Psalm 30 is “a song for the dedication of the temple.” The psalmist praises God for having delivered him from death, for having raised him from the pit so that his enemies could not gloat over his death.
So why does the church choose this psalm for the Easter season? For one thing, it harkens back to the words of Jesus when he drove the moneychangers out of the temple in Jerusalem. When the Jews protested, he said: “Destroy this temple and I will raise it up again in three days.” (Jn 2:19) They had no idea what he was talking about. Even his followers didn’t understand what Jesus was saying until he was raised from the dead and they remembered his words.
With the apostles and the disciples of Jesus, we too share the joy of his resurrection—and in contrast to our throwaway culture, celebrate that joy for several weeks. The merciful God who raised his Son from the dead has changed our own mourning into dancing. It’s not a stretch to think of Sydney Carter’s song, “Lord of the Dance (Simple Gifts).”
Carter was an English poet, songwriter and musician, who used the “Simple Gifts” tune partly as a tribute to Shaker music. He wrote, for the Shakers, that dancing was a spiritual activity—as it had been for King David.
Carter also said, “Sometimes, for a change I sing the whole song in the present tense.” Now isn’t that an interesting perspective to explore with your music ministry members!
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from Religious Clip Art for the Liturgical Year (A, B, and C).
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