Saturday, December 28, 2013

Music majors actually run the world.

I took this at a Victorian mansion-turned-office.  Wish it was my house.

That's not an overstatement.  "Next to theology, I give music the highest place," Martin Luther insightfully claimed, making the connection that music is an extremely practical tool from God.  Beyond all of the awkward questions about schooling at family reunions or the dentist's office, those who major in this craft really do keep society running.  Here's why.

First, if no one actually bothered to study music at an advanced level, there would be no random person in your church choir who raises his or her hand to ask a really good question.  "When do you want us to cut off?  If we leave this note hanging over, it's dissonant with the piano."  "Could the altos hear their note against the sopranos?  That's a really tricky interval to sing."  Smart thinking, people.  It's quality control.

They also make up one gigantic web of resources.  Not only do I have my pianist and organist friends, but it builds a web between ALL musicians so I also have violinist friends, trumpeter friends, cellist friends, flutist friends, harpist friends, you name it at my fingertips (hey!  I could put together a chamber orchestra.  Now to give everyone plane tickets).  Between all musicians, the degrees of separation get a lot smaller.  Once, I attended a choral concert with friends that happened to be close relatives of the music director.  I began discussing my organ lessons, and the man in front of me turned around, introduced himself as my organ instructor's son, and joined our conversation about organ composers!

Without music majors, you would never get those annoying-but-inviting brochures announcing some musical ensembles' upcoming concert season in the mail.  Some people took the time to apply their training, put their talents alongside others, and hand over something for you to delight in that they enjoy as well.  Their performance art is extremely unique - it takes place only in time, unlike a drawing one can stand and observe for hours, so the details have to be brought out with attention.  Have you ever thought about how odd it is that the human mind can remember sound?  One does not really hear it, but recreates the patterns somehow internally.  Wow.

Also, have you ever tried to picture what television or movies would be like without a soundtrack?  Don't think about it too hard.  Everything would come across like a really low-budget documentary.  We need thoughtfully-composed sound in order to paint the correct mood, show motion (and what kind of motion), and even help us draw connections between scenes.  Disney cartoons without music?  Awkward and creepy.

Additionally, this does seem politically incorrect, but there are certain musical things that just sound "bad," and even the musical laymen recognize them.  However, discerning exactly what it is often proves challenging - knowing how to fix the problem belongs to the realm of music theory.  For example, I heard a choral arrangement of a hymn once that kept encountering an intonation mishap at a specific point.  I could not figure it out at first, but upon seeing the score, I caught parallel fourths (counterpoint taboo!).  Knowing that such part-writing creates voice-leading roadblocks saves the amateur musicians a lot of trouble.

When life is going as it should, the people working hard to make it run smoothly do not usually receive compliments, but as soon as a gap opens up, complaints arise.  "Why don't we have any more coffee?  It was YOUR job to remember to buy some!"  Those who study music provide a restful, heightened element to ho-hum life, and by their expertise our artistic activities are made more efficient (i.e. singing in church with a good accompanist).  To all of my non-musician friends, thank you for understanding that I have a real calling to do what I love, despite the inapparent rewards.  To fellow music majors:  thank you for being you, doing your vocation in the otherwise silent but chaotic world.  It's an honor to do battle with you.  :)


Tuesday, December 24, 2013

"I have something for you!"

How often every year do we hear someone say that?  Doesn't that phrase invoke instant delight?

"I have something for you!" when you're out in a thickly-populated room of festive people, and the antecedent hope of meeting up with the giver later to receive the object.  "I have something for you!" over the internet from a distant-but-close friend, and checking the doorstep later.  It instills something definite - and positive - for which to wait.  However, because other people deal with sinful natures in the exact same way we do, these promises get lost in transit more frequently than expected.  En route to retrieving the gift, distractions of "more important" things stop the person in his or her tracks, or the means to convey it slips out of control and the awaited thing disappoints us.  Don't you hate that?

Every Christmas and every day, God says, "I have something for you!" and absolutely means it.  His Son and His precious forgiveness, leading to a home in heaven, stand by for us all the time.  The Lord fully intends that all should grasp this gift for their very own.

Many churches teach that God declares something like, "I have something for you!  It's going to arrive when you go to pick it up.  Even though you don't know what it is, you have to want the gift first."  It's "freely" given to the individual, but there are too many prospective gaps.  Where will it arrive?  How will it arrive?  What if I don't pick it up the right thing, or break the gift once I get it?  How do I make sure I want it?  The hope gets dropped in the pileup of questions.

