The Legacy of John Calvin and the Renewal of Christian Worship - Handout

The Legacy of John Calvin and the Renewal of Christian Worship

creed. Answers that he does not understand it well. Said the Lord’s Prayer, but did not know the confession. Given proper admonitions to attend the sermons more often and to see that he learns to say his confession. Asked when he last heard the sermon and who preached and what the preacher said. Answers that it was four days ago at St. Gervase, he does not know what day. He has a Bible. He heard Master Farel preach at St. Peter’s, he does not know when or on what day. The Consistory admonished him to come within two weeks to render an account of his confession, and his wife and family, and to frequent the sermons both on Sunday and the day of prayer.

Henderson Lectures, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary May 1, 2009 John D. Witvliet, Director, Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Professor of Worship, Theology, and Music, Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary Grand Rapids, Michigan

3. Robert, the pack-saddler (p. 22): Asked by Monsieur Pertemps why he did not appear and present himself last Thursday when he should have and about his charge and how he had carried out his charge and why he did not present himself and do his duty. Answers that he did what he could and attended the sermons. He could say nothing of his faith. The Consistory is of the opinion that he be given a longer term to instruct himself better in the faith and that he come every Thursday to show how he has profited and that he come every Thursday before Communion. And that he be give a more severe [admonitions] and that… Asked what profit he has made and how he has profited from the sermons since his last appearance. Says he listened every Sunday and that last Sunday he heard the sermon at St. Peter’s and he does not know who preached, or what he said, and that it was at vespers and that it was Faret or another, and that he has not been there on Wednesdays. He said that he preached on the commandments.

The Consistory remanded him to present himself every Thursday from now until Easter, and after Easter until he is fully instructed in the fear of God, to give an account of how he has profited day by day; otherwise the Council will not be content with him. The lords preachers have given him just admonitions.

The three lectures will refer to several of these primary source documents Highlights from Genevan Church Consistory Minutes Registers of the Consistory of Geneva In The Time of Calvin, V. I, 1542-1544. Ed. Robert M. Kingdon, Thomas A. Lambert, Isabella M. Watt. Trans., M. Wallace Mc Donald, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000).

1. The wife of Laurent Symont” (p. 10): It was reported by Monsieur d’Arloz that there was a disturbance at St. Gervase on the Sunday of the marriage of the wife of Pesmes. She (Symont’s wife) answered concerning this that it is true that she was at St. Gervase the said day at the evening sermon and that she laughed at a man who was behind her and the others, and that man said that there was someone who carried a clock. And at that he said that if that man carried relics, people would kiss them after the sermon. And that she heard nothing else wrong except as she has described, and that she did not want to mock the Word of God, and knows nothing more. And she asked Monsieur Bernard, preacher, to see if she had laughed or done anything else. Monsieur Bernard said many other things, as he would repeat to you, (but) this would be tedious. (f. 3v) The Consistory admonished her to be more steady in the future and not mock the Word of God in this way, and that she not do thus again and that she not trouble the church again, and to honor the Word of God.

4. Donne Jane Pertennaz (p. 28). “Asked about her faith and why she has not received Holy Communion and whether she has heard and gone to Mass every year. And she said her faith and that she believes in one God and wants to live in God and the holy church and has no other faith. And she frequents the sermons on Sunday. She recited her Pater in French: “I believe in God the Father, omnipotent, etc.” Answered that Our Lord knows our hearts and that she believes as the church believes. Asked what that is. Answers that she does not… except as the church believes. Asked if there is a church in this city. Answers that she knows nothing; she believes that the Word of God is… And that she wants always to live as a

2. Anthoyne Servoz, from Vienne, cobbler, living on the Rhone Bridge in the house of Glaude Humbert. (p. 19): If he is married and if he has children. Answers that he is married and has one child. And if he goes to sermons. Answers yes, sometimes when he can. Answers that his son is only three and cannot yet understand them. Asked about his faith and 1

Christian and that there is only one God. And whether the sacraments of Our Lord are administered. Answers that it is preached and the Communion is taken, and she believes in Holy Communion as God said: “This is my body, and do this in my memory.” And that where the Word of God is, God is, and that she conforms to the Word of God and that the Word of God is here. And she said she wanted to live and die in it, and it has the administration of the sacraments according to the Word of God and nothing else. Asked why she is not satisfied with the Communion celebrated in this city but goes elsewhere. Answers that she goes where it seems good to her. And that there is talk of princes who are not in accord in what they do openly, but they must be obeyed. And that Our Lord will not come here well-clothed or shod and that where His Word is, His body is a word [sic]. Our Lord said that ravenous wolves would come, and therefore she does not know who these ravenous wolves are or where there are false prophets and… Remanded outside the faith and to appear day by day. And she did not want to renounce the Mass.”

knew of any others he would tell the Seigneurie. And that he frequents sermons.”

7. Johan Constant from Poitour in France, tailor (60): “Answers touching muttering at the sermon that he says the passion, and that he can read and understand it in Latin and that he is more attached than he ever was to the Gospel and that he knows the Pater in Latin and the Ave Maria and his office of Prime, Terce, etc. The Consistory advises, considering his hypocrisy, that he come every Thursday to give an account of his faith and go every Sunday to catechism and that he be admonished more sharply and that he abstain from the sacraments until he is better informed.”

8. Noble Bartholomie, widow of Richardet (62): “Because of the sermons and the rosary, and that she always has fever and cannot go to the sermons and has had it for a year, and knows how to say only the Pater and the confession. She was given proper remonstrances”

5. Arthaudaz from the Bourg du Four. (32): Said that she wants to live according to God and she has no other faith than in Jesus Christ and that she has no rosary or Ave Maria and received Communion and goes to sermons when she can. She could not say the Pater well, and the creeds even less. Admonished to abstain from songs and other things that are not proper and to instruct her daughters honorably, and that they should not insult one another as they do and have done, and at this she departed. And to frequent the sermons and learn the faith.

9. Jana, widow of Jehan, farm laborer (62): “Did not acknowledge the rosary, and [said] that a woman named Jana Crosetaz had it and someone thought it was she. And said her Pater and confessions in the form of the new Reformation in a general way, and goes to sermons.”

10. Jana Crostenez (66): “Touching the rosary that was turned in by François Girin’s maid. Says that once at the sermon, and this woman who wore the rosary, and she told her that it would be taken away, and she gave it to the dizainier, and she does not know [anything more].”

6. Amyed Darnex of Bourdigny, living in Satigny (55-56): “Because of a child kept six years without baptism. If he has a child. Answers that he has two sons and two daughters, one daughter about six years old called Claudaz who was baptized last Sunday, and she was still named Claudaz.

And he was sorry because a woman had baptized her, and the preacher told them the said baptism had not taken place. And that he did it from ignorance and that the mother died, and the woman who baptized her was named Clauda. The Consistory advises that he be put in prison to learn more from him and that he make a public apology and be admonished.

Also it would be good, if there are others, to identify them, and to announce that if there is any child to be baptized it should be brought for baptism, and proclaim these rules, and that he be remanded to Thursday and that he frequent the sermon. Asked if he knows or has heard about any other child at his house who is yet to be baptized. Answers that if he

11. Monsieur Jacques Symo[n]d (67): “Touching the Word of God and the Holy Gospel and frequenting of sermons. Answers the exhortations made to him; answers that he does not despise the Word of God. Said the Pater and the confession. Also said that it was proper to pray to God and the Virgin Mary, because he was in great danger from brigands when he called on Our Lord and the Virgin Mary. And is still in this error and asks advice about it and still believes that it is good because the angelic salutation that descended from heaven. And he does not understand that it is idolatry, and he has received Holy Communion. And he did not understand that it was idolatry to invoke the Virgin Mary, and he was in this error a long time.

And he considers the Mass not good and abominable. Asked if he is certain about the holy sacrament of Holy Communion. Answers that he believes as is now believed among us, as is announced to us among us, and the custom of the city. The Consistory gave him proper admonitions”.

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and see that the others do their duty. And not spare anyone, neither their families, wives, children, servants or maids, at instruction after dinner. And that they should remand those in error to the Consistory, and those who retain papal superstitions from the former times. And give good admonitions [to] tavern-goers, blasphemers and other evil livers, also those with anger and hatred for each other and those who rebel against the Word of God and the honor of justice, as far as they can. The Consistory advises, since they are here, that they be presented to the Council to take the oath to observe what has been said to them, or that it be put off to another time, and that they be given the admonition above.

12. Jana, daughter of Jehan Bovier (69): And was never married.

Acknowledged the rosary and that she carried it in her belt and that she picked it up. And has served masters, and she was brought young to this city. Has served three or four masters, and has always lived in this city.

Said her Pater and confession of faith. She does not know whether it is good to pray to the Virgin Mary and does not know whose the said rosary is, but she picked it up and it is not hers, and that she wanted to take it to Decompesio’s house to be burned. She was remanded to Monday before Council, or whenever she will be summoned. Conriousaz, living by the wall, saw her when she found it between the inner and outer doors at St. Peter’s, and they were taken out of her hand while saying the Pater at the morning sermon. Admonished to speak the truth.

16. Pernete, widow of Jehan Du Nant, boatman (138): “Because of the sermons and other things. Answers that she was at the sermon Sunday at St. Peter’s, and Master Calvin preached, and she does not know what was said except that it was good, and otherwise she would not know what words he said then. And that she does not hear because she is a little deaf and does not understand what the preacher says. Said very little of the prayer and cannot say the confession. The Consistory advises that she frequent the sermons and come to give an account of her gains and appear here [in] a month, and go to the catechism.”

13. Guilliermon Moyne” (120): “On the Word of God, because of the sermons. Answers that she goes to the sermons on Sundays, and other days when she can, and all the feasts. And she goes by herself and approaches [the chapel of] Our Lady, and goes sometimes to Confignon; when she is ill she cannot go. And that she cannot retain what the preachers say, and says that she lives in the true faith. Said the prayer in French terribly badly, against the Word of God, and also as her mother taught her in Latin. And that she is old and cannot remember. And her confession, she says “I beg mercy of God,” and then all wrong. She was admonished to frequent the sermons and strive to learn to pray to God and go to the house of Monsieur Henri, minister.

17. Noble Pernete, wife of Bartholomyer Fouson (144): On the Word of God, her conscience and frequenting the sermons. Answers yes, when she can, as well as she can, and that she will guard herself from doing wrong and that she prays her Creator to give her the grace to live honestly and to the salvation of her soul. And she has seen and associated with many respectable people, and she was at the sermon yesterday before dinner, and does not remember what the preacher said, and she remembers much of the sermons of former times, and of those here not much, and retains what she can. And there are preachers who are much easier to understand than others. And she prays God to help her and says her prayers and prays for her husband, for her children and not for the dead, and says her In manus.

And she remembers well the good father who said it was always necessary to have a new heart. And that she always prays in Latin. The Consistory is of the opinion that she be admonished not to mutter any more and to listen to the sermons and communicate with someone and come here the Thursday before Christmas. And that she be admonished on what she should do and that she should behave herself and pray to God before going to the sermon, and whether she knows how to pray in French, and should follow the catechism that is given on Sundays.

14. Andriaz, widow of Gonyn Genod (132): Because of children she delivers, that she says the Virgin Mary, invokes the Virgin Mary in aid.

Answers that sometimes it escapes her sometimes [sic], and she says truly none has power but God, and asks grace, groaning and weeping. [f. 63v] And would not want to be other than a respectable woman. She was given proper admonitions to instruct women well in giving birth to children.

15. Pierre Bezanson of Choully, Pierre Gallatin of Peney, Richard Porvieu of Satigny, Rener Bastard of Bourdigny, Ami Du Nant of Peissy (133).

Summoned to the Consistory to establish order in the church by watching over those who live badly in their villages and to conserve the holy church, to show a good example to those others who wish to err in the church, for the sake of the Word of God, which should be well heard. And it being known that they are honest and peaceable and a good example to others, that they should admonish them with the minister about the Word of God 3

18. Donne Jane, widow of Philiert de La Ryvaz (166). Because of her muttering in the sermon, and whether she has some doubt of the …

Answers that she has always lived outside in the village and only recently came [to the city]. And she does not say the Ave Maria, and she sometimes says some words of the Psalms, and that it would be better for her to stay in her house than go to the sermon, considering that she has children, and she has no scruples about the Word that is presently preached.

and she received it for the honor of Jesus and did not let it fall and would not want to receive it thus. And she no longer prays to the saints, and she formerly prayed for the dead, and she has frequented the sermons as much as she could. And she says she still says the Ave Maria and does not think this is idolatry, and it does not seem to her she does wrong to pray to the Virgin Mary, and she has no faith in saints by in God and in the Virgin Mary. And one may do what one wants with her. She believes the Virgin Mary is a creature, the mother of Our Lord, her son she bore. She answers that she wants to believe only in the Word of God and does not believe she does wrong by invoking the Virgin Mary. And she does not know whether any other than Our Lord should be adored. And says that if she has adored the Virgin Mary may the Consistory pardon her. The opinion of the Consistory is that since she is possessed by the devil, that for the present she be commanded to go to the sermon three times a week for six weeks, and catechism, and that she be given strict remonstrances, or remanded before the Council, and that here in a week the confession of her faith be examined, and she be admonished more thoroughly to frequent the sermons. And that she cease to carry or say her rosary and her knotted cords, and every day for a week, and appear here next Thursday and be given strict remonstrances. Ordered to go to the sermon every day for a week.

19. Noble Claudaz, wife of Noble Domeyne Franch (195): “Because of the rosary and frequenting the sermons. Answers that she has not had a rosary since she has been with Domeyne Franc and has not had one under her apron. It is true that she says the prayer, “Our Father”. She cannot go to the sermons because her husband is ill, which usually keeps her from going to the sermons, and that it will not be proven that she says her rosary. And she always goes when she can, as much to St. Gervase as to the Magdalen.

She was admonished to frequent the sermons.”

20. Noble [Mye], wife of the master of the mint (198): “Because of muttering. Answers when there is prayer she prays like the others, and she says her Pater and lives as the others live, and she has no scruples about religion, and it is not wrong to fast. And she has not scruples about the Virgin Mary or the saints as advocates. She was given admonitions and remonstrances.

Brief Overview of Arrangements for Worship in Geneva

21. Tyvent Chenu’s wife (201); “Because of muttering. Answers that she does not adore images and that she prays to God to give her the Holy Spirit, that he instructs her in His Word, and for all her family. And when she goes late to the sermon she does not understand all that was preached.

Said the prayer and confession. She was admonished.”

A. Worship Schedule Each Sunday, there is to be sermon at St. Peter and St. Gervais at break of day, and at the usual hour at the said St. Peter and St. Gervais.

At midday, there is to be catechism, that is, instruction of little children in all the three churches, the Magdalene, St. Peter and St. Gervais.

At three o’clock second sermon in St. Peter and St. Gervais.

For bringing children to catechism, and for receiving the sacraments, the boundaries of the parishes should as far as possible be observed; that is, St. Gervaise embracing what it had in the past, the Magdalene similarly, St. Peter what belonged formerly to St. Germain, St. Cross, Our Lady the New, and St. Legier.

Besides the two preachings which take place, on working days there will a sermon at St. Peter three times a week, on Monday, Tuesday and Friday one hour before beginning is made at the other places.

To maintain these charges and others pertaining to the ministry, it will be necessary to have five ministers, to aid and assist as necessity requires.

22. Noble Jane Pertennaz (211): Answers that she is always seen as in former times, and prays to Our Lord; sometimes she says her rosary, and she does not want to be a heretic. She believes that which the holy church believes.

And she believes the church of Geneva is good. And she believes in good works. Asked whether Monsieur Calvin is God. The opinion of the Consistory is that she be deprived of the union of Communion and of the church and remanded before the Council and frequent the sermons.

Monday, the Council.

23. The wife of the said Loys Piaget (318): Answers that she received Communion in the morning, and Monsieur Amied Gervays gave her drink, 4

—“Draft Ecclesiastical Ordinances, September and October 1541”, original:

upside down, erecting the mass in its place, it is a fault in need of correction , to celebrate it so seldom.

(C.R. X/I, 15), Calvin: Theological Treatises. Ed. J.K.S. Reid, (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977), 62.

B. Lord’s Supper

Hence it will be proper that it be always administered in the city once a month, in such a way that every three months it take place in each parish.

Besides, it should take place three times a year generally, that is to say at Easter, Pentecost and Christmas, in such a way that it be not repeated in the parish in the month when it should take place in turn.

But after Christ’s sacrifice was accomplished, the Lord instituted another method for us, that is, to transmit to the believing folk the benefit of the sacrifice offered to himself by his Son. He has therefore given us a Table at which to feast, not an altar upon which to offer a victim; he has not consecrated priests to offer sacrifice, but ministers to distribute the sacred banquet. The loftier and holier the mystery is, the more piously and reverently it ought to be treated.

—Institutes IV.XVIII.12

The ministers are to distribute the bread in proper order and with reverence; and none are to give the chalice except the colleagues or deacons with the ministers. Hence there should not be a large number of vessels.

The tables should be beside the pulpit in order that the mystery be more conveniently set forth beside the tables.

“It would be well to require that the Communion of the Holy Supper of Jesus Christ be held every Sunday at least as a rule.. . . In view of this, it seemed good to us, while hoping that the people who are still so infirm will be the more strengthened, that use be made of this sacred Supper once a month in one of three places where now preaching takes place, viz., St. Pierre, Riue or St. Gervais, in such a way that once a month it take place at St. Pierre, once at Riue, and once at St. Gervais, and then return in this order, having gone the round. It will be always not for one quarter of the city alone, but for all the Church; and for it a convenient hour will be chosen and announced everywhere the previous Sunday. So that there be no cause for contempt, but this high mystery be treated with the greatest dignity possible, it has seemed to us the more advisable course, that the ministers of the Word, on whom the office of administering all that pertains to the mysteries of God properly belongs, distribute the bread and the wine, the form and sacrament of the body and blood of our Lord. And so that this take place with fitness and without confusion or impropriety, we have proposed to make it our duty to show and indicate such order as the people ought to observe; to advocate one that avoids confusion, and will supply you with means that will be found expedient, that things be well conducted and we come with such particular reverence as Paul commands us.

It should be celebrated in the church at the most fitting time, in order that no child come before it has made profession of its faith as proved by examination by the Catechism, and also that all strangers and new-comers may be exhorted first to come and present themselves at the church, so that they be instructed and thus none approach to his own condemnation.

—“Draft Ecclesiastical Ordinances September and October 1541” Original: (C.R. X/I, 15) Calvin: Theological Treatises. Ed. J.K.S. Reid, Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977. 66. ***

As to the time of using it, there can be not certain rule for all. For there are certain particular impediments which excuse a man for absenting himself. And besides we have no express command, constraining Christians to make use of it every day it is offered to them. However, if we have careful regard to the end for which our Lord intended it, we should realize that the use of it ought to be more frequent than many make it. For the more infirmity oppresses us, the more frequently we need to have recourse to that which is able and ought to serve to confirm our faith and further us in purity of life. Therefore, the custom ought to be well established in all Churches, of celebrating the Supper as frequently as the capacity of the people will allow. And each individual in his own place ought to prepare himself to receive it whenever it is administered in the congregation, unless there be some grave hindrance which compels him to abstain. Though we have no express command defining the time and the day, it should be enough for us to know that the intention of our Lord is that we use it often; otherwise we shall not know well the benefit which it offers us.

—“Articles Concerning the Organization of the Church and of Worship at Geneva Proposed by the Ministers at the Council, January 16, 1537” Original: (C.R. X/I, 5) Calvin: Theological Treatises.

Ed. J.K.S. Reid, (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977. 49, 50 ***

Since the Supper was instituted for us by our Lord to be frequently used, and also was so observed in the ancient Church until the devil turned everything 5

—Frequency of the LS, from: “Short Treatise on the Holy Supper of our Lord and only Saviour Jesus Christ” Original: (C.R. V, xlix) Calvin: Theological

prayers of the faithful are so cold, that we ought to be ashamed and dismayed. The psalms can incite us to lift up our hearts to God and move us to an ardor in invoking and exalting with praises the glory of his Name. Moreover it will be thus appreciated of what benefit and consolation the pope and those that belong to him have deprived the Church; for he has reduced the psalms, which ought to be true spiritual songs, to a murmuring among themselves without any understanding.

Treatises. Ed. J.K.S. Reid, Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977. 153.

Provisions for Reforming Piety 1. Everyone in each house is to come on Sundays, unless it be necessary to leave someone behind to take care of children or animals, under penalty of 3 sous.

2. If there be preaching any weekday, arranged with due notice, those that \are able to go and have no legitimate excuse are to attend, at least one from each house, under penalty as above.

3. Those who have man or maid servants, are to bring them or have them conveyed when possible, so that they do not live like cattle without instruction.

4. Everyone is to be present at Sermon when the prayer is begun, under penalty as above, unless he absent himself for legitimate reason.

5. Everyone is to pay attention during Sermon, and there is to be no disorder or scandal.

6. No one is to leave to go out from the church until the prayer be made at the end of Sermon, under penalty of above, unless he have legitimate cause.

This manner of proceeding seemed especially good to us, that children, who beforehand have practiced some modest church song, sing in a loud distinct voice, the people listening with all attention and following heartily what is sung with the mouth, till all become accustomed to sing communally. But in order to avoid all confusion, you must not allow that anyone by his insolence, and to put the congregation to derision, should come to disturb the order you have adopted.”

B. (1542): Letter to the Reader, in “Form of Church Prayers,” trans. Ford Lewis Battles (CTJ) [with understanding. . .]

“As it is something very requisite and most necessary in Christianity that each believer keep and attend communion of the church in his place, frequenting the assemblies held both on Sunday as well as the other days to honor and serve God, it is also expedient and reasonable that all know and understand what is said and done in the church to receive from it benefit and edification. For our Lord did not institute the order to which we hold when we gather in his Name merely to amuse people in seeing and gazing upon it; rather, he willed that from it all his people might profit, as St. Paul testifies, commanding that everything done in the church be for the common edification of all (1 Cor. 14:26). What the servant would not command, such was not the intention of the Master. Unthinkable would it then be for us not to be instructed to have understanding of all that has been ordained for our benefit.

For to say that we could have devotion either at prayer or at the ceremonial rite without understanding anything of it—that is a great mockery, as is commonly said. . . .” “. . . . Good affection toward God is not a dead and brutish thing, but it is a lively movement proceeding from the Holy Spirit when the heart is rightly touched and the understanding illumined. Actually, if one could be edified by visible things without knowing what they signify, St. Paul would not so rigorously have forbidden speaking in an unknown language; and he would not have used the reason that there is no edification save where there is teaching.

—“The Ordinances for the Supervision of Churches in the Country, February 3, 1547.” Original: (C.R. X/I, 51). Calvin: Theological Treatises. Ed. J.K.S. Reid, Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977, 77.

Psalmody/Singing A. (1537) “Articles Concerning the Organization of the Church and of Worship at Geneva Proposed by the Ministers at the Council, January 16, 1537” Original: (C.R. X/I 5) Calvin: Theological Treatises. Ed. J.K.S. Reid, Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1977. Pp. 48, 54.

“Further, it is a thing very expedient for the edification of the Church, to sing some psalms in the form of public devotions by which one may pray to God, or to sing his praise so that the hearts of all be roused and incited to make like prayers and render like praises and thanks to God with one accord....”

“On the other hand there are the psalms which we desire to be sung in the Church, as we have it exemplified in the ancient Church and in the evidence of Paul himself, who says it is good to sing in the congregation with mouth and heart. We are unable to compute the profit and edification which will arise from this, except after having experimented. Certainly as things are, the 6

Moreover, if we wish duly to honor the holy ordinances of our Lord, which we employ in the church, the chief one is to know what they contain, what they mean and what their purpose is in order that their use may be profitable and salutary, and consequently rightly regulated. But to sum up, there are three things which our Lord has commanded us to observe in our spiritual assemblies. These are the preaching of his word, public and solemn prayers and the administration of his sacraments.

On this occasion I pass over speaking about the preaching of his word as this is not the topic at issue. Regarding the two remaining parts, we have the express commandment of the Holy Spirit that prayers be made in the common language known to the people. As the Apostle says, the people cannot respond Amen to a prayer made in a strange language (1 Cor. 14:16). But since one has done it in the name and the person of all, each one must participate in it. Hence, it is utterly shameful that some introduce the Latin language in the churches, where it is not commonly understood. And there is no subtlety or cavil whereby they can excuse themselves that this fashion is not perverse and displeasing to God. For one must then presume that God deems agreeable what is done directly contrary to his will, and as it were despite him. But one could not despise him more and go thus contrary to his defense and glory in this rebellion as if it were a holy and most praiseworthy thing.

As for the Sacraments, if we regard closely their nature, we shall recognize that it is a perverse custom to celebrate them in such a way that the people have nothing of it apart from merely seeing, without explanation of the mysteries there contained. For if they are visible words, as St. Augustine calls them, they must not be merely an outward spectacle, but the teaching must be linked with them to give understanding of them. And also our Lord in instituting them has clearly demonstrated that, for he said that these are testimonies of the covenant which he made with us and which has been confirmed by his death (Mt. 26:26ff.; Lk. 22:14ff.; 1 Cor. ll:23ff.). It is necessary, therefore, to accord them their place that we know and recognize what is said there. Otherwise it would be in vain that our Lord opened his mouth to speak, if there were no ears to hear.

However, there is no point to a long argument about it. For when the matter is judged by mere reason, there would be no one who would not confess that it is mere folly to amuse the people with signs, the meaning of which is not revealed to them. Therefore it is easy to see that in so administering the Sacraments of Jesus Christ they are profaned so that people do not comprehend the words spoken to them. As a matter of fact, one can see the superstitions which follow after them. For it is a matter of common belief that the consecration, both of the water of Baptism and the bread and wine in the Supper of our Lord, are a sort of magic, as if, when one breathes and

pronounces these words from the mouth, insensible creatures feel the force thereof even though men understand nothing of it.

But true consecration is that done by the word of faith when it is declared and received, as St. Augustine says (In ]oh. tract. 80.3, etc.). That is expressly comprised in the words of Jesus Christ. For he does not say to the bread that it is made his body, but he addresses his word to the company of the faithful, saying: 'Take, eat, etc." If then we wish to celebrate the sacrament properly, we must have the teaching by which that which is signified there is declared to us. I well know that this seems very strange advice to those unaccustomed to it—as happens in all new things. But there is good reason, if we are disciples of Jesus Christ, that we should prefer his institution to our custom. And what he has instituted from the very beginning must not seem to us new advice.

If that cannot still enter into the understanding of each one, we must pray God that it please him to illumine the ignorant, to make them understand how he is wiser than all the men of the earth, in order that they may learn not to tarry any longer in their own sense nor in the foolish and mad wisdom of their guides, who are blind. However, this book will profit not only the people of this church, but also all those who desire to know what form the faithful ought to hold to and to follow when they gather in the name of Jesus Christ. We have therefore gathered together in a summary the manner of celebrating the sacraments, of sanctifying marriage and as well the prayers and praises we use.

We shall speak of the sacraments at some later time. As for the public prayers, they are of two sorts: some of them make use of speaking alone, the others are with singing. This is nothing of recent invention. For from the very beginning of the church this was so, as the histories show (Eusebius, HE 5.28.5 etc.). And even St. Paul speaks not only of praying with the mouth but also of singing. [“zeal and vigor” through “weight and majesty” . . . “at church and in society”] In truth, we know by experience that singing has great power and vigor to move and inflame men's hearts to call upon and praise God with a more vehement and burning zeal. One must always see to it that the singing not be light and frivolous but have weight and majesty, as St. Augustine says (Aug. Conf. 10.33). Thus there is a great difference between music that one makes to give joy to men at table and in their houses on the one hand and the Psalms, which are sung in the church in the presence of God and his angels. But when one wishes rightly to judge the form which is here set forth, we hope it will be found to be holy and pure, seeing that it is simply intended for the edification of which we have spoken, although the use of singing extends much farther. Even 7

in houses and in the fields it would be for us an incitement and as it were an organ to praise God, and to raise our hearts to him for him to console us, as we meditate upon his power, goodness, wisdom and justice.

What is more necessary one could not say. First of all, it is not without reason that the Holy Spirit exhorts us so carefully by the holy Scriptures to rejoice in God and that our whole joy be directed there as to its true end. For he knows how we are inclined to rejoice in vanity. So completely does our nature draw us and lead us to seek after every means of foolish and vicious enjoyment.

Also, to the contrary, our Lord, to distract us and draw us away from the allurements of the flesh and of the world, presents us every means possible in order to occupy us in that spiritual joy which he so much commends to us. But among the other things which are appropriate to recreate man and give him desire, music is either the first or one of the chief ones, and we must deem it to be a gift of God intended for this use.

However, we must guard against abusing it for fear of soiling and contaminating it and thus converting it to our condemnation when it is intended for our profit and salvation. If there were no other consideration than this one alone, namely that we must be moved to moderate the use of music, to make it serve all honesty and that it may not be occasion to unbridle us to dissoluteness or to weaken us to disordered delights, and that it may not be an instrument of fornication or any immodesty. But there is still another advantage. For there is scarcely anything in this world more capable of turning or bending hither and thither the customs of men, as Plato has wisely remarked (Rep. 3.12, 401B; Laws, 2.8, 664B). And actually we know by experience that it has a secret power, almost unbelievable, to move morals one way or another.

Therefore we ought to be even more diligent to regulate it, to the end that it may be useful for us and not dangerous. For this reason, the ancient Doctors of the church oftentimes complained that the people of their times were given to dishonorable and immodest songs, which with good reason they considered and called deadly and devilish poison to corrupt the world (Aug., Enarr. in Ps., 2.1; Chrysostom, In Psal. 41.1.2; In Matt., Horn 68.4; 27.5). But in speaking now of music, I understand two parts, that is, the letter or subject and matter; secondly, singing or melody. It is true that all evil speaking (as St. Paul says) perverts good morals (1 Cor. 15:33), but when melody accompanies it, it pierces the heart much more strongly and so enters inside it. Just as by a funnel wine is forced into a vessel, likewise venom and corruption is distilled into the depths of the heart by melody. What then is to be done? We must have songs not only honorable but also holy, which are to be like needles to arouse us to pray and praise God, to meditate on his works, in order to love him, fear, honor and glorify him.

But what St. Augustine says is true, that no one can sing things worthy of God unless he has received them from him. For when we have searched here

and there, we will not find better songs nor ones more appropriate for this purpose than the Psalms of David, which the Holy Spirit has spoken to him and made. Therefore, when we sing them, we are certain that God has put the words in our mouth as if they themselves sang in us to exalt his glory.

Consequently Chrysostom exhorts both men, women and little children to learn to sing them in order that they may be like a meditation to associate them with the company of angels (Chrysostom, In Ps. 41.1,2).

Besides, we must remember what St. Paul says, that spiritual songs cannot be better sung than from the heart (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). But the heart requires understanding. And in that (says St. Augustine) lies the difference between the singing of men and that of birds (Aug. Enarr. in Ps. 81, 2.1). For a Linnet, a Nightingale or a Popinjay will sing well, but it will be without understanding.

But man's proper gift is to sing, knowing what he says; after understanding must follow the heart and the affection, something that can only happen when we have the song imprinted on our memory never to cease singing it.

For these reasons the present book, even for this cause beyond the rest that has been said, must be especially recommended to each one who desires to rejoice honorably and toward God, with regard to his salvation and to the benefit of his neighbors. Thus I really have no business recommending it so highly on my own inasmuch as in them it carries its own value and praise; only that the world should be so well advised that in place of songs of a vain and frivolous sort, some stupid and dull, some coarse and vile, and consequently evil and harmful, used here heretofore, it should accustom itself hereafter to sing these divine and heavenly songs with good King David. With respect to the melody, it seemed best that it be moderate, in the manner that we have set it, to bear a gravity and majesty fitting to the subject and also to be appropriate to sing in the church, as has been said. —Geneva, 10 June MDXLIII. ****

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****

A Table for the Church of Geneva on which they are able to find which Psalm will be sung in the worship service as they are sung in order.

DIMANCHE AU MATIN

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

Ps. 3 et 11 5 7 14 25 36 et 43 130 et 138 50 115 12 et 113 91 103, 1-6 118, 1-7 33, 1-6 37, 1-10 104, 1-7 107, 1-8

DIMANCHE AU SOIR

MECREDY

1 et 15 2 4 et 137 8 19 24 et 128 45 72 101 110 114 et 23 103, 7-11 118, 8-14 33, 7-11 37, 11-20 104, 8-14 107, 9-17

6 9, 1-10 9, 11-20 38, 1-11 38, 12-22 51 143 18, 1-7 18, 8-15 22, 1-7 22, 8-16 10 32 79 86 104, 15-18 et 13 107, 18-23 et 64

In response to Calvinist singing, Montaigne: “It is not without much reason, it seems to me, that the Church forbids the promiscuous, inconsiderate, and indiscreet use of the sacred and divine songs which the Holy Spirit dictated to David. We must not bring God into our acts save with reverence and heedfulness full of honor and respect. Those words are too divine to have no other use than to exercise our lungs and please our ears. It is from the inmost thoughts that they should be brought forth, and not from the tongue. It is not right to allow the shop-boy, among his empty and frivolous thoughts, to entertain and amuse himself with them. Nor surely is it right to see the holy book of the sacred mysteries of our faith tossed about in the hall and the kitchen. They were formerly mysteries; now they serve for recreation and pastime.”

—“Of Prayers,” The Essays of Michel de Montaigne, trans. George B. Ives (New York: Heritage Press, 1946), 426.

Summary of Doctrine Concerning the Ministry of Word and Sacrament I. The end of the whole Gospel ministry is that God, the fountain of all felicity, communicate Christ to us who are disunited by sin and hence ruined, that we may from him enjoy eternal life; that in a word all heavenly treasures be so applied to us that they be no less ours than Christ’s himself.

**** [In worship]… we sing a psalm of David or some other prayer taken from the New Testament. The psalm or prayer is sung by everyone together, men as well as women with beautiful unanimity, which is something beautiful to behold.

For you must understand that each one has a music book in his hand; that is why they cannot lose touch with one another. Never did I think that it could be as pleasing and delightful as it is. For five or six days at first, as I looked upon this little company, exiled from countries everywhere for having upheld the honor of God and His Gospel, I would begin to weep, not at all from sadness, but from joy at hearing them sing so heartily, and, as they sang, giving thanks to the Lord that He had led them to a place where His name is honored and glorified. No one could believe the joy which one experiences when one is singing the praises and wonders of the Lord in the mother tongue as one sings them here.

II. We believe the communication to be (a) mysterious, and incomprehensible to human reason, and (b) spiritual, since it is effected by the Holy Spirit; to whom, since he is the virtue of the living God, proceeding from the Father and the Son, we ascribe omnipotence, by which he joins us to Christ our Head, not in an imaginary way, but most powerfully and truly, so that we become flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone, and from his vivifying flesh he transfuses eternal life to us.

III. That we believe the Holy Spirit to effect this union rests on a certain ground, namely this: Whatever (a) the Father [John 14:16] or (b) the Son does to bring the faithful to salvation, Holy Scripture testifies that each operates through the Holy Spirit [John 15:26, 16:7]; and that (c) Christ does not otherwise dwell in us than through his Spirit, nor in any other way communicates himself to us than through the same Spirit [Rom. 8.9].

--An Antwerp resident, who attended Easter worship in Calvin's former congregation in Strasbourg, mid-16th century. Alfred Erichson, L'Église française de Strasbourg au seizième siècle d'après des documents inédits (Strasbourg: Librarie C. F. Schmidt, 1886), 21-22, quoted in Garside, "The Origins of Calvin's Theology of Music, 1536-1543," Transactions of the American Philosophical Society 4 (1969): 18.

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IV. To effect this union, the Holy Spirit uses a double instrument, the preaching of the Word and the administration of the sacraments.

. … In order to understand better what this means, let us note in the first place that the majesty and glory of God are incomprehensible. Not only do we not see God with our eyes, since he is of a spiritual essence, but when we apply all our senses to know him, we will certainly be dazzled a hundred times over, before we can even approach him. For we are too crude and weak. We can only crawl upon the earth, while 'the heaven of heavens cannot contain him' (I Kings 8:27), as the other passage says. So when we want to approach God, it is certain that we will not be able to and that he is totally inaccessible to us. Therefore, he must come down to us when we cannot reach up to him. And how does he come down? It is not that he changes his place as far as his essence is concerned, but he must make himself known in a familiar manner. So when he conforms himself to our smallness, he does it only insofar as he abases himself. Not that there is change in him, but his coming down refers to our capacity.

Therefore, consider how God, who from all times has had pity on the crude capacities of men, has for that very reason come down to them, since they could not reach up to him. How has he come down? He has done so in the fashion of men, as if to say: 'Here am I, and when you come through these means, it is the same as if I were manifest to you and you were seeing me with the naked eye'- that is what the ark meant. It was a means by which God made himself known to the people so they would be without excuse and could not say: 'We do not know which way to begin when we ought to pray to God and honour him. We do not know how he will be our Protector, and how we will feel his help.' On the contrary, the ark was a standing witness that God wanted to dwell in the midst of the people.

