“Before 1400 A. D., all music sung in church was in 3/4 time–the Trinity, you know…” – OLLI class on Madrigals.
“A Song from the Cross?” – Steve Shoemaker, Urbana, IL, March 22, 2012
On the cross, Jesus sang (maybe) the first words from the XXII Psalm,
(most Psalms were sung by the Jews), “My God, my God, Why have you forsaken me?”
The words showed his humanity:
doubt, fear, loneliness. That he (perhaps) sang, showed divinity.
These words being in the Bible at all are one more reason we can trust
the Bible to tell us what happened: if this was made up, it would
have been Psalm XXIII put in his mouth, “The Lord is my shepherd…”
If Jesus sang then, why does the Gospel writer not tell us he did?
I propose because everybody knew then that most Psalms were sung.
And music surrounded Jesus: angel choirs at his birth, and the
disciples singing a hymn with him at the last supper…
Before my mother died four months ago at (almost) 91, we sang together
old church songs for kids: “Jesus Loves Me,” “Jesus Loves the Little
Children, All the Children of the World.”
It comforts me to think that Jesus might also have sung before he died…
Views from the Edge 
I hadn’t thought about Jesus singing. Now that I do, I realize that I just assumed he did. I like imagining that. What was his voice like? My guess isit was a very melodic baritone. But he could just as easily been a tenor. But not a bass. Mel Torme-ish? No, not that smooth. Not Elvis either. Hmm. Now I’m going to have to ponder the sound of Jesus singing. Thanks Gordon.
Glad you had a great time too.
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Pavarotti – “Perhaps Love is like an ocean” – or Pete Seeger? Or, how about Paul Robson? Better yet, a male version of Miriam Odetta or Miriam Makeba.
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Lovely thought. Welcome back! (You were away when I needed you to affirm something on my blog.)
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Abandonment is always hard, especially when one needs affirming 🙂 Glad to be back.
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Those words have always haunted me and I had not realised the reference. I have just read the whole Psalm – whoa, what power! And then to follow with Psalm 23!
I have been contemplating these very words coming to understand the journey of co-dependents. There is a point in the relationship where if healing is to take place, the “parent” must take action to step back and let the “child” experience the darkest of suffering. Only then can healing take place. But while the “parent” never really abandons the “child”, but the “child” needs to go through this point without dependency.
“My God, my God why have you abandoned me!” is the cry of such a one. The Cross would be meaningless if Jesus did not enter through this point of terrifying suffering.
I put “parent” and “child” in quotes as these are relational terms, not biological terms.
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David, you’ve taken Steve’s theme in a direction I would never have thought of – fresh, outside the box, and meaningful to every person who has experienced the groanings of childhood and of parenthood. I never would have thought about co-dependency without your comment.
As a faithful Jew, Jesus was steeped in the Psalms. He would not have to look far for either of these two Psalms. They sang themselves in his very being.
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Interesting concept….. Though he may have had to work to hold the tone in the position he was in…….trying to take a deep breath was difficult to put it mildly.
But song – as in Psalms, hymns, etc. comfort us in times of trouble.
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What a great reflection, Karin. I imagine the Psalm as sung in silence of his tortured self, the way we do when something from deep within us sings itself in our heads. No question – this piece is jarring and full of contraditiction. The poem makes no sense unless one gets the first part that you describe: “trying to take a deep breath was difficult to put it mildly.” Then, as you and Steve say, is there reason for sining from the cross.
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We did the same with more than a few parishioners as I waited with the families. The most poignant time was our Parish Nuese wiping this lady’s feverish brow all the while singing “Jesus Loves Me, this I Know.” Music can often be the means of transport. Thanks for sharing Steve’s words.
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