New! Songs for the Vigil

Over the last few years I've been working along on a project of preparing songs responding to the readings from the Hebrew scriptures that are read at the Vigil of Easter in Episcopal, Lutheran, and other liturgical churches. Generally I've started with a hymn text from the eighteenth century and reworked the text to reflect my take on the reading. You'll find in my final texts a preference for inclusive language and progressive theology, as well as considerable respect for the stories themselves.

I've set these texts to folk tunes or to tunes from the Sacred Harp tradition, because these are familiar tunes that can be sung with a melody-only accompaniment such as might be provided by a flute or violin. Most of the tunes are in the current Episcopal or ELCA Lutheran hymnals if a full score is wanted.

A Responsive Reading of Hippolytus' Easter sermon

This translation is from the website for Saint Gregory of Nyssa in San Francisco. The text has been lightly adapted and arranged for responsive reading by Pamela Grenfell Smith, who makes no copyright claim on the text or arrangement. This text is often used as a Gradual reading for the Great Vigil of Easter.

A very silly Shrove Tuesday skit featuring this heart-stirring song...

Shrive the shriven shrewish shroves
Shave the shaven shortish shroves
Cleave the cloven Clovis shroves
All in a paper bag.

Canticle of Mary of Nazareth - Lead Sheet
Canticle of Mary of Nazareth - Full Score
New! A simple, singable metrical Canticle 15, AKA Magnificat! Wonderful with a tambourine, hand drums, or finger cymbals.

A new verse for O Beautiful, for Spacious Skies
A new verse for a new century - "O beautiful for those who heal, who build and teach and mend..."

A new verse for I Sing A Song of the Saints of God
Adding some American saints - Sojourner, Harriet, Absalom, Jonathan and Martin.

A re-worked version of Who Are These Like Stars Appearing
A hymn for All Saints - the traditional Schenck/Cox text has been shortened up considerably and edited to fit the haunting Saint Helena tune by Calvin Hampton, with one new verse by Pamela Grenfell Smith.

A re-worked version of When the Saints Go Marching In
A hymn for All Saints - this song is a beloved element of jazz worship, but the original hymn's words have gotten etched off by the power of the instrumentation. Here are three singable verses edited & expanded by P. Smith from traditional sources. No copyright is asserted for this work.

A hymn for the First Sunday After Christmas - In the Beginning Was the Word
In the Revised Common Lectionary, John 1: 1-18 is the Gospel text for the first Sunday after Christmas, years A, B and C - but there don't seem to be many hymns based on this magnificent reading. This new hymn text is based on John 1 and on Phos hilaron, an early Greek evening hymn. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

What is the difference between transformation and change?
Our culture, our time and place, tell us that we are able to change ourselves - but I have come to believe that these attempts to change the self, adjust the self, fix the self - these attempts only get in the way of authentic transformation. And so - somewhat in the spirit of a field guide offering careful guidance on how to distinguish a long-billed curlew from a marbled godwit - here are my field notes on the difference between transformation and change.

An Instructed Eucharist
Written for Rite II of the Episcopal Church's 1979 Book of Common Prayer, this polyvocal set of readings gives voice to the emotional and relational processes that are happening during liturgical worship. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

Nicholas, A Garland of Tales for the Nights Before Christmas
This simple play for adults and children re-situates Nicholas as a servant of the poor. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

Nicholas, A Garland of Tales for the Nights Before Christmas
This is the same story, arranged for straight storytelling instead of chancel drama. It works very well as a staged reading with a group of readers. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

A Christmas Sweeping Poem
A short performance piece to make room for Christmas!