A musical surprise

Christ in Glory is at the center of the great
Wheel Window which faces East 7th Street.
Many readers may recall when it was removed for
restoration off site a number of years ago.

One of the things I love about Episcopal worship is that we sing.

A lot.

Growing up a Methodist I certainly was used to singing -- and robustly.

But Episcopalians leave Methodists and most other Protestants in the dust when it comes to congregational singing.

From September to June at Grace Church in Plainfield we sing five hymns every Sunday (all the verses, no skimping) -- Processional, Sequence (before the Gospel lesson), Offertory, Communion and Recessional.

Plus we chant the response to the Psalm. Every Sunday.

And then there is the Gloria in Excelsis sung before the lessons are read. And the sung responses in the Eucharistic prayer.

All in all it is glorious for someone who loves to sing (as I do).

During July and August though, things lighten up a bit.

There is no choir and attendance usually slacks a little.

So the musical offerings adjust as well.

The sung Gloria, response to the Psalm and Offertory and Communion hymns are in abatement.

Instead, the organist fills in with soft music -- some recognizable, some not.

Our organist is Andrew Kilkenny.

He is a great talent and studied Music Education at Kean and Organ Performance at Rutgers.

He came to Grace Church after serving as Director of Music at Christ Church in East Orange and prior to that was organist and choirmaster at All Saints Episcopal Church in Scotch Plains.

One of his greatest thrills as an organist was the opportunity to play the famous Widor Toccata on the great organ of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City.

This Sunday was special in one way and had a couple of musical surprises as well.

First of all, the Old Testament lesson was taken from 2 Samuel 1: 1, 17-27, and dealt with the deaths of Saul and Jonathan. This is the famous passage where David mourns Jonathan, saying "your love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women."

Gay Christians often use the passage (and others) as "proof" that David was gay.

I think that view is mistaken. After all, we also have the story of David's lust for Bathsheba after he saw her bathing while walking on the roof of his palace. Married at the time, David contrived to have Bathsheba's husband killed in battle so that he could marry her.

So, if anything, my guess is that David was what would be called today a bisexual.

At any rate, this post is about musical surprises.

Since there was no choir for a communion anthem, and the line for communion was not terribly long, Andrew filled the space with some quiet music.

As I reached my pew after communion, I was wondering -- Wait! Is that "Jesus loves me"?

It was indeed. Now when was the last time any of us has heard that? During an Episcopal communion service?

But that wasn't the only surprise.

When the service was over, the blessing given and the dismissal uttered, Andrew broke into his Postlude.

Usually we are treated to a finger-busting piece by Bach or another of the great German organ composers.

But today was a true surprise.

It was the "Star Wars" theme -- arranged for organ.

The applause at the end was much more enthusiastic than usual.

Maybe there will be more musical surprises in our future.

Worship at Grace Church is at 10:30 AM on Sundays. You are always welcome to visit whether or not singing is your thing. Or visit the parish website here.

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 -- Dan Damon [ follow ]

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