“Sing to the Lord a new song,” says the psalmist and from well-known hymns to contemporary worship songs, each of us carries a song in our hearts to expresses the heights and depths of our lives, drawing on the Psalms, to give voice to and help articulate our praise and prayer.
In the modern era, our worship is often shaped not by the local but global. Whether choral or contemporary music is used, large publishing houses have become powerful forces to shape the style and sound of worship across continents.
This is a far cry from the ancient world of Whitby in which the 7th century cowherd Cædmon is believed to have written sacred songs for his community. With compositions deeply rooted in local, oral traditions and musical styles, he’s said to have engaged with the cultural rhythms of Yorkshire.
Drawing on this deep heritage of spiritual song that has seeped into our culture, can we now raise up our local musicians to craft music and lyrics that are suited to our northern dialect and reflect the spiritual needs of our local congregations? Can we encourage those who are gifted to write their own songs to draw authentically on our unique experiences, culture, and spiritual journeys? Locally written songs give voice to the specific joys, struggles, and stories of a congregation, making worship more meaningful and rooted in the realities of our shared life. Writing local music also honours the incarnational nature of our Church where we see God at work in our people and place.
In Halifax and Calder Valley Deanery, contemporary worship musicians have come together from different places to share their songs with each other. Some bring their own compositions whilst others bring songs they’ve been learning, which speak particularly into their community.
Longing to connect the congregation with their spiritual roots here in Yorkshire, Robb & Ruth Sutherland have written a song about the Yorkshire Saints. It begins with the line “There’s an ancient path, in Yorkshire’s hills, marked with crosses of stone” and speaks of building God’s kingdom here, as heroes like Hilda, Margaret and Paulinus once did.
One of the greatest charisms of our beloved Church of England is a commitment to incarnational ministry through the local parish. As we faithfully declare that God became flesh and lived amongst us in the person of Jesus Christ, two millennia later, we form Christian communities that seek to live this reality each day. A living witness to God’s grace and compassion which flows out through our worship, pastoral care and social outreach and responds directly to our local needs and culture.
If you would like to explore and be part of this imaginative yet rooted, creative and collaborative “Song Share”, head to Holy Nativity Church, Mixenden. The next two dates are 7 September and 26 October at 6pm.