Being and Singing in Community

On June 28 I had the pleasure of singing at the two traditional services along with the women's chorale I belong to, Safonia. We sang to thank the church for allowing us to use the Chapel to record our recent CD. (I've included the texts of the two pieces we sang, "The Gate of the Year" and "Benedizione," at the bottom of this post.)

In his sermon that day, Pastor Ken talked about the idea of community and what it would look like if the BUMC community truly reflected our larger community. He challenged the congregation to meditate on how BUMC can, without an agenda, open our hearts and doors so that perhaps the English Language Learners currently using our classrooms during the week would feel comfortable coming to worship on Sunday, or so that maybe the working poor of Broomfield would not feel disenfranchised by the sight of nice cars in our parking lots and would know that there is a place at the table for them here.

Due in part to the fact that I got to hear the sermon twice, I was thinking about the idea of community in the context of BUMC as well as in the context of the group of women I was sitting with. I feel truly blessed to have found such a wonderful small community in Safonia, a group of women with whom I love singing and spending time. They threw me a great baby shower that included the typical "what's in the diaper" games and ended with a few rounds of Wii. While as a group we may look rather homogenous (read: white women), we come to Safonia from different backgrounds and experiences: some of us are Christian, some of us are non-practicing, and some of us are of different religions; some of us are gay, and some of us are straight; some of us have partners and families of our own, and some of us are single. We all have strong opinions on the music we sing, with each piece having its defenders and detractors. But how we function as a community is never in doubt, most recently put into practice when we sang at the funeral services of a beloved member, Diane, who, before she died after a lengthy battle with cancer, specified which pieces she wanted us to sing.

And on that Sunday, I thought about how we were already putting into play the vision of community that Ken was describing. Without an agenda, the BUMC family welcomed a diverse group into its community through the vehicle of music. And without an agenda, Safonia came to a church to offer songs that would be meaningful to the congregation. For that morning, without any of us even specifically asking, I felt like the Holy Spirit came along side us all (as Ken described it) as we stood with each other in the true spirit of giving and community.

The Gate of the Year (music by Eleanor Daley, text by Minnie Louise Haskins)
I said to the man who stood at the Gate of the Year,
"Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown."
And he replied, "Go out into the darkness
And put your hand into the hand of God,
That shall be to you better than light
And safer than a known way."
So I went forth, and finding the hand of God
Trod gladly into the night.

Click here to listen to a recording of "The Gate of the Year" conducted by the composer

Benedizione (music by Joan Szymko, text from the Blessing of St. Francis of Assisi to Brother Leo)
Il Signore ti benedica e ti custodisca
Mostri a te il suo volto e abbia misericordia di te
Rivolga verso di te il suo sguardo e ti dia pace
Il Signore benedica te

[translation]
May the Lord bless you and keep you
May He show His face to you and show you mercy
May He turn His countenance to you and give you peace
The Lord bless you