Oppositely, the Bible confirms that the Holy Spirit alone delivers the treasure through the promised means of grace, tells us why exactly we need Christ's work, instill in us a want of it, and figuratively holds up our hands and tears open the present for us.  Even then, the giving is not done - God is the reason His grace stays with us and never expires.  Possessing things that are "instant" is really nice (hot cocoa mix and oatmeal?).  In reality, nothing is more instant than the grace received by faith:  the Father ALREADY sent the Son.  Christ ALREADY won justification for ALL people.  Upon contact with the Word and Sacraments, the Holy Spirit INSTANTLY makes this righteousness your own via repentance and faith He INSTANTLY brings. AT ONCE, your perfect eternal destination is sure.

Most importantly, the Lord calls us saying "I have something FOR YOU!" personally, through the One-on-one act of hearing the Word, Baptism, eating and drinking Holy Communion, and being absolved by another Christian.  Yes, He has something for "you" in the plural sense, but without the application of a direct inference to one of us, that statement would not hold any significance.  Nowhere does Scripture read, "I have something - for someone else!"

For my Christmas gift, I'm going somewhere - to heaven someday.  Has your future present been opened yet?

Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. 2 Corinthians 1:22

Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. Hebrews 6:17-18
"That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown" - even better than a security blanket.


Saturday, December 21, 2013

"What exactly ARE you doing?"

The (sometimes goofy) stuff people regularly say to me, and my (sometimes confused and startled) responses.
Here's one thing I take pleasure in as often as I can.  :)


"So you're going to the seminary?  What's your degree called?"
It's NOT an M.Div.  It's the M.A. in Lutheran Theological Studies, and it takes three years and 46 credits to complete.

"Do they even let women in the seminary?  I didn't know they did that."
No one ever said I couldn't!  It's a laymen's degree, and they do say "he or she" in the description.

"So, uh, what classes are you taking?"
Isagogics, which is an overview of the books of the Bible; dogmatics, which is like doctrine; and hermeneutics, the rules for interpreting Scripture.  They're all really interesting.

"Oh wow.  Your classes sound really hard.  I don't know what half of those are."
Not really.  If you like this sort of thing, it's not hard.  I wouldn't live one day in a graduate mathematical program.

"So what do you plan on doing with your degree?"
Working in church music.  Look, getting a degree in theology will not hurt anybody.  I don't think pastors enjoy having oblivious laymen.

"I'm mixed up.  I thought you were doing some master's degree in church music.  This is instead?"
No, that's just over the summer.  This is what I'm doing over the year while applying my newfound skills in the parish.  I have a religion minor in my undergrad program, and like studying it as well.

"Hi sweetie!  How are you doing today?"
"Sweetie"?  Even though you are much taller than me, you are a freshman.  I prefer not be addressed as such.

"So you're in two masters' programs, huh?  You must be really smart, huh?"
No, I don't quite feel that way.  I'm doing what I like to do - I like being in "the bunch" but never completely feel worthy to be in "the bunch."

"Where did you go to school growing up?"
I was homeschooled for all 12 years and definitely recommend it.  I had time to do college credits and practice piano, and saving time in college was a huge financial blessing.

"Oh!  That's why you act like you were homeschooled!"
Um - what does that mean exactly?

"How do you like being the only woman?"
I love it.  There's no girl drama!  I cannot get work done properly when people are running around being overly emotional, and that never happens.  The seminary students are some of the nicest and most accepting people, and I am honored to go to school with them.

"You're so skinny!   Do you have a hollow leg? Where does all that food go, anyway?"
The same place as that person's sense of tact.  Bring me a piece of quality chocolate cake, and I will prove you wrong.  :)




Thursday, December 19, 2013

My Advent Tree

The heirloom itself (yes, with purple matryoshkas admiring it)

My very oldest Christmas tradition has quite the story - in fact, it nearly wasn't my oldest Christmas tradition for over a decade.  Thankfully, it has recovered so that in 2013 I may retell its journey.

Some people have those little paper Advent (or beginning of December, with the liturgical discrepancy) calendars which you open every day to mark off the days until Christmas.  In certain cases, the opening involves a piece of candy or Lego set (but what do you do in subsequent years?).  I have a Precious Moments musical Advent tree - a little artificial pine about a foot tall on a square base with 24 tiny numbered drawers, each secreting a miniscule hand-painted ornament.  The idea is that you hang a ornament on the tree every day, during which I wind up the top and it chimes "Joy to the World," my favorite Christmas hymn.

One of my multitudinous shortcomings growing up was my urge to imitate things my favorite picture-book characters did, often expecting the same successful results.  One Christmas Day when I was perhaps three or four, I fell asleep on the late-night car ride back from my uncle and aunt's celebration, and my dad carried my inside to my room.  Upon awakening, I felt so ashamed that I had been caught napping (oh horror!), so I remembered what Angelina the mouse did in Angelina Ballerina:  she kicked her dresser holding her prized dancer statue, and it crashed to the ground and broke.  I kicked my dresser, and  - you guessed it - my Advent tree was atop it.  It didn't tip off or anything, but I ruined it nonetheless:  upon trying it out later, it would not play "Joy to the World."  The music box was broken, and there appeared to be no way to remove the wind-up component inside to be repaired.

Many years passed, and I could hardly remember the ornamented tree revolving and ringing its charming melody.  I and my mother decided to try another tiny-but-powerful tool:  dental floss.  Diligently and tediously, we stroked it across the tightly-glued wood base until at last a crevice was seen, and continued to loosen all four corners.  There it was: the dislodged metal reel, with notes like pinpoints all over it.  Paging through the lists of repairers in the phone directory, we came up with the name of one man a good distance away who cared for music boxes, and shipped off the mechanism and tree to him with hopeful thoughts.

Several weeks later, the little tree returned all put back together.  I removed it from the box, gave it a turn, and it began to twirl, sounding "Joy to the World" just as I remembered!  To this day, even in college, I enjoy decorating and listening to my Advent tree, and appreciate it all the more for its story.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Cantata No. 19: Name that hymn!

Illustration by Norma Boeckler, former member of my dad's church!

Let's play a nice friendly round of "Guess the Chorale Tune."

Cantata No. 19, for the September feast of St. Michael's, kicks off with a whirl of contrapuntal hilarity not unlike the "Sind Blitzen" outburst of the St. Matthew Passion, mimicking the struggle between the angels and Satan, the bass teases the defeated dragon in a declamatory recit, and the soprano tells of the secure encircling of the heavenly host around the Christian's camp, interwoven by sturdy oboes.  Still, the real jewel follows in the tenor aria.

In this minor-key movement, pillowed by tenderly lilting strings, he pleads that the angels will stay with him on both sides, but also keep him directed to praise the Lord above.  In the background, the trumpet soloist plays a very familiar hymn, more specifically, the third verse.  Can you guess what it is?  :)

Recording of the aria:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuoLIn3krUQ
Score:  http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/usimg/d/dd/IMSLP00744-BWV0019.pdf
Translation (contains spoilers!):  http://www.emmanuelmusic.org/notes_translations/translations_cantata/t_bwv019.htm

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Cantata No. 175 - and the woman behind it all.

Christiane Mariane von Ziegler, librettist

Born June 28, 1695 in Leipzig, Germany, Christiane Mariane von Ziegler grew up the wealthy daughter of a mayor, but by no means did that ensure her an easy life.  At age 11, her father was imprisoned for 40 years until his death due to a political controversy, and by her early 20s, she had been widowed twice, with a deceased child from each marriage.  By age 27, however, she ran her family’s house and there provided a lively, cultured atmosphere for artists to socialize and share ideas.  These gatherings were warmed by her “chipper” personality and prominent sense of humor, and she was known as the life of the party wherever she went.  One frequent visitor was Johann Christoph Gottsched, an editor of a magazine directed towards women, and he encouraged her to publish her sacred and secular poetry.  In 1728, she released nine cantata texts, verses framed by biblical texts and chorale stanzas, with one of them becoming Bach’s Cantata No. 175.  In Leipzig, the Bach and Romanus families were very close, and the composer and librettist were probably well acquainted.  In addition to her many accomplishments, she was the first female member of Gottsched’s literary society and German poet laureate.  When not writing, Ziegler played keyboard instruments, flute, and lute while singing, spoke French effortlessly, and enjoyed shooting crossbows and pistols.  In 1741, she did marry again for the last time, and passed away in 1760 at the relatively late age of 65. 

For every Sunday during the church year (besides Lent), Johann Sebastian Bach’s position as cantor involved composing, rehearsing, and performing an approximately 20-minute cantata between the Gospel text and the sermon with a choir and small instrumental ensemble from the adjoining school.  Originally, this cantata was premiered on May 22, 1725, the Tuesday after Pentecost, which shares a Gospel reading with that of Easter 4 (John 10:1-10).  In order to evoke a pastoral scene to townsfolk sitting in St. Thomas’ Church, Bach brings in three recorders to play a simple, charming motif while the tenor sings “He calls His sheep by name, and leads them out” (John 10:3).  Then, the alto soloist sings a Ziegler original text, “Come, lead me!” which uses the same instrumentation.  With a 12/8 pastorale-style meter, recorders emulating shepherd’s pipes, and a “wandering” motif reminiscent of a lost sheep, Bach paints the listeners into the countryside, a place of potential rest but also lurking danger.  Chromatic twists and wrenches depict the utter perdition of the sinner apart from Christ’s justification, and musical “sighs” demonstrate the believer’s fervent hunger for guidance.  “Where shall I find You?” the tenor begs next in an unsettled, zig-zagging recitative, answering his own question in the successive aria, seeing the Lord entering in by the “right gates,” and responding to His “lovely voice.” The alto then reads John 10:6, “But they did not grasp what it was, that He had said to them,” and the bass comments that we, too, do the same when God’s truth confronts our blind reason.  In the end, surrounded by a scalloped-edging of strings, he exhorts the soul to mark Jesus’ words for its personal welfare.  Accompanied by trumpet fanfares, the adjoining aria by the same calls upon his ears to open for Christ, who promises blessings to those who bear the cross in faith.  The concluding chorale, to the melody of “Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herren Gott,” declares full confidence in God’s leading by grace through faith in the Word, the true star to light the journeying road. 


What message could and should Christians take away from this piece of art?  Primarily, they should be reminded of their deep need for forgiveness and Christ’s guidance through the perils of life under the cross.  Underneath, though, they should also be encouraged by the example of faith demonstrated by both Ziegler and Bach – though living under a heavy cross, Ziegler sought strength in the Gospel promises, and thus was able to write such lyrics with full confidence despite hardship.  Bach likewise knew his Bible extensively and understood precisely what musical elements he could incorporate to accentuate the message to even a casual appreciator.  Today, we thank God for their creative gifts, and from them draw inspiration to glorify Him with our own – even on the crooked passages and shadowed vales of earthly life.  
Garden in Leipzig, Germany

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Five points on a triple-word score...

These lists of little-known facts about friends are circulating.  I may as well write my own.

1. I can beat you at Scrabble.  Every time.

2. When I was two years old, I taught myself to read.

3. I have never flown on a plane.

4. Genetically, I am an odd case.  I can't roll my tongue, and am the only person in my family with hazel eyes.

5. I didn't learn organ or sing in a choir until I came to college.

Bonus fact:  my morning often looks like this.  :)
6. My stuffed Pirates dog is named Jackie, and my stuffed zebra generally goes by Mr. Zebra.  He has an aristocratic first name that I never can remember.

7. I automatically sing along to every Menards commercial.

8. Since I was 11, I have written in a journal every day before I go to bed.

9. I know almost all I Love Lucy trivia, and used to relate each show I saw to my aunt over the phone.

10. For my whole life, I have lived on the same street, even though my family has moved twice.

11. I used to want to be an English major, emphasis on writing, with a semantics minor.

12. I don't "like" anything on Facebook.  I comment instead.

13. All of my fingers are double-jointed, making it very tricky to play piano and organ!

14. You know I'm being myself when I can say intelligent and goofy things in alternation.

15. G-flat Major is my favorite musical key - I just never write in it for practical reasons (like my string-musician friends pelting bows at me).

Monday, November 18, 2013

My Jesus Is My Resting-Place

This is the first real hymn I wrote, nearly two years ago, in the middle of deep sadness.  Suddenly, the words playing around in my mind just streamed out onto the spare pages of my planner (again), and these eight verses assembled themselves in random fashion.  Next, I sketched out a melody above the words, and even missed dinner with my family!  Well, God's inspiration is a very honorable excuse.  
What the original looked like!

1.  My Jesus is my resting place
And will be mine forever;
My soul is held in His embrace,
His grace will leave me never.

2. Sometimes my heart is struck by sin
Which to despair may lure me,
But when there is no peace within
His promises assure me.

3. When every joy begins to fall
He leads me and He holds me;
His plans of hope reign over all,
In wisdom He enfolds me.

4. No problem, doubt, or hurt inside
Can take me from my Savior.
Whatever comes upon my life
Is Heaven's well-thought answer.

5. If friends may leave and shadows come
This faith won't leave me empty:
That God is near and victory's won
From all the fears that tempt me.

6. God, when my darkest hours are here
I know You will stand by me.
You've promised that You hold me dear
No matter what may try me.

7. My Lord, give me a quiet heart
Amid this raging sadness!
Grant me the comfort that a part
Is saved for me of gladness.

8. Praise Father, Spirit, Jesus Christ
For giving us this promise;
We firmly trust that faith will brave
These storms that come upon us.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

TGISN: Thank goodness it's Sunday night!

Just because I'm at the bench doesn't mean I get to rest...


6:30  Glance at cell phone.  Did I really wake up that early?  Oh well.  Let's try to get a little bit more sleep.

7:00  Alarm goes off.  Okay, that kind of worked.  Make lofted bed in dark without my purple/animal print pillows (or myself) falling off.

7:06  Look in fridge.  Leftover Cameron's hazelnut coffee from the brother will save some brew time.  Zap in microwave.

7:07  Fire up the Sinatra Sunday playlist!

7:09  Wash face, wrangle hair with purple flatiron, try on polka-dot dress.  Nope.  End of Trinity season - too loud.  Change into darker color.

7:15  This is NOT working.  Change again.

7:35  Should get going.  Oh wait, forgot the coffee. Head back.  Let's try this again.

7:45  Yay!  The door that's never unlocked gets unlocked.  The trombone parts, however, are wrong.  Which way do they transpose again?

8:00  Run through EVERYTHING.  Piano gets stick up. Yessss.

8:22  The rehearsal went that long?  Where's the coffee?

8:30  Early service!  It's Rite Three day - let's test our sightreading skills.  Not bad.  Nobody in the brass department falls off the wagon.

9:40  Service done.  Play through all the fun Christmas music while drinking Bible class coffee (still thinking about the words).  Ooooh.  Buxtehude cantata?

10:10  Found parts.  Print parts!  Printer gets jammed.  All parts print double.  Anitphonal "In dulci jubilo"?  Possibly.

10:20  Locate family of string musicians in hallway.  Distribute parts and utilize best persuasive knack to stay in town for Christmas morning.  It's working.

10:45  Quick, sort out parts!  Finish coffee.  Time for late service.

11:00 Fix piano lid without losing precious fingers.  Drive back in absolute ecstasy about Christmas repertoire.

11:27  Run, trying to sing fugues with oneself.  Not working.

12:09  Om nom.

1:10  Arrive at seminary, lay out all the Pieper stuff on table in an effort to look like homework is getting done.  Coffeepot still halfway full - score.

1:20  Get lost in discussion about Romans 13/two kingdoms/church-state separation/Spanish liturgical music/being a motorcycle-riding old lady with a friend.  :)

2:26  Zoom off to a choir concert at the church across from my church, only to be kidnapped in a friendly manner by a fellow concertgoer (the choir director's sister).

2:58  Find seat next to a former professor and son of my organ instructor, by sheer coincidence.  Discover my distant musical second-cousin is singing a tenor solo.  Cool.

3:15  Schubert's Mass in G has a walking-bass Credo, just like BWV 232.  Interesting.

4:10  Solo cello AND choir.

4:30  Potential soloist for Coffee Cantata?  Winning.  Say hi to church choir friends.  Dash back to sem.

4:50.  Read Pieper about the divine essence and attributes.  Wait, so while the Trinity's essence is indivisible, God still "divides" His attributes in Scripture so we can understand them?  What about names of God?

5:40  My head hurts.  More coffee.  Ouch, the microwave.

6:15 Om nom NOM nom NOM.

7:00  Practice?  Hmmm.  Well, the organ shoes are not here, so...24 marathon!  Jack Bauer will find them for me. :)

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Literary Devices in Johann Gerhard's Devotional Writings

Johann Gerhard, 17th-century German theologian
[Prayer] is a ladder by which we ascend to heaven, for prayer is nothing else than a drawing near of the mind to God.  It is a shield of defence, because the soul that liveth daily in a spirit of prayer is secure from the insults of devils.  Prayer is a faithful messenger we send to the throne of God, to call Him to our aid in the time of need.[1]
That just constitutes a sampling of the engaging poetic imagery Johann Gerhard pens in his devotional books.  Born in 1582 and living until 1637, the German theologian studied in the age of Lutheran Scholasticism following the publication of the Book of Concord, which he helped support by way of his outstanding doctrinal literature, the Loci.  However, alongside of this, he assisted in building up the collection of short sacred contemplations accessible for personal use.  In this genre, he idiomized a metaphorical style influential to later authors of the cultural Pietist flavor.  Overall, these metaphorical devices of Gerhard’s devotional writings as a rule directly quote Scripture or paraphrase it using accurate hermeneutics.
            First of all, extended metaphors typically influenced by Biblical parables encompass substantial paragraphs, even in alternation.  Popularly, Gerhard likens the salvation story to a marriage relationship between the soul and Christ, and weaves in many other familiar types as well.                                                                                                                                 
Jacob served fourteen years to win Rachel for his wife, but Christ for nearly thirty years endured hunger, thirst, cold, poverty…Samson went down and sought a wife from among the Philistines, a people devoted to destruction, but the Son of God came down from heaven to choose HHHis bride from among men condemned…Foul and defiled was His bride, but He anointed her with the oil of His mercy and grace.[2]
Amongst other notable figures the author features are the vine and branches, the robe of righteousness, the flood of baptism, evening and morning, the oil of faith, and the Shepherd and sheep.
Next, Gerhard often utilizes the technique of repeatedly comparing and contrasting two people or objects, such as the sinner and the Savior, in order to make a point.  Furthermore, this can be used for either a Law comfort or Gospel promise.  For example, “If this be done in a green tree, what shall be done in a dry (Luke 23:31)? If this be done to the Just and Holy One, what shall be done to sinners?”[3]  On the other hand, in discussing the blessings brought to the Christian by the Passion, Gerhard lists many points of deference between their state and their Redeemer’s.  Here is a mere sampling: 
He willingly submitted to be stripped of His garments, that He might restore to us the robe of innocence, lost through our transgressions.  He was pierced with thorns,
that He might heal our sin-pierced hearts.  He bore the burden of the cross, so that He might remove from us the awful burden of eternal punishment.[4]
Third, Gerhard uses analogies either drawn from plain understanding or explained by perspicuous biblical passages in order to express a correct exegetical inference.  In “Loving God Alone” from Sacred Meditations, he supports from the conclusion that if God is perfect and most loving as the Creator, one should reciprocate that love rather than to other creatures. 
Does not that man do himself injury who loves anything beneath the dignity of his nature?  Our souls are far more noble than any created thing because redeemed by the passion and death of God.  Why then should we stoop to love the creature?...Whatever we love, we love because of its power, its wisdom, or its beauty.  Now what is more powerful, what is wiser, what is more beautiful, than God?[5]
In the “Prayer for Victory Over Temptations and for Safe-Keeping from the Devil’s Plots,” Gerhard applies the scale of Christ’s temptations to the weak believers’. 
If he dared to attempt to make himself commander of the heavenly army, will he keep himself from me, a common soldier?  If he did not think twice to oppose the
very Head (Matthew 4:3), is there any wonder that he attempts to destroy a weak member of the mystical body?[6]
            Fourth of all, sometimes Gerhard brings out the simplicity of a truth by means of very short sentences, frequently to compare and contrast, even directly citing Scripture.  “I despair of myself.  In You, hope is repaired.  Of myself, I fail.  In You, I am restored.  In me, there is anguish.  In You, I find joy once again.”[7]  In regard to the “Denial of Self”:  It is better for me to be nothing in You and receive Your everything than to be something in and of myself and have nothing.  Where I am not, there I am happier.  My weakness longs to be strengthened by Your might.  My nothingness reaches for Your strength.”[8]
In a “Thanksgiving for Preservation” prayer, to bring out the truth that everything needed to sustain life belongs to God, Gerhard assembles a chain of short sentences to bring home the reality:
In You, I bend and move my limbs.  Without You, I cannot participate in life and movement…The day belongs to You.  The night belongs to You…Silver is Yours.  Gold is Yours.[9]
            Lastly, Gerhard views the Bible in light of the theology of the cross, and also Christocentrically.  Any conclusions he draws are based on keeping the message of Christ’s atoning act central, accentuating the Messianic typology already found in Scripture.  To
ignore such clear signs would be an exegetical crime, and would even render the interpretation more obscure. 
            In the end, all of the abovementioned literary tools are utilized by Gerhard for a poetic effect, organizational quality, interest, and finally as Scriptural basis for his seemingly subjective ideas.  Though some may attribute his heavy usage of metaphors to the foreshadowing of Pietism, they still fall in line with Lutheran orthodoxy in that most are drawn from the Bible.  In including types and descriptive language, Gerhard does not introduce foreign doctrine or misleading analogies that would suggest improper hermeneutics.  Rather, they act as his paintbrush to color biblical concepts, only serving to direct the appreciator towards the perfectly designed model of Holy Scripture.




[1]Johann Gerhard, Sacred Meditations, Malone, TX:  Repristination Press, 1998, 138.

[2]Ibid., 73-4.
[3] Ibid., 18.
[4] Ibid., 42-43.
[5] Ibid., 50. 
[6]Gerhard, Meditations on Divine Mercy, 123.
[7]Ibid., 47. 
[8] Ibid., 117. 
[9] Ibid., 60.  

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Martin Luther's "formula" for success.

Happy Reformationtide, everyone!


I know most people today commemorate the date of Martin Luther's theological revolution as October 31, 1517:  the posting of the 95 Theses about indulgences on the local church door.  Still, I think the real Reformation didn't officially occur until 1523, in conjunction with the release of his Latin Formula missae.  Here is why.

Lex orandi, lex credendi exemplifies Martin Luther’s concept of reform – the law of the church’s worship is sequentially the law of its confession.  In his time, such a worship gathering would be riddled with what he calls the “three serious abuses”:  the silencing of biblical preaching, the prominence of saintly reverence instead of God-directed praise, and the act of sacrificing Christ’s body and blood as an offering.[1] In publishing his Formula missae of 1523 (hereafter FM), Martin Luther strongly furthered reform in the Protestant church merely by adjusting the liturgical practices.  Specific ways in which this is clearly seen are his inclusions of Scriptural preaching, congregational singing, and omitting the canon of the mass.
At the heart of Luther’s method for the Reformation lied his authoritative precedence toward the Bible over the papacy.  Where the Word openly refuted what the pope decreed, he sided with the Holy Spirit-inspired writings in place of allowing Rome the right to change them.  For example, Jesus replied on the contrary to papal authority when answering the scribes and Pharisees.  “He answered and said to them, ‘Why also do you transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded…’”[2] 
The primary issue with which Luther dealt was pride; over time, the church became increasingly awed by and submissive to the liturgical leaders, being assisted by the political rule they also held.  Where God’s commands and promises interfered with their quest for power, the Roman Catholic church refused to comply.  St. Paul writes to Timothy, “Preach the word!  Be ready in season and out of season.  Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching (emphasis mine).”[3]  Not mere words of Holy Writ are referred to here, but using them as a springboard for discourse and a tool to reach people’s sinful hearts and lives.  He later urges, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”[4]  The instinctive reaction of the believer to hearing the pastor should include supplementing that with music, since godly lyrics and melody fall under their own special didactic form.  Finally, returning to the very words Christ uses to bless the bread and wine,
…As they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”  Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you.  For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:26-28).
Luther saw that the words of institution were what they were on the simplest level; the only sacrifice occurring here was the Lord kindly offering His body and blood to His disciples as strength and comfort, for them to cling to in assurance of their forgiveness.  By His simple phraseology, “Take…drink,” Jesus’ only intent is that His sin-sick followers go ahead and share in His supper, not give it back as an unbloody payment. 
Basing his new worship order on these solid precepts, Luther furthermore demonstrated his humility before the Lord.  If he sought glory and renown before the people of his day, he would have decided to keep the new revision in compliance with the old, or not tried to change it at all.  On the contrary, the theologian remarks, “One should not plan and order something unless he is certain it is pleasing to God.  One should also not make reason supreme in such matters, for if He our Lord is not the author, nothing good can come of it.”[5]
            In regard to the first point, prior to the Reformation, churches did not hear much individual preaching from the priestly clergy.  Instead, the only preservation they had of the true Gospel was in the historic lectionary readings, set up during the early Christian era and used for centuries.  However, Luther understood that the utilization of a pastor to expound biblical doctrines could also be edifying, and inserted a sermon on one of the texts between the Nicene Creed and the Preface.   In addition to the homiletic portion, Luther additionally advocated the continuation of the daily Psalm readings, as he had practiced in the monastery.  While the essential eight Daily Office hours were reduced to two (Matins and Vespers), the frequently scheduled meditations on the Bible stayed a laudable tradition.  In differentiation to the current usage, Luther wrote, “The reading of the Epistles and Gospels is necessary, too.  Only it is wrong to read them in a language the common people do not understand.”[6] Once again, the Catholic way was permissible as long as it was clarified and not hidden in mystery, to which the early church fathers would have surely disapproved.  “Luther saw his reforms not as the unilaterally instituted ideas of an individual, but rather as a reform within the church catholic that sought to demonstrate whenever possible the continuity between itself and the whole history of Christian worship and piety.”[7] Attempts before this by the Radical reformers to create a new mass setting ended up to be misleading in that they sought to do the opposite of what the Roman church practiced, including alternate vestments and iconoclasm.[8] On its own, the liturgy was not the problem, but the false doctrine mixed in to usurp the truth.
            Secondly, before Luther’s reforms there were limited hymns or other opportunities for the people to sing in a church service.  Rather, the officiant would perform all of the reading, praying and chanting, nearly turning the Sunday morning time of worship into a spectator event.  As Luther realized, this method is not the way to keep the laity engaged or connect their own faith with what was occurring in the service.  He understood that by singing Christians were also teaching themselves the Word, at the same time publicly confessing their faith and engraving Scriptural truth in their hearts via the music.  The more ways in which an individual can learn something, the more deeply he or she remembers it, and in a likewise manner it happens when the Gospel is spoken, heard, read, sung, and taken in all at once.  In the strictest sense, the FM is completely accompanied by the acapella choir, with an active listening part by the congregation.  Yet, Luther indicates that he would “wish for us to have as many vernacular songs as possible that the people could sing during the mass either along with the Gradual or along with the Sanctus and Agnus Dei.”[9] The educated class of the day spoke Latin as their primary language, but where a peasant audience may join in, the German component would be a helpful addition. 
            Lastly, the key difference with the FM as compared to the previous Roman order of worship is the removal of the canon of the mass.  This lengthy, special prayer chanted under the breath of the priest entirely altered the direction of worship, sacrificing once more Jesus’ body and blood rather than receive it graciously as a sacrament.  How close and yet how distant were the clergy; the very elements which God intended to bring them His forgiveness as a means of grace they considered an object of reoffering to appease His anger.  Nevertheless, Luther retained as much as he possibly could of the Catholic mass, even the elevation, which he kept due to the people’s hesitation at the reintroduction.[10]  In reference to the Deutsche Messe, the 1526 German rendering of the FM, Luther states, “The Elevation we do not wish to abolish but to maintain, since it coincides very well with the German Sanctus and signifies that Christ has commanded to remember Him.”[11] In Lutheran practice, this stood for honoring Christ’s death on the cross to pay for the world’s sins, not a misdirected, merit-minded adoration of the host.  Jesus’ words of institution were still chanted during the consecration, and Luther seemed to direct that each form should be served directly after, with the Sanctus, Agnus Dei, or hymns meanwhile sung for spiritual edification.[12]
            There is not a great deal of disparity between the modern Lutheran Divine Service found in many American hymnals and the FM of Wittenberg.  In Luther’s day, the confession and absolution consisted of the Kyrie, found in the sermon, or administered personally by the pastor.[13]  Today, however, the first item spoken in its modern counterpart is the confession, with the forgiveness of sins declared immediately following.  Elevation is generally obsolete due to its Catholic implications, but the church now partakes of both the bread and wine without reluctance.  What is more, the amount of chant versus spoken readings varies between congregations, and post-Vatican II, the Old Testament lesson may now follow the Collect.   Another addition of which Luther would definitely have approved would be the prescribed inclusion of hymns, at least for the opening, before the sermon, and in conclusion.  One of the reasons why he may not have dictated them specifically would be the lack of resources available then in 1523 – the rich selection of Lutheran chorales accessible now were as of then unwritten.  Still, the promotion of godly poetry set to music that the laity could finally utilize to teach themselves is perfectly in line with Luther’s goals. 
The directions for a worship service as laid out in the FM were meant to be a “description, not a prescription.”[14]  If every minute detail of the liturgy would imply something of adiaphora or man’s preference, Luther knew that humanity’s natural leaning would be toward the man-made add-ons, and they could very well overrule the “one thing needful,” namely, faith in Jesus Christ.[15]  On the positive viewpoint, with enough time and distance, the church has progressed through to the point where Luther desired to see it, as outlined in the Wittenberg church orders.  On a Sunday morning, one can readily find a group of Lutherans freely hearing the Word, singing the biblical liturgy and hymns, and eating and drinking the Lord’s Supper as a sacrament, not a sacrifice.   This lies in stark opposition to the disastrous condition of the 16th-century church, attending worship without biblical interpretation, concentrated in the lives of the saints, and centered around the canon of the mass.  All in all, by presenting his Wittenberg congregation the Formula missae in 1523, Martin Luther effected a reformation to orthodoxy that lasts until today.


