Songs and Hymns for Reign of Christ / Christ the King (November 21st 2010)

Just in case you feel like celebrating the release of Aung Sung Suu Kyi, here is a song from Burma: MV056 O Come let us praise (Shwe) A good trinitarian song From Burma. Quite beautiful - will need to be carefully taught to Western ears. Maybe ask your musicians to play it at the start of worship while the congregation gather.

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Bringing together the remnants of the flock; Looking forward to a world that is just
TiS 474 / AoV1-012 / ATE 295 / CH623 / SFFS 2236 / HPP553 / G(II)539 / GC839 / GC(II)743 / CP465 / W&R649 / Cha284 / URW054 / SP175 Here in this place new light is streaming / Gather us in (Haugen) Excellent and very well known. Sample.
MV007 Gather us in ground us in you (Hann) A simple chant which would be great for an invitation to worship.
AoV2-139 / GA525 / SP&P045 Gather us O God Body spirit soul and mind (Brown) Very simple song. Would work well as a gathering chant "Gather us O God, Body, spirit, soul and mind. Gather us, O God, One in union now with you"
AoV1-071 / GA530 / GC(II)742 Gather Your People (Hurd) Excellent eucharistic theology. Sound sample. Lyric and sheet music sample.
TiS 10 / AHB 16 / AoV1-144 / NCH479 / Iona (Common Ground) / CH14/16 / UMH136 / VU747/8 / StS099 / LBW451 / ELW778 / GA473 / HPP55 / HPSS170 / CP519 / CP(E) 594 / W&R86 / Cha0789 / Srce662 The Lord's my Shepherd I'll not want / God is my shepherd It's not inclusive, but I think it's more than a sentimental favourite which fits with this passage even though it's actually Psalm 23. Good to sing to a different tune every now and then, e.g. Brother James' Air. NCH, VU and Chalice all have an inclusive language version.

Luke 1:68-79
Zechariah’s prophecy for John the Baptist before his birth. The call to prophecy. John is born and lives in the wilderness. Waiting.
Tune In: Longing (Loukes) “Call to us, lead us on”. A simple chant. Lyrics, sound sample, and sheet music available here.
TiS 437 / AHB 352 / UMH596 / VU500 / GA531 / PH454 / CP559 Blessed Jesus at your word (Clausnitzer) A more traditional hymn which would work with this passage. Sound sample and older style lyrics.
AoV2-089 / Taize / MV086 / SFFS 2156 Give peace to every heart / Da Pacem Cordium (Berthier) A good, simple Taize chant. Sound samples, sheet music (not cantor lines though).
ATFG 514 Emmanuel Carol / God of light we are waiting for you This is a lovely simple song; it's quite Advent-ish, but so is this passage.
TiS 447 / AHB 61 / CH112 / VU313 / LBW400 / ELW673 / CP560 / CP(E) 267 God whose almighty word / Lord your almighty word (Marriott) A well known Trinitarian hymn with a rousing tune (MOSCOW). Some sources are more inclusive than others. Lyrics and tune.
ona (M&G) / CH359 / StJ / TF37 / ELW253 / GA293 / SFFS 2085 / G(II)276 / GC370 / GC(II)364 / CP368 / W&R402 He came down that we may have love (Cameroon traditional) A simple, repetitive song. Great for kids and for some drumming, too. Sound sample. Sheet music sample.
NCH110 / G(II)561 / GC775 / GC(II)5 Now bless the God of Israel who comes in love and power (Duck) Good words of salvation based directly on this passage. Sung to the familiar tune FOREST GREEN. Sound sample. Sheet music and lyrics.
TiS 279 / AHB 212 / SFFS 2091 / HPP158 / GC487 / GC(II)494 / CP632 / W&R159 The King of glory comes the nation rejoices (Jabusch) Fun and energetic song to a traditional Israeli folk melody. A good processional. Lyrics and sign language (bottom of the page).
AoV1-061 / ATOK 355 / SFFS 2194 / G(II)521 / GC723 / GC(II)707 / ZSS110 / SgTJ1035 Freedom is coming Excellent and lots of fun, especially if you have a keen African-style drummer in your congregation. It's really worth teaching the parts to your congregation before the service. It can get a bit boring if the congregation don't know they get to listen to the other parts! Partial sheet music, sound sample (search for Freedom)

Psalm 46
God our refuge and strength, even in the midst of disaster
Tune In: You in all our worries / All will finish well (Brown) “In this world where injustice reigns, you are in the midst of pain”. Excellent words of reassurance in a difficult world. Sound sample, lyrics and songbook.
Tune in The God that I Know (Anderson) A beautiful ballad with female and male images of a loving, embracing God. Sound sample, sheet music sample and songbook.
TiS 103 / AHB 8 / NCH439 / CH454 / UMH110 / VU262 / VU770 / VU789 / LBW228 / LBW229 / ELW505 / HPP382 / HPSS259,260 / GC607 / GC(II)594 / RS 741 / W&R507 / Cha65 / URW271 A mighty fortress is our God (Luther) Old words, a great tune. There are many many different translations of this, so you might want to check your source carefully. The only words I would enjoy singing myself are in NCH which are still very poetic, but TiS is okay as well. CH4 has "A safe stronghold our God is still", and CP(E) has "A mighty stronghold is our God". Some nice alternatives to singing the whole hymn are to sing part of it as a Psalm response as in the following two suggestions.
VU770 / Cha742 A mighty fortress is our God (2 lines only) (Luther) Nice use of the hymn as a simple refrain to a responsive Psalm reading.
VU789 / Cha738 A mighty fortress is our God (Response) Responsive psalm with sung refrain of the first line of "A mighty fortress".
TiS 560 / AHB 465 / NCH408 / CH192 / UMH132 / VU654/655 / WoV782 / ELW757 / CP529 / CP(E) 368 / Cha088 / Srce2-15 All my hope on God is founded / is firmly grounded (Neander) Most translations of this well known German hymn are not inclusive, but the NCH and WoV are, so if you have those books (BUC people, we have NCH, and I have WoV). Older version of the lyrics.
AoV2-054 / Iona (There is one among us, Love from Below) / CH755 / MV077 / SFFS 2057 / G(II)438 / GC618 / RS 736 / SP&P111 / URW409 Be still and know that I am God (Chant) Beautiful. I'd much rather sing this than the more well known version. Works as a round or in unison.
ATOK 311 / CH754 / GA401 Be still and know that I am God and there is none beside me (Iona) A good alternative. I like the 2nd verse especially "I am the one who calls you my friends, and there is none beside me". CH doesn't have the 2nd verse.
FFS04 Be still my heart (John Murray) A good opening to worship. With two possible simple tunes. "Be still my heart, my mind, my busy world that I may hear God's word".
CH716 / VU374 / FFS10 / SFFS 2128 / W&R477 / Cha575 Come and find the quiet centre (Murray) A good song for the beginning of worship. I would prefer to sing this to one of the more traditional melodies offered (Tune 1 in FFS) or BEACH SPRING (TiS 493).
NCH70 / UMH660 / VU389 / WoV719 / ELW526 / HPP486 / HPSS461 / GC741 / GC(II)737 / CP(E) 301 / W&R1 / Cha280 God is here as we your people (Pratt Green). Great lyrics, but not inclusive in all sources. It's sung to the familiar tune ABBOT'S LEIGH. Sound sample and less inclusive lyrics.
CH037 God is our refuge God our strength (Church Hymnary) This is a better version of this old song.
URW273 God of refuge we come to you (Oakland) I'll tell you a secret. I am writing this in Hong Kong Airport, so I can't tell you why, but my notes say that this is a good song.
TiS 683 / WoV735 / ELW603 / W&R416 God when human bonds are broken (Kaan) These words pick up an unusual theme, and fit really well with this reading. There are a couple of possible tunes, none of which are immediately familiar, but they are not difficult either. Lyrics (and a nice, but different tune).
WoV768 / ELW737 / CP456 / W&R412 He comes to us as one unknown (Dudley-Smith) Great words to a very familiar hymn tune (REPTON).
TiS 47 / AHB 46 / AoV1-175 / NCH25 / CH161 / UMH117 / VU806 / LBW504 / ELW806 / HPP1 / HPSS210 / GC614 / GC(II)588 / CP528 / CP(E) 537 / W&R84 O God our help in ages past A good solid very well known hymn! The surprising thing about this one is that the language is inclusive for God in most sources. Not all sources are inclusive for humanity, so check.
Linnea Good: Come and ponder everything. A quiet meditative chant of only these 4 words to be sung as a refrain to the reading over background music. Quite a different take on the psalm; would be good to provide some space in the worship service to include this. Could also use the 4 chants below in a similar manner - depending on the message you'd like to focus on.
MV163 River running in you and me (Macdonald / Light) Terrific words with lots of river imagery, a song of the spirit, and of challenge when times are hard. If this is not familiar, just get a soloist to sing it while the congregation joins in the last line "River run deep, river run free". The verses are not metrical, so it will take more time to sing them with confidence.
MV084 In you there is a refuge (Wehlander / Good) A simple quiet song. "In you there is a silence, in you our minds are clear. When all we hear is discord may your quiet draw us near".
Taize / TiS 739 / AoV2-041 / ATOK 404 / VU290 / GA269 / SFFS 2054 / G(II)451 / GC639 / GC(II)626 / CP568 / W&R421 / URW388 Nothing Can Trouble / Nada te turbe (Berthier) Excellent and quite well known Taize chant. Spanish lyrics are not too hard for non-Spanish speakers. Sheet music, sound samples, lyrics and translations.

Colossians 1:11-20
A hymn in praise of Christ.
TiS 626 / AHB 557 / CH500 / GA423 Lord of creation to you be all praise! (Winslow) A wonderful traditional and quite inclusive hymn to the familiar tune SLANE. Lyrics.
MV 145 / CP418 / SP&P123 Draw the circle wide (Light) A great song about welcoming all people. “Let the dreams we dream be larger than we’ve ever dreamed before; let the dream of Christ be in us, open every door”. Note that there are two tunes for this on Youtube. This is the version in MV, CP and SP&P. Lyrics (downloads Word document)
TiS 617 / NCH413 / UMH517 / WoV736 / ELW626 / HPSS342 / W&R75 / SP164 By gracious powers so wonderfully sheltered Wonderful words by Bonhoeffer. A range of tunes. The tunes BONHOEFFER (NCH) and O PERFECT LOVE work well. I'm not a big fan of the tune in TiS (HIGHWOOD). Lyrics. The 5th verse is omitted in some hymnals.
TiS 370 / AHB 290 / NCH233 / CH411 / UMH302 / VU157 / LBW128 / LBW130 / ELW369 / G(II)315 / GC437 / GC(II)439 / RS602 / CP206 / W&R288 Christ the Lord is risen today (Wesley) A well known Easter hymn which can be sung at all times of year. Very joyous. Hymnals vary widely in terms of the level of inclusiveness. There is a lot of Kingly language, which is hard to avoid this Sunday. Some versions are not inclusive for all people, but NCH, TiS and Gather hymnals are not too bad. Older style lyrics and sound sample.
Iona (Love From Below) / SFFS 2283 / GC(II)786 For All the Saints Who’ve Shown Your love (Bell) Beautiful lyrics celebrating the lives of the faithful through the ages and today. There are two tunes for this hymn. Love From Below uses the tune "ALL SAINTS" which is a John Bell original. A nice tune, but not familiar, although not hard to learn at all. The Gather hymnals publish a slightly different version of the lyrics, sung to the tune O WALY WALY which is the tune for "The water is wide", so much more familiar. Lyrics, sample sheet music, tune sample (search for "Shown your love").
TiS 549 / CH538 / VU430 / CP(E) 439 God be in my head and in my understanding (Davies) I like these words from the Book of Hours, but I have never been able to work out when you might use it in congregational worship. Perhaps sung just before the sermon? It's not a great congregational tune. If you use this song, please comment - either here, or in the Facebook group. Sheet music video of all parts while you listen to a beautiful choral version.
TiS 470 / CH742 / UMH708 / LBW26 / ELW264 / CP(E) 227 / W&R531 / Cha476 Rejoice in God’s saints today and all days! (Pratt Green) Great words about all the different saints and the importance of remembering them. Works well to the tune PADERBORN, but would be even simpler sung to LAUDATE DOMINUM which would be more familiar. Lyrics and some tune samples, or LAUDATE DOMINUM tune sample.
Tune In: Community (Brown) A song about being welcomed and part of a community. Sound sample and lyrics.
NCH398 / MV044 / W&R599 Shadow and Substance (Damon) Good clear words of being Christ's community in all our diversity. A simple tune. Lyrics (downloads a pdf).
