* = new to the Worship series
*747 God, Your Knowing Eye Can See (Angel) - tune written by Chris Angel, not to be confused with Criss Angel ("Mindfreak" - a show my daughter Brittany likes), nor to be confused with "Ballykissangel", a Irish-set TV drama. That said, the text reeks of social justice and the tune sounds like something Tim Manion would write.
*749 God Made from One Blood ("Foundation") - Text is a bit strange. Might need your help!
*750 Lord, Grant Us Grace to Know the Time ("St. Anne") - this one is in B-flat. I mentioned that the hymn "St. Anne" is most commonly associated with, "O God, Our Help in Ages Past", appears in C in this hymnal. Suggestion there: a footnote: This tune in a higher key, #689. Hymn title here: strange. Middle verses don't seem too bad here, but that title makes me think of a Chicago favorite of mine, "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is". (Does anybody really care about time?)
*751 Deliver Us, O Lord of Truth ("Detroit") - Text seems ok. Tune rather good.
*752 The Word of God Rings Harsh and Clear ("Ellacombe") - A song about the people who "fixed their scales for cheating" and other such dirty deeds. Tune is excellent.
*753 Too Often, God, Your Name Is Used (Morris) - Basic four verses is fine. Lose the alternate last verse. If this is a Catholic hymnal, why are we catering to "interfaith services". Musically, I'd much rather use the alternate tune offered in the footnote ("Kingsfold"), however, there are already seven hymns set to this fine tune. I do believe a good minor-key tune would be nice (Sally Ann Morris' tune here is in F-minor, but is too sing-songy). I will once again nominate "Halifax" (melody from Handel) as an ideal tune.
*754 When We Are Living / Pues Si Vivimos (Mexican) - garbage/basura
*755 Lord, Make us Servants of Your Peace ("O Waly Waly") - good translation of the Peace Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi from the pen of Fr. James Quinn, SJ (who died in 2010, little did I know). A viable alternative to Sebastian Temple's "Make Me a Channel of Your Peace". "O Waly Waly" is a fine tune when rendered properly. For those who may still find it questionable, I recommend "Erhalt Uns Herr".
*756 The Virtue of Humility ("Puer Nobis"/Praetorius) - tune fine, but too low (should be in D, not C). Text is rather goofy (Sr. Delores wrote it, that should tell you something): The virtue of humility revokes the law of gravity, Makes low be high and high be low, turns upside down the world we know." This ranks with Sister's own "Sing a New Church", if you know what I mean.
*757 Two People Came to Church to Pray ("Forest Green") - Only two? I read a little further into it to discover it was the one that prayed pompously ("Thank you, Lord, for making me not like the sinful ones") and the one that prayed humbly ("Lord Jesus, have mercy on me, a sinner"). Always a good story, but probably could have been put to better poetry, or even better, use an already-established hymn that's related (albeit not as direct).
*758 From Shallow Waters Call Us, Lord ("Kingsfold") - text seems ok. Anyone?
*759 Unless a Grain of Wheat (B. Farrell) - blech! Too bad Alexander Peloquin's "A Great Harvest" is out of print (also by GIA). Definitely a viable alternative (definitely a choral piece, not a congregational piece). However, if you already have a copy, you can make enough copies for your choir legally for a small fee. Give GIA a call.
*760 Lord, When You Came / Pescador de Hombres (Gabarain) - ok at best.
761 Take Up Your Cross ("Erhalt Uns Herr") - always a good tune, but I'm still partial to "Breslau" (found in most WLP hymnals). Debuted in Worship III with the tune "O Jesu, Mi Dulcissime", which was also fine.
*762 Christ, the Way We're Called to Follow ("Regent Square") - The first verse ends "Be our Way, our Life, our Truth!" He already IS!
*763 We Have Been Told (Haas) - garbage
*764 No We Remain (Haas) - see #763
*765 The Baptist Bore Witness ("Foundation") - one of Sr. Delores' far better texts here! Let's give an alternate key option, however. Raise this one to G (still singable), and offer the lower key in a footnote.
*766 You Walk along Our Shoreline ("Aurelia") - text not bad at all. Tune always good, but since the hymn most highly associated with "Aurelia" is in E-flat and this hymn is in D, there should be an alternate key footnote.
*767 Take, O Take Me As I Am (Bell) - nah!
*768 O Christ, Who Called the Twelve ("Terra Beata") - text isn't bad. Tune is nice. I still remember it with "This Is My Father's World", which I like. BTW, where did that hymn go?
*769 Not Alone, but Two by Two ("Aberystwyth") - another weird title set to such a beautiful tune. "Two by two" is how we were taught to walk in line in grade school! I don't think all the disciples worked in pairs. Stephen, I'm almost positive, worked alone (was stoned alone, too).
*770 Fishermen Are Sailing Homeward ("Hymn to Joy") - nice text here, based on a Gospel passage. Third verse, however, reminds me of an even better hymn, "Christian, Do You Hear the Lord", which was in Worship III, but dropped here. Said dropped hymn is titled "Hark, My Soul! It Is the Lord" in Hymnal 1940.
*771 Who Follows Jesus? ("Mighty Savior") - text seems ok. Anyone? Tune is good.
*772 Called to Labor in God's Vineyard ("In Babilone") - Good viable alternative to Dan Schutte's "Come with Me into the Fields". Text by Jim Chepponis. He writes good texts - far better than his own tunes. Thankfully, this one is set to "In Babilone" ("There's a Wideness in God's Mercy").
*773 The Summons (Bell) - questionable
774 Two Fishermen (Toolan) - originally conceived as "How Brightly Deep, How Glory Sprung" in Worship II, using the exact same chorus as this one. Changed to "Two Fishermen" in Worship III.
*775 You Call to Us, Lord Jesus ("Ellacombe") - fine
*776 The Love of the Lord (Joncas) - blech!
777 I Danced in the Morning ("Lord of the Dance") - This mistake has been around since Worship II. Get rid of it already!!!
*778 For God Risk Everything ("Terra Beata") - text is strange. Help?
*779 Lord, Help Us Walk Your Servant Way ("St. Anne") - so-called "social justice"?
Next installment: Mission/Ministry
Peace,
BMP
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