                                                                                                                                   
Works Cited: 
Forell, George W., Harold J. Grimm, and Theodore Hoelty- Nickel.  Luther and Culture.  Decorah, IA:  Luther College Press, 1960. 
Halter, Carl and Carl Schalk.  A Handbook of Church Music.  St. Louis:  Concordia Publishing House, 1978.
Herl, Joseph.  Worship Wars in Early Lutheranism.  New York:  Oxford University Press, 2004.
Lull, Timothy F., ed.  Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings. Minneapolis:  Fortress Press, 1989.
Schalk, Carl.  Music in Early Lutheranism.  St. Louis:  Concordia Academic Press, 2001. 
The Holy Bible, New King James Version.  Nashville:  Thomas Nelson, 1982.



[1] Lull, Timothy F., ed.  Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings. Minneapolis:  Fortress Press, 1989, 445.

[2] Matthew 15:3-4.
[3] 2 Timothy 4:2.
[4] Colossians 4:16.
[5] Forell, George W., Harold J. Grimm, and Theodore Hoelty- Nickel.  Luther and Culture.  Decorah, IA:  Luther College Press, 1960, 185. 
[6] Lull, 451.
[7] Schalk, Carl.  Music in Early Lutheranism.  St. Louis:  Concordia Academic Press, 2001, 19.

[8] Halter, Carl and Carl Schalk.  A Handbook of Church Music.  St. Louis:  Concordia Publishing House, 1978, 59. 

[9] Herl, Joseph.  Worship Wars in Early Lutheranism.  New York:  Oxford University Press, 2004, 6. 

[10] Halter and Schalk, 60. 
[11] Forell et. al., 208.
[12] Ibid., 207. 
[13] Halter and Schalk, 207. 
[14] Ibid., 62. 
[15] Luke 10:42.