Music

In my world, I have had to break down the work week into specific sections. This was mainly due to the fact that I maintain two offices and spend equal time in each one. Five years ago when I was busy setting up my two offices, I was trying to figure out the best way to accomplish that. What I ended up doing was designating CC as my "liturgy" office and VC as my "sermon" office.

This has worked out very well. In the beginning, I had a real, live organist at CC; so I would meet with her Monday mornings to go over hymns. I'd tell her what I'd like to have played, and she'd tell me whether or not she could handle them. Then, when she retired and we put Ms. Emily to use, I had my organist right there in the office with me.

I've come to really appreciate and love Ms. Emily. She doesn't gripe about what I ask her to play. She either knows the hymn or she doesn't. I can adjust her tempo and musical styles at will. And I always know exactly how many verses she's going to play.

That second item, though, has created an interesting scenario. She knows most of the hymns in the Episcopal Hymnal. She also knows hymns from the Baptist, Methodist and Presbyterian hymnals, as well as a whole slew of other music. She must have almost 2000 hymns in her memory. But there are some hymns that she just doesn't know.

So, what happens when there's a hymn I want to use on Sunday that Emily doesn't know? I pull out my organist's version of the hymnal and do some research. I find another hymn with the same meter that Ms. Emily does know; then we sing the hymn to a different tune. Sort of like Amazing Grace sung to House of the Rising Sun, or Come Thou Fount sung to Clementine.

It's a dangerous thing to put musical tools in the hands of a musically illiterate, tone deaf, vocally challenged priest. Dangerous, yes -- but never boring.

Sermon, Proper 10B, 2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19

What brings you joy? What makes you joyful? What makes you sing and shout? What makes you get up and move and groove and bust a move?

Sporting events have that affect on some people. Just watch a soccer match during the World Cup. Or catch a Monday Night Football game, especially when it's held in Oakland. Closer to home, watch how people get uber-excited during the Twin-Sheridan game. People get incredibly excited and passionate about their sports.

Maybe it's not sports. Maybe it's music. Some music just has a way of getting people tapping their toes and up and dancing. Buddy Holly, Bill Haley, The Beach Boys, The Kingsmen, Aretha Franklin and The Cars are good examples of music that moves people. My daughter has recently discovered swing and the Andrews Sisters (among others) and she likes to sing and dance to that. I, however, have been banned from ever dancing or singing anywhere near her presence, let alone in public.

The point is that there are a variety of things that get people excited and motivated; everything from sports to cars to gardening to music. And when we are excited about something, we tell other people. I love talking football with people. My grandmother talked about her plants. My niece talks about dancing. We tell people about a great restaurant or movie. We tell people about what we enjoy.

What excites you? What brings you joy? Is God on that list? Is church on that list? This is the place where we chose to worship God. It is here that we delve into the mystery of the living God. It is here that we work to build a community of faith. It is here that we work to grow this place together.

And because we choose to be here, we must get excited about it at some level; we must garner some joy, because we seem to be telling people about it and inviting them to join us. Last week we had 31 people in attendance. Cars were parked down the block. That excited me. That made me want to dance in the aisle -- woo hoo!

But even without the high numbers, we should still draw excitement and joy from our worship. David certainly did. As he brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem, he "danced . . . with all his might." For David, worshiping the Lord brought great excitement and joy. So much so that he was willing to embarass himself in front of his subjects and his wife Michal.

Which got me thinking . . . how would it be if I danced with all my might during service? What would it be like if, during the procession, I leapt and danced before the Lord, or if I moonwalked down the rail while distributing communion? I'm betting that there are certain people here who would rather hear me preach on the evils of the Republican party every Sunday than watch me dance my way up and down the aisle.

This is why I think Michal was an Episcopalian. There David was, dancing and leaping around in a loincloth being (as one colleague put it) totally open to God. He was being foolish. He didn't care what people thought. And Michal didn't approve of it becuase he wasn't worshiping decently and in order. She's like a lot of us who look down on people with different worshiping styles.

Here's an admission: one of the hardest things for me to do is to attend other services without critiquing or criticizing them. When I was in Atlanta during the preaching conference, I attended a worship service every day, sometimes two and three times a day. It was very hard for me to simply worship since I was often too busy grading the liturgy.

How would it be, though, and how might this place be different, if we allowed ourselves to be a little excited, a little joyful and a little foolish for the Lord? Decently and in order, of course. What might that look like? Well, I have some ideas.

First, we would sing a little more loudly and boldly. Granted, not all of our hymns allow for this, and we have some people who are learning to be Episcopalians and aren't familiar with all the hymns; but what if we made a conscious effort to sing more boldly? Take some time before service to not just mark the hymns, but to see if you know them or if you can hear them in your head.

Second, we would be surer of ourselves in our responses. There are some things that we say all the time every time, whether it's Rite I, Rite II A, B, C or D. What if we worked on saying those responses like we knew they were coming, rather than like we weren't sure where they were, or like we didn't want to be too loud in case we were wrong. "The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark -- GLORY TO YOU, LORD CHRIST."

Third, we could make our amens and alleluias more forceful. Remember, the Great Amen after the Eucharistic prayer on page 363 is in ALL CAPS for a reason. We should say that like we mean it. And I know the allulias are punctuated with a period, but why not say them as if they had an exlamation point instead?

