My Soul
Come and Fill Our Hearts
Christ, Our Peace

Each of these hymns (two from the community of Taizé and one from Marty Haugen) are sung prayers. The first one quotes today's psalm. (We sang a metrical setting, so the quote isn't obvious.)

After singing it with the music in hand once or twice, try to set the music down and sing it from memory. This helps you focus on the act of prayer more than the act of reading.

SENDING HYMN God's Work, Our Hands
"The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America held a contest inviting hymnwriters to submit a new hymn for "God's Work. Our Hands" Sunday on September 13, 2019. Wayne Wold wrote the winning hymn, developing the denomination's tagline with other parts of the person God uses, listing concrete ways of manifesting God's presence for the world, confessing God's activity beyond the church's work, and inviting blessing on the church's work on behalf of the gospel." 

(From SundaysandSeasons.com)

 

"God's work. Our hands." is the ELCA's annual day of service . . . It is a blessed opportunity for all our congregations to celebrate who we are as a church, engaging in projects and activities that explore our convictions as Lutherans: that all life in Jesus flows from a living, daring confidence in God's grace. The ELCA is one church, freed in Christ to love and serve our neighbor every day." (from ELCA.org)

CLOSING VOLUNTARY A Trumpet Dialogue   Alfred V. Fedak

Sources:
Evangelical Lutheran Worship Hymnal Companion
Wikipedia
SundaysandSeasons.com (vine graphic)
ELCA.org (God's work. Our hands. graphic

 

Music for Creation in Christ, Year A: September 6, 2025

 Creation in Christ
A New (to us) Observance

Since the seventh century, September 1st has symbolized the day of the creation of the world in the Byzantine tradition and has been the opening feast of its liturgical year (known as the Feast of the Indiction), in parallel with Rosh Hashanah marking the Jewish New Year. Creation in Christ celebrates the ongoing creation of the world in and through Christ, who sustains, unites, and holds all created things: sun and moon, shining stars, sea monsters, creeping things and flying birds — and yes, even human beings. God-in-Christ still takes care of all things and invites us to join in as caretakers of God's good creation. (From Sundays and Season, Augsburg Fortress)

OPENING VOLUNTARY The Ashgrove arr. Dale Wood

The melody of this Welsh folk tune lilts in a way that is simply pleasing to sing. Dale Wood (1934-2003) starts with a straightforward presentation of the melody over open 5ths (perhaps honoring the bagpipes of the Celtic tradition the Welsh came from), but the last verse surprises us with lush harmonies that seem to reflect the lavishness of God's creation. 

GATHERING HYMN Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee ELW 836

When thinking about hymns that celebrate creation, this has to be one of the first ones that comes to mind. The tune is borrowed from Beethoven's ninth symphony and was originally written to carry J. C. F. von Schiller's poem "Ode to Joy." God is our light (see the Prayer of the Day) so our "hearts unfold like flowers" to sing our praise along with the rest of creation.

PSALM 148 Let the Whole Creation Cry ELW 876

I love a good metrical setting of a psalm! A metrical setting is a paraphrase of the psalm text that renders it for singing to a metered hymn tune. The text was written by an Anglican priest while the music was likely written by Jakob Hintze (1622-1695) a German composer who, in addition to holding posts as a church musician, was the court musician to the Elector of Brandenburg.

HYMN OF THE DAY Christ Is the Life ACS 927

Crafted in 1989, "Christ Is the Life" is one of the earliest texts by prolific hymnwriter Susan Palo Cherwien. She was reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship and was affected by Bonhoeffer's statement that "when Christ calls a person, he bids that person to come and die." Also drawing from Romans 6:3-9 and 14:8, the text embodies the essential form of the spiritual journey: from life, to letting go, to transformation, to new life. (From Sundays and Seasons © 2026 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved.)

The first stanza develops the name of this day beautifully: Christ is God's creative word and holds the life, and death, of all creation.

MUSICAL OFFERING All You Works of the Lord John A. Behnke
One of the fun things about going to music conferences is getting to meet composers of the music we sing. And many times I end up bringing their music home with me! Such is the case with this piece.
The text comes from a canticle, The Song of the Three Young Men. It's traditionally sung during the Easter Vigil after the story of Schadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. It shares a common theme with today's psalm.
This choral setting, which calls on all creation to bless the Lord, is fun to sing and play. It makes a delightful musical offering.

