Worship Service

A pre-recorded worship service, complete with readings, Pastor Linman's sermon, prayers, and music will broadcast at 10am EST on Sunday, February 7, on our YouTube channel and will be available below:

Worship material for February 7, 2021

• Home Worship Bulletin for February 7, 2021
• Children's Bulletin for February 7, 2021
• The transcript of Pastor Linman's sermon

The following have been posted to YouTube; here is the YouTube Playlist for February 7, 2021:

• Musical Meditation: "O Wondrous Type, O Vision Fair", Stephen Gabrielsen
• Psalm 147:1-11, 20c Roland Woehr, Barbara Bulger Verdile arr.
• ELW Hymn #610, “O Christ, the Healer, We Have Come”
• ELW Hymn #858, “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty”

Music Notes

Hymn of the Day: “O Christ, the Healer, We Have Come”, ELW 610
Text: Fred Pratt Green (1903-2000)
Tune: DISTRESS, W. Walker Southern Harmony, 1835

The name of the Rev. F. Pratt Green is one of the best-known of the contemporary school of hymnwriters in the British Isles. His name and writings appear in practically every new hymnal and "hymn supplement" wherever English is spoken and sung. And now they are appearing in American hymnals, poetry magazines, and anthologies. Mr. Green was born in Liverpool, England, in 1903. Ordained in the British Methodist ministry, he has been pastor and district superintendent in Brighton and York, and now served in Norwich. There he continued to write new hymns "that fill the gap between the hymns of the first part of this century and the 'far-out' compositions that have crowded into some churches in the last decade or more."

Musical Meditation: “O Wondrous Type, O Vision Fair”, Stephen Gabrielsen (1940-2013)

Stephen Gabrielsen taught for 47 years as a professor of music at Augsburg College. He is known for his service to the community as College organist. His majors in music and religion were the foundation for his vocation, which found expression in music and faith. He played organ in daily chapel throughout his time at Augsburg and was organist for 28 Advent Vespers services.

Worship Service

A pre-recorded worship service, complete with readings, Pastor Linman's sermon, prayers, and music will broadcast at 10am EST on Sunday, January 31, on our YouTube channel and will be available below:

Worship material for January 31, 2021

• Home Worship Bulletin for January 31, 2021
• Children's Bulletin for January 31, 2021
• The transcript of Pastor Linman's sermon

The following have been posted to YouTube; here is the YouTube Playlist for January 31, 2021:

• Musical Meditation: "Jesus Shall Reign", Charles Callahan
• Psalm 111: Refrain, Hal Hobson, Psalm Tones ELW 6 and PFW 56
• Pastor Linman's recorded sermon
• ELW Hymn #311, “Hail to the Lord’s Anointed”
• ELW Hymn #434, “Jesus Shall Reign”
• Choir Anthem: "The People Who Walk in Darkness", Pepper Choplin

Music Notes

Hymn of the Day: “Hail to the Lord’s Anointed,” ELW 311
Text: James Montgomery (1771-1854)
Tune: FREUT EUCH, IHR, LIEBEN, Leonhart Schröter (1540-1602)

This is James Montgomery's best psalm rendering, based on Ps. 72. Psalm 72 is a well-known prophecy of the coming Messiah – foretelling the reign of the King and what the Kingdom of that Messiah will be like. But perhaps more than a prophecy, Psalm 72 is a prayer. In these verses the psalmist calls upon God to give justice and righteousness to the King, perhaps the newly crowned earthly king of Israel, but also the heavenly king. It is a cry for the deliverance of a broken people, for the realization of peace and light. James Montgomery’s hymn text from 1821 beautifully captures the essence of that prayer. As we sing this beautiful hymn, we both declare our hope and our longing for the Kingdom of God, and for the coming of the one who will turn darkness to light, and whose “name to us is Love.”

Freut Euch, Ihr, Lieben is a jaunty tune by Leonhart Schröter, first published for the anonymous Christmas hymn of the same name.

This hymn is easliy paired with another hymn, “Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun,” written by Isaac Watts and also inspired by Psalm 72.

Musical Meditation: “Jesus Shall Reign”, (Duke Street) Charles Callahan (1951)

Charles Callahan is a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Callahan is well-known as an award-winning composer, organist, choral conductor, pianist, and teacher. He is a graduate of The Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, Pa., and The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC.

The tune DUKE STREET is credited to John Hatton. There is a generic resemblance between this tune and TRURO, an anonymous tune to which the text is set in the Lutheran Hymnal Handbook. DUKE STREET has a long meter, which, according to Austin Lovelace, “lends itself readily to majestic subjects and stately treatment” (The Anatomy of Hymnody, 25). With Watts’ text, this is indeed a very majestic hymn though Charles Callahan’s setting and the organ registration call to mind something a little more whimsical.

Choir Anthem: “The People Who Walk in Darkness”, Pepper Choplin

Pepper Choplin is a full-time composer, conductor and humorist. He has gained a reputation as one of the most creative writers in church music today. With a diverse musical background, Choplin incorporates varied styles such as folk, Gospel, classical, and jazz.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; now lift up your eyes, see the glory of the Lord, and all flesh shall see it together. Those who lived in a land of deep darkness - on them, a light has shined.” (Isaiah 9:2)