c. 2007 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ As his fellow Methodists held their red hymnals and sang Charles Wesley’s hymns, the Rev. Jonathan Kerry of London kept his hands in his pockets while singing the prolific British writer’s words from memory.

“They’re like the family jewels, really, that we share,” he said of Wesley’s lyrics, which include “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” and “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing.”

“I always make a point of trying to sing them without the hymnal because that’s how I concentrate on the words and what they mean.”

Kerry, who directs worship and learning for the Methodist Church in Great Britain, was among more than 130 people who gathered from across the globe to mark the 300th anniversary of Wesley’s birth at the Sixth Historical Convocation of the United Methodist Church July 20-22. Though the clergyman being celebrated was born three centuries ago, the gathering demonstrated through songs and speeches that Wesley’s words have found a place in 21st-century music and society.

Wesley, whose more famous brother John founded the Methodist movement, created hymn texts that stretched well beyond Methodism to become part of the overall Christian music scene. His words express his personal Christian experience, experts say, as well as the seasons of the liturgical year and aspects of church life, including Communion.

“Just about every Christian church sings some of the hymns that Charles Wesley wrote,” said the Rev. Robert Williams, general secretary of the United Methodist Church’s General Commission on Archives and History.

“We celebrate Christmas with `Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.’ We celebrate Easter with `Christ the Lord is Risen Today.”’

At a concert Friday (July 20) at Asbury United Methodist Church, a choir and soloists rendered contemporary musical settings of Wesley’s hymns, such as “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus” and “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling.” The evening closed with an exuberant version of “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” by composer Mark Miller, with the congregation singing the hymn’s first verse: “O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace!”

Wesley wrote thousands of hymn texts, referencing all but four books of the Bible, said Eileen Guenther, associate professor of church music at Washington’s Wesley Theological Seminary, and the conductor of the convocation’s Festival of Music.

“His texts have to do with love and grace and social justice, which were central to the founding of Methodism and are still part of what Methodism is about today,” Guenther said.

At a workshop in nearby Chevy Chase, Md., the day after the festival, experts on Wesley’s music used a small boombox to present more contemporary and international settings of his words.

They ranged from an American gospel-style version of “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” by Wayne Pascall Acappella to Brazilian composer Marcilio de Oliveira’s version of “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus.”

S T Kimbrough, the founding president of the Charles Wesley Society, said the gentle guitar interludes of de Oliveira’s composition give people time to find their place in their hymnbook or pause between stanzas of the poetry.

“And this is what the organist never does, is let you catch your breath,” he joked, as the historians and musicians in the audience laughed.

Carlton R. Young, editor of The United Methodist Hymnal, said the selections he and Kimbrough presented exemplify where church music is today.

“These do not pose absolutes but alternatives,” said Young, who, like Kimbrough, has written music set to Wesley’s words.

In his lifetime, several of Wesley’s hymns were set to tunes by George Frideric Handel, author of the well-known “Messiah,” who Wesley met in the late 1700s.

Now, centuries later, Wesley scholars enjoy hearing his words in their visits abroad, from Hong Kong to Africa.

The Rev. Karen Westerfield Tucker, professor of worship at Boston University’s School of Theology, recently returned from Hong Kong where she watched primary and secondary Methodist school students compete in a contest by singing Wesley texts.

“The kids had a blast,” she said. “And the kids knew what they were singing about.”

Likewise, the Rev. Paul Chilcote, the current president of the Charles Wesley Society, heard Wesley’s words in Africa, where the Duke Divinity School visiting professor spent five years.

“The early Methodist people learned their theology by singing it,” said Chilcote. “And I think that the Wesleyan hymnody still plays an important role, not just for Methodism but for global Christianity in terms of communicating the essence of the Christian faith, which is God’s love for us.”

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A photo of Wesley is available via https://religionnews.com.EDS: S T (no periods) Kimbrough in graf 13 is cq