Holy Eucharist Rite II at 10:30 a.m. sung by the Youth and Adult Choirs, sermon by the Rev’d Hope Eakins.

Worship at Home:

Click here: Service Bulletin – Sermon Text

Subscribe to St. John’s podcasts at PodcastPeople or on iTunes

Service Music:

Palm Procession from the Cloister Garden

Hymn in Procession 154    All glory, laud, and honor    Valet will ich dir geben

Kyrie Eleison S-84    Gregorian Chant, Orbis factor

Sequence Hymn 158    Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended     Herzliebster Jesu
Sung in unison; men sing verse 2, women sing verse 3, all sing remaining verses.

Offertory Anthem      Sanctus from Requiem    Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924)
Heidi Tummescheit, violin

In the Sanctus Fauré offers something like a vision of the Kingdom of Heaven itself. Over an almost minimalist harp-and-string figure (perhaps representing the clouds themselves?) and a high solo violin, the sopranos and high men play duetting choirs of angels, calling and responding and slowly building to the triumphant Hosanna. 

Sanctus    Gregorian Chant, Deus Genitor alme

Agnus Dei    Gregorian Chant, Deus Genitor alme

Communion Anthem     Salvator mundi    Thomas Tallis (1505-1585)
Words from the Sarum Manual

Salvator mundi, salva nos, qui per crucem et sanguinem
redemisti nos. Auxiliare nobis, te deprecamur, Deus noster.

Saviour of the world, save us, thou who by thy cross and blood
hast redeemed us. Come to our rescue, we beseech thee, our God.

Salvator mundi has a personal text (“Saviour, help us, redeem us!”) but it still inhabits a spiritual realm. English Renaissance composers enjoyed a certain musical technique called cross-relationships (for example, a G-natural and a G-sharp sung at the same time.) Tallis employs that “crunching sound” frequently here to establish the poignant pleading of the text.

Hymn in Procession 168    O sacred head, sore wounded    Passion Chorale