Mary Jane Voogt is Director of Music Ministry at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, Kansas City, Missouri. She was also a member of the editorial council of Reformed Worship.
Articles by this author:
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Song of Hope; In Christ There Is No East or West; Psalm 24
Are you looking for ways to bring a spirit of renewal to your worship this fall? One way to do that is to breathe new life into your congregational hymn-singing through the addition of istruments, soloists, children, concertato arrangements, reharmonizations, and antiphony.
The songs on these pages share three characteristics that might help you encourage revitalized hymn-singing in your worship this fall:
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Come, Lord Jesus, Come: Completing the journey of Holy Week
An Easter service often begins with great festivity, with bright organ and trumpet music, with "all the lights up." Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church chose a different mood for this Easter service. Their concern was to remember that Easter morning is the completion of the Holy Week journey. So the service began the way it concluded on Good Friday: in darkness, with no banners, no flowers, no prelude.
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Book: Our Heritage of Hymns Series II
Mary Nelson Kiethahn, editor. Garland TX: Chorister's Guild, 1989, 128 pp., $24.95.
In situations of joy as well as in occasions of crisis, phrases or refrains of hymns will sing in our minds, offering encouragement and consolation. Because hymns are a powerful tool for learning and using theology, we need to consider where—or if—our children are learning to sing and love a variety of the great hymns of faith.
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Book: Of Primary Importance: Information, Preparation and Application, A Practical Guide for Directors of Younger Elementary Choristers
Helen Kemp. Garland, TX: Chorister's Guild, 1989, 91 pp., $12.95
It is easy to catch Kemp's enthusiasm for teaching young choristers as you read this manual for directors of younger elementary choirs. Her many years of experience in children's music result in practical and clearly presented suggestions.
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