Stochastic Worship

Category: songs

Posts which highlight individual songs

  • St. George’s Day

    St. George’s Day

    The Patron Saint of England – adopted because he was seen the purest example of chivalry for us to emulate.

    Of course, I’ve curated a song – it focuses on the story we’re most familiar with, slaying a dragon.

    [Verse]
    Riding through fields of green so wide
    Armor gleam under the sunlit tide
    Banner high with a lion’s might
    Against the shadows he rides tonight

    [Verse 2]
    In troubled lands with fear so near
    A beast of legend bred from fear
    Villagers whisper ‘neath the starlit dome
    A hero’s come to bring the dragon home

    [Chorus]
    With sword ablaze and heart so pure
    He faces flames so fierce and sure
    A hero born of ground and stone
    To slay the dragon take the throne

    [Verse 3]
    Darkened skies where shadows creep
    Dragon’s roar shakes the valley deep
    Glistening scales like night’s own coat
    Saint George lunges at the foe’s throat

    [Bridge]
    Roaring clash the earth it shakes
    Steel and claws their courage makes
    Victory sweet in dawn’s embrace
    Saint George stands with a proud face

    [Chorus]
    With sword ablaze and heart so pure
    He faces flames so fierce and sure
    A hero born of ground and stone
    To slay the dragon take the throne

    For those of you who prefer St. Edmund; king, martyr and previously recognised as Patron Saint of England, I have a song praising his courage in the face of his murderous Viking captors as he refused to bow the knee to their gods.

    There’s a certain odd symmetry of a royal martyr whose banner was a white dragon on a red field, being supplanted by a princess-rescuing dragon slayer whose emblem is a red cross on a white field.

  • The thief on the cross

    The thief on the cross

    A song about Jesus’ crucifixion based on the point of view of the thief on the cross? What could possibly go wrong? For those of you who wonder whether it is sensible to hand over hymn writing to a machine, this gives you an insight into how bizarre errors can creep into the process.

    The song is Outcasts at Twilight. Eventually, I’ll correct the error, but it’s so subtle it’s worth leaving in as an example of what to look for.

    The song’s lyrics are:

    [Verse 1]
    I saw him stand before the crowd
    A king in chains yet unbowed
    The governor asked what to do
    Condemned the one they called true

    [Verse 2]
    They gave him thorns and scarlet robe
    A mocking smile a painful probe
    He carried wood upon his back
    Up to the hill the sky turned black

    [Chorus]
    Oh the irony a thief like me
    Watching him die to set us free
    He offered peace in dying breath
    In midst of pain and facing death

    [Verse 3]
    They cursed him spat and cast their lots
    While I hung here haunted by my thoughts
    Yet he whispered words of grace
    Promised me a sacred place

    [Bridge]
    Forgive them father he cried loud
    As sunlight broke through stormy clouds
    The curtain tore the earth it quaked
    A sacred promise he did make

    [Verse 4]
    As darkness fell the day was done
    And cold the stone they laid upon
    Hearts were heavy eyes were red
    In borrowed tomb he rested dead

    It’s the timeline that’s all over the place, like a poorly produced movie where you get more enjoyment spotting the continuity errors.

    Does it matter if way too many liberties have been taken in the name of artistic license? It lessens its impact as an apologetic tool. It distracts the worshipper from the primary aim of a spiritual song – to focus on their relationship with God.

  • A song for Maundy Thursday

    A song for Maundy Thursday

    It’s a day of mixed emotions with so much to unpack. The name comes from Jesus’ mandate – a new commandment: to love one another. We have foot-washing: the master is the servant. The last supper with predictions of Jesus’ betrayal. Prayer at Gethsemane, Jesus’ arrest and trial, then finally the cock crows and we know how deeply our failure has run.

    How do you capture all that in a song?

    I like how Washed Feet and Heavy Hearts came together in expressing some of this:

    [Verse 1]
    Feet in hands bowed low and humble
    Echoes of a love so true
    Servant’s heart beats out the thunder
    In a room of mixed up views

    [Verse 2]
    Bravado walks on shaky ground
    Lips that laugh but hearts are torn
    One of twelve to weave the crown
    Betrayal’s breath on hope is sworn

    [Chorus]
    Washed feet and heavy hearts
    Grace in the face of falling stars
    Boundless love still lights the dark
    When faith is found in Jesus’ scars

    [Verse 3]
    Tables set for bread and wine
    Yet shadows cast by hidden fear
    Promises of soul divine
    Shattered when the dawn is near

    [Verse 4]
    Silent whispers of what’s true
    A Kiss to break our holy ties
    Love that’s denied in shades of blue
    Fading as the rooster cries

    [Chorus]
    Washed feet and heavy hearts
    Grace in the face of falling stars
    Boundless love still lights the dark
    When faith is found in Jesus’ scars

    The song was originally generated as the 13th song in my suite of songs following the chapters of John’s Gospel. It pairs well with The Arrest in the Garden – another song from the same suite.

    However, for those who prefer a rock ballad style the musical style of Denial’s Edge from my Luke’s Gospel suite might be more to your taste. All of these are in my Holy Week playlist.

  • Chants

    Chants

    I have a playlist, of course. And I’m not the only person at Suno using their tools to do this.

    There’s a rich tradition of using short, repetitive songs to focus the mind on who you’re singing to – from the Jesus Prayer uttered in the Egyptian deserts sixteen centuries ago to Taize-style worship in churches today.

    It’s a style which has often been parodied. I came across one based on Graham Kendrick’s Jesus Put This Song Into Our Hearts back in the 1980s. It’s still doing the rounds now in a slightly altered form:

    This is a modern Christian worship song,
    This is a modern Christian worship song,
    This is a modern Christian worship song,

    [change key and repeat]

    But it resonates with something deep inside us. We long for union with the God who created us, who loved us so much that He took on human form to live among us. Not just to show us how to live but to satisfy the demands of a Divine justice system that demanded our death and eternal separation from our Creator because of our rebellion against Him. Only through Him can we find the power to subdue the inward struggle to be less than we were designed to be.

    And so, we call out to Him.

    One of the experimental chants I’ve been working on is called Cry To The Lord:

    [Chorus]
    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    [Verse 1]
    I love the Lord
    he heard my prayer
    and saved me from
    the devil’s snare

    [Chorus]
    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    [Verse 2]
    Cry to the Lord
    He’ll hear your voice
    and in His love
    you will rejoice

    [Chorus]
    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    Jesus Christ
    Son of David
    have mercy on me
    a sinner

    It’s simple enough. Similar in structure to the Jesus Prayer, but more resonant of Bartimaeus’ cry in the 10th chapter of Mark’s Gospel. Like him, we’re blind. Searching for the One who can transform our sinful reality into one where His glorious presence shines through to give us joy.