Church in the Pub - Hymns Night: an Introduction
The Lake House, Clapham, 29 January 2023
The hymn writer and broadcaster John Bell tells the story of his once meeting a musician from El Salvador, William Ramírez, and asking him to teach him a song from his country.
“He gave me the text in Spanish,” John says, “which I had translated into English so I could try to fit the English text to the Hispanic tune. When I looked at the words I saw that they were far too political—all about corrupt judges and corrupt courts. Then I discovered it was Psalm 94.” [1]
Psalm 94 is the song of one who has been ill-treated by the judicial system, whose anger is raised up against those in positions of power who abuse the widow, the stranger and the orphan, a singer whose praise is for a God who sees this injustice, and whose hope is that God will punish it:
For the Lord will not fail his people,
neither will he forsake his inheritance.
For justice shall return to the righteous,
and all that are true of heart shall follow it.
Who will rise up for me against the wicked?
Who will take my part against the evildoers?
If the Lord had not helped me,
my soul would soon have been put to silence.
… your loving mercy, O Lord, upheld me.
In the multitude of cares that troubled my heart,
your comforts have refreshed my soul. [2]
John Bell reflects on this encounter saying that “By teaching me that song William Ramírez opened me to the witness in the Psalms of God’s preferential option for the poor and of God’s engagement in matters of social justice. Otherwise I would not have known that. I would have sung and read the Psalms as private spiritual nuggets and never have known they had a political and economic dimension.”
Where are people singing today? On the streets of Memphis, where those protesting the police killing of Tyre Nichols are chanting “No justice - no peace!” Outside our town halls and workplaces, where workers campaigning for the renewal of our wound-down public services and a living wage are raising their voices with the words “Enough is enough!” On the streets of Brighton the substantial Iranian community are this week singing together in solidarity with their brothers and sisters in Iran, “for women, for life and for freedom”. [3]
We come together to sing our hymns today aware of these other people singing, and as we sing together let us join our hearts with the struggling people of the world.
John Bell and his songwriting partner the late Graham Maule in 2004 published a collection of Psalms with the title ‘Songs of Patience, Protest and Praise’. These words sum up the great themes of our faith - and of the life of all humanity. We wait patiently for change, we wait on God; we protest passionately for change, crying to God; we lift our hearts, in hope and faith and love, we lift them to God.
John Bell says that “The culture of music has gradually moved away from a participative mode. In the 1970s everybody sang songs of the Beatles, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. Since then we’ve moved toward a performance mode. When new pop songs come out they are accompanied by a video. The presumption is not that you’ll sing the chorus but that you’ll watch the performer.”
But the church is - and always has been - about something else altogether. “The church should be proud of being countercultural;” John Bell says, “we believe that music is a community activity and that all God’s children can and should sing.”
Whether we are singing songs of ‘patience, protest or praise’ it warms us, encourages us, sometimes even thrills us, to do so alongside others. ‘Being countercultural’ means having a vision of a world which can be different than the tired, corrupt old world we know. Singing that vision is primarily our gift to God, but we find that as we sing, these songs should lead us to a change in the way we behave.
And so we come to celebrate tonight some of the hymns and songs which have been important to us, which have helped our understanding of life and the world and of God; hymns and songs which have comforted us, strengthened us, inspired us and provoked us to action. Music which has helped us to give voice to those things so deeply important to us which are otherwise hidden in our hearts.
We are very grateful to the friends here who have agreed to share your choices of hymn with us all. We appreciate the time and thought you’ve put into preparing for this evening; and we are sure that as we hear what is said and as we sing together, then we will find that the Lord is here, his Spirit is with us.
Notes
[1] Sing a new song: John Bell on music and congregations, an interview in Christian Century, July 25, 2006
[2] Psalm 94.
[3] Victoria Bekiempis and Sam Levine, US protests begin after police release footage of fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, Guardian, 28 January 2023; Enough is Enough campaign; George Carden, MP Caroline Lucas makes speech at Iran protest in Brighton, The Argus 23 January 2023.
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