Hymn question - "God of the Sparrow"
Pam Wilt
Here's a question for y'all -
At a recent church music meeting, there was some registered dislike
for the hymn "God of the Sparrow, God of the Whale" (UMethodistH #122).
"That God-of-the-pruning-hook thing..."
I guess I was suprised because at our last church it was a hymn we did
often, and this conversation made me realize that I really don't "get it"
because I couldn't think of how to "defend" it - it really HAS a strange
text that seems to wander around.
My gut reaction is that I like it (musically it's fun to sing!)
but it occurred to me that I really don't *understand* why it is such an
important hymn - it is featured often in the children's curriculum, and
I've helped teach it using pictures of the wonderful imagery. But they
are right - the pruning hook image (which I never really noticed in there)
is pretty strange.
What are your opinions pro or con on this hymn?
Best, Pam (who thinks this question is nearly on topic...hope you
do too.)
Jim Carpenter
> At a recent church music meeting, there was some registered dislike
> for the hymn "God of the Sparrow, God of the Whale" (UMethodistH #122).
> "That God-of-the-pruning-hook thing..."
> . . .this conversation made me realize that I really don't "get it"
> because I couldn't think of how to "defend" it - it really HAS a strange
> text that seems to wander around.
> My gut reaction is that I like it (musically it's fun to sing!)
> but it occurred to me that I really don't *understand* why it is such an
SNIP
Taking a deep breath, donning asbestos suit, plunging into one of those
topics that can really get me steamed :-) . . .
The fact that this SONG is included in several hymnals does NOT make it a
HYMN, much less an important one.
IMHO, a text this rambling and pointless has no business being sung as a
hymn. Granted, I tend to be a little conservative liturgically, but a
hymn sung by a congregation should be a reasonably clear corporate
expression of praise or penitence, prayer or thanksgiving. Free-form,
unfocused, navel-gazing, pseudo-poetic maundering may have a place somewhere
(in the repertoire of a New-Age performer, perhaps), but congregations
tend to get upset (and rightfully so) when someone puts words into their
mouths that DON'T express something clearly and DON'T have any apparent
liturgical function.
I'll climb off my soapbox now . . .
Jim Carpenter (jcar...@mtholyoke.edu)
Lecturer in Music, Mount Holyoke College
Director of Music, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Amherst, MA
Interim Director, Springfield Symphony Chorus
Andan...@aol.com
My opinion -
This hymn, others like it, and many "home-made" prayers, litanies have really
probably never really been liked by congregations. "Earth and All Stars" is
probably another example. (I *like* this hymn!) My gut sense as to why:
* I don't think most people think immediately of God when they think of
"test-tubes' and "loud crashing hammers"
* These texts do conjure up a dated sort of "beatnik" feeling.
* Somehow these overly concrete references to God fail to capture either the
majesty and mystery of the liturgical tradition or the immediacy and emotion
of the personal religious experience.
* They seem like "somone else's" attempt to talk about God - elitist, in a
way
Just musings, and not meant to be harsh criticisms.
Dan Wagner
Minneapolis
andan...@aol.com
Burch Seymour RTPS
Check out "Silent, Frenzied, Unclean Spirit" (or something close to that)
in the new Methodist Hymnal for an interesting bit of writing. We keep asking
the choir director to do it acapella for a choral introit :-)
-Burch-
David Topping
Well, we didn't use it as an introit, but I *did* get my choir to sing
"Silence, Frenzied, Unclean Spirit" (UMH 264) as an anthem one sunday to
correspond with the Gospel reading for that day. I had the SA and TB
voice parts take various lines of the first two verses, with increasing
speed and urgency, and then did the third verse more slowly in harmony.
I thought it was great (but then I also love things like Ive's Psalm 90),
but I still hear comments like "at least it's not like 264" from my choir
members every once in a while!
We also regulary sing "God of the Sparrow" as a congregational hymn, but
this is the Pastor's selection, not mine.
David Topping
Los Arcos United Methodist Church
Scottsdale, AZ USA
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Scott E McPherson
I'm not familiar with this hymn, but it reminds me of one which was
always asked for on "Hymn Request Day" in chapel at Asbury College, "God
of concrete, God of steel, God of piston and of wheel..." (I should say
it was requested out of humor and not because it was meaningful to the
student body)
Scott McPherson
smac...@juno.com
Waldy Ens
HI
I don't have access to a Lutheran Hymnal and I am really curious what the
full text of this hymn is. Could someone post the entire text? Thanks!
have a good one!
Waldy
wald...@access.mbnet.mb.ca
Mary Ann Wilkinson
what are your opinions pro or con on this hymn?
>Best, Pam (who thinks this question is nearly on topic...hope you
>do too.)
>
>
the only person in the world who doesn't get this hymn.
I work in one of those trendy churches with a very standard hymn book
and an Episcopalian brought it in for me to try with the choir. They
hated it - especially the pruning hook thing - and I couldn't find any
reason why we should ever do it again. File 13. Amen.
Sincerely,
Mary Ann
Valerie C Keebler
Could someone please post the words to this hymn since it is not(to my
knowledge) in the Baptist Hymnal? Also when was it written? Thanks.
Valerie Keebler
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Mark Gresham
On Thu, 10 Oct 1996, Burch Seymour RTPS wrote:
> Check out "Silent, Frenzied, Unclean Spirit" (or something close to that)
> in the new Methodist Hymnal for an interesting bit of writing. We keep asking
> the choir director to do it acapella for a choral introit :-)
I assume your congregation must be extremely talkative prior to the
service! ("Case your ranting! Flesh can't bear it;") It could be
used after a Gaither tune, however. :-) Or especiialy after
a Praise Team presentation: "tyrant voices, shrill and driving, twisted
thoughts that grip and bind,..." Effective commetary on the Church of
Babylon.
Cheers,
* Mark Gresham, composer President, Norcross Music Associates, Inc. *
* mgre...@america.net Publisher/Editor, Chorus! magazine *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * [.sig edited 08/10/96] * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mark Gresham
On Thu, 10 Oct 1996, Waldy Ens wrote:
> I don't have access to a Lutheran Hymnal and I am really curious what the
> full text of this hymn is. Could someone post the entire text? Thanks!
BEFORE ANYONE DECIDES TO POST THE ENTIRE TEXT, please note that the text
is (C) 1993 Jaroslav J. Vajda and the music is (C) 1993 G.I.A. Publications.
Please give the authors/owners of texts the same respect due to them as is
due to the composers/owners of music. (Note that I said "respect due" and
not "that you would normally give," in deliberate reference to the fact
that *some* people demontrate little respect for copyrights, although there
are a majority of persons on this list who *do* have respect copyrights).
Pam Wilt
Hello all,
How nice to come back to the group (we have a community theatre
production of "Grand Hotel:The Musical" going on that has kept me away)
to find all this great discussion on "God of the Sparrow!" Thank you for
all the well spoken replies. As I said, I do appreciate this hymn and I
guess I felt guilty for not being able to articulate *why* at our meeting.
It's so interesting to transfer from one United Methodist congregation
to another (NJ to PA) and see such differences in musical preferences. I
did receive some e-mails on this hymn too, and thought I'd quote this
part that I found helpful - (please forgive me if it was already posted
to this group.)
(a newsgroup reader wrote:)
>>God of the pruning hook is directly taken from the Bible-- They share beat
their swords into plowshares and their knives into pruning hooks... It means
"God of peace, or God of the peacemaker"
Another person told me that the "pruning hook" reference was originally
"olive branch," which I also found interesting. And I agree with the
person who said kids like to sing this hymn - they like the imagery.
Oh, and I was already acquainted with "Silence, Unclean Frenzied
Spirits" which I think is a great hymn! I think our hymnal offers a nice
spectrum of "flavors" of subject material to choose from to enhance
and support worship topics. Neither of these hymns may stand alone very
well in some opinions, but coupled with just the right sermon, both can
create a very effective punctuation mark for the worship service.
Again, thanks for helping me think this through! :)
Best, Pam