Sunday, October 18, 2020
Of particular interest here is: 1) The calm, dark yet hopeful words of Psalm 23, 2) Hogan’s canticles written for the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul (National Cathedral), and 3) Rutter’s Hymn to the Creator of Light with the following lines of text speaking today to things we both know, and more importantly, to things we cannot understand. Christians have wrestled with this paradox for centuries. The text by Lancelot Andrewes (1555–1626) connects us with Christians hundreds of years ago. The dichotomy of understanding and simultaneous disbelief resonates today, as it did centuries ago in England when the church was, at times, not able meet to worship and pray publicly.
Glory be to the, O Lord, glory be to thee,
Creator of the visible light, the sun’s ray, the flame of fire;
Creator of the light invisible and intellectual: That which is known of God, the light invisible.
Music in the service:
Almighty and Everlasting God—Orlando Gibbons
Preces and Responses—Kenneth Leighton
Psalm 23
Mount Saint Alban Service—David Hogan
Hymn to the Creator of Light—John Rutter