The composer, John A.. Behnke and me at the
Sacred Music Workshop in Gainesville, FL

COMMUNION HYMNS
Soul, Adorn Yourself with Gladness ELW 488
God Extends an Invitation ELW 486
My first Association of Lutheran Church Musicians conference was held in Houston in 2007. One of the main events was a hymn festival led by David Cherwien and Mark Sedio. This was the first time I was introduced to the idea of alternating hymns.

Because of the dance quality of these two tunes, they are an easy pair - even though they are far apart in their date of origin and cultural context! We sing stanza one of "Soul, Adorn Yourself," then "God Extends an Invitation." Then we go back to stanza two, alternating a repetition of "God Extends an Invitation" after each stanza - almost as if we're using the second one as a refrain of the first. 

SENDING HYMN Oh, That I Had a Thousand Voices ELW 833
The original version of this hymn had 15 stanzas!
The singer expresses joy and devotion for God, and invites all creation to join along. There is no invitation to the angels to join in, because it looks forward to a day when we join the angel throng to sing an endless chorus of hallelujahs.

CLOSING VOLUNTARY Hymn to Joy setting, Michael Burkhardt
Sometimes I like to bookend a service by reprising an earlier tune. Michael Burkhardt's setting of "Hymn to Joy" is an echo of the Gathering Hymn.

sources:
Hymnal Companion: Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Augsburg Fortress
Hymn Notes for Church Bulletins, Austin C. Lovelace, GIA Publications

Wikipedia
Creation Graphic is from SundaysandSeasons.com

Music for the Seventh Sunday after Epiphany, Year C: February 23, 2025

OPENING VOLUNTARY Be Thou My Vision James Pethel
See the text and tune at ELW 793.

This ancient Irish tune with a text by Eleanor Hull is a favorite hymn of many.  I chose to play a setting of Slane because we'll hear a different setting of the text by John Rutter at the musical offering. 

GATHERING HYMN Lord of Glory, You Have Bought Us (Hyfrydol) ELW 707

How far is it from Ireland to Wales? It's about 108 miles, but this morning we'll close that gap in about 2 minutes. The tune for our Gathering Hymn is Welsh. Both Ireland and Wales have Celtic roots.

In today's gospel reading, Jesus tells how to treat our enemies - we are to love them, do good to them, and bless them. This can be a tall, tall order. But we acknowledge, in the third stanza of this hymn, that our love can do it with the love of Jesus.

HYMN OF THE DAY Light Dawns on a Weary World (Temple of Peace) ELW 726

For many of the hymns we sing, the texts are written to go with a meter, not with a tune. That is not the case here with this hymn. The composer, William P. Rowan, wrote about 18 hymntunes with no texts in mind, so that the music, and not the text, would "animate the creative process. He shared this tune with Mary Louise Bringle who called it "love at first listen." 

Bringle drew on images from Isaiah and wrote a refrain that shows humans living in joy and peace, not just with each other, but with all creation.

MUSICAL OFFERING Be Thou My Vision John Rutter

John Rutter's original music for this much-loved text still manages to maintain a Celtic feel. The piano imitates both an Irish flute and a Celtic harp to accompany a melody that sounds like it might be coming from  mists over Loch Lomond. 

A loch in Scotland. From Wikipedia.

COMMUNION HYMNS

In All Our Grief (Fredricktown) ELW 615

In today's gospel reading, Jesus teaches us how to live together. This hymn expresses our remorse when we fail to live that way. Its refrain combines elements of two of our liturgical songs - the Kyrie (Lord, have mercy) and the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God).
Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, grant us peace.

Jesus, Remember Me ELW 616

The beauty of this hymn is that you don't need to carry a hymnal with you. Sing it once, maybe twice, and you'll be able to sing it from memory. You can turn it into sung prayer by closing the book and continuing to sing as you approach the Lord's table, and as you return to your seat.

SENDING HYMN God, When Human Bonds Are Broken (Merton) ELW 603

CLOSING VOLUNTARY Trumpet Tune on "Freu dich sehr" 

Jerry Westenkuehler
See the text and tune at ELW 783.

