CHORAL EVENSONG

This past Sunday evening we held our first Choral Evensong since returning to our beloved sanctuary. The service was a truly magical and transformative experience for everyone including those in the choir, myself, and all in attendance. We had several first-time visitors for whom this was their first worship experience at St. Gregory’s.

Evensong is perhaps one of the most beautiful of all services that comes out of the Anglican tradition. It is basically Evening Prayer, except that most of it, apart from a few prayers and scripture readings, is sung by a choir and cantor. The office of Evensong traces its history of origin all the way back to Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary I under whose hand he was burned at the stake in Oxford during her attempt to return England to Catholicism. Cranmer was trying to figure out a way to reduce the number of services within a day as there were a series of services known as The Hours which required one to attend many services throughout the day. He ended up combining two of the final services of the day which were Vespers, sung at sunset, and Compline, so called because it completed the day, into one service. We find that the two major canticles of Evensong, the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, come from Vespers and Compline respectfully. The form of the service with the psalms, scripture, collects and prayers all originate from these two services and hasn’t changed too terribly much since first appearing in the 1549 Prayer Book. 

As we remember the tradition of Candlemas (The Feast of the Presentation) on February 2, I want to emphasize a strong connection between this observance and Evensong. Candlemas is celebrated on the 2nd day of February of each year as a day of renewal, hope, and purification. According to an ancient Jewish custom, a woman who gives birth to a child will be unclean and homebound for a certain number of days after the birth. The days for this custom differ between the birth of a boy and the birth of a girl. If a boy child is born, the woman is unclean for seven days and then she remains at home for an additional thirty-three days for a total of 40 days. If a girl child is born, the woman is unclean for 14 days and then she remains at home for an additional sixty-six days for a total of 80 days. During these time periods, the woman touches nothing holy. February 2nd is exactly 40 days after the birth of Jesus Christ and it is on this day that Mother Mary along with Joseph brought forth their newborn son, Jesus, to the Temple. Mother Mary was cleaned on this day and the baby Jesus was presented to the Lord in the Temple.  

During this time, an elderly holy man named Simeon was told by the Holy Spirit that his death would not come until he saw the Messiah. When Simeon entered the temple and held the baby Jesus, he knew that Jesus had come for the salvation of all and proclaimed that Jesus was “A light to the revelation of the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel.” In the early Church, Simeon’s reference to Christ as The Light was the inspiration for the celebration with candles and remains to this day a symbol of the Christian celebration of the purification of Mother Mary and the first appearance of Jesus in the Temple. During the early years, people would place their candles outside the church in order to be blessed. They would then carry them in a procession to church in order to imitate the appearance of Jesus in the Temple.  

The Song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis) is sung at every Evensong along with the Song of Mary (The Magnificat) reminding us throughout the church year of this special liturgy celebrating the Feast of the Presentation.  So, you see, each and every Choral Evensong serves as a distinct reminder of this most significant aspect of the Christmas season with the presentation of the Christ-child and the proclamation by Simeon. 

Many countless musical settings of the canticles and psalms have been composed throughout the centuries making the service of Evensong rich in musical diversity, beauty, and heritage and we in the Anglican Church are very blessed to have these services upon which to draw inspiration and guidance through their graceful elegance and tradition.    

St. Gregory’s is one of the few South Florida parishes to offer Choral Evensong and I hope you’ll take advantage of this incredible office of the Episcopal Church which is made even more beautiful than ever before by our newly renovated sanctuary.  And, we couldn’t do it without the talents of our amazing choir and the support of all of you.   

Choral Evensong truly is making a difference in the life of our community.   

Blessings,

Tim Brumfield