These readings and this psalm show up just as hurricane season is beginning! Not only are hurricanes forming, but parts of the country have gotten so much rain from storms moving inland that rivers have risen in floods far higher than expected. Overcrowded ferries in Asia have capsized recently in relatively mild storms, with enormous loss of life. President John F. Kennedy, a shipwreck survivor, had on his desk a wedge-shaped plaque with the Breton Fisherman’s Prayer: “O God, thy sea is so great, and my boat is so small.”
Storms on land can be very destructive, but storms at sea are flat-out terrifying: there’s nowhere to hide! And metaphorically, all of us face shipwreck at some point in our lives.
Psalm 107 appears only once in the lectionary, so there’s a strong temptation to skip it and use one of the seasonal psalms instead. But it’s such a wonderful psalm! Granted, finding a good setting isn’t easy.
Besides “Eternal Father, Strong to Save” (Melita), three more songs really resonate today. One is Tom Kendzia’s brilliant adaptation of Charles A. Tindley’s spiritual “Stand by Me.” Another is Michael Joncas’s sturdy adaptation of Vernon J. Charlesworth’s spiritual “A Shelter in the Time of Storm.” The third is the stalwart “O God, Our Help in Ages Past” (St. Anne), which, in addition to referring to God as our shelter from the stormy blast, has a fourth verse that speaks volumes to those who have lost loved ones in flood waters.
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from Religious Clip Art for the Liturgical Year (A, B, and C).
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