Because I’m all about that bass all about the hymns!

“Thine Is The Glory”. This one is in the Lutheran Book of Worship (and most other Lutheran hymnals) but not in the 1982 Hymnal for the Episcopal church. I was kvetching to my choir director about this and his response: “You could always become Lutheran again.” (I stuck my tongue out at him in response.) This one is especially lovely if you have brass in church.

“Now the Green Blade Riseth”. The tune for this hymn is “Noel Nouvelet” and is in a minor key so there are some of my husband’s parishioners that have hated it and asked that it not be sung or only sung once during Easter. The reason this is funny is that one of our parishioners in Minnesota managed to set “Jingle Bells” to it at Christmas dinner in 2004 when we were jamming afterwards; and when we were singing this at the installation of Bishop Jessica Crist in Montana in 2007, I leaned forward to Jon who was seated in the row in front of me (with all the clergy) and whispered, “Jingle Bells”. He started giggling and our seminary president (who is the former bishop of Montana) rolled his eyes at us.

“Alleluia, Alleluia! Give Thanks to the Risen Lord”. I shared this one in my Simple Woman’s Daybook on Monday. I remember it from my first Easter at ECA in 1997 and I have loved it since, though I don’t think I had sung it in at least 10 years before Sunday. (It’s not in the Lutheran Book of Worship and I doubt it’s in the new cranberry-colored hymnal which I despise.)

“Alleuia, Sing to Jesus”. This is used more as an Ascension hymn but our Offertory anthem this year was an arrangement of it. I’m also a hymn tune snob and I have an abiding love of the tune Hyfrydol.

“Christ the Lord is Risen Today”. This is song that most Protestants associate with Easter, at least those that attend churches with traditional hymnody. It was also one of the first hymns I learned.

Go love up Jenna and the others.