Lament

Have you noticed in the new Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymn book there's a section not in its predecessor (old greenie)? Actually there's several, but I'm only interested in one today--Lament. This is a collection of hymns that express sadness.

That's something new--and not new--all at the same time. New because in our "feel good" society we tend to discount pain and suffering even in religion, unless it comes as a result of witnessing. We'd rather sing upbeat songs with catchy titles ("It had a good beat and was easy to clap along to--I'd give it a 9, Mr. Clark."), than depressing wails to an unfeeling or inactive God.

That's too bad because you need to be able to let those feelings out sometimes. And music (combined with poetic lyrics) is a great way to do that. Unwitting theologian and Beatle Ringo Starr sang it like this, "You gotta pay your dues if you want to sing the blues--you know it don't come easy." We connect to this type of music because it strikes an underused chord in our hearts.

So having "Laments" is a well conceived return to the roots of our faith. I say roots because laments are rife in the prophets and the psalms--so it's not so new after all. The first reading and psalm for this coming Sunday are good examples. MORE TO COME....