Finally, today is the Lord's Day; the first day of the week. This is the day when God said, "Let there be light." This is the day when Jesus overcame death and the grave and rose to new life. This is the day when we share in that heavenly banquet by being fed with spiritual food. What if we lived and worshiped as if this were the first day of light, or the day we saw the resurrected Christ? Wouldn't that be worth celebrating joyfully and excitedly?

If we worship with more purpose and more boldness, then maybe, just maybe, that will carry over into the rest of the week. Maybe we'll see church as fun and joyful. Maybe we'll begin to pass on that sense of excitement and joy to others around us. Maybe, like David, we'll be willing to be fools for the Lord . . . decently and in order, of course.

So be bold, be joyful, be excited; it just might change you -- it just might change US.

It's that time of year again

Time for bbq'ing? Time for hanging out in the pool? Time to catch a few rays?

Well, maybe . . . but what I'm thinking about is FOOTBALL. Yes, my Case Book and Rules Book arrived in the mail yesterday. Time to start studying up and getting ready for the season.

This year, the one big major rules change is that a horse-collar tackle is now illegal and penalized from the basic spot.

The other big news this year is that we have been approved to wear black pants with a white stripe during cold weather games (ooh .... just like the pros). Eh . . . it's okay, but the uniform change is on a trial basis at this point in time. I'm thinking my pool will pass this year. I really don't want to spend $60 for a pair of pants I may not wear ever again. Maybe next year, we'll see.

Houston, we have a destination

Okay, so that's not what was really said, but I liked it.

We found out yesterday where The Kid will be going on her trip. As it turns out, she will be living in a very itty bitty tiny hamlet sort of place in NE Germany.

And I find that really funny.

We still don't know when she leaves, but hope to hear about that soon.

61

I spent all last week at Family Camp relaxing, reading and equipping the saints. The three of us and my folks got home late Saturday afternoon and began the long process of laundry (which piled from the laundry room into the kitchen).

I never did get my sermon for Sunday written (which is why there isn't one posted), so I spent Saturday mulling over what I was going to say. We've been spending time in the Old Testament and that has been both interesting and entertaining; but I've had to fill in the gaps as we go through the RCL. This week, for instance, we jumped from David's lament over Saul and Jonathan directly to David's kingship over a united Israel. What we missed was the civil war between the house of Saul and the house of David. What we missed was Ishbaal being appointed king over Israel. What we missed was Abner switching sides, his assassination and the revenge killing for that.

And then I pointed out that five years ago, I had just arrived in the Valley. If we just looked at my arrival and then the attendance today (Sunday), we'd miss the struggles. We'd miss the developing community. We'd miss hearing the good sermons and the bad sermons. We need to pay attention to God in the gaps. And that, in a nutshell, was the sermon.

What made it particularly appropriate was that, on a holiday weekend, we had THIRTY-ONE people at Christ Church and THIRTY people up in VC. For a non-Christmas/Easter/funeral/wedding service, I do believe that's a record.

Sixty-one people in church on Sunday . . . It was very cool.

More from Family Camp

It has been everybody's opinion that this has been the best Family Camp to date. The weather has been amazing (hot, sure, but not blistering; and it's cooled off nicely at night). The food has been wonderful (as usual). The kids are having a terrific time and the adult discussions have been lively.

The new altar top (proper name: mensa) was dedicated by the bishop on Monday. We were all expecting more or less a simple stone slab to replace the one that broke. Um . . . not quite. What we got was a lovely piece of black granite that has been polished to a mirror-like finish. When you stand at the back of the chapel and look down to the altar, you almost can't even see it because of the water in the background and the reflection of the sky. It's quite beautiful.

We have a J2A group visiting from New Jersey and they've thoroughly enjoyed their time here. They took a trip to Glacier Park one day. This morning they got up early and kayaked over to Wild Horse Island and hiked around there. Last night three of my parishioners were here playing music all of the kids plus most of the other camp attendees did the Virginia Reel dance. it was quite entertaining.

The Big Adventure came last night when, originally unknown to the adults, while out in one of the boats for Kid's Club, the engine died leaving the little tots stranded out in the middle of Flathead Lake. Yes, there were a couple of adult counselors with them. No, the weather was not inclement (this was not Gilligan's Island). So the sailboat (with it's little trawling motor) was dispatched to rescue them. The kids had a great time (relaying the story to me about how they were stuck on the boat with big smiles on their faces); and this story will be remembered in the annals of Family Camp and their own memories well into adulthood (hey, Joey, remember when we got stuck in the boat when we were five and were surrounded by sharks and we had to swim to shore towing the boat with our teeth??? -- Yeah ...)

I've finished the book Sex, Sacrifice, Shame & Smiting (which I thought very good) and have begun Nature's Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith. I've tweaked my program for the adults here and there.

Oh . . . and my research on naps continues.

Family Camp

I'm off at Camp Marshall, our diocesan camp, this week performing my yearly duty as Family Camp Chaplain. It's a rough gig, but somebody has to do it.

The overall theme of camp this year is Equipping the Saints, so I put together a little program for the adults to help them in that department. A little bible study, a little BCP study, a little prayer, and lots of worship this week.

The bishop showed up last night in time for dinner (timing is everything) and sat in on the program. I'm happy to say that he found no reason to inhibit me.

This morning he will lead Eucharist, as is his prerogative. We are also dedicating a new altar top. The original one broke somehow -- this is a good inch-thick stone slab, so I'm not sure what really happened. But the new one is showing up this morning and we'll dedicate it at service with the bishop. As I said, timing is everything.

Maybe more later during the week ..... that is, if my research on afternoon naps doesn't get in the way.