The Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time
The Word:
1 Kings 17:10-16 (The widow of Zarephath feeds Elijah the prophet from her meager provisions; God rewards her by keeping her from running out of flour and oil)
Psalm 146:7-10 (The Lord provides food for the hungry, and sustains the widowed and orphaned)
Hebrews 9:24-28 (Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, but into heaven itself)
Mark 12:38-44 ("The widow, in her poverty, contributed all she had")
And - Judges 4 & 5 (Deborah, Israel's female judge, and why you need her - Behind every man there is a good woman)
Ephesians 5:10-20 (Do not continue in ignorance, but try to understand what is the will of the Lord)
A crossroads.
The Mass of Remembrance and the Days of the Dead are now past, and the Season of Light (Advent through Christmas to Epiphany) - though not quite here yet - is now in the planning stages.
It's usually all hands on deck for church musicians for the next seven weeks. This is one of the two seasons when even the casual musician tends to get busy, adding to the general business and mayhem that prevails throughout December. It's time for the first string leaders to take a quick breather (hopefully, nobody's noticed) and the second string to take charge (again, hopefully, nobody's noticed).
I've a strong belief that church musicians should pray (often) and it should be part of rehearsals and warm-ups. That's something I wasn't always used to, but through Mike and Jeff and several of the folks at Cornerstone, it's part of the landscape and routine. Over the years I've become just comfortable enough to ad lib when called upon to lead, and that includes impromptu or spontaneous prayer. However, it's easier to have something on which to focus and adapt where necessary. I attribute this to my Catholic upbringing, where everything can be scripted - including private prayer.
For several reasons I was called upon to serve as the team leader this morning. Not wanting to leave out something I believe to be important, I went searching for stuff to use for a launchpad. Deo Gratias to the Internet and Google - and of course to the folks who were blessed enough and received the inspiration to write what I'm about to share. I offer this as a public service - a few thoughtful and prayerful moments (not to mention a few that are accompanied by a laugh or two) can go a long way to keep things in perspective..
The Traditional Musician's Prayer
(with apologies to Francis of Assisi)
Source: www.qmcorp.net/zouki/scripta/prayer.html
Lord, keep always before me
The appreciation of music as one of Your greatest gifts.
Never let me stray far from the tune;
Help me to remain faithful to the spirits
Of those musicians who have gone before
Leaving this lovely legacy in my care.
Lord, let me always remember
What Your Golden Rule instructs
So that I treat other musicians
As I would wish to be treated myself.
Lord, let me always remember
That You give Irish musicians a special gift:
The opportunity to praise and glorify You
While sitting around playing jigs and reels
In dark smoky pubs.
Lord, give me patience always
And help me to remember
That the word "tradition"
Implies sharing.
Lord, give me tolerance always
And help me to appreciate
The Great Mystery:
Not everybody likes what I like.
Never let me slip too far into self-importance
And help me use as necessary
Whatever sense of humor
You may have imparted to me.
Lord, let me never forget
That I don't have all the answers
And that there's nobody
That I can't learn from
(Even bodhrán and banjo players)
And finally, Lord - if it's not too much to ask -
Make me competent first
Then respected
And eventually brilliant.
(But Your will always be done.)
Amen.
Fifteen Dead-Certain Recipes for an Insipid Musicians' Prayer Group
Source: www.crescendo.org/download/pdf/gkee.pdf, June 1988
1. The inner attitude with which you go to group meetings is luckily unimportant. The
important thing is above all loyal fulfilment of duty, which you, as a good
Christian, are willing to take upon yourself. No-one is really counting on your
expecting something special from God during the meeting. So: drop in, and see what’s
going on.
2. It makes a bit of an impression if you arrive too late. This shows a) that you
have a full appointments diary and b) at the same time you have a deeply spiritual
attitude: you look in, even though you really have some pressing things to
practice.
3. Don’t have a bad conscience when the same old things disturb you even during the
first greetings of the evening: that F.seems so insecure, that M. is always
talking about her successes (she isn’t actually that good, anyway), and that L.
always sounds so religious. Unity isn’t made by generously looking away from the
faults of others but by recognizing the faults for what they are and trying to
convince oneself that God loves these people as well.
4. Last time, someone asked you if you would lead the prayer time, and you
responded enthusiastically. Now, it was right that you didn’t prepare yourself
specially for this. The more spontaneous, the more spiritual. The others should
contribute wishes. If there are prolonged pauses, just ask "What shall we do now?".
This stimulates discussion. The opposite, a prepared plan, leads on the contrary to a
serious disturbance of the discussion. (This appears rather familiar to me!)
5. During personal sharing, it is important for everyone to give the full story of all
the little things that happened in the past week. The smallest details are particularly
interesting, and lively discussions on technical matters often develop - for example on this or that teacher or on yesterday’s concert.
6. Feel free as well to say out loud where someone has got on your nerves in recent
days. Perhaps the same has happened to others, and we can pray precisely for the
person concerned. Unbridled criticism is edifying when it is laid aside again in
prayer.
7. Say long prayers and use that theological language which God understands.
Short, powerful prayers only betray a simple mind.
8. It is generally true that concrete prayer rapidly becomes embarrassing. How do
you respond when what you have prayed for doesn’t happen? God (and the people
praying) should not be pinned down to definite wishes. It is better to pray
"Lord, let many come to faith in this congregation (or assembly)" rather than "Help me to start
a conversation about you with S. in the next few days and enable me to pass on your
love."
9. The prayer requests should not demand too much faith. It seems exaggerated if you
have big goals in faith. It is better to let humility speak and to be particularly
thankful for small things. As Christians, we are not worthy to receive great things
from God.
10. Matters for prayer often weigh heavily upon us. This fact should be reflected in a
serious, oppressive atmosphere. Especially in times of intercession, praise and thanks
for God’s powerful working should be avoided. Our gaze should be fixed entirely
on the mountain of problems, which can only be levelled by grim wrestling. This - and
nothing else - is what moving mountains is all about.
11. A point concerning songs. Suggest difficult songs, not the familiar ones that
perhaps help people to fix their gaze worshipfully on God. You are musicians and
have to show your ability in prayer times as well.
12. Take care that no close contacts develop between members of the group. This
could detract from serious studies. In addition, fellowship amongst Christians
should be marked by spiritual earnestness and never by a lot of merriment. Remember:
Christians who like laughing are suspicious...
13. What should you do if a group has been spiritually asleep for weeks on end? It’s
best to do nothing, for, remember, "While they sleep, the Lord provides for those he
loves"!
14. The spiritual and mental state of the others is basically none of your business.
If someone is feeling bad, recommend some good books or a pastor. It would be a
mistake to deviate from the program in favor of a deeper discussion or perhaps to
have an extended time of prayer for a problem that has suddenly turned up. By the
way, the silliest thing that can happen in a prayer group is for someone (perhaps even
a man) to start crying. Strict measures are to be taken to prevent such situations
arising.
15. Just a last word on being interdenominational:
this offers material for hours of discussion. Questions about baptism, the significance of Mary, communion, etc., are so central that one really can’t pray until these things have been sorted out. So: we hope you have a good time!
It is true, dear friends, that the Holy Spirit covers up a multitude of mea culpas during high season. Raise your voices, and raise the roof!
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
When In Our Music God Is Glorified
The Third Sunday of Easter
Today's Word:
Acts 3:13-19 (Peter: 'I know you put Jesus to death out of ignorance, just as your leaders did')
Psalm 4:2-9 (Lord, let your face shine on us)
1 John 2:1-5 (Whoever keeps His word has the love of God truly perfected in him)
Luke 24:35-48 ("Peace be with you!")
Also:
Philippians 1:12-26 (Paul of Tarsus: "I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die")
For a reflection on today's Gospel reading, please see my post "I Haven't Eaten in Three Days!" of Easter Thursday, April 16, in the blog archives.
This weekend passing has been a very busy one. For one, it's one of the frequent enough hiccups in my schedule where I sing in both churches on the same weekend - with my Catholic community on Saturday, and the folks at Cornerstone UMC on Sunday. Saturday's occasion was a big one - sixteen young adults and two a bit older received the sacrament of Confirmation from the Bishop of Joliet - in Catholicism, the bishop is the ordinary minister of the sacrament (there are very few exceptions to this).
There were also two weddings yesterday, one in each of my extended families. Because of the commitment and the distance, we did not go to either of the weddings. As it turned out, as there was no way I could go to one without hurting feelings over the other, I am prompted to be humbly thankful that I was busy; and also to pray for long and happy marriages for both couples.
When Confirmation is celebrated, it can sometimes seem like the clashing of the old and the young, the traditional and the contemporary. As the recipients are young, it would be helpful if the liturgy was more suited to their level (especially with regard to music, as music is probably the most flexible and subjective component within ritual). In many a Catholic environment, you have kids in their teens and whose lifestyles 'clash' with a bishop three to five times their age. In that specific environment, the bishop always wins. Cornerstone will hold their celebration of Confirmation at the end of May. At this point, I had arbitrarily made myself available to be there that Sunday; a chance to compare and contrast.
For various reasons I was the designated song leader for this Mass. I was prepared enough. Yet the older I get, and the more I realize what I did and received on the day of my ordination fifteen years ago, the stronger the pull of emotional energy through me when the high Masses of the year take place. I now experience increasing difficulty maintaining my composure when a traditional hymn such as Come, Holy Ghost is part of the liturgy - and the bigger it is, the more energy I feel being pulled through me.
I picked up one very important thing the bishop said in his homily to all gathered. He summarized it to the younger folks by saying that "Confirmation is not Graduation." I remembered that earlier in my life I believed that the Church had all the answers to getting through this life; it was among my reasoning why I felt called to serve within the Church. Here is the #1 person of the diocese saying this quest goes on infinitely. He's correct, of course - a journey in faith is a lifelong process. While the Church may hold all known revelation, not all has been revealed. That's something I could easily have overlooked when I was younger.
Today, in a less formal and more contemporary setting, my son and I returned to Cornerstone. And once again, I felt I was prepared enough. Here, I play bass guitar in addition to singing. I am no virtuoso at the instrument - those who know me well and have followed this blog from the start know this well. After all these years I play just well enough to tackle singing at the same time.
Sidebar:
My dear wife's been playing with the Oriental literary form, the haiku. Today I read some of her handiwork; among the offerings:
Haiku is easy
The original Twitter
(If Twitter could think!)
(Punctuation emphasis mine)
I'm not as quick on my feet writing this stuff - she makes it look easy. Looking at the length of some of my musings, coupled with my demeanor, the best I could compose - with her help - is:
I like bigger words
Simple words can say a lot
Silence is golden
Anyway, I have a big mou--- I mean, voice, and I'm not afraid to use it. When the energy is there in the right mix, I will help 'raise the roof'. I know that better now than I ever have.
Pastor Paul's sermon on Philippians 1:12-26 also caught me looking at what I do. In the light of what I wrote here on Friday, commenting on Dave Ramsey's "Town Hall for Hope", I had to ask myself: Is what I do serving Christ or serving self? At different points along my journey, I realize that I didn't always have my priorities straight. While I felt the need to question Dave's motives, I also turned this into an opportunity to question my own. That's a good thing. Whatever his motives are, the fact is that people have been helped through his program. I don't know him well enough to be certain if my appraisal of his priorities where it comes to proclaiming the Gospel are true. I do know that Jesus said He who is not against us is for us; and Paul of Tarsus wrote to the Philippians that intent is secondary if the message of hope and about Christ is being proclaimed.
And with that, I had no qualms about giving everything I could find in myself to singing a similar message of hope:
Let the song arise, yeah! Everyone sing a new Hallelujah!
Between all of us gathered in that place, the roof was definitely raised just a bit.
When in our music God is glorified,
and adoration leaves no room for pride,
it is as though the whole creation cried
Alleluia!
How often, making music, we have found
a new dimension in the world of sound,
as worship moved us to a more profound
Alleluia!
So has the Church, in liturgy and song,
in faith and love, through centuries of wrong,
borne witness to the truth in every tongue,
Alleluia!
And did not Jesus sing a psalm that night
when utmost evil strove against the Light?
Then let us sing, for whom he won the fight,
Alleluia!
Let every instrument be tuned for praise!
Let all rejoice who have a voice to raise!
And may God give us faith to sing always
Alleluia! Amen.
--When In Our Music God Is Glorified (1971)
Fred Pratt Green (1903-2000)
Today's Word:
Acts 3:13-19 (Peter: 'I know you put Jesus to death out of ignorance, just as your leaders did')
Psalm 4:2-9 (Lord, let your face shine on us)
1 John 2:1-5 (Whoever keeps His word has the love of God truly perfected in him)
Luke 24:35-48 ("Peace be with you!")
Also:
Philippians 1:12-26 (Paul of Tarsus: "I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die")
For a reflection on today's Gospel reading, please see my post "I Haven't Eaten in Three Days!" of Easter Thursday, April 16, in the blog archives.
This weekend passing has been a very busy one. For one, it's one of the frequent enough hiccups in my schedule where I sing in both churches on the same weekend - with my Catholic community on Saturday, and the folks at Cornerstone UMC on Sunday. Saturday's occasion was a big one - sixteen young adults and two a bit older received the sacrament of Confirmation from the Bishop of Joliet - in Catholicism, the bishop is the ordinary minister of the sacrament (there are very few exceptions to this).
There were also two weddings yesterday, one in each of my extended families. Because of the commitment and the distance, we did not go to either of the weddings. As it turned out, as there was no way I could go to one without hurting feelings over the other, I am prompted to be humbly thankful that I was busy; and also to pray for long and happy marriages for both couples.
When Confirmation is celebrated, it can sometimes seem like the clashing of the old and the young, the traditional and the contemporary. As the recipients are young, it would be helpful if the liturgy was more suited to their level (especially with regard to music, as music is probably the most flexible and subjective component within ritual). In many a Catholic environment, you have kids in their teens and whose lifestyles 'clash' with a bishop three to five times their age. In that specific environment, the bishop always wins. Cornerstone will hold their celebration of Confirmation at the end of May. At this point, I had arbitrarily made myself available to be there that Sunday; a chance to compare and contrast.
For various reasons I was the designated song leader for this Mass. I was prepared enough. Yet the older I get, and the more I realize what I did and received on the day of my ordination fifteen years ago, the stronger the pull of emotional energy through me when the high Masses of the year take place. I now experience increasing difficulty maintaining my composure when a traditional hymn such as Come, Holy Ghost is part of the liturgy - and the bigger it is, the more energy I feel being pulled through me.
I picked up one very important thing the bishop said in his homily to all gathered. He summarized it to the younger folks by saying that "Confirmation is not Graduation." I remembered that earlier in my life I believed that the Church had all the answers to getting through this life; it was among my reasoning why I felt called to serve within the Church. Here is the #1 person of the diocese saying this quest goes on infinitely. He's correct, of course - a journey in faith is a lifelong process. While the Church may hold all known revelation, not all has been revealed. That's something I could easily have overlooked when I was younger.
Today, in a less formal and more contemporary setting, my son and I returned to Cornerstone. And once again, I felt I was prepared enough. Here, I play bass guitar in addition to singing. I am no virtuoso at the instrument - those who know me well and have followed this blog from the start know this well. After all these years I play just well enough to tackle singing at the same time.
Sidebar:
My dear wife's been playing with the Oriental literary form, the haiku. Today I read some of her handiwork; among the offerings:
Haiku is easy
The original Twitter
(If Twitter could think!)
(Punctuation emphasis mine)
I'm not as quick on my feet writing this stuff - she makes it look easy. Looking at the length of some of my musings, coupled with my demeanor, the best I could compose - with her help - is:
I like bigger words
Simple words can say a lot
Silence is golden
Anyway, I have a big mou--- I mean, voice, and I'm not afraid to use it. When the energy is there in the right mix, I will help 'raise the roof'. I know that better now than I ever have.
Pastor Paul's sermon on Philippians 1:12-26 also caught me looking at what I do. In the light of what I wrote here on Friday, commenting on Dave Ramsey's "Town Hall for Hope", I had to ask myself: Is what I do serving Christ or serving self? At different points along my journey, I realize that I didn't always have my priorities straight. While I felt the need to question Dave's motives, I also turned this into an opportunity to question my own. That's a good thing. Whatever his motives are, the fact is that people have been helped through his program. I don't know him well enough to be certain if my appraisal of his priorities where it comes to proclaiming the Gospel are true. I do know that Jesus said He who is not against us is for us; and Paul of Tarsus wrote to the Philippians that intent is secondary if the message of hope and about Christ is being proclaimed.
And with that, I had no qualms about giving everything I could find in myself to singing a similar message of hope:
Let the song arise, yeah! Everyone sing a new Hallelujah!
Between all of us gathered in that place, the roof was definitely raised just a bit.
When in our music God is glorified,
and adoration leaves no room for pride,
it is as though the whole creation cried
Alleluia!
How often, making music, we have found
a new dimension in the world of sound,
as worship moved us to a more profound
Alleluia!
So has the Church, in liturgy and song,
in faith and love, through centuries of wrong,
borne witness to the truth in every tongue,
Alleluia!
And did not Jesus sing a psalm that night
when utmost evil strove against the Light?
Then let us sing, for whom he won the fight,
Alleluia!
Let every instrument be tuned for praise!
Let all rejoice who have a voice to raise!
And may God give us faith to sing always
Alleluia! Amen.
--When In Our Music God Is Glorified (1971)
Fred Pratt Green (1903-2000)
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
The Gardener - Finding A Lost Treasure
Easter Tuesday
Today's Word:
Acts 2:36-41 (Peter: "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation")
Psalm 33:4-5, 18-22 (The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord)
John 20:11-18 (Mary Magdalene: "If you carried him away, tell me where you laid him and I will take him")
On Easter Sunday I posted the lyrics to an obscure song from 1971, from memory. This was for all practical purposes before the CCM or 'Jesus music' became buzzwords, let alone its own multimillion dollar industry. Today I want to tell you where that song came from.
I'm not well versed on how it all started - maybe the evolution of popular music simply inspired people at just the right time. Musical theater was apparently moving away from the likes of Rogers and Hammerstein, and the 'concept' record album was coming into popularity. But even at the level of the hit single, as we entered the 1970s, something unusual was taking place. Judy Collins made it into the top five with an a capella rendering of the hymn Amazing Grace. By 1973, Sister Janet Mead made a one-hit wonder for herself with a contemporary setting of the Lord's Prayer. Elvis Presley had recorded How Great Thou Art - with an entire album of hymns - in 1966; he had recorded a similar project in 1960.
There were three blockbuster recordings that were first heard in the early 1970s. First was Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar (lyrics by Tim Rice), which I've quoted from frequently in this series. On its heels was the musical Godspell, loosely based on the Gospel of Matthew, written by Stephen Schwartz. And the third was a little-known project that had been in the works for three years - Truth of Truths, an ambitious project putting key stories from the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) in a then-contemporary setting.
Truth of Truths went the one place where the others did not. Where Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell end with the death of Jesus, TOT covers the Resurrection and its finale deals with the Book of Revelation.
It was released in the spring of 1971, and was billed as a road-show rock opera (an attempt to capitalize on the success of The Who's Tommy and JCS). It was first performed live at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on Easter Sunday 1971 before an audience of over 3,000 people. TOT's producer and co-writer, Ray Ruff, was looking to take this as far as he possibly could. However, financial backing for something like this was almost unheard of in 1971. Still, Ruff managed to get TOT performed in six cities that year, and thousands of albums sold. Among the people who helped promote the album was a man named Jon Rivers, who was until only a few weeks ago the morning drive host on K-LOVE radio stations across the country. At that time he was hosting a syndicated program called Powerline, that evangelized using lyrics from popular songs of the day.
I was one of those who happened to hear excerpts from TOT on Rivers' show. I was impressed by just about anything musically that managed to incorporate religious themes, and had my own copy of both Godspell and JCS, even as controversial as the latter was at the time it was released. I likewise bought a copy of TOT when I had the chance. I had the album for many years, until the development of CDs made the old vinyl LPs obsolete. Then, because I had to free up space, I parted with all the LPs I could no longer play. If I'd only knew then where this recording was destined, I would have kept it.
Ray Ruff had plans of getting Truth of Truths performed in more cities, and was prepared to make another pressing of the album - all of which took time to bankroll, and he was doing this on his own as no major record label thought it would sell. Still, there were always people interested as the word got out. Then, one fateful day in 1973, all the master recording tapes and files to TOT were destroyed in a fire set, reports say, by a person on the staff of Ruff's recording company who had declared himself a devil worshipper. Ruff had no backup. TOT was lost, save those fortunate people who had purchased the original vinyl recordings. (Some cassette recordings were also sold from the original masters, but the quality of cassette tape was quite inferior in those days.)
It would have seemed that TOT was lost forever - but upon reaching the 30th anniversary of its first performance, Ruff began considering the possibility of remastering the recording from vinyl in order to release it on CD. Computer technology had reached the point where this was possible and reasonable quality could be achieved. Re-recording with a fresh cast was considered but rejected, again due to cost. Some of the people involved with the original release had died over the years. Ray himself passed away in September 2005, his dream unfulfilled.
But this story has a hopeful ending. Ruff's widow and one of his business partners owned the copyright on the original recording and have continued working on the project since Ray's death. As of March 12 of this year announcements at several websites where TOT has been discussed at length indicate that the CD release of the original recording will finally happen later in 2009. I will be watching for it.
God will have mercy
He'll forgive us of all our sins
He'll guide us to the Promised Land
If we turn to Him
If we turn to Him
Let My people go
Let My people go
--Let My People Go (excerpt)
Awake, awake O Israel
God is sending you a Messiah
Help is coming
Help is coming
This man will arise from the dead
And ascend into heaven
--Prophecies of the Coming Messiah (excerpt) from Truth of Truths (1971)
words and music by Ray Ruff (1938-2005) and Val Stoecklein
Today's Word:
Acts 2:36-41 (Peter: "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation")
Psalm 33:4-5, 18-22 (The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord)
John 20:11-18 (Mary Magdalene: "If you carried him away, tell me where you laid him and I will take him")
On Easter Sunday I posted the lyrics to an obscure song from 1971, from memory. This was for all practical purposes before the CCM or 'Jesus music' became buzzwords, let alone its own multimillion dollar industry. Today I want to tell you where that song came from.
I'm not well versed on how it all started - maybe the evolution of popular music simply inspired people at just the right time. Musical theater was apparently moving away from the likes of Rogers and Hammerstein, and the 'concept' record album was coming into popularity. But even at the level of the hit single, as we entered the 1970s, something unusual was taking place. Judy Collins made it into the top five with an a capella rendering of the hymn Amazing Grace. By 1973, Sister Janet Mead made a one-hit wonder for herself with a contemporary setting of the Lord's Prayer. Elvis Presley had recorded How Great Thou Art - with an entire album of hymns - in 1966; he had recorded a similar project in 1960.
There were three blockbuster recordings that were first heard in the early 1970s. First was Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar (lyrics by Tim Rice), which I've quoted from frequently in this series. On its heels was the musical Godspell, loosely based on the Gospel of Matthew, written by Stephen Schwartz. And the third was a little-known project that had been in the works for three years - Truth of Truths, an ambitious project putting key stories from the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) in a then-contemporary setting.
Truth of Truths went the one place where the others did not. Where Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell end with the death of Jesus, TOT covers the Resurrection and its finale deals with the Book of Revelation.
It was released in the spring of 1971, and was billed as a road-show rock opera (an attempt to capitalize on the success of The Who's Tommy and JCS). It was first performed live at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on Easter Sunday 1971 before an audience of over 3,000 people. TOT's producer and co-writer, Ray Ruff, was looking to take this as far as he possibly could. However, financial backing for something like this was almost unheard of in 1971. Still, Ruff managed to get TOT performed in six cities that year, and thousands of albums sold. Among the people who helped promote the album was a man named Jon Rivers, who was until only a few weeks ago the morning drive host on K-LOVE radio stations across the country. At that time he was hosting a syndicated program called Powerline, that evangelized using lyrics from popular songs of the day.
I was one of those who happened to hear excerpts from TOT on Rivers' show. I was impressed by just about anything musically that managed to incorporate religious themes, and had my own copy of both Godspell and JCS, even as controversial as the latter was at the time it was released. I likewise bought a copy of TOT when I had the chance. I had the album for many years, until the development of CDs made the old vinyl LPs obsolete. Then, because I had to free up space, I parted with all the LPs I could no longer play. If I'd only knew then where this recording was destined, I would have kept it.
Ray Ruff had plans of getting Truth of Truths performed in more cities, and was prepared to make another pressing of the album - all of which took time to bankroll, and he was doing this on his own as no major record label thought it would sell. Still, there were always people interested as the word got out. Then, one fateful day in 1973, all the master recording tapes and files to TOT were destroyed in a fire set, reports say, by a person on the staff of Ruff's recording company who had declared himself a devil worshipper. Ruff had no backup. TOT was lost, save those fortunate people who had purchased the original vinyl recordings. (Some cassette recordings were also sold from the original masters, but the quality of cassette tape was quite inferior in those days.)
It would have seemed that TOT was lost forever - but upon reaching the 30th anniversary of its first performance, Ruff began considering the possibility of remastering the recording from vinyl in order to release it on CD. Computer technology had reached the point where this was possible and reasonable quality could be achieved. Re-recording with a fresh cast was considered but rejected, again due to cost. Some of the people involved with the original release had died over the years. Ray himself passed away in September 2005, his dream unfulfilled.
But this story has a hopeful ending. Ruff's widow and one of his business partners owned the copyright on the original recording and have continued working on the project since Ray's death. As of March 12 of this year announcements at several websites where TOT has been discussed at length indicate that the CD release of the original recording will finally happen later in 2009. I will be watching for it.
God will have mercy
He'll forgive us of all our sins
He'll guide us to the Promised Land
If we turn to Him
If we turn to Him
Let My people go
Let My people go
--Let My People Go (excerpt)
Awake, awake O Israel
God is sending you a Messiah
Help is coming
Help is coming
This man will arise from the dead
And ascend into heaven
--Prophecies of the Coming Messiah (excerpt) from Truth of Truths (1971)
words and music by Ray Ruff (1938-2005) and Val Stoecklein
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