Notice that there was absolutely no idol or representation of God in it, because that would have served to hold the people in superstition; rather, the Law was enclosed in this box. This shows us that God declares himself only in his Word. So when we want to have a living image of him, we must not forge idols, of stone or wood or any other material, but we must know him in his Word. If we fall away from his Word, we wander astray; we will be like vagabonds - indeed, like straying beasts. When God says that he wants to show his face, it is eminently reasonable for us to believe that, because he placed his Law in the ark - the two tables which he had written with his own power, without human help (Exod . 3 1: 18; Deut. 10:4-5). This is what we must remember.

Again, it is not enough to state that God must not be represented by statues and paintings, but this declaration ought to make the people reach above the heavens. Indeed, we see how the Jews were reproved in their superstitions for thinking that they could keep God contained (I Kings 8:27; Acts 17:24),

The Place of Preaching, the Importance of Preaching On Worship John Calvin, excerpts from “The True Worship of God” From Sermons on 2 Samuel, trans. Douglas Kelly, Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth, 1992. 229-243.

Again David assembled all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. Thus David arose and went, and all the people who were with him of the men of Judah, to bring up the ark of God, of which the name is called: the name of the Lord of hosts who dwells between the Cherubim upon it…(2 Sam. 6:1-7) . . . . .David presumed to remove the ark from the house of Abinadab to another place, without being specifically commanded to do so, because he expected God to do what he had announced through Moses. He wanted the ark to be lodged in the centre of the country - away from the remote location where it had been left by the people when the Philistines were forced to return it, after God's hand grievously afflicted them. Because the ark was in a corner, it could scarcely be honoured as it deserved and the people who opposed it had an excuse for not coming to the solemn feasts, as the law commanded. That, in turn, caused religion to grow cold, in addition to the fact that men were far from devoted to it. That is why David brought back the ark: so that it would be in a place where people could come more easily, and so that everyone could more readily do their duty. For men seek nothing but excuses to draw further away from God, as we see too frequently. When things are not easy, we think that we can 'wash our hands of the matter'. We pretend that we would like to do it, but lack the opportunity. That is why David wanted to remove every obstacle, so that those already too careless could not say that the ark of God was in any out-of-the-way place too far to reach.

We must gather from this that insofar as we see the same kind of laziness in ourselves, along with a lack of inclination to worship God and an absence of convenient means of worship, then we will never profit from worship as we should. Why is it that the Church chooses the hours which are the most appropriate, a definite place to assemble, and a bell to ring, with all these matters carefully arranged? It is because we humans have practically no desire to give ourselves to God unless we are first drawn to do so. Therefore, on the one hand let us note how feeble we are when we ought to be stirring ourselves to honour God, and then let us use every available means to move ourselves to break through this coldness and laziness to which we are so strongly inclined. That, in sum, is what we must remember from this passage….

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Solomon, in dedicating the temple, clearly told them that they could not enclose God in any particular habitation, by saying: 'The heavens cannot contain God', and 'he cannot dwell in a place made by the hand of man'. Whenever the Jews glorified themselves by saying: 'The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord' Jer- 7:4), they wanted to keep God almost as their prisoner. That is why Isaiah cries with a loud voice: 'And what place do you think to build for me? For the earth is only my footstool, and my seat is above the heavens, and do you think to make me a house here?' (Isa. 66: 1). 'Do you come to seek me in a superstitious manner so that you can say that I am with you?' This shows how the Jews abused this familiarity which God had granted them.

Thus, we must note that when God declares himself to us, we must not cling to any earthly thing, but must elevate our senses above the world, and lift ourselves up by faith to his eternal glory. In sum, God comes down to us so that then we might go up to him. That is why the sacraments are compared to the steps of a ladder. For as I have said, if we want to go up there, alas, we do not have wings; we are so small that we cannot make it. God, therefore, must come down to seek us. But when he has come down, it is not to make us dull-witted; it is not to make us imagine that he is like us.

Rather, it is so that we might go up little by little, by degrees, as we climb up a ladder one rung at the time. The sacraments are like this, and the ark was like a sacrament - at least in principle. The people had to be moved to seek God in a very tangible manner.

When Scripture says that God was between the cherubim, that did not make the ark into an idol. For the cherubim had their faces hidden, and their wings covered the ark (Exod. 25:20) to show that God was invisible in his essence, and that even the angels adored him in all humility, and that there was a shadow so obscure over the ark that making God a mouth or nose or anything else terrestrial was totally out of the question. So much, then, for the ark.

Now let us apply this to ourselves, for we are no more competent than the Jews. Yet we need God to make himself small, so that we can have access to him, otherwise we would be completely shut out.

However, he does not make himself so small because he wants his glory to be lessened, but rather he does this out of goodness to lift us up to admire his glory and to adore him with the reverence that he deserves.

When we have access to the preached Word God speaks in a common and ordinary fashion to us. It is an illustration of his condescension. Hence, the preaching of the Gospel is like God descending to earth in order to seek us.

We must not abuse this simplicity of the Word of God by disdaining it. Rather, we must receive it all the more, recognizing that he indeed deigns to transfigure himself, so to speak, that we might approach him. He is not content with giving us his Word, but he adds baptism to confirm it. When we are baptized—

though only a little water is used—it stands for crucifying our old man, for renewing our souls, and for being united with the angels. Baptism is performed to ensure that we inherit the eternal kingdom, to make us enjoy adoption, by which we are companions and brothers of the angels—but can a little water do that? The point, of course, is that since God has come down to us (in this symbol), we must go up to him (in faith).

It is the same way with the Lord's Supper, which the papists greatly abuse and corrupt by wanting God to be present in it, and wanting him to come down in an earthly fashion to suit their appetite. But we are shown here that he descends to us, not to stupefy or bind our senses in these low and feeble things.

The papists are far too dull-witted, for under the excuse that our Lord Jesus Christ has left a testimony and a pledge of his body and blood under the bread and wine, so that men might know that truly he is the nourishment of their life, what have they done? They have turned it into an idol, as though he entered into a piece of bread and wanted to be adored there in a gross fashion, with the result that men become so bewitched with such poison that they have no longer enough discretion to discern anything. Even this is not enough for them, for under the excuse of this presence, they say he had to hide in a sacramental cup and be held captive in it as a prisoner. Furthermore, they handle the sacrament like apes and make a farce of it.

Well, when we see how very much inclined the world is to superstition, we must all the more remember the rule which I have given: namely, that when God has come down, it is not that we should remain down here, but rather that we should be lifted on high to adore him spiritually, and that we should thereby rise about the world by our faith. . .. . . . Now let us prostrate ourselves before the majesty of our good God in recognition of our faults, praying that he may make us so to feel them as to draw us to him more and more; and to incline us to his service in such a way that we do not imitate the hypocrites, who have only forms and external ceremonies. But rather [let us act] out of a heartfelt affection. May we be so enthusiastic to sing his praises that it becomes our main pursuit. May we so profit each other that, with one accord, we proclaim that truly all our good consists and lies in him, and may that encourage us more and more to come to seek him that we may find rest. May he not only bestow this grace upon us, but upon all people and nations of the earth ...

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Bard Thompson. Liturgies of the Western Church, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985. 185—ALT JW (modernized/reformatted)

each of you truly acknowledge that he is a sinner, humbling himself before God, and believe that the heavenly Father wills to be gracious unto him in Jesus Christ. To all those that repent in this wise, and look to Jesus Christ for their salvation, I declare that the absolution of sins is effected, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

THE FORM OF CHURCH PRAYERS AND HYMNS WITH THE MANNER OF ADMINISTERING THE SACRAMENTS AND CONSECRATING MARRIAGE ACCORDING TO THE CUSTOM OF THE ANCIENT CHURCH

Now the Congregation sings the first table of the Commandments, after which the Minister says: “The Lord be with us. Let us pray to the Lord: Heavenly Father, full of goodness and grace, as thou art pleased to declare thy holy will unto thy poor servants, and to instruct them in the righteousness of thy law, grant that I may also be inscribed and impressed upon our hearts in such wise, that in all our life we may endeavor to serve and obey none beside thee. Neither impute to us at all the transgressions which we have committed against thy law: that, perceiving thy manifold grace upon us in such abundance, we may have cause to praise and glorify thee through Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.”

Strassburg, 1545/Geneva, 1542 The Forms of Church Prayers On working days, the Minister frames the sort of exhortation to prayer which may seem suitable to him, adapting it to the times and to the topic of his sermon. On Sunday morning [and on the day of prayers], the following form is generally used.

Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Amen.

While the Congregation sings the rest of the Commandments, the Minister

CONFESSION

goes into the pulpit; and then he offers prayers of the type that follows.

My brethren, let each of you present himself before the face of the Lord, and confess his faults and sins, following my words in his heart:

Geneva: That done, a Psalm is sung by the Congregation. Then the Minister commences again to pray, beseeching God for the grace of His Holy Spirit, that his Word may be faithfully expounded. to the honor of His name and the edification of the Church, and be received with such humility and obedience which it deserves. The form is left to the discretion of the Minister.

“O Lord God, eternal and almighty Father, we confess and acknowledge unfeignedly before thy holy majesty that we are poor sinners, conceived and born in iniquity and corruption, prone to do evil, incapable of any good, and that in our depravity we transgress thy holy commandments without end or ceasing: Wherefore we purchase for ourselves, through thy righteous judgment, our ruin and perdition. Nevertheless, O Lord, we are grieved that we have offended thee; and we condemn ourselves and our sins with true repentance, beseeching thy grace to relieve our distress. O God and Father most gracious and full of compassion, have mercy upon us in the name of thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. And as thou dost blot out our sins and stains, magnify and increase in us day by day the grace of thy Holy Spirit; that as we acknowledge our unrighteousness with all our heart, we may be moved by that sorrow which shall bring forth true repentance in us, mortifying all our sins, and producing in us the fruits of righteousness and innocence which are pleasing unto thee; through the same Jesus Christ &c. [our Lord. Amen.]

COLLECT FOR ILLUMINATION, LESSON AND SERMON At the end of the Sermon, the Minister, having made exhortations to prayer, commences in this manner: Almighty God, heavenly Father, thou has promised to grant our requests which we make unto thee in the name of thy well-beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: by whose teaching and that of His apostles we have also been taught to gather together in His name, with the promise that He will be in the midst of us, and will be our intercessor with thee, to obtain all those things for which we agree to ask on earth.

First, we have thy commandment to pray for those whom thou hast established over us as rulers and governors; and then, for all the needs of thy people, and indeed of all mankind. Wherefore, with trust in thy holy doctrine and promises,

Strassburg only: Now the Minister delivers some word of Scripture to console the conscience; and then he pronounces the Absolution in this manner: “Let 12

and now especially that we are gathered here before thy face and in the name of thy Son, our Lord Jesus, we do heartily beseech thee, our gracious God and Father, in the name of our only Saviour and Mediator, to grant us the free pardon of our [faults and] offenses through thine infinite mercy, and to draw and lift up our thoughts and desires unto thee in such wise that we may be able to call upon thee with all our heart yea agreeably to thy good pleasure and onlyreasonable will.

that those whom thou hast already visited with thy grace and enlightened with the knowledge of thy Word may grow in goodness day by day, enriched by thy spiritual blessings: so that all together we may worship thee with one heart and one voice, giving honor and reverence to thy [Son Jesus] Christ, our Master, King, and Lawgiver.

Likewise, O God of all comfort, we commend unto thee all those whom thou dost visit and chasten with cross and tribulation, whether by poverty, prison, sickness, or banishment, or any other misery of the body or affliction of the spirit. Enable them to perceive and understand thy fatherly affection which doth chasten them unto their correction, that they may turn unto thee with their whole heart, and, having turned, receive full consolation and deliverance from every ill.

Wherefore we pray thee, O heavenly Father, for all princes and lords, thy servants, to whom thou hast entrusted the administration of thy justice, and especially for the magistrates of this city. May it please thee to impart to them thy Spirit, who alone is good and truly sovereign, and daily acknowledge them in the same, that with true faith they may acknowledge Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord, to be the King of kings and Lord of lords, as thou hast given Him all power in heaven and earth. May they seek to serve Him and to exalt His kingdom in their government, guiding and ruling their subjects, who are the work of thy hands and the sheep of thy pasture, in accordance with thy good pleasure. So may all of us both here and throughout the earth, being kept in perfect peace and quietness, serve thee in all godliness and virtue, and being delivered and protected from the fear of our enemies, give praise unto thee all the days of our life.

Finally, O God and Father, grant also to those who are gathered here in the name of thy Son Jesus, to hear His Word (and to keep His holy Supper), that we may acknowledge truly, without hypocrisy, what perdition is ours by nature, what condemnation we deserve and heap upon ourselves from day to day by our unhappy and disordered life. Wherefore, seeing that there is nothing of good in us and that our flesh and blood cannot inherit thy kingdom, may we yield ourselves completely, with all our love and steadfast faith, to thy dear Son, our Lord, the only Savior and Redeemer:

We pray thee also, O faithful Father and Savior, for all those whom thou hast ordained pastors of thy faithful people, to whom thou hast intrusted the care of souls and the ministry of thy holy Gospel. Direct and guide them by thy Holy Spirit, that they may be found faithful and loyal ministers of thy glory, having but one goal: that all the poor, wandering, and lost sheep be gathered and restored to the Lord Jesus Christ, the chief Shepherd and Prince of bishops, so that they may grow and increase in Him daily unto all righteousness and holiness. Wilt thou, on the contrary, deliver all the churches from the mouths of ravening wolves and from all mercenaries who seek their own ambition or profit, but never the exaltation of thy holy name alone, not the salvation of thy flock.

To the end that He, dwelling in us, may mortify our old Adam, renewing us for a better life, by which thy name, according as it is holy and worthy, may be exalted and glorified everywhere and in all places, and that we with all creatures may give thee true and perfect obedience, even as thine angels and heavenly messengers have no desire but to fulfill thy commandments. Thus may thy will be done without any contradiction, and all men apply themselves to serve and please thee, renouncing their own will and all the desires of their flesh. In this manner may thou have lordship and dominion over us all, and may we learn more and more each day to submit and subject ourselves to thy majesty. In such wise may thou be King and Ruler over all the earth, guiding thy people by the scepter of thy Word and the power of thy Spirit, confounding thine enemies by the might of thy truth and righteousness. And thus may every power and principality which stands against thy glory be destroyed and abolished day by day, till the fulfilment of thy kingdom be manifest, when thou shall appear in judgment.

We pray thee now, O most gracious and merciful Father, for all men everywhere. As it is thy will to be acknowledged the Savior of the world, through the redemption wrought by thy Son Jesus Christ, grant that those who are still estranged from the knowledge of Him, being in the darkness and captivity of error and ignorance, may be brought by the illumination of thy Holy Spirit and the preaching of thy Gospel to the straight way of salvation, which is to know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. Grant

Grant that we who walk in the love and fear of thy name may be nourished by thy goodness; and supply us with all things necessary and expedient to eat our 13

bread in peace. Then, seeing that thou carest for us, we may better acknowledge thee as our Father and await all good gifts from thy hand, withdrawing our trust from all creatures, to place it entirely in thee and thy goodness.

against us, and to provide for us, as thy well-beloved children and heirs, all our needs both of body and soul. Thus may we render praise and thanks unto thee without ceasing and magnify thy name in word and deed. Grant us, therefore, O heavenly Father, so to celebrate this day the blessed memorial and remembrance of my dear Son, to exercise ourselves in the same, and to proclaim the benefit of His death, that, receiving new growth and strength in faith and in all things good, we may with so much greater confidence proclaim thee our Father and glory in thee. Amen.

And since in this mortal life we are poor sinners, so full of weakness that we fail continually and stray from the right way, may it please thee to pardon our faults by which we are beholden to thy judgment; and through that remission, -That which is enclosed by these two marks ( ) is not said except on the day of the Lord’s Supper.

When the Supper has been completed, this thanksgiving or one similar, is used: “Heavenly Father, we offer thee eternal praise and thanks that thou hast granted so great a benefit to us poor sinners, having drawn us into the Communion of thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, whom thou hast delivered to death for us, and whom thou gives us as the meat and drink of life eternal. Now grant us this other benefit: that thou wilt never allow us to forget these things; but having them imprinted on our hearts, may we grow and increase daily in the faith which is at work in every good deed. Thus may we order and pursue all our life to the exaltation of thy glory and the edification of our neighbor; through the same Jesus Christ, thy Son, who in the unity of the Holy Spirit lives and reigns with thee O God, forever. Amen.”

deliver us from the obligation of eternal death in which we stand. Be pleased, therefore, to turn aside thy wrath from us, neither impute to us the iniquity which is in us; even as we, by reason of thy commandment, forget the injuries done to us, and instead of seeking vengeance, solicit the good for our enemies.

Finally, may it please thee to sustain us by thy power for the time to come, that we may not stumble because of the weakness of our flesh. And especially as we of ourselves are so frail that we are not able to stand fast for a single moment, while, on the other hand, we are continually beset and assailed by so many enemies-the devil, the world, sin, and our own flesh never ceasing to make war upon us-wilt thou strengthen us by thy Holy Spirit and arm us with thy grace, that we may be able to resist all temptations firmly, and persevere in this spiritual battle until we shall attain full victory, to triumph at last in thy kingdom with our Captain and Protector, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Strassburg: At the end a Psalm is sung, after which the Minister dismisses the congregation, saying “The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face to shine upon you and be merciful unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and keep you in virtuous prosperity. Amen.”

Geneva only

Geneva: The blessing which is given at the departure of the people according to the Lord’s appointment (Num. 6)

On those days when the Lord’s Supper is to be celebrated, that which follows is joined to the preceding:

The Manner of Celebrating the Lords Supper

And as our Lord Jesus has not only offered His body and blood once on the Cross for the remission of our sins, but also desires to impart them to us as our nourishment unto everlasting life, grant us this grace: that we may receive at His hands such a great benefit and gift with true sincerity of heart and with ardent zeal. In steadfast faith may we receive His body and blood, yea Christ Himself entire, who being true God and true man, is verily the holy bread and heaven which gives us life. So may we live no longer in ourselves, after our nature which is entirely corrupt and vicious, but may He live in us and lead us to the life that is holy, blessed and everlasting: whereby we may truly become partakers of the new and eternal testament, the covenant of grace, assured that it is thy good pleasure to be our gracious Father forever, never reckoning our faults

It is proper to observe that on the Sunday prior to the celebration of the Lord's Supper, the following admonitions are made to the people: first, that each person prepare and dispose himself to receive it worthily and with such reverence that it deserves; second, that children may certainly not be brought forward unless they are well instructed and have made profession of their faith in church; third, that if strangers are there who may still be untaught and ignorant, they proceed to present themselves for private instruction. On the day of the Lord’s Supper, the Minister touches upon it in the conclusion of his Sermon, or better, if there is occasion, preaches the whole Sermon about it, in order to signify by this mystery, and in what way it behooves us to receive it.

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proclaim the Lord's death till He come. Therefore, whosoever shall eat this bread and drink of this cup unworthily shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself and so let him eat of this bread and drink of this cup. For whosoever eats and drinks unworthily, takes his own condemnation, not discerning the Lord’s body.

Strassburg: Then, after the accustomed prayers have been offered, the Congregation, in making confession of the faith, sings the Apostles’ Creed to testify that all wish to live and die in the Christian doctrine and religion.

Prepares the bread and wine on the Table. There after he prays in this fashion: Geneva: Then, having made the prayers and the Confession of Faith (which is to testify in the name of the people that they all wish to live and die in the Christian doctrine and religion), he says in a loud voice:

We have heard, my brethren, how our Lord observed His Supper with His disciples, from which we learn that strangers and those who do not belong to the company of His faithful people must not be admitted. Therefore, following that precept, in the name of and by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, I excommunicate all idolaters, blasphemers and despisers of God, all heretics and those who create private sects in order to break the unity of the Church, all perjurers, all who rebel against father or mother or superior, all who promote sedition or mutiny; brutal and disorderly persons, adulterers, lewd and lustful men, thieves, ravishers, greedy and grasping people, drunkards, gluttons, and all those who lead a scandalous and dissolute life. I warn them to abstain from this Holy Table, lest they defile and contaminate the holy food which our Lord Jesus Christ gives to none except they belong to His household of faith.

Strassburg only: Inasmuch as we have made confession of our faith to testify that we are children of God, hoping therefore that He will take heed of us as a gracious Father, let us pray to Him, saying: Heavenly Father, full of all goodness and mercy, as our Lord Jesus Christ has not only offered His body and blood once on the Cross for the remission of our sins, but also desires to impart them to us as our nourishment unto ever lasting life, we beseech thee to grant us this grace: that we may receive at His hands such a great gift and benefit with true sincerity of heart and with ardent zeal. In steadfast faith may we receive His body and blood, yea Christ Himself entire, who, being true God and true man, is verily the holy bread of heaven which is entirely corrupt and vicious, but may He live in us and lead us to the life that is holy, blessed and everlasting: whereby we ay truly become partakers of the new and eternal testament, the covenant of grace, assured that it is thy good pleasure to be our gracious Father forever, never reckoning our faults against us, and to provide for us, as thy well-beloved children and heirs, all our needs both of soul and body. Thus may we render praise and thanks unto thee without ceasing, and magnify thy name in word and deed.

Moreover, in accordance with the exhortation of St. Paul, let every man examine and prove his own conscience to see whether he truly repents of his faults and grieves over his sins, desiring to live henceforth a holy life according to God. Above all, lethim see whether he has his trust in the mercy of God and seeks his salvation wholly in Jesus Christ and, renouncing all hatred and rancor, has high resolve and courage to live in peace and brotherly love with his neighbors.

Grant us, therefore, O heavenly Father, so to celebrate this day the blessed memorial and remembrance of thy dear Son, to exercise ourselves in the same, and to proclaim the benefit of His death, that, receiving new growth and strength in faith and in all things good, we may with so much greater confidence proclaim thee our Father and glory in thee; through the same Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord, in whose name we pray unto thee, as He hath taught us.

If we have this witness in our hearts before God, never doubt that He claims us as His children, and that the Lord Jesus addresses His Word to us, to invite us to His Table and to give us this holy Sacrament which He imparted to His disciples.

Our Father which art in, etc.

And yet, we may be conscious of much frailty and misery in ourselves, such that we do not have perfect faith, but are inclined toward defiance and unbelief, or that we do not devote ourselves wholly to the service of God and with such zeal as we ought, but have to fight daily against the lusts of our flesh. Nevertheless, since our Lord has granted us the grace of having His Gospel graven on our hearts, so that we may withstand all unbelief, and has given us the desire and longing to renounce our own wishes, that we may follow His righteousness and His holy commandments: let us be assured that the sins and imperfections which remain in us will not prevent Him from receiving us and making us worthy partakers of this spiritual Table. For we do

Strassburg & Geneva Then the Minister says: “Let us hear how Jesus Christ instituted His holy Supper for us, as St. Paul relates it in the eleventh chapter of First Corinthians: I have received of the Lord, he says, that which I have delivered unto you: That the Lord Jesus, on the night in which He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He brake it and said, Take, eat, this is my body which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner, when He had supped, He took the cup saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as often as ye shall drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup, ye do

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not come here to testify that we are perfect or righteous in ourselves: On the contrary, by seeking our life in Jesus Christ we confess that we are in death.

Know, therefore, that this Sacrament is a medicine for the poor sick souls, and that the only worthiness which our Lord requires of us is to know ourselves sufficiently to deplore our sins, and to find all our pleasure, joy and satisfaction in Him alone.

Geneva: That done, the Minister distributes the bread and the chalice to the people having admonished them to come forward with reverence and in good order. Meanwhile, some Psalms are sung, or some portion of Scripture is read appropriate to the significance of the sacrament. At the conclusion, thanksgiving is offered, as it has been stated.

THANKSGIVING AFTER THE SUPPER: “Heavenly Father, we offer thee eternal praise and thanks that thou hast granted so great a benefit to us poor sinners, having drawn us into the Communion of thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, whom thou hast delivered to death for us, and whom thou givest us as the meat and drink of life eternal. Now grant us this other benefit: that thou wilt never allow us to forget these things; but having them imprinted on our hearts, may grow and increase daily in the faith which is at work in every deed.

Thus may we order and pursue all our life to the exaltation of thy glory and the edification of our neighbor: through the same Jesus Christ, thy Son, who in the unity of the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth with thee, O God, forever. Amen.”

Above all, therefore, let us believe those promises which Jesus Christ, who is the unfailing truth, has spoken with His own lips: He is truly willing to make us partakers of His body and blood, in order that we may possess Him wholly and in such wise that He may live in us and we in Him. And though we see but bread and wine, we must not doubt that He accomplishes spiritually in our souls all that He shows us outwardly by these visible signs, namely, that He is the bread of heaven to feed and nourish us unto eternal life. So, let us never be unmindful of the infinite goodness of our Savior who spreads out all His riches and blessings on this Table, to impart them to us. For in giving Himself to us, He makes a testimony to us that all that He has is ours.

Therefore, let us receive this Sacrament as a pledge that the virtue of His death and passion is imputed to us for righteousness, even as though we had suffered them in our own persons. May we never be so perverse as to draw away when Jesus Christ invites us so gently by His Word, But accounting the worthiness of this precious gift which He gives, let us present ourselves to Him with ardent zeal, that He may make us capable of receiving it.

To do so, let us lift our spirits and hearts on high where Jesus Christ is in the glory of His Father, whence we expect Him at our redemption. Let us not be fascinated by these earthly and corruptible elements which we see with our eyes and touch with our hands, seeking Him there as though He were enclosed in the bread or wine. Then only shall our souls be disposed to be nourished and vivified by His substance when they are lifted up above all earthly things, attaining even to heaven, and entering the Kingdom of God where He dwells. Therefore let us be content to have the bread and wine as signs and witnesses, seeking the truth spiritually where the Word of God promises that we shall find it.

After thanks has been given, the Canticle of Simeon is sung: Maintenant

Seigneur Dieu.

Then the Minister dismisses the Congregation by pronouncing the Benediction used on Sunday.

Strassburg: That done, the Minister, having informed the people that they are to come to the holy Table in reverence, good order, and to Christian humility, first partakes himself of the bread and wine, then administers it to the deacon, and subsequently to the whole congregation saying, “Take, eat, the body of Jesus which has been delivered unto death for you.” And the deacon offers the cup, saying: This is the cup of the new testament in the blood of Jesus which has been shed for you. Meanwhile, the Congregation sings the Psalm: Louang’

et Grace [138].

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In addition to standard earlier works by Brian Gerrish, Joseph McLelland, Ronald Wallace, Kilian McDonnell, David Willis, Joseph Tylenda, Alasdair Heron, Edward Dowey, Geoffrey Bromiley.

Philip Butin, Revelation, Redemption, Response: Calvin’s Trinitarian Understanding of the Divine-Human Relationship (Oxford, 1995).

Todd Billings, Calvin, Participation, and the Gift: The Activity of Believers in Union with Christ (Oxford, 2007).

Thomas J. Davis, This Is My Body: The Presence of Christ in Reformation Thought (Baker Academic 2008). _____.The Clearest Promises of God: The Development of Calvin's Eucharistic Teaching (AMS Press, 1995).

Gerrit Scott Dawson, Jesus Ascended: The Meaning of Christ’s Continuing Incarnation (Presbyterian and Reformed, 2004).

Christopher Elwood, The Body Broken: The Calvinist Doctrine of the Eucharist and the Symbolization of Power in Sixteenth-Century France (Oxford, 1999).

Douglas Farrow, Ascension and Ecclesia (Eerdmans, 1999). _____. “In Support of a Reformed View of Ascension and Eucharist.” In Reformed Theology: Identity and Ecumenicity, ed. by Michael Welker and Wallace M. Alston, Jr., 351-71. (Eerdmans, 2003). _____. “Between the Rock and a Hard Place: In Support of (something like) a Reformed View of the Eucharist.” International Journal of Systematic Theology 3.2 (2001): 167-86.

Michael Horton. People and Place: A Covenant Ecclesiology (WJK 2008), esp. chap. 5.

George Hunsinger. The Eucharist and Ecumenism (Cambridge, 2008).

