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Last week I mentioned Harriet Beecher Stowe's lovely hymn text, "Still, still with thee." The words (shown below) take on new beauty in this setting by composer Elaine Hagenberg.

https://www.elainehagenberg.com/ehm/still-with-thee

1 Still, still with Thee, when purple morning breaketh,
When the bird waketh, and the shadows flee;
Fairer than morning, lovelier than daylight,
Dawns the sweet consciousness I am with Thee.

2 Alone with Thee amid the mystic shadows,
The solemn hush of nature newly born;
Alone with Thee in breathless adoration,
In the calm dew and freshness of the morn.

3 Still, still with Thee! As to each newborn morning
A fresh and solemn splendor still is given,
So does this blessed consciousness, awaking,
Breathe each day nearness unto Thee and heaven.

4 When sinks the soul, subdued by toil, to slumber,
Its closing eyes look up to Thee in prayer;
Sweet the repose beneath Thy wings o'ershading.
But sweeter still, to wake and find Thee there.

5 So shall it be at last, in that bright morning,
When the soul waketh, and life's shadows flee;
O in that hour, fairer than daylight dawning,
Shall rise the glorious thought, I am with Thee.

AMEN.

The poetry of Susan Palo Cherwien (1953-2021) resonates long after you sing the hymn. Last Sunday the children's choir sang, "In sacred manner," singing to "The luminous and loving stars" and "The suspirant and loving green." My mind lingers over her celebration of creation. Here are two of my favorite verses:

In sacred manner may we hear The pounding waves, the searing fire,

The rushing wind, the singing night, The forest hymn, the loving choir.

The morning stars shall sing. The morning stars shall sing.

In sacred manner may we live Among the wise and loving ones,

Sit humbly, as at sages' feet, By four-legged, finned and feathered ones.

The animals will teach. The animals will teach.

Here is the newest installment of Hymns by Women, covering Propers 5-12 of year A. This article, and the entire series, first appeared in The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians. It is reprinted here with permission of the AAM editor.

On Mother's Day we sang Jacque B. Jones's "We long to know her." The tune is from Southern Harmony, arranged by

Alice Parker. I find it transformative to imagine God with feminine pronouns.

Here is the first verse:

We long to know her, the maker of heaven.

knitter of sinews and planter of grains.

Guardian of sheep and the founder of vineyards,

she is the stronghold that gently sustains.

She is the sculptor who carved earth from darkness,

architect building creation from dust.

She is the potter who formed us and made us,

gave us our breath, and now yearns for our trust.

You can find the full hymn in Resounding Voices or at GIA, the publisher.

In our upcoming suggestions for hymns by women, you will find this powerful text by Edith Sinclair Downing. She draws our attention to the essential work of the women who saved Moses and made his work possible.

Sing praise for Hebrew midwives (published by The Leupold Foundation)

7.6.7.6.D

Suggested tune: MERLE’S TUNE

1 Sing praise for Hebrew midwives,

they bravely served their God;

they brought to birth God’s people,

a remnant was preserved.

They used both fact and fiction,

and found a cunning way

to counter male dominion,

and give God’s will full sway.

2 Praise, too, the loving mother

who saved her son from death.

She placed him in the water

with trembling, fearful breath.

Then Pharaoh’s daughter entered,

and found the hidden one.

Defying her own father,

she took him for her son.

3 Sing praise for this son, Moses,

who, by the midwives’ act,

saved to lead God’s people,

and given faith he lacked.

Revere defiant women

who seek to bring to birth

new life from wombs of darkness

to live God’s will on earth.

Propers 5-12 hymns pdf

Hymns by Women #4.pdf

v. 3 Sacred all creatures, marvelous companions,

Elders and teachers, all of our relations,

Rocks tell earth's story, plants reveal earth's wisdom,

Living in wonder.

v. 4 Blessed our bodies, kindred gift of starlight:

Eyes to see beauty, ears to hear the heart sigh,

Hands to give healing, hearts to bind together,

Breathing in wonder.

v. 5 Infinite Beauty, Love that moves the heavens,

May our minds wisen, may our hearts awaken,

That we join all things, one and interwoven,

Singing in wonder.

