Choral Evensong with The Royal School of Church Music in America National Virtual Course “The Spirit’s Tether” The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost July 18, 2021 4:00 pm Washington National Cathedral Choral Evensong with The Royal School of Church Music in America July 18, 2021 • 4:00 pm The people’s responses are in bold. prelude Rhapsody No. 3 in C-sharp minor, Op. 17, No. 3 Herbert Howells (1892–1983) introit Luminescence Andrea Ramsey (b. 1977) Eternal light. Limber and supple, Luminescence Lush in tone. Muted at the edges. Take me there, Time shifting, Where the exhale Forgotten. Paints the sky, Sifting through silence, Touch of color, Finding reason and Taste of freshness; Finding life. Where the sound Breathe in, Arches through the air, Whistles low like Smooth as marble, Wind chimes, Light as down; Uniform in soul. Where many become Voices, One. Reaching for light, (Blaire Lauren Ginsburg, Lux Aeterna) hymn • 420 When in Our Music God Is Glorified Sung by all. Engelberg opening sentence from holy scripture O sing unto the Lord a new song: let the congregation of saints praise him. (Psalm 149:1) invitatory and preces Stephen Caracciolo (b. 1962) Officiant O Lord, open thou our lips; Choir And our mouth shall show forth thy praise. Officiant O God, make speed to save us; Choir O Lord, make haste to help us. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen. Officiant Praise ye the Lord. Choir The Lord’s Name be praised. The office candles are lighted as the choir sings. phos hilaron Sung by the choir. Andrew Walker (b. 1955) O gracious Light, pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven, O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed! Now as we come to the setting of the sun, and our eyes behold the vesper light, we sing thy praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thou art worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices, O Son of God, O Giver of life, and to be glorified through all the worlds. psalm 103 Sung by the choir. chant: John Barnard (b. 1948) Bless the Lord, O my soul, For he himself knows whereof we are made; and all that is within me, bless his holy Name. he remembers that we are but dust. Bless the Lord, O my soul, Our days are like the grass; and forget not all his benefits. we flourish like a flower of the field; He forgives all your sins When the wind goes over it, it is gone, and heals all your infirmities; and its place shall know it no more. He redeems your life from the grave But the merciful goodness of the Lord endures for ever and crowns you with mercy and loving-kindness; on those who fear him, He satisfies you with good things, and his righteousness on children's children; and your youth is renewed like an eagle’s. On those who keep his covenant TheLord executes righteousness and remember his commandments and do them. and judgment for all who are oppressed. TheLord has set his throne in heaven, He made his ways known to Moses and his kingship has dominion over all. and his works to the children of Israel. Bless the Lord, you angels of his, TheLord is full of compassion and mercy, you mighty ones who do his bidding, slow to anger and of great kindness. and hearken to the voice of his word. He will not always accuse us, Bless the Lord, all you his hosts, nor will he keep his anger for ever. you ministers of his who do his will. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Bless the Lord, all you works of his, nor rewarded us according to our wickedness. in all places of his dominion; For as the heavens are high above the earth, bless the Lord, O my soul. so is his mercy great upon those who fear him. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, As far as the east is from the west, and to the Holy Spirit: so far has he removed our sins from us. as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, As a father cares for his children, world without end. Amen. so does the Lord care for those who fear him. the first lesson 1 Samuel 23:7-18 Now it was told Saul that David had come to Keilah. And Saul said, “God has given him into my hand; for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.” Saul summoned all the people to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. When David learned that Saul was plotting evil against him, he said to the priest Abiathar, “Bring the ephod here.” David said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, your servant has heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah, to destroy the city on my account. And now, will Saul come down as your servant has heard? O Lord, the God of Israel, I beseech you, tell your servant.” The Lord said, “He will come down.” Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” The Lord said, “They will surrender you.” Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, set out and left Keilah; they wandered wherever they could go. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he gave up the expedition. David remained in the strongholds in the wilderness, in the hill country of the Wilderness of Ziph. Saul sought him every day, but the Lord did not give him into his hand. David was in the Wilderness of Ziph at Horesh when he learned that Saul had come out to seek his life. Saul’s son Jonathan set out and came to David at Horesh; there he strengthened his hand through the Lord. He said to him, “Do not be afraid; for the hand of my father Saul shall not find you; you shall be king over Israel, and I shall be second to you; my father Saul also knows that this is so.” Then the two of them made a covenant before the Lord; David remained at Horesh, and Jonathan went home. Reader The Word of the Lord. People Thanks be to God. magnificat Sung by the choir. Mount St. Alban; David Hogan (1949–1996) My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. For he hath regarded the lowliness of his handmaiden. For behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath magnified me, and holy is his Name. And his mercy is on them that fear him throughout all generations. He hath showed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hath sent empty away. He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel, as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed for ever. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. (Luke 1:46-55) the second lesson Matthew 25:14-30 Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven will be as when a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest.