St. Paul's Presbyterian Church

HAM

Ham for Easter has been a tradition in my family for generations but where did that tradition start? It is believed that it goes back to at least 6th-century Germany. Hunters often slaughtered hogs in the forest in the fall, then left them to cure all winter. By spring, pork was one of the only meats ready to go for spring celebrations. When looking for something special to celebrate Easter, ham was the easy choice.
GOOD FRIDAY KITES

If you happen to find yourself in Bermuda on Good Friday, you may be surprised to see legions of kites dotting the sky. According to local legend, a teacher once used a kite to give her students a visual of how Jesus ascended into heaven. The analogy quickly caught on, and today, flying a simple kite made of tissue paper and sticks is still a colorful pastime.

Thine be the Glory – 258

I could not find anything about Edmond Budry who was the original author of this hymn. Edmond wrote it in French in the later part of the 19th century and it was translated into English around the same time by Richard Hoyle.
The tune that accompanies it is famous as it is a piece by Handel entitled Maccabaeus.

Richard was born in Lancashire, England in 1875 and was ordained as a Baptist minister serving congregations in Sudbury, Aberdeen, London, and Kent. He then became the editor of the YMCA’s Red Triangle magazine and later professor of theology at Western Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before finishing his working life pastoring at the Baptist church in Kingston-on-Thames.

The victory of Christ over death is certainly something that happened at a specific moment in time but for Edmond who originally penned this, the victory of Christ over death is endless. In other words, each generation that lives on earth and passes from this reality is assured that the victory of Christ means that death can have no hold on anyone ever again.

In the second verse, Edmond presents us with the risen Jesus come to meet each one of us as he met Mary and then the disciples. The coming of Jesus to us and his greeting scatters our fear and gloom. The sting of death is passed forever, and the church has reason to celebrate because the Lord lives and so we who believe will live also.
In the final verse, Edmond declares that no more need we doubt for Christ has proven that death has been conquered by the love revealed on the cross.

So now we can look forward to that symbolic crossing of the Jordan as Christ brings us to our eternal home – the last and final promised land, the new heaven where we will spend eternity with our God.

King of Kings – 266

This short hymn can be sung as a round or as many times as people would like. Each phrase is repeated twice. It is set to a traditional Jewish melody, one which is very familiar.

It was written in 1974 by Naomi Batya and Sophie Conty when they were only 13 years old. Naomi has gone on to make a career of songwriting writing hundreds of songs for independent films, cable TV, ads and video games.

Now let the vault of heaven resound – 255

This hymn was written in the early part of the 20th century by Paul Zeller Strodach. The tune is LasstUnsErfreuen– let us rejoice. It originated in Germany in 1623 and is believed to have been written by Friedrich Spee, an influential Jesuit priest, professor, and activist against witch hunts. It found widespread popularity after the English Hymnal published a 1906 version in strong triple meter. The triumphant melody and repeated “Hallelujah” phrases have supported the tune’s usage during the Easter season. That hymnal was edited by Ralph Vaughan Williams whose arrangement has become the standard for English-speaking churches.

Mine eyes have seen the glory – 225 (OB)

Credit for this hymn has been given to Julia Ward Howe who was born in New York City in 1819 and died in Middleton, Rhode Island in 1910. The inspiration for this hymn came in November of 1861 when Julia, her husband and her pastor were visiting Washington, DC shortly after the outbreak of the Civil War. The troops were singing:” John Brown’s body lies a-mouldering in the grave” to a popular tune written by William Steffe in 1859. Glory, hallelujah was the name of the tune originally and was used as a chorus in Sunday School.

At the request of her pastor, Julia wrote the words that today have become so famous. The hymn caught the eye of a military chaplain who taught it to his troops and then to prisoners in Libby prison after he himself was made a prisoner of war.

Although originally a patriotic song, the words do encourage as we declare that the truth of God still goes on.