Almighty God, beautiful in majesty and majestic in holiness, who dost teach us in Holy Scripture to sing thy praises and who gavest thy musicians Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frederick Handel and Henry Purcell grace to show forth thy glory in their music: Be with all those who write or make music for thy people, that we on earth may glimpse thy beauty and know the inexhaustible riches of thy new creation in Jesus Christ our Savior; who livest and reignest with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The status of all the many new saints that TEC has proposed adding to the calendar is dubious and unclear in Anglican circles outside of TEC, but I (for one) would concur with the addition of these three great musicians to the list. Above all, in the case of J.S. Bach, whose ardent devotion to Jesus Christ is amply documented and beyond the slightest doubt. Just consider Jaroslav Pelikan’s tribute to Bach’s profound theological acumen in his little book, [b]Bach Among the Theologians[/b] (Fortress Press, 1986, 172 pages). He even signed his secular work with his customary S.D.G., Soli Deo Gloria. And as for Handel, his famous masterpiece, the oratorio Messiah, is the most frequently performed major musical work of all time. No symphony, concerto, or other piece of comparable scale even comes close to it in popularity. And as for Purcell, well, it’s nice to have a Brit included along with two Germans, even if Handel did live and work for a long time in London.
For the life and witness of these three great Christian musicians, thanks be to God.
David Handy+