EDITOR’S NOTE: John Francis is the minister of worship at Parkway Baptist Church, St. Louis, and an adjunct professor of music and worship at Missouri Baptist University. He also produces a weekly podcast, titled “The Monday Morning Worship Leader.” “Coventry Carol” is an odd little carol. Written by Robert Croo in the sixteenth century, it is found in less than twenty hymnals published within the last 100 years. In fact, to use a pun, it is almost as it were “sent to Coventry” as it … [Read more...]
The impact of a brief life
“The majority of mortals complain bitterly of the spitefulness of Nature, because we are born for a brief span of life, because even this space that has been granted to us rushes by so speedily and so swiftly that all save a very few find life at an end just when they are getting ready to live . . . It is not that we have a short span of time, but that we waste much of it.” – Seneca the Younger A few Sundays ago, we sang the beautiful hymn, “My Jesus, I Love Thee” by a practically unknown … [Read more...]
‘Let all mortal flesh keep silence’
When one regards the season of Christmas, silence is not naturally a theme that comes to mind. The classic hymn, “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence,” is a bit of a dark horse. It has a Baptist presence only in the last two hymnals (1991 edition, no. 80, and the 2008 edition as no. 178) but not before then. Honestly, it probably isn’t largely sung, and it is even written in a minor key. This does not have that cinnamon-smelling, candy-cane colored Christmas confection of a boisterous … [Read more...]
Finding a song of thanks
Thanksgiving can be a frustrating planning time of worship for the modern worship leader. Our choruses, while full of praise and adoration, don’t exactly have a “thanksgiving” quality; and any theologian will tell you that, while similar, there are differences between “praise” and “thanks.” However, I cannot just beat up on contemporary music; hymnody has its own set of thanksgiving issues. Our most well-known thanksgiving hymns are about the season of thanksgiving, but are not exactly … [Read more...]
Why the pink candle?
By now, many homes and churches are sporting an advent wreath, a greened-wreath typically containing five candles. In a majority of advent sets there are three purple candles, a white candle in the middle, and . . . a pink candle. It is not a mismatch; it has purpose. Before I discuss that purpose, let’s review the season of Advent. Advent means “coming.” The celebration of advent started around the fourth century A.D. in northern Europe in the Gaul area (it didn’t seem to be celebrated in … [Read more...]
Why are new mission hymns so few?
Quick, name a recent song celebrating missions. Not so easy, is it? I was posed with the question a few months ago, “Why are there no new hymns on missions?” This is an interesting question, and the answer can truly only be speculative. However, to assert opinion, it behooves us to gather as much empirical data as possible. First, there has been a substantial drop in missions hymns in our denominational hymnal. The 1940 Broadman Hymnal had 23 hymns listed as “Missionary Hymns.” The 1974 … [Read more...]
The gift of Alleluia
“Christ the Lord is risen today, alleluia!” As we prepare our hearts for the Easter season, let us momentarily consider the gift of “alleluia.” The spelling “alleluia” is the Latin form that was first penned by Saint Jerome in the fourth century. It westernized the Hebrew term “Hallelujah” which means “Praise” (hallel) the “Lord” (Jah). While the first Passover in Egypt didn’t include the term “Hallelujah” per se, we do know that they worshipped as instructed during this feast (Exod … [Read more...]
‘Joy to the World’ a work of genius
What is the most often sung Christmas hymn in North America? Here’s a hint: it was never meant to be a Christmas song. Well, if you said “Joy to the World” you are correct. But even a casual glance at this favorite reveals much more of a Second Coming theme than it does a Christmas theme. Yet it is one of the world’s favorite Christmas songs of all time. If the question is “what makes it so great?” the answer may be found in two genius craftsmen: Isaac Watts and Lowell Mason. “Joy to the … [Read more...]
Thankful people
Quick…name a chorus or a hymn dedicated to thanksgiving. Not that easy is it? In fact, outside of a couple of the favorites that are quite old (“Give Thanks,” “We Gather Together,” “My Tribute,” “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come”) I can’t think of many. We know that “thanksgiving” is different from “praise;” however, in our worship time they tend to merge into adoration. This is natural as many of the Psalms that include thanksgiving (which are many) tend to occur inside an “enthronement” … [Read more...]
The future of worship
As a worship leader for the past 30 years, I have read countless articles titled, “The Future of Worship.” These have typically been written by a visionary “in the industry” that has his finger on the very pulse of the now and the future. Now, we are reading many articles on “The future of...” thanks to the COVID-19 virus. As I write this, I am spending time with our church staff looking at the reopening of our sanctuary “Regathering” at Parkway Baptist Church in St. Louis. It is my … [Read more...]
‘As you pray, so you believe’
Lex orandi, Lex credende. In worship academia, this phrase is passed around a lot. It means, “As you pray (or worship), so you believe.” As an instructor of worship and a worship leader, lately, I have been challenged in my prayer life. Deep down, I know that strong corporate worship must be rooted in proper prayer, and boy have we had something to pray about! While we are all probably tired of everything COVID-19, it does allow us to pray and to review our prayer life, doesn’t it? … [Read more...]
‘O come, O come Emmanuel’
This classic carol deserves its own mention, as it is probably one of the most sung in all of Advent and Christmastide. Featured in over 459 hymnals, it is powerful in its word and music: O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel That mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel shall come to you, O Israel. The fascinating aspect of this hymn is that while it has only been in the English language since 1851, it was around for way longer … [Read more...]