DON'T MISS THE SAN MARCO CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY THIS SUNDAY, 02/23/2025

Sources:
The Hymnal Companion to Evangelical Lutheran Worship (Augsburg Fortress)
Wikipedia 

Music for the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany, Year C: February 16, 2025

OPENING VOLUNTARY Three Settings of "O Lord, We Praise You."

Kenneth T. Kosche (See the text and tune at ELW 499.

In church music, a partita is a collection of variations on a hymn tune. We'll hear four variations from Kosche's collection - three at the opening voluntary and one at the closing voluntary.

I chose to play this most Lutheran of communion hymns (partly written by Martin Luther himself!) because of words from the Introduction for the Day: The risen Christ stands among us in the mystery of the holy supper with an invitation to live in him. . . (Sundays and Seasons)

GATHERING HYMN God of Grace and God of Glory (Cwm Rhondda) ELW 705

HYMN OF THE DAY Let Streams of Living Justice (Thaxted) ELW 710

To be a disciple of Jesus is to work for justice for the poor and hungry of our world - and not just the poor who lack material resources and those who don't know where their next meal is coming from. There are many ways to be poor and hungry.

The text was written in 1989 and the author had fresh images in his
mind, including the events of Tianenman Square and the cries of justice in Argentina from the Mothers of the Disappeared. These and other images of the time are present in the first stanza.

A demonstration in Hong Kong on the 20th anniversary 
of the events at Tianenman Square.
By ryanne lai - originally posted to Flickr as 香港人一條心, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8304194

The second stanza implores God to teach us how to live together - not just without war and hardship, but in genuine love for each other.

In the third stanza, we ask to be agents of God's kingdom in the world, ruled by love and justice.

MUSICAL OFFERING Kum Bah Yah arr. Michael Larkin

Most people are aware that this song, sung happily around campfires and wherever people gather, had its beginnings as an African American spiritual. The words "Kum ba yah" are an African language rendering of the English "Come by here." It asks God to come and be with those who crying, singing, and praying.

More specifically, this song comes from the Gullah Geechee people - descendants of slaves (mostly from western and central Africa) who lived along the eastern coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida. One such group lived in the Fort Caroline area in a town called Cosmo. Most of Cosmo is gone except for two historic churches and a cemetery.

Freedom Park (near Fort Caroline in Jacksonville) is a monument to many of these people and their way of life. I can walk to Cosmo from my home. I was happy to visit the park and learn more about their culture.

A historical marker near Fort Caroline in Jacksonville

Another marker at Freedom Park. The park is located at the intersection of Fort Caroline and McCormick Roads in Jacksonville.

COMMUNION HYMN Lift Every Voice and Sing ELW 841

Two brothers from Jacksonville wrote this song to honor Abraham Lincoln and his Emancipation Proclamation. It was first sung a children's chorus at Stanton School in Jacksonville - at the time an all-black school. The date of the performance was February 12, 1900 - Lincoln's birthday.

Now known as the Black National Anthem, it's a sobering reminder that the road to justice and freedom is rarely an easy one. 

SENDING HYMN Jesus Shall Reign (Duke Street) ELW 481

Note: Did you notice the Luther Rose in front of the opening voluntary? For a time, I'll be using that as a symbol that a piece of music is particularly Lutheran. 

What makes a hymn Lutheran? Good question! You can read about the criteria I use in a previous blog post that you can find here:
https://smljax.blogspot.com/2014/05/our-lutheran-heritage-in-hymns-is-hymn.html

COMING EVENT

ANOTHER COMING EVENT

Just prior to our parish trip to Germany, I'll be doing a demonstration/recital of German organ music and hymns relevant to the places we'll visit. I hope you'll join me!

Sources: The Hymnal Companion: Evangelical Lutheran Worship (Augsburg Fortress)
Wikipedia

Music for the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany, Year C: February 9, 2025

OPENING VOLUNTARY Isaiah in a Vision Did of Old

Martin Luther / setting, John Hirten

See the text and tune at ELW 868.

Martin Luther's German Mass had options. His hymns could be used as replacements for the Latin propers, or as an enhancement for them. Isaiah in a Vision Did of Old, a hymn, by Luther himself, stands for the Sanctus (Holy, holy, holy) sung after the proper preface in the Great Thanksgiving.

The hymn uses imagery from Isaiah 6 (today's first reading), including a verbatim singing of the song of the seraphim. It lacks one phrase from the Roman rite, the one that evokes Palm Sunday imagery: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna!

From Petites Heures de Jean de Berry
14th century illuminated manuscript

But Luther didn't exclude it fully - it's present in and under the music!  Luther's tune, Jesaia, dem Propheten, was fashioned from a chant the people would have remembered singing for the Sanctus text. Even while singing Luther's new text, they would have remembered the tune that used to include Blessed is he who comes. . ."

The imagery in this hymn, poetic and stately, relates Isaiah's vision of God's throne and the seraphim who approach God with covered faces and feet.  If you miss some of the imagery, you'll get to revisit it when the Festival Choir sings another arrangement of this hymn at the musical offering.

GATHERING HYMN Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty! (Nicaea)

ELW 413

This is a set-up, really, for the first reading!

There are some differences from Isaiah's vision.
This version includes us in the line . . .all the saints adore Thee. Heber's version includes cherubim. It also affirms our Trinitarian worship.

PSALM Psalm 138

With a musical refrain by Daniel Kallman, this setting is in the style we usually sing.

The psalm for the day, as used in the Revised Common Lectionary, is a response or reflection on the first reading. Front and center again is the Lord's dwelling. As a kid, "before the gods" often confused me. Now I know that even though the Hebrews worshiped ONE God, that didn't stop them from believing there were other gods. (How often did they turn to other gods only to find themselves rebuked by their one, true God?)

The image of God's dwelling from the Hebrew scriptures is magnificent indeed! But in that reading, the prophet Isaiah is being called to speak to a people who will not hear him. (As an aside, many assume the inspiration for the hymn Here I Am, Lord, to be the calling of Samuel - but it is actually the calling of Isaiah!) Isaiah is being called to a hard task - to tell the people that their actions are leading to a destruction that has no release. Perhaps that is why the psalm talks about the psalmist being protected from the fury of his enemies.

The psalm concludes with an assurance not found in the Isaiah reading.  God's steadfast love endures forever.

HYMN OF THE DAY In Christ Called to Baptize (St. Denio) ELW 575

Most of my readers will agree that Pastor Daniel Locke is an excellent preacher - and we are blessed to have him at St. Mark's. If we ever played "Pastor Daniel's Sermon Bingo," the most checked box would read "mentions the sacraments of the church" - because he always highlights baptism and holy communion.

Our baptismal font at St. Mark's

That's where this Hymn of the Day, by Ruth Duck starts, with our call to baptize others into the same baptism we already share. The second stanza reminds us we are called to invite others to the communion table. In the third stanza, we are reminded to share the gospel. In the fourth, we are called to serve our neighbors.

Ruth Duck (1947-2024), the author of this hymn text, was an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. Her concern for justice, equality, and the care of creation is evident in the hymns she wrote - more than 200 of them! She has four entries in Evangelical Lutheran Worship.

Musical Offering Isaiah in a Vision Did of Old
See the entry under this morning's opening voluntary for more information. Notice how the two settings end very differently!

COMING EVENT: SAVE THIS DATE! YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS THIS!

COMMUNION HYMN You Are Holy (Du är helig) ELW 525
More "holy" language. It just seems unavoidable this week! 

The text and music are by a Swedish Lutheran pastor. The music does not sound Swedish, for sure. In fact, I sometimes think it's what you might end up with if Wayne Newton (aka Mr. Las Vegas) became a worship leader - and I mean that in the best possible way. This is one of my favorites!

COMMUNION HYMN Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy (Cuéllar) ELW 762
More "holies." More joy. This hymn has a Latin feel to it. It's rhythmically exciting because it alternates between dividing measures into three short beats and two long beats. It's one of the most "fun" things in our hymnal.

SENDING HYMN Here I Am, Lord ELW 574

CLOSING VOLUNTARY St. Denio Alice Jordan
An organ setting of the tune for the Hymn of the Day.

Sources:
Hymnal Companion to Evangelical Lutheran Worship (Augsburg Fortress)

Lutheran Service Book Companion to the Hymns

Wikipedia

Sundays and Season.com (graphics)

Seraph image credit: By Limbourg brothers/ Jacquemart de Hesdin/ Jean Le Noir/ Pseudo-Jacquemart - originally uploaded on en.wikipedia by Mirv (talk · contribs) at 27 April 2005. Filename was Seraphim - Petites Heures de Jean de Berry.jpg., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3431408

Music for the Third Sunday after Epiphany, Year C: January 26, 2025

OPENING VOLUNTARY Prelude on "Kuortane"
Jacob B. Weber

GATHERING HYMN Praise the One Who Breaks the Darkness (Nettleton) ELW 843

HYMN OF OF THE DAY Hail to the Lords Anointed (Freut euch, ihr lieben Christen) ELW 311

The tune originally accompanied a Christmas hymn. It was written by Leonhart Schröter, a student of Johann Gottfried Walter who helped Martin Luther with music to accompany his German mass.

MUSICAL OFFEERING With a Voice of Singing Martin Shaw

COMMUNION HYMNS

Here Is Bread ELW 483

One Bread, One Body ELW 496

SENDING HYMN We All Are One in Mission (Kuortane) ELW 576

CLOSING VOLUNTARY Salvation Unto Us Has Come (Es ist das Heil)

setting, Kevin Hildebrand

Music for Baptism of Our Lord, Year C: January 12, 2025

OPENING VOLUNTARY This Is the Spirit's Entry Now Philip M. Young

See the text and tune at ELW  448.

Land of Rest is one of the most easily recognized American hymntunes. It comes from the shape-note tradition.

The text emphasizes the work of the Holy Spirit in baptism, so it's a suitable way to enter into the Thanksgiving for Baptism that follows.

GATHERING HYMN Songs of Thankfulness and Praise (Salzburg) ELW 310

This hymn stands beautifully as a bridge between Epiphany Sunday, today's feast, and even the Sundays to come in the Time after Epiphany. Stanza one tells of the wisemen we sang about last week. Stanza two celebrates Jesus' baptism that we commemorate today and Jesus' turning water into wine that we'll encounter next week.
Throughout the coming Time after Pentecost, may we continue to praise our Lord, "God in flesh made manifest."

HYMN OF THE DAY Christ, When for Us You Were Baptized (Lobt Gott, ihr Christen) ELW 304

A 6th century mosaic depicting the baptism of Jesus
Arian Baptistery, Ravenna, Italy

MUSICAL OFFERING O Living Breath of God John Helgen
See the text and tune at ELW 407.

Between the second and third stanzas, the composer has added a little refrain with the text O living God, breath in us as we pray . . .dwell in us every day. The refrain is sung over a gently flowing accompaniment, suggesting the Spirit of God hovering over the waters at creation, and, perhaps, hovering over the waters at our baptism.

COMMUNION HYMNS

Wade in the Water ELW 459
Light Shone in Darkness ELW 307

Mark Sedio wrote the tune for this hymn. Looking for a water/baptism connection? He wrote it to sound like a sea chanty. And. . .he is coming to St. Mark's!

SENDING HYMN Down Galilee's Slow Roadways ACS 916

A text by the late Sylvia Dunstan, a minister in the Church of Canada, is combined with a tune by Hal Hopson, a prolific composer of church music. This hymn relates the story of Jesus' baptism by John in the Jordan River, an event to which we came with the unassuming throngs of ordinary people (soldiers, scribes, and slaves) but which revealed him as the Son of God through a voice from heaven and the descent of the Holy Spirit like a dove. Because we are joined to Jesus through our baptism, God claims us also as beloved children. (From Sundays and Seasons)

CLOSING VOLUNTARY PRELUDE IN CLASSIC STYLE Gordon Young (1919-1998)

Young was a prolific composer of church music, especially in the 70s-80s. This is one of his most popular pieces. Although it has no specific liturgical or thematic tie to the day, it's definitely suitable for a festival day!

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!

Sources:
Hymnal Companion to Evangelical Lutheran Worship
Sundays and Seasons
Wikipedia By I, Sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28215651 (mosaic)