Farewell to Alleluias

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

In preparation for the season of lent, we bid farewell to the alleluias at St. Paul’s, Otto Mo.

The hymn “Alleluia, Song of Gladness” (LSB 417) well expresses, in stanza three, the reason for retiring the Alleluias during Lent.

Alleluia, cannot always

Be our song while here below;

Alleluia, our transgressions

Make us for a while forgo;

For the solemn time is coming

When our tears for sin must flow.

That hymn dates from at least the 11^th century. Thus we know that the omission of the Alleluias for lent is of long standing practice.

A tragic story that comes out of a church in North Africa in the fifth century reports that a member of an invading band of Vandals entered the church during worship, drew his bow, and shot an arrow into the throat of the cantor at the very time he was singing the alleluias.

I chose to retire the Alleluias in a less dramatic fashion. Following the suggestion in Creative Communications, the Sunday school students made Alleluia posters. I also found a song in Lift Up Your Hearts P. 53 (CPH 1988) by Ted Wuerfful titled, Saints of God, the faithful Band. The hymn has plenty of alleluias and is set to the tune of the Easter hymn Christ the Lord Is risen Today; Alleluia. (LSB 463) The students gathered in front of the church and on the last stanza we recessed out led by the crucifix and an Alleluia banner.

I think the plan is to bring the posters back in at the start of the Easter Sunrise service. By Easter we will yearn to once raise our praise to God and sing This is the feast of victory for our God. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Comments

[Dan at Necessary Roughness]

I visited Our Savior LCMS in Morristown, OK. Pr. Freitag made the Alleluia posters, and then he and the only child who was there walked around the altar and hid them behind the altar. It was cute.

[Dan at Necessary Roughness]

Correction, Tennessee, not Oklahoma. All that sweet tea down there...

[Ron Jansen]

Thanks for sharing the experienc in Tennessee. My son is pastor in Burns which is west of Nashville. I'm also glad you digured out which state you were in. I was going to ask others how they had said Farewell to the Alleluias. I think of it as our own version of Mardi Gras though much saner and more sober.