Musical Notes from Robin – April 2020

Update: Due to COVID-19, our Easter Cantata is postponed until the crisis is over

April of 2020 will be a month to remember! I am so thankful for my church and my church family, as we experience a truly unique time in all our lives. As we worship together, whether it be in our sanctuary or electronically, the members of Main Street will continue to trust in the “God of The Ages” to protect and sustain them.

As the season of Lent gives way to the glory of the resurrection and Easter, so we the children of God and members of Main Street will triumph.

The music of the Passion Festival, Maundy Thursday, Palm Sunday, and
Easter—when and wherever it is experienced, will hopefully reinforce the power, majesty, and glory of the God and Savior we serve.

Thanks Be to God!
Robin

“Festival of Faith”
by Joseph M. Martin

The Easter Cantata—”Festival of Faith”—is the work that I chose for the
Passion Festival Service to be held on Palm Sunday evening, April 5, 2020.

In the words of Joseph Martin…

“We are a people of the Song.

“From generation to generation, worshippers have shared their spiritual
journeys through the sacred arts. Our tuneful testimonies are passionate witnesses to the miracles God has worked among His people. Hymns, psalms, and spiritual songs provide the church with a special language of the heart; as we share and remember our heritage of faith.

“With music, we comfort each other during difficult times, singing promises of hope and peace. The great hymns and treasured psalms enrich and encourage us by pressing God’s timeless truths deep into our yearning hearts and minds. When we sing, we breathe together; and, in that unity, we celebrate our calling as people of praise. It is in these precious, holy moments that our grateful voices of worship rise like incense to the Giver of grace. In the hushed spaces between the words and notes, we listen and learn.

So now as we gather to hear these timeless truths, once again, we experience the mystery and majesty of Christ’s redemptive love. May each song remind us to celebrate life and inspire our living to become a joyful festival of faith.

“Festival of Faith” is composed of ten musical selections interspersed with Scripture-based readings that celebrate life based on the ministry, passion, and
resurrection of Jesus.

The selections include “And Can It Be That I Should Gain”; “A Call To Faith”; “Come To The Mountain”; “Prayer of Restoration”; “Festival of Palms”; “In the
Breaking of the Bread”; “Shadow Garden”; “I Saw the Cross of Jesus”; Easter People, Rise”; and “A Call to Alleluia”.

The Charles Wesley Choir will be joined by guest singers and instrumentalists including flute, trumpet, reeds, percussion, piano, and organ. Gerald Berry will serve as the narrator, and The Sarah Allen Handbell Choir will begin the service with a work entitled “Palm Sunday Glory” by Sharon Elery Rogers. This work includes the hymns “All Glory, Laud, and Honor”; “Hosanna, Loud Hosanna”; and “Ride On! Ride On In Majesty!”

Robin Thompson