It was 1976. A familiy was mourning the death of a dad, H. Douglas Hall. A friend of the family, Jan Michael Joncas, studying to be a priest, sat down to write a song of hope and comfort for the mass. At St. Robert Church, in Omaha, Nebraska, on April 27, 1976, On Eagle's Wings was sung for the first time . It was not recorded or copyrighted or published until 1979, but it has become one of the most popular contemporary Christian songs.
It exploded upon the scene and with it has come a new form of congregational song (not quite hymnody) heralded by the likes of Marty Haugen, David Haas, Jan Michael Joncas, and many others. This has proven so popular that most Roman Catholic parishioners know this form of congregational song even better than the historic hymnody passed down from generations before. Whether you like or it not, whether you agree with it or not, I thought this was an interesting subject and it was covered in Minnesota Public Broadcasting special you can watch below.
As Lutherans we know that when Rome catches a cold, we end up sneezing. The contemporary Christian song that has so established itself in Roman parishes has made deep inroads into Lutheranism. Take a look at the ELCA's Evangelical Lutheran Worship to find out how much Lutheranism has been affected. While it is less profound in the Missouri Synod, it has made its impact here as well.
I will note, as I am sure you will see, the gray hair seems to indicate that this has a generational component. That said, permit me to skip the rest of the commentary and simply let you watch the story.
This one-hour documentary explores the dramatic shift in sacred music
beginning in the 1960's when major religions attempted to reach out to
engage congregations. Minnesota is home to a significant number of
highly accomplished songwriters and musicians who have helped bring new
music to many faiths. A KSMQ production.
As Craig Parton says, "Thank Heaven the Baby Boomers are all going to die." It is good that we will no longer be influencing the Kum Ba Yah church. It will hopefully be a good thing, if the Millenials, Gen X & Y take up the task with a serious attitude. Unfortunately, we are all curved in on ourselves, and listening to much of Indie and Contemporary "industrial" music doesn't give me great hope...
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ReplyDeleteA few years ago I was flipping channels in a hotel room and stopped on a Roman Catholic channel broadcasting a recording of a Mass. A woman was singing "You satisfy the hungry heart." I'd never heard it before and I thought it was some kind of contemporary worship thing. Didn't pay much attention to it.After that, I've noticed my pastor using this as a communion hymn perhaps as much as once a month, which means a Lutheran Communion hymn gets dropped. I'm not sure why a 1970s Roman Catholic hymn ended up in the Lutheran Service Book.
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A fifty-year ban is in order here. As it is for "Gift of Finest Wheat." The late Omer Westendorf did a lot for liturgical renewal, but he was no poet (as his attempt to improve on Luther in his rewrite of "A Mighty Fortress" "the guns and nuclear might/stand withered in his sight" should have demonstrated). Why Mr. Westendorf was commissioned to write the official hymn for the 1976 International Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia is one of the minor mysteries of recent years. "You satisfy the hungry heart with gift of finest wheat/Come give to us, O saving Lord, the bread of life to eat" isn't heresy. But it's awful poetry, and it can be read in ways that intensify today's confusions over the Real Presence. It, too, goes under the fifty-year ban.
How do you know there are more than 2 Lutherans in a room? When they start complaining about the service or some hymn. At least the songs mentioned above aren't happy-clappy stuff.
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