Somewhere along the way, I have lost track of the number of weddings that I have officiated. Most were conducted in the church, but in recent years, the venue began to shift to local wineries. I drew the line at conducting a wedding in a hot-air balloon! I also lost count of the number of times I heard Felix Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” as brides were escorted down the center aisle. We also have Mendelssohn to thank for providing the tune for “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” Chiefly, what Felix wrote were choral works for church choirs. While he was raised Jewish in his early years, his family converted to Christianity. Felix and his family were baptized and joined the Lutheran Church, yet Felix never lost his appreciation for the Hebrew Scripture (the Old Testament). He composed major choral works on Elijah and numerous Psalms.
William Bartholomew, a chemist by day and a hymn-writer by night, sent Mendelssohn his paraphrase of Psalm 55.1-7. Felix arranged music to accompany the words and titled it “Hear My Prayer.” This three-part work opens with David’s simple plea, “Hear my prayer, O God, incline Thine ear!” Felix’s subtle change of harmony and melody expresses David’s alternating moods of optimism and loneliness. The choir adds their voices to David’s plea in the middle section. His fear and despair reach a crescendo in the cry, “With horror overwhelmed, Lord, hear my call.” In the final section, David looks to God for peace and rest. He imagines God as supplying him with wings to fly away to safety.
“Hear My Prayer” debuted in England in 1845. William, the hymnwriter, was on hand and met the organist, whom he later married. A nice ending to our story!
Today’s prayer consists of William Bartholomew’s paraphrase of Psalm 55: