Rector's Reflection: The Concerto of Praise and Wonder, May 4, 2024

Beloved members of St. Martin’s,

Last night, despite being caught in a 45-minute- long traffic jam on the interstate, we were able to hear Yo-Yo Ma perform live with the St. Louis Symphony Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor.

We sat enthralled as we watched the master cellist and humanitarian evoke the beauty of this music from the depths and girts of his body—nimble fingers, strong arms, prodigious memory and imagination (for he used no sheet music for either his performance nor for his encore), and most importantly, with each breath and beat of his heart.

Surrounding him were dozens of other musicians contributing to the concerto with their instruments and their skill, and of course, the great maestro, Stephane Deneve,  leading them all, his left hand encouraging or cajoling, his right hand steadily keeping the beat, his body swaying and pivoting at particular moments when certain sections of musicians were playing an especially crucial role in support of the soloist. The sounds and the silences they together produced, envisioned by Sir Edgar Elgar decades ago, were themselves holy reminders of God’s image in all of us, of the wonders of the human soul and imagination in seeking to create things of beauty, like concertos.

And I thought about this weekend’s psalm, Psalm 98, that urges us and all creation to make music of praise to God, as I sat there in wonder and delight, taking in this ephemeral experience of beauty and transcendence.

Three times in Psalm 98 we are commanded to sing, twice to shout. Six of the ten verses in this psalm mention making noise of some fashion in order to demonstrate the power and glory of God, and that noise-making is not just limited to humans. Sea, land, rivers, and hills also join in the music of worship. Thus, all of creation joins in the song of praise.

The “right hand” and “holy arm of God” in this psalm and many others are both symbols of physical strength, favor, and power. So initially we are led to think of God here as a warrior God—three times we see the word “victory.” Yet the strong arm and strong right hand of God in Psalm 98 is used not for grasping weapons, not for enforcing the divine will through oppression or threatened violence, but for conducting us in making music for the sake of praise and expression of joy. The victory is in beauty. The victory is in joy, and love.

Think of that. Instead, this psalm supports the message of our epistle and our gospel that it is only through love that the world can be conquered and brought into unity. The love of God, which is God, which is in you and me and all creation. The love of God that urges us to sing, to praise, to overflow with gratitude, and to use every breath and impulse of our beings not for war, but for the creation of beauty in harmony with all that God is doing in the world.

In Christ,

Mother Leslie+

Music Notes from Denise, May 4, 2024

This Sunday will be the sixth Sunday of Easter when we read in John 15 the words of Jesus: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” In our Psalm 98, we read Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands; lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing. Our Processional hymn will be All creatures of our God and King, based on the writings of St. Francis of Assisi. As we sing this hymn, we join with Christians throughout the ages to sing our praises to God the Creator. This is our call and our invitation, and now, using the words God has given us through the voice of a Saint, we answer that invitation with a joyful “Alleluia!”

Our Sequence hymn, In Christ there is no East or Westwas adapted by Harry T. Burleigh from the spiritual “I know the angel’s done changed my name”.  The tune, which was originally an Irish tune that was adopted by African American slaves, was named McKee in honor of Elmer M. McKee, the rector of St. George’s Episcopal Church, New York City, where Burleigh sang for over 50 years. It was adapted to John Oxenham’s poem, becoming an emphatic statement of Christian unity, and illustrates Galatians 3:28: ‘There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ.” Let these words find a place in each of our hearts as we consider how to follow Christ’s call to seek justice for all.

Our St. Martin’s Hand Bell Choir will play for a final time this spring: All Things Bright and Beautiful, arranged by Susan Geschke. Dr. Geschke is an American composer and arranger of handbell music. She actively composes and arranges handbell music and has more than 100 publications ranging from original pieces to traditional to contemporary styles of music. (hopepublishing.com) She wrote the following about this piece:“As I watched my young boys joyfully bounce around the house, I couldn’t help but be reminded of this song’s words: All creatures great and small…the Lord God made them all! I arranged this song in thankful praise to God for those two little blessings. I’ve always loved this English melody! My hope is that the eight-measure introduction/interlude will help you see the beauty of God’s creation. As I worked on those measures, I imagined I was standing in the early morning English countryside—dawn’s pale light just beginning to flood the sky—its soft rosy glow dispersing the night. Warm, yet playful. Can you feel it? (Brian Childers, E-Notes 11/2019, handbellmusicians.org)

The final hymn is one that was written a few days ago by Carolyn Winfrey Gillette, O God, within the Psalms.  She was inspired by the 23rd Psalm and the Gospel reading in John 10 that we had on April 21st, with the biblical images of God’s creation juxtaposed with the concern for the climate crisis. The stanza about the “earth cries out through storm and drought” is evident in our recent news, with March 2024 ranking as the warmest March in the planet’s climate record. This hymn calls us to follow Jesus’ commandment to love one another and one way of achieving this is to take better care of our world for each other and future generations.

Inquirer’s Class Begins TOMORROW, May 5—for everyone!

As we prepare for Bishop Deon’s visitation with us on July 7, we are eager to prepare those who seek baptism and those who seek confirmation or reception into the Episcopal Church.

Please contact Mother Leslie if you or your children would like to prepare for baptism—the basic preparation can be done in a few sessions on Zoom or in person, but we need to schedule that as soon as possible with our busy summer schedules.

If you have never been confirmed, or if you are from a different Christian tradition that practices confirmation, we invite you to be confirmed or received during the bishop’s visit. These classes are part of the ancient practice of the catechumenate, to prepare for a mature confirmation of your Christian faith, and to commit as a full member of the Episcopal Church. These Inquirers’ Classes are open to all, as Christian education is part of our baptismal promises. Our Inquirer’s class will begin today, May 5, after the 10:30 am service, and continue through the first Sunday in June. We will provide all materials needed, as well as a light lunch each week. All are welcome!