Neither the Anglican nor Methodist churches we attend down here have hymnals with music in them. The words are there, but the no notes. For someone who sort-of reads music, this is a huge challenge for the worship experience. And for an alto who doesn’t like hovering on notes above D, it’s particularly stressful.
It’s not just the hymns. The Anglican service includes a number of sung responses – the Gloria, the Sanctus, and even the Lord’s Prayer in a form you’ve never heard before. Compared with figuring out these tunes, sorting through the rest of the Book of Common Prayer during the service is a piece of cake!
There aren’t even hymn tune names – not that I would know these anyway. The organist plays an introduction, and occasionally a light will come on – “Oh, this is In Christ There Is No East or West” (St. Peter, not McKee!) – and then you can sing like you know what you are doing (and even make up harmony on the fly if you are lucky!).
Much of the time it’s literally “fake it till you make it.” Of course, the analogy is not lost on us. Much of life is about muddling through with words and no music – but with great sincerity. We’re reminded that the “Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26) – I’m sure we’re the source of many Spiritual sighs during the hymns!!
And singing “new” words to a familiar tune – or familiar words to a new tune – can really give your brain a workout. It can make you appreciate familiar texts in a different way – think of singing O Little Town of Bethlehem to Forest Green instead of the stodgy old St. Louis (it’s life-changing!).
Most of all, we’ve learned that the trick is not to let the details get in the way of the big picture – the important thing is to feel the light and sing, with or without music.
PS It’s even more interesting in a foreign language like Xhosa, but more on that in a future post!
Authors: Jeanne and Randy spend some of their time in South Africa helping the Anglican and Methodist churches with their work on ECD centers, youth programs, and other priority projects for church staff.