Recent English-Language Bibliography on Calvin and Worship Summary Accounts Bruno Bürki, “The Reformed Tradition in Continental Europe: Switzerland , France , and Germany .” In The Oxford History of Christian Worship , edited by Geoffrey Wainwright and Karen B. Westerfield Tucker, 436-62. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2006.

Ronald P. Byars, “Eucharistic Prayer and the Reformation.” In Lift Your Hearts on High. Eucharistic Prayer in the Reformed Tradition , 23-42 . Louisville : Westminster John Knox Press, 2005.

McKee, Elsie A. “Context, Contours, Contents: Towards a Description of the Classical Reformed Teaching on Worship.” Calvin Studies Society Papers,1995, 1997, ed. David Foxgrover, 66-92.

Grand Rapids, 1998. _____. “Liturgical and Sacramental Practices” in John Calvin: Writings on Pastoral Piety (Paulist Press, 2001), 83-194. _____. “Reformed Worship in the Sixteenth Century,” in Christian Worship in Reformed Churches Past and Present, ed. Lukas Vischer (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), 3-32.

Mitchell, Nathan D. “Reforms, Protestant and Catholic.” In The Oxford History of Christian Worship , edited by Geoffrey Wainwright and Karen B. Westerfield Tucker, 307-50. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2006.

Spinks, Bryan D. “Calvin's Baptismal Theology and the Making of the Strasbourg and Genevan Baptismal Liturgies 1540 and 1542,” Scottish Journal of Theology 48 (1995): 55-78.

Social History Philip Benedict, Christ’s Churches Purely Reformed: A Social History of Calvinism (Yale U. Press, 2002) Christian Grosse. “Les Rituels de la Cène: une anthropologie historique du culte eucharistique Réformé à Genève (XVIe-XVIIe siècles).” Ph.D. Dissertation, Université de Genève, 2001.

Thomas Lambert. “Preaching, Praying, and Policing the Reform in Sixteenth-Century Geneva,” 2 vols. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin, 1998.

Keck, David. “Sorrow and Worship in Calvin's Geneva : their Place in Family History.” In Piety and Family in Early Modern Europe: Essays in Honour of Steven Ozment , edited by Marc R. Forster, and Benjamin J. Kaplan, 201-18. Aldershot : Ashgate, 2005 Kingdon, Robert. “Worship in Geneva Before and After the Reformation,” in Worship in Medieval and Early Modern Europe, Karin Maag and John Witvliet, eds. (University of Notre Dame Press, 2004), 41-62. _____. “The Genevan Revolution in Public Worship.” In The Long Reformation , edited by Jeffrey R. Watt, 106-15. Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 2006. _____. “Nostalgia for Catholic Rituals in Calvin’s Geneva.” In Grenzgänge der Theologie. Professor Alexandre Ganoczy zum 75. Geburtstag, edited by Otmar Meuffels and Jürgen Bründl, 20920. Münster: LIT, 2004.

Mentzer, Raymond A. “The Piety of Townspeople and City Folk,” in Reformation Christianity, ed.

Peter Matheson (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1997), 23-47.

Karen E. Spierling, Infant Baptism in Reformation Geneva: The Shaping of Community, 1536-1564.

Aldershot: Ashgate, 2005.

Christopher B. Kaiser, “Climbing Jacob’s Ladder: John Calvin and the Early Church on Our Eucharistic Ascent to Heaven,” Scottish Journal of Theology 56:3 (2003): 247-67.

Keith Matheson, Given for You: Reclaiming Calvin’s Doctrine of the Lord’s Supper (P&R 2002).

Donald McKim, ed., The Cambridge Companion to John Calvin (Cambridge, 2004).

Richard Muller, The Unaccommodated Calvin (Oxford, 2000).

Hughes Oliphant Old, “Calvin’s Theology of Worship.” In Give Praise to God: A Vision for Reforming Worship, ed. by Philip Graham Ryken, et al., 412-35. (P & R, 2003).

Charles Partee, The Theology of John Calvin (WJK 2008).

Graham Redding, Prayer and the Priesthood of Christ in the Reformed Tradition (T.&T. Clark, 2003).

Laurence C. Sibley, Jr. “The Church as Eucharistic Community: Observations on John Calvin's Early Eucharistic Theology (1536-1545)” Worship 81.3 (2007): 249-67.

Laura Smit, “The Depth Behind Things: Toward a Calvinist Sacramental Theology” in James K.A. Smith and James H. Olthuis, eds. Radical Orthodoxy and the Reformed Tradition (Baker Academic 2005) Lee Palmer Wandel, The Eucharist in the Reformation: Incarnation and Liturgy (Oxford 2006) John D. Witvliet, “Images and Themes in John Calvin’s Theology of Liturgy,” in Worship Seeking Understanding (Baker Academic, 2003). _____. “Baptism as a Sacrament of Reconciliation in the Thought of John Calvin." In Worship Seeking Understanding, 149-62. (Baker, 2003).

Nicholas Wolterstorff, “Sacrament as Action, not Presence." In Christ: The Sacramental Word. ed.

David Brown and Ann Loades (London: S.P.C.K., 1996).

Recent Work Related to Calvin’s Theological Imagination and Worship

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Randall Zachman, Image the Word in the Theology of John Calvin (U. of Notre Dame Press, 2007) Leanne Van Dyk, “The Gifts of God for the People of God: Christian Feminism and Sacramental Theology.” In Feminist and Womanist Essays in Reformed Dogmatics , ed. by Amy Plantinga Pauw and Serene Jones, 204-20, 256-58. (WKP, 2006).

Peter Ward, “Coming to Sermon: the Practice of Doctrine in the Preaching of John Calvin.”

Scottish Journal of Theology 58.3 (2005):319-32.

Calvin, on Music Jeremy Begbie, “Music, Word, and Theology Today: Learning from John Calvin.” In Theology in Dialogue: The Impact of the Arts, Humanities, and Science on Contemporary Religious Thought, ed. by Lyn Holness and Ralf Wüstenberg, 3-27 (Eerdmans, 2002).

Frank Burch Brown, “Religious Music and Secular Music: A Calvinist Perspective, Re-Formed.”

Theology Today 63.1 (2006): 11-21.

Robert M. Kingdon, “Uses of the Psalter in Calvin’s Geneva.” In Der Genfer Psalter und seine Rezeption in Deutschland, der Schweiz und den Niederlanden, 16.-18. Jahrhundert, ed. by Eckhard Grunewald, et al., 21-32. Tübingen: Max Niemeyer Verlag, 2004.

John D. Witvliet, “The Spirituality of the Psalter in Calvin's Geneva.” In Worship Seeking Understanding, 203-29. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003.

Related: Herman Selderhuis, Calvin’s Theology of the Psalms (Baker Academic 2007) Calvin, the Teacher Gordon Mikoski, Baptism and Christian Identity: Teaching in the Triune Name (Eerdmans, forthcoming) Robert M. Kingdon, “Catechesis in Calvin's Geneva.” In Educating People of Faith, ed. by John Van Engen, 294-313. (Eerdmans, 2004).

Space/Arts Christian Grosse, “Places of Sanctification: the Liturgical Sacrality of Genevan Reformed Churches, 1535-1566.” In Sacred Space in Early Modern Europe, ed. by Will Coster and Andrew Spicer, 60-80. (Cambridge, 2005).

William Dryness. Reformed Theology and Visual Culture—The Protestant Imagination from Calvin to Edwards (Cambridge, 2004).

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[copyrighted music omitted ]

Hymn Permissions “Hallelu the Lord Our God” Text: Psalm 150; vers. Calvin Seerveld, 1981, ©.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Genevan Psalter, 1562; harm. Dale Grotenhuis, 1985. Harmonization © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

“Sing, Sing a New Song” Text: Psalm 98; vers. Dewey Westra, 1931; rev. Psalter Hymnal, 1987 Tune: Genevan Psalter, 1551; harm. Dale Grotenhuis, 1985 Text and harmonization © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

“I Love the Lord, for He Has Heard My Voice” Text: Psalm 116; vers. Helen Otte, 1980. © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Genevan Psalter, 1562; harm. Seymour Swets, 1954

“You Servants of the Lord Our God” Text: Psalm 134; vers. Calvin Seerveld, 1981, ©.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Louis Bourgeois, 1551 Alt. Tune: Louis Bourgeois, 1551; harm. John Dowland, 1621, alt.

“Nations, Clap Your Hands” Text: Psalm 47; vers. Psalter Hymnal, 1987. © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Louis Bourgeois, 1551; harm. Claude Goudimel, 1564

“Song of Simeon” Text: Luke 2:29-32; vers. Dewey Westra, 1931, alt.

Tune: Louis Bourgeois,, 1551; harm. Claude Goudimel, 1564 Public Domain

“Lord, Chasten Not in Anger” Text: Psalm 6; vers. Clarence P. Walhout, 1982 Tune: Genevan Psalter, 1542; harm. Howard Slenk, 1985 Text and harmonization © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

“Be Merciful, Be Merciful, O God” Text: Psalm 51; vers. Stanley Wiersma, 1980. © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Louis Bourgeois, 1551; harm. Claude Goudimel, 1564 “The Ten Commandments” Text: Exodus 20:1-17; vers. Dewey Westra, 1899-1979; rev. Psalter Hymnal, 1987. © 1987, CRC Publications.

Used by permission CCLI: #400063.

Tune: Genevan Psalter, 1547; harm. Claude Goudimel, 1564, alt.

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