Here is the fourth installment of the Hymns by Women series. With Earth Day in mind, I plan to sing "Infinite Beauty" next week. The text by Susan Palo Cherwien is stunning:

v. 1 Infinite Beauty, Love that moves the heavens

Maker of all things, present in creation,

from the beginning, all Your works reveal You,

Stirring to wonder.

v. 2 Holy this garden, worthy of protection,

Blue pearl in deep space, due our true affection,

Dwelling and parent, elegant in balance,

Growing in wonder.

Another beautiful hymn for earth day is by Ruth Duck:

We cannot own the sunlit sky, the moon, the wild flow'rs growing,

for we are part of all that is within life's river growing.

With open hands receive and share the gifts of God's creation,

that all may have abundant life in every earthly nation.

You can find the other verses of this hymn on the GIA website here.

New Project, New Collaborations Underway!

WSMP is awarded a grant by the Association of Anglican Musicians

In support of our new anthem project, the Association of Anglican Musicians has given $2000 for new commissions. We are so grateful!

The WSMP Board has approved a project to commission a collection of anthems for children, teens, and amateur adult choirs. Our hope is to find new gender-inclusive language for The Holy One and share it in musically accessible songs and anthems. The cost of a single 3-4 minute anthem is approximately $500-1000 depending on the composer. Would you like to donate a song?

Thank you for your support!

Resounding Voices

Our Resounding Voices collection in honor of the hymnal Voices Found is now hyperlinked for easier navigation. You can download it at:

https://thehymnsociety.org/resources/resounding-voices/

Resounding Voices with hyperlinks 11_25.pdf

WSMP supports Wildflower Composers!

https://wildflowercomposers.org/

Here is a beautiful recording of Hope Salmonson's WSMP 2024 winning commissioned work, Ubi caritas et amor.

This year we have awarded a prize of $500 to Ksenia Stetsenko and a runner-up prize of $100 to Bridget Bourne. These young composers will write a sacred choral work in which God is described in gender-neutral or feminist names. Here's a bit more about Ksenia:

Ksenia Stetsenko is a Ukrainian composer, violinist, and pianist based in Philadelphia. Urged by global political events and inspired by personal experiences, she writes for solo instruments, chamber ensembles, orchestra, and a cappella voices. Her works have been performed in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Edmonton, Quebec, Lviv, Kharkiv, London, Berlin, and Frankfurt. Ksenia holds a B.M. in Music Composition from the Lviv National Music Academy, where she studied with Prof. Bohdana Frolyak. Her artistic voice is further shaped by her background in Cultural Studies and her lifelong passion for travel.

Ksenia is honored to receive this commission and excited to see how the text and music shape the piece, bringing the idea to life in such a beautiful and important project.

Imagining God as a mother, as Wisdom, as a fierce bear, as a protective hen, all images from scripture, we affirm a God known by many names.

Since 1995, the Women’s Sacred Music Project has been advancing women’s achievements in sacred music

Discovering a broad range of sacred music by women, much of it unpublished.

Publishing women’s sacred music in Voices Found, Leader's Guide to Voices Found, and Resounding Voices.

Commissioning works by women addressing themes of women in Sacred Scriptures.

Presenting concerts of sacred music by women of various religious traditions.

Educating individuals and communities in the rich resources of women’s sacred music.

The Women's Sacred Music Project received a grant for $1500 from the American Guild of Organists IDEA Committee (Inclusion, diversity, Equity, and Accessibility.) We are grateful for this support toward our latest project, a collection of anthems for amateur choirs with gender-neutral or feminine names for God.

We have also received a grant for $1000 to support the Hymns by Women Project! We are thankful for the Association of Anglican Musicians and their grants team. Your support makes this work possible.

Support Our Mission

As a 501(c)3 not-for-profit entity, the WSMP asks for your generosity to support our cause of advancing women's achievements in sacred music. In order to fund comprehensive projects like Resounding Voices, including hymns which are Jewish, Christian, and stretching the boundaries, the WSMP has raised over $20,000 through grants and individual donations. Your continued support of this groundbreaking mission helps us bring many more musical opportunities to women.

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Imagining God as a mother, as Wisdom, as a fierce bear, as a protective hen, all images from scripture, we affirm a God known by many names.

Support Our Mission

© 2023 Women’s Sacred Music Project