Hymns of the Church: "Father, We Thank Thee (You)"

Abstract

With this issue, CrossAccent begins a new series, "Hymns of the Church," which will examine various aspects how text and music are presented in modern day hymnals. This series should be a valuable resource for those called upon to lead congregational song, as well as to music committees of future hymnals who must often make important decisions without ready access to scholarly work on individual texts and melodies. ... THIS SUMMER, I was honored to be one of the key presenters at the ALCM Region II conference in Savannah, Georgia. In addition to presenting two workshops, I had the pleasure of playing for the Closing Eucharist (who wouldn't enjoy accompanying a congregation of some forty professional Lutheran church musicians?). When the draft for the liturgy arrived - about a week before the service - I noticed a hymn that I had never played in my nine-year career as a Lutheran church musician in America, but its tune was very familiar from my experience in Roman Catholic and Protestant denominations in The Netherlands. It was, of course, "Father, We Thank Thee (You)," Francis Bland Tucker's adaptation of part of the 'Didache', sung to the tune RENDEZ À DIEU, in other traditions known as Psalm 118, one of the better-known tunes from the 'Genevan Psalter'. That the hymn was scheduled to be our Offertory Hymn - an "overture" to the Communion Service if you will - was appropriate for the text. But it was not until writing this article that I found out that singing the hymn at the Savannah conference was particularly appropriate for a different reason: Tucker was rector of Savannah's Christ Church (Episcopal) for almost a quarter century (1945-67) and apparently lived there until his death in 1984.