W&R104 / URW102 Hidden Christ Alive for Ever (Wren) Wonderful and inspiring words of Christ in all things. Can be sung to HYFRYDOL or HOLY MANNA, so would be easily sung by most congregations. A good song for just after the sermon. Lyrics in this article (downloads a pdf) - search for "orbits" to find the lyrics.
TiS 412 / AHB 324 / ATE 251 / G(II)328 / GC468 / CP651 / W&R130 God sends us the Spirit to befriend and help us / Spirit Friend I like this song from Malawi, but the lack of inclusive language for God sometimes drives me a bit crazy. In Tom Colvin's book "Come Let us walk this road together" he uses more inclusive language than many hymnals. That is, he writes “God sends us the Spirit” instead of “God sends us His Spirit” and "Spirit of our Maker" rather than “Spirit of our Father”. Less inclusive lyrics and a strange sound sample.
TiS 227 / AHB 151 / NCH86 / UMH185 / VU339 / LBW546 / ELW853 / HPP60 / PH487 / CP002 / CP(E) 619 / W&R111 / Cha100 / Srce2-656 / URW184 When morning gilds the skies (German hymn) Good old words praising Christ. Lyrics and sound sample.
TiS 668 / AoVK-34 / ATFG587 / NCH569 / CH243 / VU307 / R254 / ELW739 / AA143 / W&R38 / Cha693 / URW189 Touch the earth lightly (Murray) Sings of the redemption of creation and our complicity in its destruction. Sources vary in their set tunes. TiS has a good tune (TENDERNESS) with a nice minor key change to the relative minor for the second verse. Youtube video with all lyrics.
TiS 187 / AoV2-130 / CH149 / StS122 / SP247 Let all creation dance (Wren) I just love the imagery of this one, and it's a very joyous and familiar hymn tune too. Lyrics (downloads pdf).
MV200 You are my body (Wren) Excellent words of being one in Christ's body, to a simple flowing tune by Judith Sowdon (HAZEL). Can also be sung to NEUMARK. Lyrics (scroll down).

Luke 23:33-43
Jesus’ crucifixion. The King of the Jews? The contrast of the two criminals either side. “ This day you will be with me in Paradise”
TiS 356 / CH385 Here hangs a man discarded (Shrub End). Beautiful and powerful words to a very well known tune.
TiS 345 / AHB 261 / AoV1-103 / NCH229 / UMH288 / VU144 / LBW81 / ELW353 / HPP185 / HPSS102 / G(II)302 / GC416 / GC(II)438 / CP192 Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Tune In: A grain of wheat (Sheree Anderson) A more upbeat song for Good Friday, but it could be sung more reflectively if you would like. Reference recording, lyrics and songbook available here.
Tune In: In the shape of a cross (Dave Brown) A cry to God for help. Reference recording, lyrics and songbook available here.
Tune In: Our God who weeps (Kate Scull) Very simple folk-like tune and challenging and hopeful lyrics. Reference recording, lyrics and songbook available here.
TiS 730 / AoV1-152 / ATOK 387 / CH775 / UMH488 / WoV740 / ELW616 / HPP214 / HPSS599 / G(II)293 / GC404 / GC(II)422 Jesus remember me (Berthier)
FFS08 Broken the body (Murray / Bray). Good words of a broken body of Christ and a broken Church seeking healing, unity and courage.
TiS 357 / ATA 147 When his time was over the palms lay where they fell Beautiful and mournful.
TiS 242 / AHB 183 / AoV1-018 / ATN 27 / CH404 / UMH261 / VU352 / HPP163 / PH302 / G(II)481 / GC708 / GC(II)689 / CP(E) 468 / W&R118 I danced in the morning / Lord of the Dance (Carter / SIMPLE GIFTS). Lyrics and tune sample.
TiS 728 Jesu christo reina reina ya! A fun Latin American song. It's particularly fun if someone is brave enough to yell out a "call" at the start of each verse.
CH348 / StS001 / LBW196 / ELW544 / CP397 / W&R93 Praise the One Who Breaks the Darkness (Edwards) Good words of Christ's ministry to all. Can be sung to the familiar tune NETTLETON, or the less familiar and very lovely tune JOEL. Lyrics.