I know that I am a dork

However, while I was perusing Cyberhymnal.org (Yes, as I said, I am aware that I am a grade A-1 dork) I came upon this lovely 15th century hymn - This Endris Night. The melody is lovely.

Since Lyndsey asked (he he he) I will tell everyone why I like hymns so much: First of all, they are a form of prayer - "He who sings prays twice"; secondly, you can remember the melodies without a lot of effort (and laziness seems to be my number one priority nowadays, much to the dismay of the poor people who have to grade my Statistics assignments); and thirdly, we sing so much cruddy music in Church on Sunday that I suppose I am just starving for the good stuff. St. Paul's in Athens is really quite bearable in this regard - the opening and closing hymns are usually classics, while the Communion hymns and the hymns during the presentation of the gifts are usually modern liturgical lounge music. Besides which, the choir is quite excellent.

St. Mary's back home, however, is quite atrocious - at least on the few times I have been obliged to go there in the last few months - with sappy melodies, NO rhyming stanzas, drums, recordings, rock music, and a lady playing the piano who "directs" the music with her head. I have nothing against drums, recordings and rock music, per se, but it's not something I care to hear at Mass.

At all.

The sad thing is, the Episcopalians, who are just plain old Protestants, (I don't mean to slight Protestants!) are the ones singing Palestrina, Beethoven's Mass in C, Mozart's Requiem Mass, or Bach's Mass in B Minor. Arrrrgh! DO WE UNDERSTAND THIS? These great composers wrote Masses which we could be using, instead of being slowly tortured to death by "Gather Us In."

Rant off.

Anyway, I'm way into "the hymn thing." An observant reader would note that on my Christmas Wish List on the right, I have listed the "Adoremus Hymnal", which is completely bereft of any nasty lounge songs masquerading as respectable music. Hint, hint, Betsy. It's under "All I want for Christmas ..." Hint, hint ;)